LOGINDylan's POVI arrived at the eastern border to find chaos. Three rogues had attacked a patrol unit and the scene was very bad. Two pack members were seriously injured and bleeding on the ground while the medics worked tirelessly to save them. One was already dead and his body lay covered with a sheet near the tree line.The rogues had fled but they left something behind that made my blood turn to ice. Painted in blood on a large rock near the attack site were words that chilled me to my core. "The White Wolf's debt comes due."This was about Nadia. This was targeted and intentional and dangerous.I pulled out my phone immediately and called the pack house. "Double the guards around my family. No one gets in or out without my authorization. Post warriors at every entrance and keep the children inside."James appeared beside me with blood on his shirt and fury in his eyes. "They came out of nowhere. We did not even smell them until they were on us.""They masked their scent somehow. Thi
Nadia's POVEight months passed in a blur of ordinary moments that felt extraordinary when I stopped to appreciate them. Hope turned one year old on a sunny Saturday in May and the family threw a small party to celebrate. Just immediate family and Luna's family because Hope was still too young for a big gathering and honestly I was too tired to plan anything elaborate.The house was decorated with pink balloons that the twins had insisted on blowing up themselves. There was a smash cake for Hope that I had baked the night before while everyone else slept. All five kids were there and the energy in the house was chaotic but joyful.Elena was eleven now and she helped set up the decorations without being asked. She had grown so much in the past year both physically and emotionally. She was becoming the kind of person I hoped she would be and watching her mature made my heart swell with pride.The twins were wild with excitement about the party. They kept trying to eat the cake before Ho
Dylan's POVAiden and Lyra were four years old now and they were struggling in ways I had not fully recognized until it became impossible to ignore. All the attention Elena got for her shifting abilities was creating resentment. The twins could not shift yet because they were too young. Most wolf children did not shift until eleven or twelve. And baby Hope got constant attention for being the baby and needing to be fed and changed every few hours.Ethan was the cute toddler who made everyone laugh with his funny words and silly faces. But Aiden and Lyra were stuck in the middle and they felt invisible. I could see it in their eyes when Elena shifted and everyone cheered. I could hear it in their voices when they asked for attention and got distracted responses.It developed into behavioral problems that got worse every week. Aiden started acting out at preschool and his teacher called to say he had hit another child during playtime. That was not like him at all. Lyra became clingy and
Nadia's POVSeraphine arrived within the hour and I had never been more grateful to see anyone in my entire life. She was an elder who had helped me learn to control my own White Wolf powers years ago when I was still discovering what I was capable of. She had patience and wisdom that came from decades of working with young wolves.She assessed Elena's stuck wolf form immediately. Her eyes moved over Elena's white fur and the way her wolf paced back and forth with anxious energy. Elena's golden eyes were wide with fear and confusion. She understood something was wrong but she could not fix it on her own."Her human and wolf sides are not balanced yet," Seraphine explained calmly. "The wolf is too strong and too excited from the newness of shifting. We need to remind her human side why it wants to come back.""How?" I asked and my voice was tight with worry."With family. With love. With her identity as Elena and not just as a wolf."Dylan nodded and went inside to gather the whole fam
Dylan's POVElena turned eleven on a Tuesday in September and with it came the possibility of her first shift. Most wolf children shifted between eleven and thirteen years old. Some earlier if they had strong bloodlines. Some later if their wolf was slower to emerge. But it always came eventually.Elena had been preparing for months now. Learning control and understanding her wolf nature and practicing with her White Wolf powers separately from her regular wolf abilities. Nadia had been teaching her meditation techniques and breathing exercises. I had been teaching her about pack hierarchy and how to listen to her instincts without letting them control her.But nothing truly prepared you for the first shift. Not really. It was like explaining childbirth to someone who had never experienced it. You could describe it all you wanted but until you lived through it you had no idea what it actually felt like.It happened on a Saturday afternoon without any warning. Elena was playing in the
Nadia's POVBringing Hope home was different from bringing Ethan home. With Ethan, there had been trauma and fear and complicated emotions wrapped around every moment. I loved him instantly but there was always that shadow of how he came to be. With Hope, there was just joy and nothing else.The nursery was ready and waiting. Elena had made welcome home signs and hung them all over the house. The twins had helped pick out pink blankets and stuffed animals. Ethan kept trying to touch the baby's face with his sticky toddler hands and I had to redirect him constantly."Gentle," I told him for the hundredth time. "Baby Hope is very small. We have to be gentle.""Bay bee," Ethan said and patted Hope's head softly.Life with five kids was chaotic from the first moment we walked through the door. I was nursing around the clock and Hope seemed to want to eat every two hours. My body was exhausted and sore. Dylan was juggling pack duties and helping with four other children who all needed atte
Dylan's POVOver the next two weeks, I watched helplessly as Roman pursued Nadia relentlessly. Fresh flowers arrived at her doorstep every single morning. Roses, lilies, peonies, each bouquet more extravagant than the last. The delivery driver practically had a reserved parking spot outside her hou
Dylan's POVI found out about Nadia's date with Roman through pack gossip. Someone saw them talking on the phone and word spread like wildfire through the pack. When James confirmed it, I lost my mind."She is going on a DATE?!" I slammed my fist on the table hard enough to crack the wood. The soun
Nadia's POVI was shaking as Roman drove away from my house. The kiss. God, that kiss. I felt everything in those few seconds. Love, desire, connection. The mate bond screaming for its other half, begging me to turn around and run back to Dylan.But I could not go back to him. I could not."Are you
Dylan's POVNadia and I spent the night in Elena's room and we took turns watching her sleep to make sure no more power surges happened. It was the most time we had spent together in weeks and despite everything broken between us, it felt right. Every thirty minutes one of us would check her breath







