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. Th
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