Dahlia's POVI waited for Liam to at least say something in my defense for once in his life, but I guess I expected too much.His voice simply went low again like a child asking for candy. “I never wanted Dahlia, I don't even know how it happened…The bond chose her, not me.”The anger in me flared up again, but I calmed myself and kept listening. I would deal with him for that nonsense in my own time.“You said yes to the bond,” Nathaniel continued, not even taking it easy with Liam.“I had to!” Liam barked. “The pack needed a Luna, and my father needed to know I was capable of leading our people.”I almost laughed at his sudden outburst…so the weasel had some balls after all.“Always too scared to go against daddy's wishes aren't you?”Nathaniel mocked Liam, and I couldn't help but agree. He was always too scared of going against his father's wishes.There was a long silence, and only the sound of the flowing river could be heard as it travelled on its never ending journey.Liam fina
Nate's POVI paced around my quarters with a heart full of bitterness and frustration.I had done everything to avoid Liam, but he just wouldn't leave me alone. He even had the audacity to be scolding me, especially with that self righteous look in his eyes…as if he had the right. As if he wasn’t the reason Mira had been forced to suffer in the first place.Spineless bastard.I kicked the chair near my bed and watched it topple over, but yet the sound did very little to ease my anger. I should've told him to his face that he didn’t deserve to speak her name, let alone keep bothering me about her like he had suddenly grown a conscience…It was laughable.Where was all this energy when she was accused of stealing from him. Where was this passion when she was exiled, disgraced in front of the whole pack while he stood by and said nothingNo. He didn't deserve her. Not even a memory of her.He had Dahlia now…his precious Luna, chosen by the moon itself, or probably by her family's money…y
Liam’s POVI finally saw him just as he was about to leave the training arena…tensed shoulders, and moving way too fast unlike his usual slow and deliberate strut. Nathaniel.My pulse picked up instantly, not just from the run I had just finished a while ago, but from the feeling of pure annoyance that was already brewing inside me. I didn't even bother to wipe off the sweat that still clung to my face as I ran after him.He had seen me and was trying to slip away again.“Nathaniel!” I called, louder than necessary.Heads turned towards me, but I didn’t care. If he wanted to play the invisible game, he had definitely picked the wrong day for it.He looked over his shoulder, saw the look on my face and doubled his speed. I swore under my breath and ran harder, pushing past a group of surprised trainees. Kai was laughing at me, but I didn't have time for him now…not when Nate was within reach.“Stop running from me, you damn coward!” I screamed at him. “Your Alpha commands it!”That wa
Cael's POVThe council was in full assembly. Mira and I stood beside our father, and I could feel the tension in her body as the cold eyes of all the elders seemed to be on her.Father sat at the head as usual, his powerful presence commanding respect even in silence. The weight of the Thallium discovery and the rogue ambush earlier that day still hung over us like an approaching storm, but the moment father opened his mouth to begin the meeting, Lord Halvar raised a hand, with his face twisted in disapproval.“Forgive me, Alpha,” he began calmly, but everyone could see the contempt in his voice“But before this meeting proceeds, I must raise a concern. Why is the girl present? Has she been formally welcomed into your household? Last I checked, you only accepted she was yours, but no welcome has been officially announced to the pack.”I didn’t wait for Father to speak.“Watch your words, lord Halvar” I snapped in anger, making a few of the younger councilmen flinch at my tone. Mira lo
Cael's POVIt was morning, and I was strapping on my gear.The compound was alive with the usual chatter and energy before a hunting party…men double checking weapons, tightening their boots, and trading jokes to mask their nerves.Father was already annoyed that I had insisted on bringing Mira along. I understood his concern…a newly arrived sister, one still that was still trying to gain her footing in the new world she found herself. But I had seen what Mira could do in training, and she was no damsel in distress.“This is reckless,” Father told me again before we left. “You know I don't mind her learning, but this isn't the time. We need to ease her in gently.”“Which is why she needs this trip, father,” I replied, refusing to back down. “She can help with the wounded if we run into trouble. She's already trained in healing, isn't she?”He only sighed and said nothing more, and that was as close to permission as I was going to get.Mira was already coming out from the house, dresse
Mira’s POV“Mom?” My voice trembled as I stepped forward.“Is it really you?”Her eyes softened. “My little moonflower.”My eyes instantly filled with tears, and I allowed them to flow freely down my cheeks. Only she called me that nickname, and I hadn't heard it since she died.“Am I dreaming?” I whispered.She didn't bother to answer, simply opened her arms for me to run into like a scared child…maybe I actually was. Her embrace was nothing but warmth, and the comforting scent of lilies in the summer.And it broke me.I sobbed into her shoulder, holding on tightly to her gown as if she was about to vanish again. “I miss you so much mom…Everything’s a mess. I don’t know what I’m doing. They kicked me out after you left, and Liam rejected me.”“No my love,” she whispered, pulling back to look into my face. “You were never abandoned. The world was simply making room for you to rise.”I looked at her in surprise. “Rise?”“You carry more than pain within you, Mira,” she said, gently brus