Later that night, under the whispering trees and the slumbering stars, Luca and I curled into each other in our lean-to. I pressed my face to his chest, letting the sound of his heartbeat ground me. His arms wrapped tight around me, his breath warm against my hair.It was peaceful, but for how long?I was no fortune teller, but the peace didn't last till the next morning. We were woken by urgent footsteps and Revik’s sharp voice slicing through the crisp morning air.“Get up. Now.”Luca and I scrambled upright, hearts pounding. “What’s happening?” I asked, shoving on my boots.“Alexa’s scouts were spotted near the southern ridge,” Revik snapped. “Too many. We've been running from them for a while now, we can't let them catch up to us. Especially now you're with us.”The camp was alive with sudden motion—fires snuffed out, gear packed, traps dismantled. The children were already being lifted onto shoulders, bags slung across backs, bows and knives clutched tight.“We leave in ten,” Rev
I feared what his response would be.Would he ask us to help him take revenge? Would he eventually discover the power I held and want to take it from me too? My mind was playing some dirty tricks on me.Revik’s lips curled into a wry smile. “You hunt with us. You move with us. You earn your place like everyone else. That’s the rule. We have no Alphas here, no betas, no titles. Only fighters.”I nodded slowly, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding, heart thudding. “We’ll do our part.”“Good,” he said, already turning away. “You’ll start tonight. You hunt what you eat. And if you hear the howls…” His voice dropped, serious now. “You run.”Luca and I spent the rest of the day learning the rhythm of the camp—how food was rationed, how lookouts rotated hourly, how even the children were trained in stealth and silence. The rogues weren’t savage. They were just... wary. Hardened by betrayal, shaped by fear.In the afternoon, I helped a woman named Lani mend a torn tent. She didn’t
MIRA'S POV The way he looked at me then—it wasn’t just desire. It was devotion. Like I was the miracle he’d been chasing through every nightmare.He touched me like a man starved of sunlight finally tasting warmth again. Every kiss, every caress felt like a promise. A promise that he was here, that I wasn’t alone, that we’d survived.The firelight danced across his skin, painting gold over every scar, every place that had once known pain. I watched him as he hovered over me, his breath warm against my lips, and for a moment, everything else—Alexa, the escape, the darkness—faded away.It was just him and me. “I love you,” I whispered against his neck.He stilled for half a heartbeat, then buried his face in my shoulder. “God, Mira. I love you too. I think I’ve loved you since the day you told me not to follow you, and I did it anyway.”I laughed, the sound breaking with a soft sob. “You’re a terrible listener.”“I know,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to my temple. “But I’ll never stop
MIRA’S POVThe moment the rogues surrounded us, everything in me screamed to run—but there was nowhere to go. They had us flanked on all sides, eyes glowing faintly in the firelight, teeth bared in half-curious, half-menacing smirks.Luca's hand found mine again, firm this time, no tremble. I squeezed it, trying to keep my own fear hidden. The leader stepped forward—a tall man with streaks of silver in his beard and scars carved across his bare arms. He looked like someone who had lived through a hundred battles and buried every friend he ever had."You two look like you've seen hell," he said, his voice gravelly but not entirely unkind."We have," I replied, forcing myself to look him in the eye.He tilted his head, assessing. "Names?""I'm Mira," I said. "And this is Luca."The name made one of the rogues near him grunt. "From the burnt village?"I tensed.The leader nodded slowly. "We heard rumors and whispers. Whole settlement wiped clean by a she-devil."I swallowed the lump in m
MIRA’S POVWhen I woke, it was to the sound of shallow breaths and the gentle crackle of fire.The night wrapped itself around us like a cold, silent veil. Trees towered overhead like sentinels of shadow, their boughs whispering to each other secrets only the wind could understand. My body ached with exhaustion, but I forced myself to sit up. I had built the fire with shaking hands, using bits of bark and dry leaves I'd scrounged while Luca lay unconscious nearby.Luca stirred beside me, the steady rhythm of his breath shifting as he woke. I had watched over him for hours, praying the fever wouldn’t come. We were lucky—or maybe the Moon Goddess hadn’t turned her face from us entirely."Mira?" he croaked.I turned instantly. His voice was hoarse, the sound of gravel dragged through a dry throat. He blinked at the dim light of our fire, then at me."You're awake," I whispered, a small smile tugging at my lips. Relief washed over me.His body jerked, arms flailing slightly as if caught i
NARRATOR POV“They escaped?"The vase shattered against the stone wall, sending shards flying like deadly glitter. Alexa’s scream tore through the throne room, raw and animalistic.“They escaped?” she shrieked again, spinning on the trembling guard who had brought the news. “You useless, sniveling pile of… how did two half-dead mutts slip past you?”The guard didn’t speak. He couldn’t. His legs had already given out beneath him, and his face was a sickly shade of gray. He was praying—whether to the Moon Goddess or death itself, no one knew.Alexa’s eyes glowed a dangerous violet as she raised her hand, fingers twitching with the pull of dark energy. For a second, the air trembled. Then a faint voice broke through the haze.“They couldn't have gone far. We'll… we'll find them.” The voice broke into a pleading whisper. “Please, spare us Your Majesty." It was the young guard whose key they had stolen.Alexa turned sharply. "Spare you? You want me to spare you? How do I know you didn't le