5

Derek's POV

I stood behind the window, with a bottle of wine in my hand, staring at the luminous moon hanging in the sky when my memories began to flow. Five years ago, I was just eighteen, and I had yet to find my wolf, which made me a disappointment to my parents. They were kings, powerful in their own right, and their relentless demands felt overwhelming.

“You’re too weak. You’re reckless. Your brother is the one fit to lead,” they had said.

“You’ll never be worthy of this palace,” my father’s voice cut through, cold and laced with disappointment. “Not until you find your wolf and prove you can control it.”

Control. That’s all they ever talked about—power and dominance. Control your power, control your emotions, control everything. But no one spoke of the pain of not belonging, of feeling like a ghost in my skin.

I begged desperately to the Moon Goddess for strength, for a glimpse of my wolf, for any way to escape the suffocating expectations, but there was nothing.

Then, on the full moon, the day my wolf Ragnar showed up.

I was eager to tell my parents, and I ran from the courtyard to inform them, only to see them fawning over my little brother. It hurt, so, so badly.

I didn't know what I had done to deserve such hatred and treatment from them. Maybe, just maybe, if I informed them about Ragnar, their perception of me would change.

A few days later, I had wrapped a paper in a box, a paper on which I had written, "Ragnar. His name is Ragnar." The perfect way to tell them about my wolf.

But as soon as I got to the front, my mother discarded me and reminded me of how weak and unwanted I was. "You’re weak,” my mother spat venomously again.

But somehow, something stared inside of me, “I’ll show you weakness,” I snarled before everything went blank.

When I regained consciousness, the room was painted in crimson. My parents and brothers lay lifeless at my feet, with their blood soaking into my skin. I stood frozen, with my hands stained red in fear.

What had I done? I had killed them. The power, which I had longed for, had devoured me whole. The Moon Goddess hadn’t blessed me; she had cursed me with a beast that hungered for chaos, a ferocious wolf. Only my mate’s wolf could tame Ragnar.

A piercing pain shot through my chest. I screamed, but no sound escaped. I was trapped in this cursed existence. Anytime I closed my eyes, the pain gnawed at me for years, reminding me of my mistakes.

Suddenly, a knock on the door brought me back to the present.

I ignored it. Whoever it was had come at the wrong time—they needed to leave.

But the knock persisted. Who dared disturb me now? Before I could respond, my childhood friend and Beta called out, “King Derek, please open up!”

His voice held a tone of urgency that made my heart race. What did he want? He was the only one who knew about what happened years ago and how we had both covered it up.

“Come in,” I growled as I stepped away from the window.

He entered and briskly closed the door behind him. As soon as his gaze met mine, he paused, studying me with a keen gaze that seemed to pierce through my carefully crafted façade.

“I have something to tell you about Nicolas,” he said gravely with his tone serious.

“Nicolas?” My heart skipped a beat at the mention of his name.

“What about him?” I forced the words, even though there was a lump in my throat.

My Beta shifted uncomfortably, his gaze locked onto mine as he cleared his throat. “I know what happened!” he blurted. “I saw it in your eyes when you wanted to stop Alpha Alaric.”

My breath caught. Did he see it? He always had the knack for detecting even the slightest change in me. It wasn't entirely surprising, but I thought I had hidden it so well.

Without waiting for a response, he continued, “I did some digging after he left,” he said, extending a file of papers toward me. “About Nicolas.”

I froze in shock. “What are you talking about?”

“You need to see what I found,” he insisted, his expression grim, making me shift uncomfortably.

My pulse quickened as I snatched the file and flipped it open. My eyes scanned across the pages, but then something sinister caught my attention

Moonshadow Pack! The pack where he had claimed to come from didn’t exist; there was nothing like the moonshadow pack.

“What the hell is this?” I muttered in dread. The dates didn’t align, either. The Date of birth, which he had claimed, was October 17th, 2004. But his real birth certificate here shows July 22nd, 2005.

Something was wrong. Who the Hell was he? and what ...was his true motive for infiltrating my life?

The file slipped from my hands, falling to the ground as I stared blankly at the words that were now spinning in my mind. Why? What did he stand to gain by hiding his identity, and how much of what I knew about him was a complete fabrication?

"I don't understand," I whispered, more to myself than to my Beta. "Why would he do this?

My Beta's face was grim as he stepped closer, picking up the papers I had dropped. "we are looking into this Alpha, very soon, we will find out who he really is. I promise you King Derek, I will find out who he really is!!"