LOGINKharl POV“Who are you?”The question hung in the air longer than it should have.Blaze’s voice was weak, barely above a whisper, but it carried through the room with a weight that made everything else feel still. Even the steady beeping of the machines seemed quieter, as if the world itself was waiting for an answer.I didn’t move immediately.For the first time since I stepped into that room, I hesitated.Not because I didn’t know what to say.But because I didn’t know how to say it.How do you answer that question when you have already failed the role you are supposed to claim?How do you look at a child—your child—and say I am your father when you were never there to be one?My feet felt heavier than they should have as I took a slow step forward.Then another.Each movement felt deliberate, careful, like I was approaching something fragile that could break if I came too close too quickly.Blaze’s eyes stayed on me.Curious.Confused.Searching.He didn’t know me.Of course he did
Lydia POVSoft music played in the background. The kind that floated through the hall like nothing in the world was wrong.I sat comfortably, a glass of wine in my hand, letting the rich taste settle on my tongue as I leaned back in my chair. Around me, everything looked exactly as it should. Servants moved quietly, the fire burned steadily, and the night felt… calm.Too calm and quiet.But I didn’t mind.Not tonight.Tonight, I was waiting.Waiting for the news that would finally set everything in place.Kharl should have been dead by now.The thought brought a small smile to my lips as I took another sip of wine.It was necessary.That was what I kept telling myself.It wasn’t cruelty.It wasn’t madness.It was survival. If he had forgotten about that witch and loved me as he is supposed too then that wouldn’t have been his fate.If he had reached Golden Sky, everything would have been destroyed. The truth would have come out, and with it, my position, my title, my life as I knew it
Kharl POV“You feel like us.”Her small hand was still on my face when she said it, and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.It wasn’t just what she said.It was how she said it.Soft. Certain. Like she wasn’t guessing or asking, but stating something she already knew deep inside her.My chest tightened painfully, something raw and unfamiliar rising up so fast I couldn’t hold it back. My wolf surged forward again, not with anger this time, not with dominance, but with something fierce and protective that made my entire body feel too tight for my own skin.Ours.The word echoed louder than before.I looked at them properly then. Not in fragments, not in shock, but fully. Rune standing there with that guarded look, trying to be strong, trying to understand. Alora with her quiet, unsettling awareness, already accepting something the rest of us were still struggling with. And Blaze behind them, lying on that bed, fighting through something he should never have had to face alone.My chil
Celeste POV“I am here,” he said slowly, “for my children.”The words settled heavily in the room.For a second, no one said anything. Ryan remained standing between us, his body still tense and protective, and Kharl’s gaze stayed fixed on him, steady and unflinching. The machine beside Blaze kept beeping softly, a quiet reminder that all of this was happening in the middle of something far bigger than old wounds and unfinished conversations.And yet, his words still found a way to hurt me.Of course he was here for the children. What else was I expecting him to say? That he had crossed territories and ridden through the night for me? That he had walked into this room and remembered I was more than the woman who carried his bloodline?I hated that the thought even came to me.I hated it even more that some quiet part of me had wanted it.It was foolish, and I knew it. But knowing that didn’t stop the sting.Before I could say anything, the door opened again with sudden force. Small fo
Celeste POVThe machines had finally stopped screaming.That was the first thing I noticed.Not the voices.Not the movement.Not even Kharl still sitting there with the line attached to his arm.Just—Silence.Not complete silence.But the kind that felt… steadier.The kind that didn’t sound like something was slipping away.I stood where I had been the entire time, unmoving, my eyes fixed on Blaze.His breathing was still slow.Still uneven.But not as bad.Not like before.The doctor stepped back after checking the monitors again, her expression softer this time.“He’s stabilizing,” she said quietly.The words hit me slowly.Stabilizing.Not safe.Not awake.But—Not dying.I let out a breath I didn’t know I had been holding.My knees felt weak, but I forced myself to stay standing.I had to see him.I had to be sure.I stepped forward slowly, stopping beside the bed.My hand hovered over his before I finally placed it gently on top of his.Warm.Still warm.Tears burned behind my
Kharl POVThe moment I saw him—Everything else disappeared.The room.The people.The tension.All of it faded into the background like it didn’t matter anymore.Because there, lying on that bed—Was my son.I didn’t need anyone to tell me.I didn’t need proof.I didn’t need confirmation.I knew.It hit me like something deep and instinctive, something older than reason, something my wolf recognized before my mind could even process it.Mine.The word echoed inside me, loud and undeniable.He looked small.Too small.His skin was pale, his body too still, his breathing uneven in a way that made something in my chest tighten painfully.And yet—Even like this—I could see it.The resemblance.The shape of his face.The faint line of his jaw.The way his brow creased slightly even in unconsciousness.Pieces of me.In him.My throat went dry.For a second—Just a second—I couldn’t move.Then everything snapped back into place.“Alpha,” one of the doctors said urgently, pulling me out o
Chapter Fifty-One: The AssignmentCeleste POVThe council hall felt different the next morning.Not quieter. Not louder. Just… aware.Whispers traveled faster than official announcements, and yesterday’s incident had not faded into polite forgetfulness. Delegates watched one another with renewed cu
stood there for a long moment, staring at the palace as if it might vanish the moment I blinked. Even after Ryan’s words, even after everything that had happened, disbelief still wrapped tightly around my heart. My life had changed too fast, too suddenly, like a dream that hadn’t decided whether it
Celeste POVRyan stayed with me long after the tears dried on our cheeks. We sat close, not speaking for a while, just breathing the same air like our bodies needed time to understand what our souls had already recognized. Now and then, he would look at me, really look, and I could feel something l
Celeste POVThe maps told a cleaner story than memory ever could.I leaned over the table, tracing the thin blue line of the river with my finger, following how it curved through Silver Ridge territory before dipping just slightly into Blood Moon land where the mineral deposits had been marked. Who







