Chapter 36: True powerAmara,Now that I had this power, this connection with Xander, nothing could hold me back. The bond I shared with him wasnโt just a thread of fateโit was a weapon, a force I hadnโt even begun to understand fully. But I felt it, thrumming through my veins like molten fire. It was a force that had been awakened in me, one that I had never known existed. A strength, a power, so potent that it could level everything in my path.Xander, for all his cold and calculating exterior, had never once shown me his true power. He was the one who had always kept his distance, held his cards close to his chest, as if the world needed to be convinced of his strength. But now, that strength had passed into meโwhether I wanted it or notโand it was time to make them all feel it.Derek had no idea what he had unleashed when he betrayed me. He thought he could walk away from this unscathed. He thought the pack would continue to support him, console him, and forgive him as they always
Chapter 37: The stormAmaraThe storm inside me hadnโt calmedโit had only begun to rise.Word of what happened in the forest spread like wildfire. They whispered about the power Iโd unleashed, how the trees had trembled and the earth had cracked beneath my feet. Some thought it was a trick. Others said I had used forbidden magic. But the truth was far more dangerous than their speculationโI had awakened something ancient, something primal, and I was no longer the girl who had once begged for a place in this pack.Some feared me now. Others watched me with wary curiosity, uncertain if I was a threat or a miracle. That suited me just fine. Let them wonder. Let them squirm.Let them remember every time they laughed behind my back, every moment they sided with Derek after he rejected me and spun his tale of a heartbroken Alpha protecting the pack from a "dangerous, unstable" woman. Let them remember how easily they sympathized with himโhow they painted him as the victim and me as the vill
Chapter 38: Threat to the pack Luna Susannaโs Council Chamber โ Crescent Moon Pack The air in the council chamber was heavy with silenceโdense, unyielding, oppressive. It wrapped around us like a shroud, and yet the weight of it came not from the absence of words, but from everything left unsaid. The roomโonce the very heart of discipline, law, and sacred traditionโnow pulsed with the low, crackling hum of rebellion. I stood before them, my grandsons. Wolves born of the same bloodline but carved into entirely different shapes by time, by pain, by ambition. Xander, the storm I never saw coming, stood tall and coiled in the shadows, tension radiating off him in waves. His jaw was clenched, his eyes ice and fire all at onceโdefiant, unflinching. One hand rested on the hilt of his blade. It wasnโt for show. Since his return, he always kept it close, as if the world offered no safety unless steel was within reach. Derek was seated, his posture deceptively composed, but I knew t
Chapter 39: Embers of RebellionAmara โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe wind howled through the open windows of the North Tower, carrying with it the unmistakable scent of something ancientโcharred bone mingling with the faint, bitter tang of blooming wolfsbane. It was a scent that felt alive, as if the very air around me was remembering something old, something primal. It lingered in my lungs, tugging at memories I hadnโt dared to revisit.I stood at the edge of the balcony, feeling the cold stone beneath my boots, watching as the full moon cast its pale, silvery light across the courtyard below. The night felt heavy, pregnant with change. The pack was shiftingโrestless and uneasy. Their energy hummed beneath the stones of the tower, vibrating through the very ground. They could feel it tooโthe subtle turn of the tide, the stirring of the wolves whoโd been dormant for so long. This was the moment everything began to unravel. The end of silence, and the beginning of something wild
Chapter 40: Shattered ChainsXander โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe night was heavy, cloying with an oppressive silence that made the air feel thick, as though it too had been weighed down by the tension building within these walls. The storm outside raged as if nature itself could sense the brewing chaosโfury unleashed upon the land. But it was not the storm that unsettled me. It was the one stirring inside me, a tempest of thoughts and emotions too violent to contain.Hours had passed since Amara left the balcony, but the memory of her eyesโthose fierce, unwavering eyesโlingered in my mind. The way she had looked at me, as though she saw through every lie, every secret, every crack in the facade I had built. And still, she had stood beside me. Her resolve had burned hotter than any fire I had ever known, and it sparked something in me that I couldnโt ignore. A desire to protect her. A desire to destroy anyone who would threaten her. But there was more, much more beneath the su
Chapter 41: ANCIENT LAWSAmara โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe summons arrived with the first light of dawn, carried on the wind like a portent, as if the earth itself conspired to bring me to this moment. I stood by the door of my chambers, my fingers brushing the smooth seal of the parchment in my hand. It pressed against my chest like a dark omen, a heavy weight I couldnโt shake, no matter how hard I tried to steady my breath.The Luna Trial.An ancient law, invoked only in the rarest of circumstances. It was not something that women like me were ever meant to face. The last time the trial had been called, it had ended in tragedyโone woman burned alive in the very arena where I would now stand. It was a trial by fire, and its outcome was as uncertain as the fates of those who had gone before me. To survive it meant claiming the title of Luna, becoming the Alphaโs mate, and wielding power over the pack. But to fail meant deathโby the flames that would scorch everything from my
