LOGINElla.The word hung in the air like poison."No." I grabbed Dad's arm. "You can't break up. Not because of them.""Sweetheart, we have to.""You don't have to do anything. This is Elder Margaret bullying you into submission."Dad pulled his arm free gently. "It's not just Elder Margaret. It's the reality of our situation. Elena and I being together creates problems for you and Kyle.""Problems we can handle.""Can you? Really?" Dad's voice cracked. "Today was just the beginning. Elder Margaret will keep pushing. Keep making life difficult. She'll turn more pack members against you. Is that what you want?""I want you to be happy.""I want you to be happy too. And safe. And respected as Luna." Dad's shoulders sagged. "Elena and I talked for three hours tonight. We went over every possible scenario. Every outcome. They all lead to the same conclusion.""Which is what? That you sacrifice your happiness for pack politics?""That we put your future first." Dad looked at me with tired eyes.
Ella. "Thank you all for coming," Elder Margaret said. "We have an important matter to discuss today."Kyle remained standing. "This was supposed to be a private meeting with the council.""The situation has evolved," Elder Margaret replied smoothly. "What affects the Alpha's family affects us all. Therefore, I felt it appropriate to invite key pack members to participate in this discussion.""You had no right…""I had every right," Elder Margaret interrupted. "Pack stability is at stake.""Pack stability isn't at stake," I said. "My father and Elena are dating. That's all."Elder Margaret turned her sharp gaze on me. "Is it? Because from where I stand, this situation creates significant complications."Kyle sat at the head of the table. I sat beside him. His hand found mine under the table, squeezing gently.Elder Margaret folded her hands on the table. "We're here to discuss Thomas and Elena's relationship, and how it affects this pack.""With all due respect," Kyle said, his voice
Ella.The news exploded across the pack like wildfire.By the time Kyle and I woke up the next morning, my phone was already buzzing with messages. Text after text from pack members, acquaintances, even people I barely knew."Is it true about your dad and Elena?""I heard they've been dating for months!""This is so romantic!""This is so weird."I stared at my screen, stomach churning. Kyle's phone was buzzing too. He sat up in bed, scrolling through his messages with a deepening frown."How did everyone find out so fast?" I asked."Pack grapevine." Kyle tossed his phone aside. "Nothing stays secret for long.""This is exactly what Elena was afraid of.""I know."I got out of bed and went to the window. Outside, I could see pack members walking past our house. Some glanced toward our windows. Curious. Judgmental. Excited.We were the morning's entertainment.Kyle came up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist. "They'll get bored eventually. Something else will happen, and every
Ella.Exactly eighteen minutes later, the doorbell rang.Kyle answered it. My father stood on the porch, looking nervous. He wore jeans and a button-down shirt. His hair was combed neatly."Come in, Thomas," Kyle said.Dad stepped inside. His eyes immediately found Elena. Something passed between them. A look of relief and love and fear all mixed together."Thank you for letting me come," Dad said to Kyle."You're Ella's father. You're always welcome here."Dad crossed the room and took Elena's hand. She stood, and they faced us together."I know this is unexpected," Dad said. "But I love Elena. I never stopped loving her. Breaking up because our kids became mates was the hardest thing I've ever done.""We thought we were doing the right thing," Elena added. "Giving you space to build your relationship without the awkwardness of us being together.""But it didn't make anyone happy," Dad continued. "It just made us all lonely and miserable."Kyle looked at them. "So you're together now
Ella.Three weeks had passed since the ritual.Three weeks of adjusting to the strange new awareness humming beneath my skin. Three weeks of feeling Jason's presence like a distant radio signal, always there but never intrusive.I was finally able to breathe again.Tonight I sat at my desk in our bedroom, laptop open, fingers hovering over the keyboard. My psychology essay stared back at me accusingly. The topic was relationship dynamics and conflict resolution. Ironic, given everything I'd been through lately.The cursor blinked. I typed a sentence. Deleted it. Typed another.My phone buzzed.Kyle's name flashed on the screen."Hello?""Ella, can you come downstairs?" His voice sounded different. Happy but choked up somehow. "There's someone here to see us."I frowned at the phone. "Who?""Just come down. Please."The line went dead.I saved my document and closed the laptop. My bare feet padded across the hardwood floor as I left the bedroom. The house was quiet except for muffled v
Ella.From his expression, he felt the same shift. His shoulders relaxed. Something that had been tense in his face smoothed out."It's done," Jason breathed. His voice was full of relief.Elder Rowan released our foreheads and stepped back. The silver light faded slowly, like dawn breaking in reverse.The silver thread between Jason and me was still there, but it looked different now. Stable. Steady. No longer flickering like a dying flame. It pulsed with calm, even light."The bond is stabilized," Elder Rowan announced to the witnesses. "The secondary bond has found its proper form. Political alliance between Silver Fang Pack and Crescent Moon Pack, anchored through Luna Ella."Applause broke out among the witnesses. Relief flooded their faces. Some were crying. Others were smiling.But I barely heard them. I was too focused on the change inside me.The bond was there. Permanent. Unbreakable. But it felt right now. Not invasive or confusing. Just a clean connection linking me to Jas
Ella.Kyle thrust once more and went rigid. His whole body shook. I felt his release and it triggered my own. Waves of pleasure crashed over me. Through me. So intense I couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Could only feel.The mark on my neck burned bright and then settled into a warm, steady pulse.
Kyle.My phone buzzed at midnight."Meet me outside. Now."Ella.I stared at the message. Something in my chest twisted tight. The bond hummed with her fear. Her determination. Whatever she wanted to say couldn't wait until morning.I pulled on a hoodie and climbed out my window. Dropped silently i
Ella.The pain hit at exactly midnight.I was lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, when something inside my chest yanked hard. Like a fishhook caught in my ribs and someone pulled the line. I gasped. Clutched at my shirt. Tried to breathe through the sudden wrongness spreading through my body.Kyl
Kyle.The vomit was black.I stared at it in the toilet bowl, wondering distantly if that was normal. Probably not. Nothing about this was normal.Day ten. Three days since I'd kept food down. Two days since I'd tried eating at all. The suppressants had stopped working completely. My wolf was a con







