Romane von Zara Nightwood

Moonridge was quiet for the first time in days.The forest seemed to hold its breath. The air shimmered faintly under the silver glow of the full moon, and every wolf in the pack sensed it. Even Rowan, standing atop the ridge overlooking their territory, felt the tension coil inside him like a living thing.Aria sat beside him, her gaze fixed on the moon. The strange energy that had surged within her during the last battle was pulsing stronger tonight. It felt alive, ancient, and boundless, as if the moon itself had embedded a piece of its soul within her.“You feel it too,” Rowan said quietly, his hand brushing lightly against hers.She nodded, her silver eyes reflecting the moonlight. “It’s… different now. Stronger. More demanding.”Rowan’s wolf growled beneath his skin. He could sense the raw potential waiting inside her

The forest beyond Moonridge territory seemed alive with menace.Rowan moved swiftly through the trees, his wolf surging alongside him. Every sense was alert, every muscle ready. Behind him, Moonridge warriors followed in silence, their nerves taut but their loyalty unshakable.Aria ran beside him, silver eyes scanning the darkness. Her senses were still heightened from the last battle. The energy inside her pulsed faintly, like moonlight under her skin. She could feel Kael’s presence ahead, a dark aura that made her wolf bristle.Rowan slowed near a ridge overlooking the valley. Below, the enemy camp stretched across the open forest floor. Fires flickered in scattered circles. Shadows moved among them. The golden glint of Kael’s eyes caught the torchlight.“There,” Aria whispered.Rowan nodded grimly. His jaw was tight, his black wolf coiling like a spring inside him. He glanced

Smoke still drifted through the Moonridge courtyard long after the enemy wolves had vanished into the forest.Warriors rushed between buildings, stamping out flames and carrying the wounded to the healer’s hall. The scent of ash mixed with blood hung thick in the air, leaving a bitter taste at the back of every wolf’s throat.Rowan stood at the centre of the courtyard, his chest rising and falling as he tried to contain the fury boiling inside him.The attack had been precise.Strategic.Timed perfectly.Which meant only one thing.Someone inside Moonridge had warned Kael exactly when the pack would be vulnerable.Aria approached slowly, her silver eyes reflecting the flickering firelight.“You’re thinking about the traitor again.”Rowan exhaled sharply.“

The forest was silent after Lena’s final breath.Too silent.Rowan knelt beside her body, his hands stained with her blood. The scent of it hung thick in the cold morning air, metallic and sharp. Around them, the Moonridge warriors stood tense, their wolves restless beneath their skin.Lena’s lifeless eyes stared toward the pale sky.She had almost spoken the truth.Almost.Rowan clenched his jaw.“Damn it.”Aria stood several feet away, staring into the treeline where the blade had come from. Her instincts screamed that whoever had thrown it was already gone.But they had been close.Too close.“They were watching,” she said quietly.Rowan rose slowly, fury radiating from him like heat from a wildfire.“I know.”

Dawn broke over Moonridge like a blade cutting through fog. But the light did nothing to ease the tension hanging over the pack territory. Beta Damien was dead. And the real traitor was still somewhere inside Moonridge. Rowan stood in the courtyard before the gathered warriors, his posture rigid with barely restrained fury. Nearly the entire pack had been called together. Wolves stood in tense clusters, whispering anxiously as rumours spread like wildfire. Aria stood beside Rowan, her silver eyes scanning the crowd carefully. Fear. Suspicion. Anger. She could smell it on them.

The forest had never felt so still. Rowan stood across from Kael, every muscle in his body coiled tight with restrained fury. The moonlight filtered through the towering trees, illuminating the clearing where the three Alphas now faced one another. Tension crackled in the air like lightning before a storm. Aria remained between them, though her attention had shifted completely. To Kael’s last words. The kind that brings the dead back to life. Her chest tightened. “You’re lying,” Rowan said coldly. Kael tilted his head slightly. “Am I?” Rowan took a step forward.