Chapter 001: Betrayal Under the Blood Moon AMARA The rhythmic beeping of the machines did little to dull the searing pain in my chest. Every muscle ached, my body bruised and broken, but none of it compared to the humiliation clawing at my soul. It was everywhereโetched in my memory, whispered through the hospital halls, and burned into the pitying gazes of the healers who refused to meet my eyes. I wasnโt just broken. I was ruined, lost. My mother sat beside me, her scent thick with worry. I could feel her unspoken questions pressing down on me, but I had no answers. How could I possibly explain what had just happened? I shut my eyes, hoping to escape, but the memories came rushing back, sharp as a wolfโs fangs. My mating ceremonyโthe night I had dreamed of for yearsโhad turned into my worst nightmare. The evening had started perfectly, like something out of an ancient werewolf legend. The mating ceremony was the holiest ritual in our pack, a night when the goddes
Chapter 0002: A MATE OR A WEAPON XANDER, The pack house smelled of whiskey, leather, and the lingering scent of last nightโs hunt. My latest conquest clung to my arm, her breath still shallow from exhaustion, but I barely noticed. My wolf prowled beneath my skin, unsettled, still thrumming with the thrill of the chase. Blood pumped hot in my veins, and yet, no amount of pleasure could shake the gnawing restlessness inside me. I lived for the hunt, for the rush of combat, for the reckless abandon of the night. What I didnโt live for? Pack politics. The grand oak table stood at the center of the room, polished and pristineโa stark contrast to the tension that always lingered around it. My grandmother and my brother, Xander, sat locked in a hushed but heated discussion. I barely spared them a glance. They could keep their territorial disputes and power games. I had no patience for it. I was almost free, halfway up the stairs to my room, when my grandmotherโs voice cut through the ai
Chapter 41: ANCIENT LAWSAmara โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe summons arrived with the first light of dawn, carried on the wind like a portent, as if the earth itself conspired to bring me to this moment. I stood by the door of my chambers, my fingers brushing the smooth seal of the parchment in my hand. It pressed against my chest like a dark omen, a heavy weight I couldnโt shake, no matter how hard I tried to steady my breath.The Luna Trial.An ancient law, invoked only in the rarest of circumstances. It was not something that women like me were ever meant to face. The last time the trial had been called, it had ended in tragedyโone woman burned alive in the very arena where I would now stand. It was a trial by fire, and its outcome was as uncertain as the fates of those who had gone before me. To survive it meant claiming the title of Luna, becoming the Alphaโs mate, and wielding power over the pack. But to fail meant deathโby the flames that would scorch everything from my
Chapter 40: Shattered ChainsXander โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe night was heavy, cloying with an oppressive silence that made the air feel thick, as though it too had been weighed down by the tension building within these walls. The storm outside raged as if nature itself could sense the brewing chaosโfury unleashed upon the land. But it was not the storm that unsettled me. It was the one stirring inside me, a tempest of thoughts and emotions too violent to contain.Hours had passed since Amara left the balcony, but the memory of her eyesโthose fierce, unwavering eyesโlingered in my mind. The way she had looked at me, as though she saw through every lie, every secret, every crack in the facade I had built. And still, she had stood beside me. Her resolve had burned hotter than any fire I had ever known, and it sparked something in me that I couldnโt ignore. A desire to protect her. A desire to destroy anyone who would threaten her. But there was more, much more beneath the su
Chapter 39: Embers of RebellionAmara โ Crescent Moon Pack, North TowerThe wind howled through the open windows of the North Tower, carrying with it the unmistakable scent of something ancientโcharred bone mingling with the faint, bitter tang of blooming wolfsbane. It was a scent that felt alive, as if the very air around me was remembering something old, something primal. It lingered in my lungs, tugging at memories I hadnโt dared to revisit.I stood at the edge of the balcony, feeling the cold stone beneath my boots, watching as the full moon cast its pale, silvery light across the courtyard below. The night felt heavy, pregnant with change. The pack was shiftingโrestless and uneasy. Their energy hummed beneath the stones of the tower, vibrating through the very ground. They could feel it tooโthe subtle turn of the tide, the stirring of the wolves whoโd been dormant for so long. This was the moment everything began to unravel. The end of silence, and the beginning of something wild
