Kai"I don’t trust Magnus either," I said, my voice measured, "but we can use him to gather intel on Draco. Only on Draco. None of the other nine. He must not be fully briefed—am I clear?"Darius gave a firm nod, understanding the limits I was setting.I exhaled, my mind already calculating the next step."More importantly, we need to figure out what really happened in that village. I don’t buy Abraham’s version of events. The silence surrounding it is unnatural—too clean. Either it was compulsion, or it was something far worse—a mass poisoning, a calculated slaughter designed to fuel a cause, propaganda at its darkest. We need to investigate it thoroughly, and if there are any survivors, we need to find them."I knew I was asking a lot. But this wasn’t just a task; it was a necessity."I’ll be joining the investigation myself," I added, glancing between them. "But we have to be inconspicuous. No one should know what we’re doing, not even a whisper of it. I have reason to believe Drac
KaiI studied Austin where he knelt, his face twisted with defiance, but there was something else in his eyes—something unsettling. Delusion.Had he truly convinced himself that his daughter still had a claim here? That this was supposed to be her home? We had already settled this at the summon—the very summon he initiated, lawyered up for, and dragged me through. And yet, here he was, spouting the same nonsense.I already felt violated, cheated—trapped into a contract I never agreed to, manipulated into a marriage I never wanted. But I refused to be bullied. I refused to be forced into submission. To comply would make me weak, and I was anything but weak.I leaned forward slightly, my voice even but sharp as a blade."I thought we finalized that at the summon, Austin. Your daughter should have remained in Rivercreek as their Luna—not here. I don’t need her here, and, frankly, you’ve done such a poor job raising her that I wouldn’t wish her on my people."A muscle ticked in his jaw, a
KaiI handed her the tablet, my eyes fixed on her as she took it with trembling hands. The second her gaze landed on the image—the brutal carnage, the bodies, the sheer horror of it all—she gasped.Her breath hitched, and I gave her a moment to process. She needed it. The fear on her face was unmistakable."Look familiar?" I asked, my voice steady but firm.She turned to me, her wide, tear-filled eyes searching mine, her lips trembling as if she had already braced for an accusation."I don’t have compulsion abilities, Alpha," she blurted out, her voice cracking. "I swear, I had no hand in this."I shook my head immediately. "No, May. I know it wasn’t you."Relief flickered in her expression, but it was short-lived.I leaned forward, locking eyes with her. "There are only two people capable of something like this—James Moonchild and Michelle Westwood’s child."**Her body tensed, but I wasn’t done."The same child you took to safety."The colour drained from her face."Where is she, May
Kai"I never thought a day would come when I would be the one to reveal her secret."May’s voice was thick with sorrow, as if the words physically pained her. "But I know she is in safer hands now. And my time… my time is numbered."She exhaled, a long, weary sigh, then met my gaze with quiet resignation. "So I will pass it on to you."Silence hung between us for a moment before she continued, her voice lower now, as if the truth itself was too fragile to speak aloud."My friend gave her to a desperate couple who lived in the West." She swallowed hard. "They had come to the southern border, pleading for adoption rights, but their regional Alpha denied them. Said they didn’t qualify."She paused, as if reliving the memory, before pressing on. "They took the baby west and raised her there. And that was all I knew… until recently."Slowly, she lifted her gaze to meet mine, something unspoken swimming in her eyes."When I saw her… it was like seeing a ghost." Her voice trembled, thick wit
AdashaLiving in a gilded cage—this is my reality. For some of us, life becomes an inescapable trap, bound by invisible chains that are too tight, too complex to break. No matter how hard we try to free ourselves, we remain ensnared.At eighteen, I was chosen to be Luna of Woodshire. What should have been an honour quickly turned into a waking nightmare. Back then, Randy—my husband and Alpha—had seemed perfect. He was charming, attentive, and loving during our courtship. Everyone envied me, even to the point of jealousy. I lost friends over it, but I didn’t care. We weren’t fated mates, but I told myself love could grow.For the first year, it did seem like a dream. Then the dream soured. Randy revealed a darker side—jealous, controlling, violent. Every attempt I made to leave only worsened the situation.He wielded his power like a weapon, threatening to eliminate my parents if I tried to escape. It wasn’t an empty threat; Randy controlled the entire western territory and had the me
AdashaThe slap came without warning, a crack of force that sent my head snapping to the side. Pain blossomed across my cheek, sharp and stinging, leaving me disoriented. My breath hitched, caught somewhere between shock and fear. I stumbled backward, my body colliding with the cold, unyielding wall behind me. There was nowhere to go—not that escape was even an option.“Randy, please,” I whispered, my voice trembling, barely audible over the pounding of my heart. My hands lifted instinctively, palms out, a futile gesture of defense. His fury was palpable, radiating from him in waves that seemed to thicken the very air. His chest heaved, his jaw clenched, and his eyes—those darkened, unrelenting eyes—locked onto mine with a promise I didn’t dare challenge.“Are you not happy here, Adasha?” he asked, his voice chillingly calm. Each word was measured, deliberate, slicing through the tension like a blade. But I knew better than to trust his composure. It wasn’t real. It was the mask
