LOGINDarius's POVLiora arrived twenty minutes later.Her golden hair was disheveled, tangled from sleep. She wore a nightgown beneath her robe, and her feet were bare. The guards must have dragged her straight from bed."Darius," she said, her voice trembling. "What is this? Why am I—""Sit down."She saw Sonia standing in the corner. Her face went pale, then red."Whatever she told you, it's a lie.""I said sit down."She sat.I didn't. I stood over her, arms crossed, letting the silence stretch until I could see her pulse hammering in her throat."Sonia tells me you are not the heir of Eclipse Pack," I said. "That Elara is. And that you knew this all along."Liora's lips parted. No sound came out."Tell me the truth," I said. "Or I will hand you over to the warriors and let them extract it from you. You know what they're capable of. You've ordered them to do worse to others."Tears spilled down her cheeks. "Please. Darius. I love you. Everything I did, I did for us.""Tell me."She brok
Darius's POVThe fire in my study had burned out hours ago. I didn't call for more wood. The cold kept my mind sharp, and right now, I needed sharpness more than warmth.Liora had been avoiding me for days.She said she was ill. Said the trip back from the Lycan King's palace had exhausted her. But I saw the way she flinched when I entered a room. The way she found excuses to leave before I could ask her anything.She was hiding something.I didn't care enough to find out what.My thoughts kept drifting elsewhere. To Elara. To the ball. The way she had descended those stairs in a gown that caught the light like water. The way Lucian had looked at her—like she was the only thing in the world worth seeing.That should have been me.I pushed the thought down. She was mated to the beast now. Marked. Bound. There was no going back.A knock at the door pulled me from my brooding."Enter."The guard stepped in, torchlight flickering behind him. "Alpha, there is someone here to see you. She
Elara's POVI didn't remember the walk back to the palace.The forest blurred around me. Branches scraped my arms. Roots tried to trip me. I didn't slow down. My hood fell back. My white hair glowed in the darkness, lighting the path like a torch.Lucian didn't claim you because he loves you.Lies. They had to be lies.But my feet carried me toward the study. Toward the one place I knew he would be this late. Toward the answers I was suddenly terrified to hear.The corridors were empty. The servants had retired. The guards nodded as I passed, but I didn't nod back. I moved like a ghost through the halls I had walked a hundred times.The study door was slightly ajar.Light spilled through the crack. Voices drifted out.I stopped."You need to tell her, Lucian." Gaius. His voice was low, urgent. "She deserves to know the truth before she hears it from someone else.""I know." Lucian's voice was heavy
Elara's POVThe days since the engagement ceremony had blurred into a rhythm I was still learning to love.Wake up. Help the people waiting at the gates. Heal the sick. See the truths hidden in old objects. Stand beside Lucian while the realm learned to trust a White Witch. Fall into bed exhausted. Wake up and do it all again.But something was wrong.I felt it in the way Lucian's eyes lingered on me a moment too long sometimes. In the way Gaius would fall silent when I entered a room. In the way conversations stopped and started again with forced ease.They were hiding something.I told myself I was being paranoid. The curse was weakening. The kingdom was at peace—for now. Darius had retreated to lick his wounds. Sonia was gone. Liora was quiet. Everything should have been perfect.But the knot in my stomach wouldn't loosen.___________________________________________It was midafternoon when the next supplicant arrived.I was in the healing hall, a long chamber off the main courtyar
Lucian's POVThe night of the engagement ceremony had gone exactly as planned.Almost.The grand hall had been filled with the most powerful figures from across the seven realms. The full moon bathed everything in silver light. Elara stood beside me like a vision — white hair glowing brighter than the moon itself, her eyes locked on mine as we exchanged vows and I placed my mark on her neck. The bond between us flared so strongly that even the elders felt it.But then came the unexpected.The moment the mate mark settled on her skin, something inside Elara awakened. A beautiful white wolf spirit rose within her. Her body shimmered with power, and for a brief, breathtaking moment, I saw the outline of her wolf — strong, graceful, and undeniably hers. The entire hall gasped. Even I was stunned into silence for a few heartbeats.Gaius had mentioned weeks ago that he suspected she carried wolf blood too, but he hadn't been certain. T
Elara’s POVIt was really good to be back.The moment I stepped through the palace gates after four long weeks away, a weight I hadn’t realized I was carrying lifted from my shoulders. My time in Alpha Vesper’s and Alpha Lancelot’s packs had drained me completely — not just my body, but my soul. Healing hundreds of sick people day after day, watching children fade and families grieve, using power I was still learning to control… it had taken everything I had.All I needed now was the arms of the man I loved wrapped around me and a long, uninterrupted sleep.Lucian didn’t disappoint. The first night back, he carried me to his chambers despite my weak protests, laid me gently on the bed, and held me through the night like he was afraid I might vanish again. I slept deeply for the first time in weeks, my head on his chest, his heartbeat steady under my ear.It took me a full day and a half to finally recover from all the power I had exhausted. Gaius came twice a day with strengthening to
Lucian’s POVI burst into Elara’s chambers without knocking, the door banging against the wall hard enough to rattle the hinges.The royal physician was already there, bent over the bed, pressing a cool cloth to her forehead. Elara lay under the covers, cheeks flushed, skin glistening with sweat. S
Elara’s POVThe cage bars dug into my back as I pressed myself against them. The metal was cold and rough, smelling of rust and something sour that made my stomach turn. I wrapped my arms around my knees and tried to breathe slow. My heart hammered so loud I could hear it in my ears.This was worse
Elara’s POVI felt hurt and bad that he could get angry like that even after our morning encounter. The teasing, the laughter, the way he had stayed with me through the nightmare — I thought things had changed between us. But the moment I stepped into that room, his anger returned full force, sharp
Lucian’s POVI burst through the palace gates with the unconscious girl cradled against my chest. The full moon still hung high, bathing everything in cold silver light. My bare feet slapped against the stone courtyard. Blood from the rogues still coated my skin and matted my hair.The two guards a







