CHAPTER TWELVE — “THE WEIGHT OF THE CROWN”

Morning came quietly, as if the city itself was afraid to make noise.

Aria woke to the steady sound of breathing beside her. For a moment, she was disoriented, her body heavy with exhaustion, her mind foggy with fragments of fire, blood, and power.

Then she remembered.

The attack. Her mother. The hybrids. The way the night had nearly swallowed the city whole.

She turned her head slowly.

Luca lay beside her, one arm draped protectively around her waist even in sleep. His face was calm, but there was tension etched into his brow, the mark of a man who never truly rested.

Something softened in her chest.

She had never belonged anywhere before. Not fully. Not safely.

Yet here she was, wrapped in the arms of the most dangerous man in the city, feeling more protected than she ever had in her life.

Carefully, she shifted, trying not to wake him.

His eyes opened instantly.

“You’re awake,” he said, voice rough with sleep.

Aria smiled faintly. “You sleep like a soldier.”

“I am one,” he replied, tightening his arm around her. “Any pain.”

She checked herself. “Just tired. Like my bones remember things my mind doesn’t.”

“That will pass,” he said. “Your body is adjusting.”

She hesitated. “And the city.”

Luca’s gaze darkened. “The council is restless. They’re afraid.”

“Of me.”

“Of what you represent,” he corrected. “Change scares people who benefit from order.”

Aria sat up slowly, the silk sheets sliding down her shoulders. “Then they’re going to push back.”

“Yes.”

She met his eyes. “Hard.”

“Yes.”

Silence settled between them, heavy but honest.

A knock sounded at the door.

“Enter,” Luca said.

Seraphina stepped inside, her sharp gaze immediately assessing Aria’s condition. “You survived your first real confrontation. That alone places you above most.”

Aria exhaled. “It didn’t feel like survival. It felt like instinct.”

“That is exactly what it was,” Seraphina said. “Your blood remembers who you are.”

Luca stood. “Speak.”

“The council is convening within the hour,” Seraphina continued. “They want to address last night publicly.”

Aria’s stomach tightened. “Publicly how.”

Seraphina’s lips pressed into a thin line. “They want to see if the Alpha stands alone.”

Luca’s expression hardened. “I never stand alone.”

Seraphina looked directly at Aria. “This is where loyalty becomes visible.”

Aria understood immediately.

“They want me to appear.”

“Yes.”

Luca stepped closer to her. “You don’t have to.”

“I do,” Aria said quietly. “If I hide now, they will always see me as a weakness.”

Seraphina inclined her head. “Good. Then you’re learning faster than expected.”

The council chamber buzzed with tension by the time they arrived.

Wolves filled the room, their gazes sharp and calculating. Whispers rippled like unease through water as Aria entered beside Luca.

Some bowed.

Others stared.

A few looked openly afraid.

Aria lifted her chin, refusing to let fear show. She could feel her power resting beneath her skin, calm but present, like a sleeping flame.

Elder Romano rose slowly. “Last night, our city was violated.”

A murmur of agreement spread.

“Civilians were endangered,” he continued. “And the cause of this chaos stands before us.”

Every eye turned to Aria.

She did not flinch.

“Yes,” she said, her voice clear. “I am the reason your enemies came.”

Gasps echoed.

“But I am also the reason they failed,” she continued. “I stood between your people and destruction. Not because I was ordered to. Because I chose to.”

The room fell silent.

Romano studied her carefully. “Choice does not erase risk.”

“No,” Aria agreed. “But it defines character.”

Luca stepped forward then, his presence commanding immediate attention. “Any threat against her is a threat against me.”

A younger Alpha scoffed. “And if the pack disagrees.”

Luca’s gaze snapped to him. “Then the pack will learn.”

The challenge hung in the air, sharp and dangerous.

Before anyone could respond, a sudden wave of pressure rolled through the chamber.

Aria stiffened.

She felt it.

A pull.

Not from Luca.

From somewhere deeper.

Her chest burned as a vision flashed before her eyes. Fire consuming stone. Wolves kneeling in blood. A crown forged not of gold, but of power.

She gasped, clutching Luca’s arm.

“Aria,” he said urgently.

She swallowed hard. “My mother is moving again.”

The elders erupted into noise.

“When,” Romano demanded.

“Soon,” Aria said, forcing herself to breathe. “She’s gathering more hybrids. She’s testing the borders.”

Seraphina stepped forward. “Then we no longer have the luxury of debate.”

Romano’s gaze hardened. “Then a decision must be made.”

All eyes turned to Luca.

“Alpha DeLuca,” Romano said slowly. “Will you lead this pack into war over a woman.”

Luca did not hesitate.

“I will lead this pack into war to protect our future,” he said. “And she is part of that future.”

A long silence followed.

Then one by one, wolves lowered their heads.

Submission.

Acceptance.

Loyalty.

Aria’s breath caught as the weight of it pressed down on her. This was no longer just survival.

This was leadership.

Later, as they stood alone on the balcony once more, Aria leaned against Luca’s chest, the city stretching endlessly below them.

“I felt something today,” she admitted. “Like something is waiting for me.”

Luca’s arms tightened around her. “Power always demands a price.”

She looked up at him. “What if that price is everything.”

He kissed her forehead gently. “Then we make sure it’s worth it.”

Far away, deep within abandoned ruins, a woman opened her eyes and smiled.

“The crown is heavy,” Aria’s mother whispered. “Let us see if you can carry it.”