LOGINThe scent of roasted herbs still lingered in the corridors long after the Alpha King left the
kitchens. Word had already spread like wildfire: Elder Darius — the great Alpha King, the man
whose very hands never touched anything less than blood and steel — had cooked with his own
hands for Lyra.
Not for the pack. Not for the warriors.
For her.
The moment the whispers reached Celina’s chamber, she felt her body turn to ice, then burn in a
sudden fever. She clutched her baby so tightly against her chest that he squirmed and cried, but
she didn’t loosen her hold. She rocked back and forth on the bed, hair wild around her face, nails
digging into her own skin as if the pain could keep her sane.
“No…” she whispered hoarsely. “No, no, no…”
Her voice rose to a scream, making the child wail louder.
“S
The night after Celina’s burial felt heavier than any night I had known. Even the moon, usually aquiet companion, seemed dimmer, its glow swallowed by the weight of grief and whispers. Thepack was restless. I could hear their murmurs as they drifted through the camp likeshadows—speculation, anger, fear. Celina’s madness had left scars, not just in death, but in thememories of everyone who had seen her final fall.But the one who carried it most, the one who seemed to wither under the truth, was Thorne.He hadn’t spoken since that day. Not to Kael. Not to me. Not to anyone. He moved like a ghostthrough the halls, his broad shoulders hunched, his steps heavy, his eyes dark and hollow. Andthough no one dared say it aloud, everyone felt it. The silence that clung to him was not griefalone. It was guilt.I felt it too.Kael refused to speak on it, but I saw the way his gaze hardened whenever Thorne entered theroom, the way his fists clenched at his sides. Something unspoken passed
The courtyard was still buzzing with the echoes of Celina’s final scream. I couldn’t erase theimage of her face — twisted, wild, consumed by madness — before she fell backwards into theabyss, dragging her child into death with her. The silence that followed had been deafening,every wolf frozen in disbelief, as though the earth itself had paused to absorb the weight of whathad just happened.Now the silence was gone. It had been replaced with chaos.Voices clashed in every corner of the pack lands. Some wailed in grief for the innocent life lost,others spat curses at Celina’s name, calling her traitor, murderer, abomination. The sound of it allclawed at my ears until I wanted to scream just to drown them out.But the sound that broke me most was Darius.He hadn’t spoken a word since Lyra’s death, not to me, not to anyone. Yet when news of Celina’splunge reached him, he emerged from his chamber like a man waking from a nightmare — onlyto step straight into another. His hair was
Celina’s chambers had grown darker over the past few days, not because the sun failed to shinethrough her windows, but because she had closed the curtains and barred the light out. The airwas heavy with the scent of unwashed linens and the cloying sweetness of milk. Her baby stirredrestlessly in the cradle, fussing and cooing, but Celina didn’t hear him the way a mother should.She sat cross-legged on the floor, hair tangled, lips moving as she muttered to herself.“They think they’ve beaten me,” she whispered, eyes wild, rocking back and forth. “Rory withher Moonborn glow, Kael with his devotion, Lyra with her judgmental stares. But no… no, I’vebeaten them already. Haven’t I, my darling?”She reached for the cradle, dragging it closer until she could touch the baby’s small hand. Hervoice softened, but the madness never left her tone. “You&rsq
The burial fires had long gone cold, yet the scent of death lingered in the air like a shadow thatclung to the stone walls of the packhouse. The pack mourned openly, wailing, singing dirges,pouring their grief into the soil that had swallowed Lyra’s body. But Celina? Celina played herrole too perfectly. She wore black silk, her eyes rimmed in false redness, her lips trembling withpretended grief.The truth simmered beneath her skin, like a secret she could not tell.That night, when the pack slept in exhaustion after days of mourning, Celina slipped into herchamber, cradling her child against her chest. She hummed a lullaby, low and sweet, her fingerstrembling though her voice did not betray it. “Shhh… my love,” she whispered into the baby’shair. “The world is cruel, but we’ll win it all. They’ll all see. You’re the future.”Her baby stirred, restless, as if sensing the storm that clung to his mother.Celina laid him in his crib and sank onto the bed. For the first time since L
The sound of the bell still haunts me.It wasn’t the usual call to gather, sharp and commanding — it was slower, heavier, draggingthrough the air like a mourning song. My heart sank before I even knew why, as though theMoon herself whispered that something irreparable had broken.By the time I reached the central courtyard, the whispers had already started. Faces pale, voiceshushed, bodies drawn together in clusters as though seeking warmth from a storm none of uscould escape.“Lyra…” someone murmured near the training grounds.“She fell,” another voice whispered back, trembling, “she’s… gone.”I froze. For a heartbeat, I thought my ears had betrayed me. Lyra? No. It couldn’t be Lyra. Shewas too careful, too strong-willed to vanish in such a senseless way. My chest constricted as thetruth pressed in — and yet it didn’t feel like truth at all.I forced my legs to move, though each step felt weighted with dread. My fingers trembled,curling into my palms until my nails cut into th
The corridors of the Alpha King’s estate had quieted for the evening, but Lyra’s steps rang sharpagainst the polished stone. She moved like a woman with purpose, her silver hair catching thefaint glow of torches lining the walls. Her heart was steady, her resolve ironclad. For too long shehad allowed silence to be her shield, guilt to chain her tongue. But not tonight.Celina’s voice echoed faintly down the hall, a hushed cooing sound — the soft lull of a mother toher child. Lyra’s lips pressed into a thin line as she neared the chamber door. How many timeshad she entered that room with kindness? How many times had she believed Celina’s falsesmiles, her rehearsed sorrow?She pushed the door open without knocking.Celina looked up from the cradle where her baby lay swaddled, her dark hair spilling down hershoulders in deliberate waves. Surprise flashed across her face, but only for a moment. Thencame the practiced warmth — a smile too smooth, too polished.“Lyra,” Celina purred







