INICIAR SESIĂNWhen Morgana slowly opens her eyes, she finds herself lying on a soft bed, wrapped in thick wool blankets and clean cotton sheets.Heavy wooden beams stretch across the ceiling above her.Faint morning sunlight shines through a small glass window, casting warm squares of light across the polished wooden floor.She turns her head, only to wince as a dull ache throbs at the back of her head. Slowly, she raises a hand and touches the spot where Kieran knocked her unconscious.That brute! She can't believe he knocked her out. But where is this?Pushing herself up, she looks around. She realizes she's in a small, cozy cabin built from dark logs and stone.The place is unfamiliar...Yet for some reason, it also feels strangely familiar, as if she has been here before.The heavy wooden door creaks open.Kieran steps inside.He has washed and changed into dark trousers and a plain black tunic. In his large hands, he carries a woven basket.The rich smell of warm broth, fresh bread, and roaste
Kieran jumps to his feet and rushes after Morgana, covering the distance she had run in only a few long strides.Morgana stumbles into the dense brush, her bare feet cutting on sharp stones and thorns.âStay away from me!â she screams over her shoulder, tears blurring her vision. âLeave me alone!âWithin three seconds, Kieran is right behind her. He doesn't tackle her to the ground.Instead, he runs past her and steps directly into her path, his tall body blocking the way.Morgana crashes straight into his broad chest. She gasps, and her hands immediately fly up, pushing against him with all her strength, trying desperately to get away.âLet me go! Kill me if you want, but don't touch me!âKieran catches her shoulders, holding her steady so she doesn't fall over.âLook at me!â he pleads, his voice cracking with emotion. âMorgana, look at my eyes! Look at me!ââI don't want to. I don't want to look at you!â she sobs, thrashing violently in his iron grip. âYou rejected me! You held a si
Morgana's eyes fly open.Her vision is blurry from the river water and the tears in her eyes. As everything slowly comes into focus, she sees a large face only inches from hers.Wet dark hair falls over a sharp, handsome face, and a pair of dark eyes stare straight at her.Kieran.Panic violently explodes inside her chest.âNo! Get away from me!â Morgana screams, her voice a raw, shattered rasp.She thrashes wildly on the ground.She kicks her legs, her small hands flying up to push against his heavy chest with every ounce of strength she has left.âLet me go! Let me go!â she sobs, her voice pitching into a frantic, hysterical shriek. âI don't want to mate anymore! You monster! Let me go!âShe slams her weak fists against his bare, wet shoulders, but her blows bounce off his broad frame like useless pebbles.Kieran catches her wrists gently, pinning them against the wet grass on either side of her head. His face contorts in raw, visible agony as he looks down at her terrified face.âI
Kieran doesn't hesitate for a single second. He leaps off, plunging straight into the freezing river.The icy water hits his chest like a hundred sharp knives, knocking the breath from his lungs.The current is wild and violent, pulling at his legs and slamming him against hidden rocks, but Kieran fights through it with frantic, terrifying strength.He cuts through the water, his eyes fixed entirely on her lifeless form drifting away the more he swims.Finally, he reaches the drifting log, his hands grabbing Morganaâs small, ice-cold waist.He pulls her off the jagged wood, holding her tightly against his chest with one arm while kicking wildly against the current with his legs. He moves her hair, just to be sure, and it's really her.âI have you,â he gasps, swallowing mouthfuls of the salty river water. âI have you... stay with me!âHe drags her toward the nearest muddy shore, hauling her wet, heavy body out of the water and laying her flat on the patch of green grass beside the bank
Kieran's eyes snap open, his chest heaving as his lungs burn for air.Silas's dark spell has faded, leaving his mind clear.The heavy fog is completely gone, but in its place is a raw, agonizing hole in his chest as everything finally makes sense.He bolts upright, his eyes wide with panic.âMorgana!âHe scrambles to his feet, ignoring the aching weakness in his limbs. There's no one in the living room, only the two guards tasked by the queen to watch the king with their lives.Kieran charges across the room, grabbing one guard by his iron shoulder guard armor and shoving him hard against the stone wall.âWhere is she?!â Kieran roars, his teeth elongating as his wolf claws at the surface. âWhere is Morgana?!âThe guard trembles violently, his face turning pale.âA-Alpha! We don't know who you are talking about!ââThe silver-haired girl!â Kieran screams into his face, shaking him until the man's teeth chatter. âThe girl brought into my chambers three days ago! Where is she?!ââMy Lord,
âWhat did you do to him?â Luna Evangelineâs eyes are deadly as he looks at beta Silas.She can't believe he hurt her son and his king right in front of her. âHow dare you harm your king? This is treason.âShe accuses, drawing her silver dagger.Beta Silas looks at her face, eyes calculating as he contemplates whether to start a coup now that the king is out of the way.He'll become king and can marry Victoria off to the northern coast's alpha king.But then, the entire kingdom knows about Kieran rejecting Victoria after their mating ceremony and choosing a servant, so with the blood pact fully activated now, he can just become Kieran's adviser, and his daughter becomes the queen.He falls to his knees, and looking at Victoria, who's coughing violently from Kieran choking her, he looks up at the Luna queen and says remorsefully.âForgive me, my queen. I deserve to die. As a father, I couldn't bear seeing my daughter's husband try to kill her after publicly rejecting her the night of th
~~âą~âĄ~âą~~ âNo! AlphaâŠâ I say softly, forcing a smile I donât feel, trying to remain calm. âPlease. Allow me this small mystery for tonight. I promise our next encounter will be different.â He studies me for a long moment, his gaze heavy with suspicion. I can feel the decision forming behind his
~~~âȘââȘ~~~ I stand there, paralyzed, looking into eyes that hold a brewing storm. Iâm a servant in a borrowed dress, a girl who scrubs filth from stone floors and survives on scraps from the kitchen trash. Because of that, they call me Raccoon, a scavenger in the dark, and I'm fated to the King
âAlpha Kieran! Help me!â I scream.The words tear from my throat, raw and desperate, echoing against the stone walls of the chamber.For one fleeting second, I believe the door will burst open. I believe my mate will stride inside, his silver eyes blazing with the protective fury I witnessed in the
âYou're just a lowly servant!â Lady Victoria screams. âHow dare you touch my Alpha? How dare you kiss him with your filthy mouth?!â The world spins as my heart stops. I'm doomed. She knows. Of course she knows. There are always eyes. Always ears. Always someone watching. I was a fool to







