LOGINAmelia’s POVMabel’s words seemed to freeze the air inside the stone vault. I sat staring at the ancient parchment, the faded black ink blurring slightly as the reality of her warning settled heavy into my bones.This wasn’t a rogue pack I could outsmart or a blade I could dodge. It was a complete unknown, a threshold that might demand everything from me and give nothing back.I spent the morning away from the strategy tables, choosing instead to sit near the nursery window while the autumn sunlight warmed the wooden floorboards. I nursed Clara slowly, deliberately lingering over every tiny movement, feeling the gentle rhythm of her breathing and the solid weight of her small body against my chest. Every touch felt precious, every second stretched out like fine gold thread.A soft knock sounded against the doorframe and Marianne stepped cautiously into the room. Her hazel eyes looked weary, her thin hands trembling as she stopped a few feet away.“May I?” Marianne asked softly, her v
Damien’s POVThe morning sun broke over the eastern ridge, painting the stone courtyard in pale streaks of pink and grey. I stood near the stable doors, pulling my leather gloves on while watching my brother lead two horses toward the gate.Leading a second expedition back into those mountain ruins felt completely different than the first time. The first run had been about proving my strength, demonstrating to the elders that I was an Alpha worthy of my father’s seat. Today, there was no political posturing in my chest. I wasn’t fighting for a crown or a reputation; I was fighting for my brother, my niece and a family I had never imagined surviving long enough to build.“You have the address?” Lucas asked, stopping beside my horse and tossing a folded slip of parchment toward my chest.I caught it effortlessly, glancing at the scribbled street name in the nearby human township. “I have it. Mabel said we need the crushed star-stone and the silver-leaf oil before sunset.”“Watch your b
Lucas’s POVThe moment the word 'daughter' left Marianne’s lips, my arm clamped around Amelia’s waist, jerking her three inches back against my ribs.My wolf went completely savage inside my chest, baring its teeth at the moonless dark as my mind flashed straight to the inner keep, where Clara was currently sleeping peacefully in Serena’s care. Every protective instinct I possessed snapped from cautious suspicion straight into raw, lethal threat assessment.“Explain that,” I snarled, stepping fully between Amelia and the older woman, my hand tightening on the grip of my blade until my knuckles groaned. “No more cryptic warnings. No more ghost stories. What does an ancient buried power want with my newborn baby?”Marianne flinched from the sharpness in my tone, but she didn’t step back. She pulled her frayed grey cloak tighter around her frail shoulders, her hazel eyes glistening with cold starlight.“I don’t know the full mechanics, Enforcer Chief,” Marianne admitted, her voice trembl
Amelia’s POVThe night was pitch black, stripped clean of every speck of moonlight.Lucas moved beside me through the thick brush, his boots making no sound against the dead leaves. Out in the black shadows of the treeline, Damien’s enforcers were staged in absolute silence, but out here in the open clearing, it was just the two of us.“Stay half a step behind me,” Lucas murmured, his voice dropping into a low frequency that hummed against my ribs.“I am fine, Lucas,” I whispered back, though my fingers were clenching so hard around his forearm that my knuckles were turning white. “Just keep your blade drawn.”“It is already drawn, sweetheart,” Lucas noted softly, his thumb brushing my wrist to steady my erratic pulse. “And if whoever is out here takes one wrong step, I am turning them into target practice.”A small, breathless laugh escaped my throat, cut short when a branch snapped at the far end of the clearing.I froze, my heart leaping into my throat.A figure stepped out from th
Damien’s POVThe strategy map on the long council table was covered in red ink marks, but none of the lines felt safe enough. I dragged my thumb across the border of the neutral territory, the rough parchment scraping against my skin while my wolf paced restless circles behind my ribs.“We put three squads along the northern ridge, Lucas,” I said, pointing my finger toward the narrow pass leading into the valley. “If this meeting turns into a trap, my men can flank the clearing in two minutes.”Lucas leaned against the edge of the table with his arms crossed over his chest, his jaw set in that stubborn, unyielding line I knew all too well. “And the moment your squads step onto that ridge, their scent carries downwind straight into the clearing. The hooded figure runs and Amelia loses her only chance at an answer.”“We don’t even know if this message is real!” I snapped, throwing my pen down onto the table with a loud clatter as old frustration flared hot in my chest. “You are taking m
Luca’s POVAmelia went limp before she even reached the floor.I caught her on the drop, my arms sweeping beneath her knees and back while her breath hitched into a tiny, strangled gasp. Her weight was almost nothing against my chest, but the sudden wave of raw horror pouring off her hit me like a physical blow. Shock rolled over us in sharp, freezing ripples. My wolf slammed against my ribs, claws scraping the inside of my flesh, roaring to tear the world apart just to keep her safe.“Breathe, sweetheart. I’ve got you.” I pressed my lips to her temple, feeling the ice in her skin, the fast, erratic flutter of her pulse against her jaw.Gabriella knelt on the stone floor a few feet away, trembling, hands bound, her eyes wide and red-rimmed. A deep, ugly part of me wanted to crush her neck right then. She was a master of plays, a snake who traded in leverage and mercy. This had to be another lie. It had to be a distraction.“You’re lying,” I snarled, the sound dragging low out of my t







