MasukTRISTANMy breathing hitched, coming back in slow waves. My muscles felt like lead, heavy and sluggish, but beneath the exhaustion, my wolf was already stirring, claws digging into the fog of unconsciousness. My body was healing faster than any wolf’s, the steady burn of my Alpha blood knitting bone and sinew back together. I kept my eyes shut, letting the darkness fade. Then, it hit me. Yelena. The image of her face burned behind my eyelids. I remembered the weight in my pocket... the ring, the promise I had been seconds away from making. I had been ready to ask her to be my mate, my life, my Luna.But then, the world had tilted.The floor had rushed up to meet me, and everything went black. Where was she? Was she hurt? The panic was a cold claw in my chest, sharper than any wound.I forced my eyelids to flutter open, desperate to see her face. Before I could even adjust to the light, a hand slipped into mine. It was soft, familiar, but it wasn't the warmth I was searching for
DANIEL The woman among them, a server I vaguely recognized from the restaurant shivered so violently the chair beneath her rattled. "Beta, please! I-I know nothing about it. I wasn't the one who served them. Please, you have to believe me!"I cut her off with a sharp wave of my hand, my patience hanging by a thread. "You were on duty last night, weren't you? Your name is on the shift schedule."She clamped her mouth shut, her eyes darting toward the men beside her."Answer me!" I roared, the force of my command causing the very air in the small room to vibrate with a low, menacing growl.She jumped, her resolve snapping like a dry twig. "Yes! Yes, I was on duty! But I didn't see anything. I swear on the Moon, I don't know anything about poisoning!""Quiet," I snapped, silencing her with a glare that froze the tears on her cheeks. "Do not speak again unless I ask you a question. You’re dismissed from this conversation."I shifted my focus to the two men. They were pale, their chests
DANIELI didn't answer her. The question hung in the stagnant air of the corridor like a physical weight, thick and suffocating. How could I explain to the Luna that while I was trying to rest, the world had found a way to strike at him through his own weakness? I watched her face, the way her composure crumbled into a jagged mosaic of maternal terror and simmering, lethal rage.I didn't speak. Instead, I simply pressed the medical report into her trembling hands.Marie stepped in closer, her shoulder brushing mine as she leaned over to read the technical jargon. Her eyes darted across the page, seeking answers, but finding only more dread."I don't understand this," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the hum of the hospital lights. "What does this mean? Poison? What kind of poison?"I took a steadying breath, the air tasting of antiseptic and stale coffee. I had to be the anchor. "He was poisoned, Luna. Someone slipped something into his system that’s designed to sup
DANIEL The high-pitched wail intensified, filling the room with a raw, demanding urgency that made my skin prickle. I spun around, my eyes landing on the tiny, swaddled bundle that had, moments ago, been the image of peaceful perfection. Now, her little face was scrunched into a mask of indignation, her limbs flailing against the confines of her blanket."What does she want?" I asked, my voice betraying my complete lack of experience. I felt like I was facing a threat I couldn't neutralize, and that helpless feeling was worse than any battlefield tension.Miss Moonrack let out a soft, breathless laugh, though it was tinged with exhaustion. "I don't know for certain, but she definitely wants to eat. Help me, Daniel. Bring her here so I can feed her."I hesitated, standing like a statue. Then, I took a step toward the crib and stopped. My shoes felt heavy on the linoleum, and the baby’s cries seemed to bounce off the walls, vibrating in my teeth. I reached out a hand, hovered over
DANIELMinutes later, I gently released Miss Moonrack’s hand and stood, my legs feeling slightly stiff as I navigated the small space toward the crib. I leaned over, my breath hitching in my throat. She was breathtaking. Even for a newborn, she looked remarkably healthy, a sturdy, precious little thing with skin as soft as velvet. Everything about her... the tiny, curled fingers, the button nose, the faint fuzz of hair on her head... was perfection. She was a tiny, sleeping miracle, so peaceful in the quiet hum of the hospital room that I felt like an intruder just by breathing the same air.I extended a finger, trembling slightly, and brushed the back of it against her cheek. It was so incredibly soft, warm with the heat of life. I pulled back immediately, terrified that even the lightest touch might shatter the stillness of her slumber."Daniel?"The soft, fragile call pulled me back to reality. I turned around to find Miss Moonrack watching me, her gaze heavy with a questio
DANIEL "Yes, please do," she snapped, cutting me off with a jagged edge of sarcasm."Explain where you and my brother took Yelena to. Her parents are at the pack house right now, and they are absolutely livid. They are demanding answers, Daniel. My brother took her on a date, and they both just vanished off the face of the earth. Do you have any idea how that looks? Who disappears without a trace?"My heart hammered against my ribs, a dull thud of dread competing with the lingering joy of the baby's arrival. My grip on the phone tightened until my knuckles blanched."They are at your place?" I asked, my voice dangerously low."Yes, they’re here, and they aren't leaving until they see their daughter," she fired back, her voice thick with the mounting pressure of the situation. "What would you do if your child didn't come home? If she was supposed to be back and she was just… gone? Tell me, what would you do?"I didn't have an answer, not while she was in this state.How do you explai
YELENANight had fallen, thick and heavy, like a velvet curtain pressing down on the city. I had promised Lena... finally, she could run. Finally, she could stretch, feel the wind in her fur, and taste the freedom she wanted.I had a night shift ahead at the hospital, but first, I had to honor that
YELENAI kept staring at the same spot on the wall like the answers were hidden there. My chest still felt tight. My head still felt full. Ria was gone. Just like that. One minute, we were fighting for her life with everything in us, and the next minute, she was lying there cold. I still couldn’t w
YELENA I hit the table, hard enough to make the wood thrum under my palm, but he didn’t stop. Tristan kept walking toward me like I was some challenge he had to conquer, and my chest tightened with something I didn’t want to name. What was wrong with him? Why wasn’t he scared of me?“What are you
YELENAThe first thing I felt was a heavy weight on my hand.It was warm, tight, and almost desperate.When I opened my eyes, everything was bright white and blurry. I blinked once, twice, until the room finally stopped spinning. I was in a hospital bed. Me... a whole doctor lying down like one hel







