Her Reckoning: Love is the deadliest game of all

I hoisted the coarse burlap sack onto my back.

"Go on then. Go find your mother, the one who chose glory and power."

Dad's voice came out hoarse. He waved his hand as if trying to drive away something ominous.

My younger sister, Sunna Jones, hid behind Dad's broad, rigid frame and lifted her chin at me triumphantly. She mouthed the words, "Just you wait, my 'noble' sister."

A faint smile flickered across my lips before I turned and stepped into the cold drizzle. The chill pierced my thin clothes like needles, sinking deep into my marrow. My body, constantly eroded by the fractured wolf, craved warmth with a feverish desperation.

In truth, it didn't matter where I went. I simply wanted to escape this place, which was haunted by Dad's wolf howls from when he lost control. I wanted to find a corner where I could quietly pass the little time I had left.

The wolf riders sent by Mom and her new Alpha mate had been waiting for some time. Low-ranking pack members bore the riders on their backs, standing silently in the curtain of rain.

A sturdy black wolf led the group, and the she-wolf on its back was my mom, Elia Taylor. She was still beautiful. Her silver-gray hair was styled with meticulous care.

She furrowed her brow as she looked at me. Her eyes were filled with undisguised scrutiny and a hint of embarrassment. Her voice cut through the rain, laced with dissatisfaction. "How did you end up looking like this? Get up here quickly. Don't keep the esteemed Alpha Ryan waiting."

I grabbed the leather strap beside the saddle and tried to climb onto the back of a smaller gray wolf.

Mom's voice rang out again as she pointed toward my mud-stained sack. "Wait. Tie that thing to the back. Don't bring it into the heart of the pack."

I paused for a brief moment, then removed the sack as told. The wolves began to run, and the wind howled around us.

From the black wolf ahead, the wind carried Mom's clear, cold voice. "Alice, once we reach the Bloodclaw pack, mind your words and actions. Your stepfather, Alpha Ryan, is a powerful leader. He dislikes noise and trouble. Don't leave the residence arranged for you unless necessary.

"Suppress your scent when you walk and maintain your etiquette when you eat. Most importantly, never mention your father or his… disgraceful deeds."

I watched the outline of the forest recede rapidly and answered softly, "Understood."

The throbbing pain inside my head suddenly intensified, and dark shadows blurred the edges of my vision. I instinctively tightened my grip on the reins until my knuckles turned pale.

"What is it now?"

Mom's voice carried its usual impatience.

I held my breath. "It's nothing. I'm just not used to the jolting of the wolf's back."

"You're just as unstable as your father, always causing problems," Mom remarked disdainfully, as if stating a fact that had nothing to do with her.

I closed my eyes, swallowing back the metallic taste of blood in my throat.

Night had already fallen by the time we crossed the vast territory and arrived at the enormous pack settlement filled with towering buildings.

"We're here," Mom said.

She leaped off the wolf first, straightened her clothes, and took a deep breath. She was adjusting herself, shifting from the indifferent mother she had been to her daughter into the dignified and powerful Luna.

"Follow me, and remember to address him correctly," she said.

I removed my sack and followed her silently into the main castle, the tallest of them all. The lights hanging in the center of the hall were bright, illuminating the solid figure seated on the throne.

He didn't look at us. Instead, he kept his eyes on the documents before him. His profile was sharp and chiseled under the light.

This was my stepfather, the Alpha of the Bloodclaw pack, Ryan Walker. He was the ruler rumored to be tyrannical and ruthless, and the one who had torn Sunna to pieces in my previous life.