AdashaWhen Randy was finally done, I lay there, too broken to move. My body ached, my soul reduced to tatters.In his usual twisted way, Randy shifted from monster to caregiver, lifting me as though I were fragile, precious even. He cradled me against his chest, the contradiction in his touch as jarring as the bruises forming beneath my skin. Silent and shattered, I let him carry me to the bathroom. set me down gently, his hands careful now, as if to erase the brutality that had preceded this moment.The hot bath filled the room with steam, but I couldn’t feel its warmth. The water lapped at my skin, but all I felt was cold—an icy numbness that settled in my chest, spreading until it reached every corner of me. Cold and disgusted. Not just with him, but with myself.“You need to stop provoking me like this, Adasha,” he murmured, his tone soft, almost tender, as though he were comforting a wounded child. His hands moved the sponge over my battered skin with a gentleness that made
AdashaMorning crept in slowly, the pale light casting long shadows across the room. Randy’s presence loomed heavy, as suffocating as ever.The buzz of his phone broke the silence, and he answered it sharply, his tone clipped and controlled.“Jason,” he said, and my stomach dropped. Why was Jason calling him?Anxiety surged through me, my pulse roaring in my ears as I strained to catch the other side of the conversation.Randy’s voice grew colder with each word. “I see,” he said, the sharp edge of anger unmistakable. His gaze turned to me, piercing and heavy, pinning me in place.I felt exposed, every secret laid bare under his suspicion.“Okay. Thank you,” he said curtly, ending the call.He set the phone aside and turned his full attention to me. His expression was dark, menacing, and my breath hitched as the silence stretched.“Did you think Jason would go against me, Adasha?” he asked, his voice low and deadly.I froze, panic surging. What had Jason told him?“Throwing yourself at
Kai"I never thought a day would come when I would be the one to reveal her secret."May’s voice was thick with sorrow, as if the words physically pained her. "But I know she is in safer hands now. And my time… my time is numbered."She exhaled, a long, weary sigh, then met my gaze with quiet resignation. "So I will pass it on to you."Silence hung between us for a moment before she continued, her voice lower now, as if the truth itself was too fragile to speak aloud."My friend gave her to a desperate couple who lived in the West." She swallowed hard. "They had come to the southern border, pleading for adoption rights, but their regional Alpha denied them. Said they didn’t qualify."She paused, as if reliving the memory, before pressing on. "They took the baby west and raised her there. And that was all I knew… until recently."Slowly, she lifted her gaze to meet mine, something unspoken swimming in her eyes."When I saw her… it was like seeing a ghost." Her voice trembled, thick wit
KaiI handed her the tablet, my eyes fixed on her as she took it with trembling hands. The second her gaze landed on the image—the brutal carnage, the bodies, the sheer horror of it all—she gasped.Her breath hitched, and I gave her a moment to process. She needed it. The fear on her face was unmistakable."Look familiar?" I asked, my voice steady but firm.She turned to me, her wide, tear-filled eyes searching mine, her lips trembling as if she had already braced for an accusation."I don’t have compulsion abilities, Alpha," she blurted out, her voice cracking. "I swear, I had no hand in this."I shook my head immediately. "No, May. I know it wasn’t you."Relief flickered in her expression, but it was short-lived.I leaned forward, locking eyes with her. "There are only two people capable of something like this—James Moonchild and Michelle Westwood’s child."**Her body tensed, but I wasn’t done."The same child you took to safety."The colour drained from her face."Where is she, May
KaiI studied Austin where he knelt, his face twisted with defiance, but there was something else in his eyes—something unsettling. Delusion.Had he truly convinced himself that his daughter still had a claim here? That this was supposed to be her home? We had already settled this at the summon—the very summon he initiated, lawyered up for, and dragged me through. And yet, here he was, spouting the same nonsense.I already felt violated, cheated—trapped into a contract I never agreed to, manipulated into a marriage I never wanted. But I refused to be bullied. I refused to be forced into submission. To comply would make me weak, and I was anything but weak.I leaned forward slightly, my voice even but sharp as a blade."I thought we finalized that at the summon, Austin. Your daughter should have remained in Rivercreek as their Luna—not here. I don’t need her here, and, frankly, you’ve done such a poor job raising her that I wouldn’t wish her on my people."A muscle ticked in his jaw, a
