เข้าสู่ระบบDeep within the northern pines, where the winter wind couldn't reach, a small fire crackled on a flat bed of black stone. Shadows stretched long against the ancient trunks as a circle of figures huddled together in hooded gray cloaks.Marilyn stood closest to the embers, her hands out over the low flame. Denis leaned against a tree behind her, his arms folded, watching the outer edge of the grove where the snow fell lightly through the branches."You bragged for weeks, Marilyn," an older witch said, stepping into the firelight. Her skin was weathered, her pale gray eyes fixed on Marilyn. "You swore you would bring the boy into the fold. You said you'd turn his life upside down until he had nowhere left to go.""And now," a second witch chimed in from the dark, "the prince is whole."A murmur passed through the gathered group."He was supposed to stay broken," the older witch continued, her tone sharp. "With his feral side isolated, Eilis was a beast that could be baited, controlled,
The journey back to the keep was a long, silent blur. Matilda couldn't come with us. Being an exile, stepping foot inside the pack's territory would mean immediate execution, no matter what Aria promised. I wondered how my life had come to this. A reunion with someone's mother was supposed to be a thing of happiness. Mine was a joke.She had kissed my forehead, wrapped Amias tightly in his furs, and told me to stay strong before disappearing back into the treeline.And I guessed that was that, the last time I was ever going to see her. I didn't know how to feel about it.My legs completely gave out halfway through the lower courtyard, leaving Camden to carry me the rest of the way up the stone steps. Amias was fast asleep in Aria’s arms beside us.I kept my head down, burying my face against Camden's shoulder to hide from the glares I knew were coming. I expected the hushed curses, the angry scowls, and the utter disgust from the pack members lining the corridors, the way they usual
Aria and Camden took another step into the room, but they hit an invisible wall with a muffled thud.Camden stumbled back a fraction, his hand instinctively snapping to his sword hilt as he pressed a palm against the empty air. A faint, shimmering ripple spread out where his hand touched, glowing white before vanishing."A shield," Aria muttered, stopping beside him. Her eyes narrowed as she looked past the boundary, her gaze landing squarely on my mother. "You put up a barrier."I stared at the spot where Camden's hand had landed, my chest hitching. I hadn't seen my mother raise her hand or chant a single word. She had been sitting right beside me on the cot the entire time, yet she had quietly locked down the room without making a sound. I wondered if that was why she hadn't flinched when the door creaked open. She knew they couldn't reach us.My mother stood up slowly, stepping between the cot and the threshold. Her stance wasn't aggressive, but the air around her shifted, turning
"Raven, get up! We have to move!"Denis’s rough voice sounded, followed by the thud of his boots kicking through the dry brush outside. The door banged open, letting in a sharp draft of freezing wind."The princess and Camden have been sighted at the base of the pass," Denis growled, his face flushed red from the cold, his hand tight on the pommel of his sword. "They’re tracking fast. We need to go now."Flat on my back on the narrow cot, I forced my head to turn. Through the haze of my fever, I looked at Denis, really looked at him. He looked completely different now. Gone was the quiet, steady attendant who used to grin at me, console me, and tried to advise me. There was no loyalty in his eyes anymore, no gentle care, just a sharp, cold urgency.My stomach turned into a knot as I realized just how deeply he had been playing a part the entire time."No," my mother said, stepping between Denis and the cot, her arms crossed tight over her chest. "We are not moving him. Taking Raven f
RAVENThe ceiling of the shed blurred and shifted every time I tried to focus on it.I was flat on my back on the narrow wooden cot, the blankets pushed down to my waist because my skin felt like it was on fire. Cold sweat soaked through my shirt, but a second later, a deep shiver would run through my bones, making my teeth chatter.I saw him. Eilis was standing right at the foot of the bed, his tall frame blocking out the dim light from the door. His dark eyes were fixed on me, filled with that same cold, terrifying anger from the night he locked me away. He didn't say a word. He just stood there, looking down at me like I was a stranger."Eilis..." I rasped out, my hand reaching out blindly into the air. "I didn't... I didn't want to leave him...""Raven, lie back down," Matilda's voice broke through the haze, gentle but urgent. Her hand caught mine in midair and guided it back down to the mattress.I blinked hard, the fever stinging my eyes, and Eilis vanished. There was no one at
EILISThe ceiling of my bedchamber didn't move, no matter how long I stared at it.I couldn't get up. Every time I tried to sit, my head spun so violently the room tilted, and a sharp pain slammed right through the center of my chest. My legs were useless under the furs."Eat something, Eilis," my father said, standing beside the bed as a maid stood with a tray of roasted meat and broth.The smell alone made my stomach turn into a tight knot. I shoved the maid's hands. "Take it away.""You haven't touched food in three days," my father said, his voice stern and quiet. "You're starving yourself to death.""I'm not starving," I snarled, though the words came out thin and raspy. "It's him. It's what he's doing to me.""He needs strength if he's to survive this," my father muttered to the maid, gesturing for her to set the broth on the nightstand anyway."I said get it out of here!" I snapped, my voice cracking. Neither of them moved to pick it up.Anger burned hot and bitter in my throat
The carriage jolted as we hit a deep rut in the road. Outside, the landscape shifted from the dense, pine-scented forests of the wolf kingdom to the flat, manicured greenery of the human territories. I leaned my head against the glass. The closer we got to my father’s estate, the more the dread ti
RAVEN I was doomed. It was the only thought that ran through my head as the wolf locked eyes with mine. Could it smell my fear? Could it smell that I was lying about my identity? He was huge, easily reaching almost five feet. It prowled towards me, gaze unmoving, I forced myself to move but my fo
EILÍS “Would you have me wed to a human?” I asked my father–the king. I wasn't one to show emotion but I was sure my face conveyed my disbelief. “Not an ordinary human, a noble.” He explained, like that made it different.“Why! For power?fear? For respect? You already have that.”“For you, I
"We have received a missive from the king of wolves." My father began, each word precise, as my siblings and I stood before him in his library. "He has decreed that one of my beloved daughters is to wed the beast of Northshore."A sharp collective intake of breath followed his voice, my own breath







