emiliamarcus14의 작품

“Sweep the entire northern border.” I said, not bothering to hide the edge in my voice. “Every inch, I want to know who dares to enter my territory, and I need reports by midnight, is that clear?”“ Yes, your majesty.” He bowed quickly.“Fetch Rowan on your way out.” The door closed and the room fell quiet again. I turned back to the window, staring at the dark stretch of land beyond the palace walls, knowing she wasn’t safe.I didn’t realise I had started pacing until the door opened again.“You sent for me.”Rowan stepped in, already alert, “I heard what happened.”I didn’t respond immediately, “Keeping her here made her an easy target,” I said at last. “The army has already been deployed, we will have a report by midnight.”“This is unfolding faster than we expected, and if they’re bold enough to breach your territory…”“They didn’t breach it.”He frowned, “What do you mean?”“There was no disturbance at the boundary, no signal, no sign of entry,” I met his gaze, “ whoever took he

Dust streamed in from the cracks in the ceiling, the wooden beams above groaning under the force of what seemed like a hundred wolves, the air thickened, charged like the moment before a storm breaks.I couldn’t breathe, every instinct in my body screamed the same thing-Run! Yet I couldn’t move.The traveller paced around the room, his movements controlled, yet restless.“That’s not possible,” he yelled, “he shouldn’t be here now, not this soon…”Another impact hit, this time, closer, causing the entire structure to lurch violently to one side, the far wall cracked, jagged lines racing towards the ceiling. The chaos outside was no longer distant, I could hear the screams, the orders and the unmistakable sound of bodies hitting the ground.My pulse roared in my ears, “Why is he here already?” I whispered, my voice unsteady, “what did you do?”He didn’t answer me, before I could react, he stepped forward and crouched in front of me , closing his fingers around the rope at my wrists,

Dust streamed in from the cracks in the ceiling, the wooden beams above groaning under the force of what seemed like a hundred wolves, the air thickened, charged like the moment before a storm breaks.I couldn’t breathe, every instinct in my body screamed the same thing-Run! Yet I couldn’t move.The traveller paced around the room, his movements controlled, yet restless.“That’s not possible,” he yelled, “he shouldn’t be here now, not this soon…”Another impact hit, this time, closer, causing the entire structure to lurch violently to one side, the far wall cracked, jagged lines racing towards the ceiling. The chaos outside was no longer distant, I could hear the screams, the orders and the unmistakable sound of bodies hitting the ground.My pulse roared in my ears, “Why is he here already?” I whispered, my voice unsteady, “what did you do?”He didn’t answer me, before I could react, he stepped forward and crouched in front of me , closing his fingers around the rope at my wrists,

Consciousness returned in fragments in a dark room, there was nothing but the dull rhythm of hooves striking earth and the cold bite of air against my skin; my arms tired behind my back, rough rope cutting my wrists, the scent of unfamiliar wolves. The memory rushed back all at once; the gardens, the well, hands grabbing me, the cloth over my face. I gasped for breath and quickly calmed down–panicking wouldn't help me now.Slowly, and carefully, I shifted my hand in a bid to loosen the rope, but the more I tried, the further the fibres dug into my skin; then it hit me, struggling was pointless and so was calling for help.I held still and listened. At first it was nothing, then a faint sound reached me through the walls, low voices, I couldn’t recognise any of them, nor the scent. My stomach tightened at the thought of what they might do to me, someone had planned this I was sure, another thought followed quickly behind it, why me?The sound of footsteps approaching the door interru

The moment the guards left, the strength drained out of my spine.I gripped the edge of the war table before my knees gave way. The maps scattered beneath my hands, parchment crumpling as a violent pulse tore through my chest–Pain.Not mine, Hers.A sharp, sudden jolt; like a rope yanked tight between us.I inhaled sharply, Impossible.“I rejected her,” I said under my breath, forcing the words into the empty room as if speaking them could make them true. “The bond should be gone.” But It wasn’t, I could still feel her. Faint, distant, but alive.Every heartbeat… I knew it. Every flicker of fear…it echoed inside my ribs. My wolf paced restlessly beneath my skin, claws scraping against bone, refusing to settle.You failed, it seemed to growl.I slammed my fist into the table and the wood cracked under the impact. A rejection from an Alpha should sever the mate bond completely, It always had, for generations, what had changed?Yet the thread between us still held, I closed my eyes, and

I woke to a heartbeat that was not my own. I kept getting flashbacks of the events from the night before, perhaps, that could be the reason why sleep had abandoned me. The room was quiet, filled only with the soft breathing of the other girls. The words of the traveller from the night before continued to ring in my head, and somewhere inside the territory, Alpha Xander was awake, I could still feel him, so much, I didn’t notice someone had walked in.“Water for the Lady’s bath,” the head servant said, bringing me back to reality, placing an empty pail into my hands. “The inner wells are reserved. Use the courtyard well.” My fingers tightened around the handle. “Yes.”The courtyard roared with activity; sparring wolves, shouting commands, metal striking metal. I kept close to the wall as I walked, eyes lowered, wishing I could disappear into the stone. No one spoke to me, but I felt it. The looks, the quiet hostility. A rejected mate was a bad omen. I reached the well and wrapped the