Kai"I don’t trust Magnus either," I said, my voice measured, "but we can use him to gather intel on Draco. Only on Draco. None of the other nine. He must not be fully briefed—am I clear?"Darius gave a firm nod, understanding the limits I was setting.I exhaled, my mind already calculating the next step."More importantly, we need to figure out what really happened in that village. I don’t buy Abraham’s version of events. The silence surrounding it is unnatural—too clean. Either it was compulsion, or it was something far worse—a mass poisoning, a calculated slaughter designed to fuel a cause, propaganda at its darkest. We need to investigate it thoroughly, and if there are any survivors, we need to find them."I knew I was asking a lot. But this wasn’t just a task; it was a necessity."I’ll be joining the investigation myself," I added, glancing between them. "But we have to be inconspicuous. No one should know what we’re doing, not even a whisper of it. I have reason to believe Drac
KaiI strode into my office, determination coursing through my veins. Today, I would get to the bottom of things—no distractions, no detours.The air felt charged with anticipation as I settled in, waiting for the others. Gabe was the first to arrive, his usual easygoing demeanour intact.I knew Darius would take a little longer; the exhaustion was bound to catch up with him. That was fine.Leaning back in my chair, I eyed Gabe with curiosity. “Heard you’ve been sparring with Adasha,” I said, arching a brow.A slow grin spread across his face—he knew exactly how I’d feel about that. “Didn’t want her missing you too much. There isn’t much to do around here, you know.” He chuckled, clearly enjoying himself.I huffed, but his words had my full attention. “She’s a tough one,” he continued, his tone carrying something close to admiration.“I haven’t even seen her wolf yet, but damn, she’s fierce. Gifted, no doubt—a true Luna. I gave it everything I had, and she still held her own. Didn’t b
KaiWe lay in bed, the quiet hum of the afternoon wrapping around us. I pulled her close, savoring the warmth of her body against mine.There were a thousand things demanding my attention, but at that moment, none of them mattered."So, you spent the entire time painting?" I asked, my fingers absentmindedly tracing patterns along her arm."Not really," she murmured, turning slightly to meet my gaze. "Gabe started training me yesterday. It was fun. It’s been a long time since I sparred with anyone. I really enjoyed it."I frowned, my muscles tensing.Gabriel never mentioned that. And while I trusted him, the thought of him sparring with her—touching her, even in training—didn’t sit right with me.Was he just helping her, or was he taking liberties?I knew I shouldn’t think like that, but with Adasha, jealousy seemed to be a demon I would struggle to tame."Henceforth, you spar with me," I said, my voice firm, leaving no room for debate.She chuckled softly, her eyes dancing with amusem
KaiThe drive back to the East was long, stretching endlessly before me. I should have felt relief at returning home, at finally being able to put my territories in order—but instead, my mind was a battlefield.I needed to be on high alert. The families were meeting behind our backs, conspiring in whispers, and I had to uncover the truth before it was too late.Was it the Westwood child orchestrating this? Or was it James?Logic pointed to the former. James had never given cause for alarm in all these years. If it were him, we would have seen signs long ago.According to May’s account, if this ability—the power of compulsion—had existed for generations, we should have heard whispers of massacres long before I was even born.Yet, the first real event had only happened recently.That could mean only one thing.The perpetrator was either my age or younger—someone who had only just come into their power or someone who had been pushed to their limits, provoked like Michelle had been in the
RandyDraco studied me, searching for a reaction, for some tell that I had more to hide. But I gave him nothing.I saw the exact moment when he realized he wasn’t going to get under my skin and silently conceded.I decided to press forward."That’s all I have to say about Jason," I stated firmly. "What happens in my pack is my business, Draco. And I don’t take kindly to you snooping around in it. I doubt you’d appreciate me digging into the affairs of the North, would you?"Draco exhaled, raising his hands in a slow, placating gesture. "He reached out to me, Randy. I didn’t go looking for him." His voice was even, but there was something insistent in his tone. "All I’m saying is we should question your in-laws and see what they know. It would put us ahead of Abraham and the others. We need to secure ourselves before they do."I chuckled, low and deliberate. The laugh wasn’t genuine—it was calculated, meant to throw him off, to make him second-guess his angle."Only a fool would take
RandyDraco’s words unsettled me, and I could tell he wasn’t just speculating—he knew something, or at the very least, he had a gut feeling I couldn’t afford to ignore.The suggestion raised in the meeting had been absurd, and I was relieved when it was struck down. But now, hearing him speak with such certainty, a sliver of doubt crept in.I didn’t want to appear too concerned, so I kept my tone light. "They were just testing their luck," I said, leaning back.Draco exhaled sharply and shook his head."On the contrary, Randy. Do you really think they made that proposal hoping we'd agree? No. They’re planning something as we speak."I frowned, sitting forward. "So what do you propose?"Draco sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. He wasn’t enjoying this conversation any more than I was. "You already know what I’m going to say," he muttered.I waited, watching him.Finally, he spoke. "We’ve never seen eye to eye, and we both prefer to keep to ourselves. But this isn’t about preference a