Autumn’s POV It began with a whisper. Faint. Distant. Like the echo of a memory I never asked to return. I stirred in bed, the silk sheets tangled around my legs, my chest rising and falling in uneven rhythm. The moonlight spilled across the room through the open window, bathing everything in a silver glow. Zane’s scent still lingered in the air—warm, grounding, comforting. He had held me so tenderly the night before, making love to me as if I was the most precious thing in the world. And yet… Something felt wrong. A sudden chill crawled up my spine. My skin erupted in goosebumps. I sat up slowly, pressing a hand against my chest. My heart was racing, not from desire—but from something… else. A weight, heavy and unrelenting, settled on my soul. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe through the unease. Then I heard it again. A soft murmur. My name. Autumn... My eyes flew open. “Who's there?” I whispered, though I knew I’d hear no answer. Except—I wasn’t completely alone. A p
Malrik’s POVThe torches flickered against the cavern walls, casting long, angry shadows that twisted like serpents. The deeper I walked, the heavier the air became—drenched with ancient magic, blood oaths, and the scent of sulfur.At the center of the circular chamber stood Kaelron, the dark sorcerer—cloaked in crimson and black, his face half-hidden beneath a hood. His skeletal fingers moved rhythmically above the obsidian altar, muttering incantations in a forgotten tongue. The dark pool in the stone basin before him shimmered with blood and stardust.I stepped forward. “Enough theatrics, Kaelron. I didn’t come here to watch your little rituals.”Kaelron’s head lifted slowly. One pale eye gleamed from beneath his hood. “You always were impatient, Malrik. But breaking the seal of the Moon Goddess is no trivial matter.”I clenched my jaw. “She was mine. She is mine. Yet I can’t reach her—not in dreams, not in power. Something’s blocking me.”Kaelron nodded. “A divine seal. Placed by
Autumn's POVThe air was alive with color and warmth as I walked through the bustling market. Valen was skipping ahead with Zane’s beta, holding a candied fruit in his tiny hands, his laughter blending into the hum of bartering voices, clinking silver, and sweet, spicy aromas.I needed this. After the stormy days and haunting nights, something about the energy here—the humanity of it—calmed me.But then the air shifted.It grew colder… heavier.As if the sun momentarily slipped behind a dark cloud no one else could see.My breath caught in my throat.I turned instinctively, and my gaze landed on him.Malrik.He stood near a velvet-draped tent stall, blending effortlessly into the crowd with an aura of dark elegance. He wore a black coat over a deep maroon tunic, his obsidian hair pushed back, revealing the cruel perfection of his jaw and those damnably familiar storm-gray eyes.Eyes that knew me.Even across the crowd, his gaze didn’t waver. Didn’t blink. My legs froze in place.He be
Malrik's POV “NO!” The roar that erupted from my throat shook the entire chamber. I grabbed the nearest glass decanter on my desk and hurled it across the room. It shattered into a hundred glittering shards, echoing my fury. Papers flew. Furniture crashed. I didn’t stop. I wanted the whole damn palace to shake under my rage. I had tried again. I had reached her mind. Slipped past the veil of reality and into that sweet slumber of hers. Her soul still whispered to me—Bella… my Bella. But before I could touch her, before I could even see her face clearly— He was there. That bastard Lycan King. Zane. The golden boy with the crown, the hero with love in his eyes. The one she gave herself to—now. I clenched my fists until my claws sliced into my own palms, blood dripping onto the marble floor. “I claimed her. She is mine. She belonged to me long before he even knew her name!” I paced the room like a beast caged. My body burned with the failed connection. I had felt her warmth f
Zane’s POV“I love her deeper than anything… deeper than my blood, my title, my very soul.”The Priestess’s words echoed in my head as I stepped into our chambers. There she was—my Autumn—sitting on the bed with our little one, Valen, giggling in her lap. Her soft laughter, the way she looked at him like he was her whole world—it made something fierce and tender burn in my chest.I leaned on the doorframe, watching for a moment. She noticed me and smiled, her eyes lighting up like a thousand stars. Valen squealed, crawling toward me.I lifted him into my arms. “We have a prince here who’s refusing bedtime,” I said with a smirk.Autumn chuckled. “He missed you.”“I missed both of you,” I whispered, kissing her forehead, then turning to Valen. “Let’s get you to bed, little warrior.”She nodded, eyes lingering on me with something unspoken.I tucked Valen into his room, watching his little chest rise and fall. When I returned, Autumn stood by the window, moonlight bathing her in silver g
Zane’s POVI arrived at the sacred temple before dawn. The forest around it shimmered under silver moonlight, and the air hummed with ancient energy. My heart was heavy, my mind storming with questions.I had to protect Autumn. From Malrik. From the dreams. From herself.The moment I stepped inside the marble temple, the scent of herbs and old magic hit me. The Priestess waited in the center, her white robes flowing around her like mist. Her eyes—clouded but all-seeing—met mine before I even spoke.“You’ve come to ask about the dream trap,” she said gently, as though she had already seen it.I nodded. “He’s invading her sleep. She cries out at night. I hold her, calm her, but I feel her slipping. I… I won’t let him win. Tell me what to do.”The Priestess stepped forward, her hands glowing faintly with moonlight.“Zane Valerian Blackhowl… Lycan King. You share a bond deeper than flesh. A soulbond only the Moon Goddess herself could weave. But dark bonds are jealous, and Malrik’s tie to