Chapter 103: Another Luna?Zarina's POVI woke up. Asher wasn’t beside me.Again.I reached out to touch the cold where he should be and looked up towards the ceiling. My heart was disturbed. It wasn't the first time he disappeared without a word. He's been doing that increasingly often. Leaving early. Returning late. Saying he's busy with "pack matters."But I could sense it. Something wasn't right.I got up from bed and went to visit the children. They were asleep, silently breathing beneath their blankets. I kissed both of them on their foreheads and smiled, but the smile never reached my heart. There was something within me that was shaking.I went downstairs to make tea. The house was silent, and there was time to think. Too much time.Why was Asher so late coming home last night?Why did he smell differently?His hug was not long. His words were soft but empty. He said nothing was wrong, but I could see in his eyes that he was exhausted. Or maybe it was more than exhaustion. Ma
Chapter 104: I Can Feel ItZarina's POVI sat beside the bed, my arms around my knees.The house was black, but I didn't turn on the light. The only light came from the moon outside, shining through the curtains in narrow, silver strips. All was quiet. Too quiet. The children slumbered peacefully in their rooms. The whole house felt like it was holding its breath.And so was I.Asher hadn't come back yet.He had left hours ago—just saying he had to meet with some warriors. He didn't say where. He didn't say when he'd be back. He didn't kiss my forehead like he always did. He didn't even look at me.That in itself had created a knot in my chest.But then something even stranger happened.A full hour after he'd departed, the whole pack house came alive. Footsteps, laughter, doors opening and closing. I looked out the window and saw people—warriors, maids, young wolves, even elders—all dressed up as if they were going to some sort of festival. Some wore perfume. Some were in clean clothe
:Chapter 103: Something Is WrongZarina's POVThe night was heavy.I rolled over in bed for what felt like the hundredth time, gazing at the vacant space next to me.Asher hadn't slept.I thought at first that he was working late again in his office. But when I waited and waited, finally I got up, put on my robe, and crept down the hall to locate him.I didn't have far to go.The moment I pushed open the door to our bedroom, I caught sight of him already halfway down the hall, dressed in the dark shirt and pants, his expression impassive."Asher?" I whispered.He slowed, turned to me.His eyes weren't warm as they should have been. They were weary. Guarded."Don't you want to go to bed?"He paused. "No. I have something I need to attend to.""At midnight?" I widened my eyes. "Where are you going?""Just… some meetings," he replied too swiftly.Meetings? At night? At the middle of the week?That wasn't typical. He never stayed this late unless there was some kind of emergency. And eve
Chapter 102: The Secret BondAsher's POVThe night was quiet, yet my heart was not.The moon was low in the sky, glowing like a ghostly eye that watched all my movements. I moved down the forest road cautiously, my fingers clenching on the steering wheel more than they needed to. Trees towered over on either side of the road like brooding, tall sentinels. My wolf inside me stirred, restless. Disquieted.He did not approve of this.Neither did I.But I had made up my mind.I drove up in front of the cabin on the edge of the territory—Cara's place. Well out from the pack house. Alone. And tonight, it felt like I was leaving one world behind and stepping into another.The lights were already on.She waited.I stayed in the for a few more moments. Just breathing. Just thinking. But my chest was too tight. There wasn't a molecule of air in my lungs. No peace in my mind.I got out.Each step to her door felt like a weight. My boots struck the wooden porch quietly, and then I knocked.The do
Chapter 101: A Choice I HateAsher's POVThe clock in my office was ticking loudly, though I was not sure whether it was the sound of time ticking away or merely the sound of my heartbeat thudding in my ears. Everything around me felt empty as if suspended in a place that no longer belonged to me.Moonlight streamed through the windows up high, cutting across the darkness like judgment. It etched cold silver lines across the floor, across the desk, across the photographs gazing back at me from their frames. Cold silver lines, as well as a harsh contrast to the turmoil within my chest.I hadn't shifted in hours.My elbows were on the desk, my hands clenched together so hard my knuckles were pale. Spread out before me were reports—grievances from the border patrols, unsigned resignation letters from warriors, anonymous notes filled with venom and recrimination. But beneath it all, the same message ran clear and loud:The pack was falling out of my grasp.They didn't trust me any longer.
Chapter 100: The One I ChoseAsher's POVZarina didn't speak again for the rest of the night.She curled up next to me, her breath coming softly and slowly, but I knew she wasn't sleeping. Neither did I. How could I, after what she'd said?Mate with Cara?Never.Not in this life. Not in any life.#### I lay in the dark, staring up at the ceiling. I could hear the pain in Zarina's voice when she said those words. It wasn't weakness—it was fear. She was scared, and she thought giving up her heart would save everything.#### But she didn't have to.#### She had me.#### And I would burn the world to ashes before I let anything happen to her or our children.As the hours ticked by, my thoughts spiralled more. This wasn't just about Cara now. This was about the entire pack. The wolves who were still loyal to her. The elders who had remained quiet as Zarina was taken away.I had tried to protect everyone. I had tried to lead with balance. But they mistook kindness for weakness.They didn't
Chapter 99: Just For PeaceZarina's POVI sat at the edge of our bed, staring at the wall. The house was silent. Too silent. The kind of silence that weighed on you, making it hard to breathe.Asher had left for a meeting with the elders, and the children were all in bed upstairs. But my heart wasn't peaceful. My thoughts weren't peaceful. It was as if my mind was battling itself.I wrapped my hands around each other, rubbing fingers against each other slowly, attempting to collect myself. But I couldn't.It was too much.After the terror, since I had come back, I hadn't slept, not really. I was safe now, yet I was still afraid. I still saw their faces in the dark. I still felt the ropes at my wrists, though long gone.I had hoped to be fine once I reached home, in Asher's arms, in my own bed. But the truth was—I wasn't. I was broken on the inside. And worse, I was afraid.Not for me.But for my children.The pack was still tense. Even though Cara wasn't speaking any more, the wounds
Chapter 98: Fading StrengthZarina's POVI lay on the bed, knees folded up against my chest, as the stillness of our room wrapped itself around me. It had been days since Asher brought me back. I was safe. I was home. But deep inside me, something still did not feel like it should be.Sleep didn’t come easily. When it did, it brought with it shadows—dark dreams that left me breathless. I’d wake up gasping, drenched in sweat, my fingers gripping the blanket like it was the only thing holding me together.Tonight was no different.I had slept after midnight or something. Asher had stayed next to me, arm around my waist guardedly, as if he was afraid to let go. His breathing was even. His warmth comforted me.And then I saw it again.In my dream, I was standing in a mist-covered forest. I heard wolves howling in the distance. The wind was whispering my name. And then—I saw Asher. On his knees. Covered in blood. Stretching out for me with pain in his eyes.I woke up with a scream caught i
Chapter 97: The Night AfterZarina's POVThe moon was high above the clouds as Asher brought me into our home. His arms held me so tightly, it was as though he was scared that if he loosened them, I would vanish. I could feel his heart pounding against my side, and his scent—warm and reassuring—wrapped around me like a blanket. For the first time in what felt like forever, I was safe. My mind wasn't.He laid me gently on our bed and sat beside me, brushing my hair back from my face. “You’re home,” he whispered, as if saying the words out loud would make them more real. “You’re safe now, Zarina.”I attempted to speak, to thank him, to say how scared I had been… but my throat shut. I could only nod and take his hand. He squeezed it.Asher did not leave my side for the rest of the night. He sat beside me, his eyes barely straying from mine for more than a second. He brought me warm water, washed my face with a soft cloth, and helped me change into a clean shirt. All of these things, howe