Chapter 38: Threat to the pack Luna Susannaโs Council Chamber โ Crescent Moon Pack The air in the council chamber was heavy with silenceโdense, unyielding, oppressive. It wrapped around us like a shroud, and yet the weight of it came not from the absence of words, but from everything left unsaid. The roomโonce the very heart of discipline, law, and sacred traditionโnow pulsed with the low, crackling hum of rebellion. I stood before them, my grandsons. Wolves born of the same bloodline but carved into entirely different shapes by time, by pain, by ambition. Xander, the storm I never saw coming, stood tall and coiled in the shadows, tension radiating off him in waves. His jaw was clenched, his eyes ice and fire all at onceโdefiant, unflinching. One hand rested on the hilt of his blade. It wasnโt for show. Since his return, he always kept it close, as if the world offered no safety unless steel was within reach. Derek was seated, his posture deceptively composed, but I knew t
Chapter 37: The stormAmaraThe storm inside me hadnโt calmedโit had only begun to rise.Word of what happened in the forest spread like wildfire. They whispered about the power Iโd unleashed, how the trees had trembled and the earth had cracked beneath my feet. Some thought it was a trick. Others said I had used forbidden magic. But the truth was far more dangerous than their speculationโI had awakened something ancient, something primal, and I was no longer the girl who had once begged for a place in this pack.Some feared me now. Others watched me with wary curiosity, uncertain if I was a threat or a miracle. That suited me just fine. Let them wonder. Let them squirm.Let them remember every time they laughed behind my back, every moment they sided with Derek after he rejected me and spun his tale of a heartbroken Alpha protecting the pack from a "dangerous, unstable" woman. Let them remember how easily they sympathized with himโhow they painted him as the victim and me as the vill
Chapter 36: True powerAmara,Now that I had this power, this connection with Xander, nothing could hold me back. The bond I shared with him wasnโt just a thread of fateโit was a weapon, a force I hadnโt even begun to understand fully. But I felt it, thrumming through my veins like molten fire. It was a force that had been awakened in me, one that I had never known existed. A strength, a power, so potent that it could level everything in my path.Xander, for all his cold and calculating exterior, had never once shown me his true power. He was the one who had always kept his distance, held his cards close to his chest, as if the world needed to be convinced of his strength. But now, that strength had passed into meโwhether I wanted it or notโand it was time to make them all feel it.Derek had no idea what he had unleashed when he betrayed me. He thought he could walk away from this unscathed. He thought the pack would continue to support him, console him, and forgive him as they always
Chapter 35.The FlashbackAmaraI had barely begun to recover from the overwhelming shock of what had happened when I was rushed to the hospital. The emotional toll had been too much for me to bearโmy body had betrayed me in the worst way possible. I couldnโt stop shaking, couldnโt stop crying, and my mind kept replaying the image of Derek and that man in the bathroom over and over again. The betrayal was too much.But it wasnโt just the physical pain I had to endure. It was the humiliation that stung the most. I had been so sure of everythingโof Derek, of our bond, of my place in the pack. Now, I was left shattered, broken, and uncertain. I was the victim here, and yet it felt like the world was painting me as the one at fault.They all pitied Derek.When I woke up in the hospital, my head foggy with painkillers, the first thing I saw was him. Derek. He was standing at the foot of my bed, a picture of remorse, his face pale, his eyes wide with guilt. His lips trembled as he tried to
Chapter 34 Flashback โ The Day Everything Changed Amara I stood before the mirror, my hands trembling as I adjusted the gown for what should have been the most important day of my life. The evening was supposed to be oursโmine and Derekโs. Our mating ceremony. The day we would officially unite our bond before the pack, a promise of forever. The dress, delicate and embroidered with silver, shimmered against the light. Its fabric clung to my body just enough to feel like it belonged to me, each thread whispering of the promises I had clung to for so long. My long hair fell in soft waves around my shoulders, a veil covering my face to add to the mystique. I had never felt more beautiful, more ready to step into this new chapter with the man I loved. But as the minutes ticked by, the excitement began to shift. Derek should have been by my side by now, helping me get ready, reassuring me as we prepared for the ceremony. But he was nowhere to be found. A sudden wave of unease gripp
Chapter 33โ The Broken Oath Xander The bond was gone. One moment, it was thereโtight and blazing like a chain around my ribsโand the next, it shattered. No warning. No pain. Justโฆ emptiness. It was like dying. I stumbled back from the altar, my breath caught somewhere between a growl and a scream. The sacred circle flickered violently, and then dimmed, lifeless. Every rune, every whispered chant, every drop of ancestral magicโsnuffed out by her. Amara. My mate. My fucking mate. She looked at me with those eyesโcalm, cold, victoriousโand I knew. This wasnโt a mistake. This wasnโt an accident. She had planned it. All of it. The girl who had once bowed her head to me, who had once stood quietly behind her packโs fall, had just destroyed the one thing I had built this entire future on. The bond. The heirloom bloodline. The legacy. Gone. Burned to ash by the very woman I had dragged back from ruin. And standing beside her like a smug shadowโDerek. My jaw locked