Chapter 1

Fiona's POV

Rhett walked in to find me with a silver dagger, pressing it against Sierra's swollen belly.

"You've gone too far, Fiona," he said, his eyes a dark abyss I could not fathom.

Staring back at him, I challenged, "Does a she-wolf who tries to secure her place with a pregnancy even deserve your defense?"

He was a stone, his emotions locked away.

Only when Sierra, weak and desperate, clawed at his leg did he show a flicker of feeling.

"Rhett... our pup... the future Alpha King..."

Her sobs tore through the silence, slicing into Rhett's resolve.

He shut his eyes, and when they reopened, he was transformed, half-man, half-beast.

His lethal claws then threatened my throat.

"You'd deny me heirs, Fiona, when you can't have one? Your jealousy is hideous."

His fury bore into me, squeezing my heart with an iron grip.

The werewolf who once claimed, "You are my everything, I only want you," was ready to end me for another.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, refusing to let the tears fall.

Instead of backing down, I leaned into the danger, my eyes blazing.

"Yes, I'm jealous.

"Rhett, hear me well. I'll take every illegitimate pup you sire!

"Take your revenge, slit my throat now, or you'll never have a legacy!"

The forest held its breath.

We stood locked in a standoff, the tension palpable.

His claw, quivering at my throat, hesitated.

His claw trembled against my throat, but it never came down.

For a moment, I felt the old tenderness between us.

However, in a flash, his eyes turned icy, and he spun away.

With a brutal swipe, he laid open the chest of Xavier, the loyal werewolf who had stood by me.

The scream stopped dead.

Hot blood splattered my face.

My eyes narrowed, lashes fluttering like trapped butterflies.

He pulled back his claws, expression unreadable as the winter moon, and gently lifted Sierra, shielding her from the carnage as if the sight might shatter her.

His voice was a frosty blade. "Fiona, if this happens again, I won't hesitate to break our mate-bond."

Without another look, he carried Sierra into the shadows of the forest.

I stood there, frozen, the heavy stench of blood my only company.

I wiped the blood from my face, feeling nothing but a chill inside.

Rhett was the half-wolf pup my dad's team found in the snow-capped mountains.

After my dad passed, Rhett became my rock.

That year, dad returned Rhett to the wild, and a dozen of werewolves caught me off guard, ambushing me in a valley.

When Rhett found me, he lost it with just one look.

Eyes red with rage, he shielded me, his voice shaking. "Don't be scared, Fiona, I'm here... I'll slaughter these monsters for you.

"I swear, Fiona, that you'll never be hurt again for as long as I live."

He kept that promise, in a frenzy, as he turned half-wolf and tore through the werewolves, breaking ribs and ripping off an ear.

It took five years to beat every elder who challenged him, claiming the Northern Wolf Kingdom.

No one whispered a word against me, the human, after that.

He loved me beyond reason, to the point of placing the Alpha King's Seal in my hands.

However, the warmth of yesterday's promises has turned to ice.

Except for Rhett, Xavier was the only werewolf in the Wolf Kingdom who was kind to me. I looked at his still body, closing his eyes.

Standing up, I left my feelings behind.

"I want Sierra dead," I ordered, "whatever it takes."