The mind of Blackthorne

Damien's POV

“Strange,” I said, staring down at her frame. For a girl who was called worthless, I couldn't keep my eyes off her.

I stood at the crest of the hill, savouring the smell of victory. But it wasn't the chained warriors that held my gaze. It was her. The girl from the shadows.

Something about her intrigued me. I was pulled to her like nothing else in that courtyard mattered.

“Alpha,” Marcus said, standing at my side.

“The courtyard is secure. The alpha and the pack await your judgment.”

My gaze was fixed on her trembling body as they shoved her to her knees.

“A wolf who has forgotten her fangs,” I said softly, more to myself than him.

Marcus followed my gaze and frowned.

“Oh that one, she is the weakest amongst them.”

My lips curved into a smile. “And yet she holds my interest more than the rest. Salcan acts like a proud king, yet he bows in surrender in front of his pack. Ronin, on the other hand, kneels in shame. But her… she doesn't yet know what she is. That makes her dangerous.

Marcus became uneasy. “Our purpose here is the visions, the gifts of the goddess in their blood. Shouldn't we…”

“I haven't forgotten,” I said, cutting him off.

I stared down for a moment, looking across the lands. The wolves I was staring at looked so ordinary and weak. My vengeance was upon them. I was ready to get what rightfully belonged to me.

“My wolves cannot bleed in vain. You know what must be done,” I said firmly.

I gestured at Marcus to leave and he obeyed, striding down the hill to deliver my orders.

I watched from above and watched as the scene before me unfolded.

“Take her, take the Alpha's daughter,” Ronin said, pointing at the girl.

At that moment, the pieces started to fall in place. She wasn't just a random trembling wolf. She was Salcan's daughter. The untapped gift of the goddess ran through her veins. Unmarked. Untouched. That was why I couldn't look away.

“So he has a daughter,” I said, finally descending from the hill. The crowd parted in silence as I approached.

“Oh, really?” I said, cutting through the tension.

“Alpha Damien, she is Moon-blessed and she may yet…”

“May yet?” I said, cutting him off. How could he diminish his own blood and offer her like an object?

The silence thickened and I finally turned my gaze to her.

She looked at me wide-eyed, her heart racing so fast, I could hear it. But I could see something else in her expression.

Recognition.

“We meet again little wolf,” I said, certainly.

The moment her eyes met mine, I knew she was the one whose scent had burned itself into me, making me helplessly drawn to her from the beginning.

And then Ronin’s voice broke through the crowd.

“Lira isn’t a real wolf, Alpha Blackthorne.” He pushed himself forward, eyes burning with bitter rage. “She hasn’t even morphed under the full moon. And yes, I’ll admit it, she was meant to be my mate. But how can a wolf be mated to a mere human? I only endured her shame because of Alpha Salcan, to please him. But she…” He pointed straight at her, trembling. “She’s an empty vessel. She’s only worth something in death. Take her! She’s not worth our pack.”

His words came from a place of hatred and rage. The silence of the pack only meant that they felt the same way. Lira didn't speak, but her silence said everything I needed to know.

I took a few steps towards Ronin. As I approached, he flinched. I pulled on his dirty golden hair, forcing him to look at me.

“Oh, Ronin,” I said, letting a smile form across my face. “You have so much to say, like you’re any better. But I can smell it all over you, the fear, the jealousy. You want her gone so no one sees you for the dog you really are.”

Gasps erupted among the pack. Ronin shrank under my stare.

I turned, levelling my gaze on Salcan. “And you… Why do you offer me scraps? You call her worthless, yet place her before me as if she’s worth bargaining with.”

I pointed a finger toward him, my voice cutting through the yard. “I’ll take what you’ve offered, but she alone will not be enough. You think her worthless? Then she’s not good enough for atonement.”

The crowd stiffened.

“I want half of your land. Half your prized possessions. And among them your closest, most loyal Beta, Ronin. He will join the offering.”

I didn't have to raise my voice. My decree was final. “And I will hear no objections.”

I waved a hand, and Marcus seized Lira and Ronin.

That’s when Salcan finally snapped, his voice saturated with rage.

“Oh, Blackthorne. I’ve given you what you want, I’ve given you what you need, and now you take half of what I own? You think Lira is worth something? Then let me tell you the truth.”

The crowd leaned in, the tension like a thin string ready to snap.

“I caged her wolf,” Salcan growled. “The night she was born, I locked it away. That is why she cannot shift. That is why she will never be what you imagine her to be.”

The words struck Lira harder than any blow. Her face went pale, her knees buckled, and a sob tore from her chest.

“No…” she whispered, her voice trembling. “No, that’s not true… You… you did this to me?” Her hands clawed at her chest as if she could tear open her ribcage and release all the pain that was built up inside. “All this time… all this time, I thought I was broken.” Tears streamed down her face unrestrained. “You made me believe I was nothing.”

The pack fell into shocked silence, probably because they never imagined their alpha to be pure evil.

I let the weight of it all hang in the air before I stepped closer to Salcan.

“Oh, Salcan… you call yourself Alpha, but you caged your own blood like a coward. Not because she was weak, but because you feared she would rise above you. You feared her power.”

I turned back to Lyra, lifting her chin with a single finger. Her intoxicating scent hit me again.

“Perhaps her wolf is caged,” I said, low enough for only the courtyard to hear, “but cages are meant to be broken.”

Murmurs erupted from the crowd again. It seemed like that was all the pack was good for.

I looked across all the lands Salcan had acquired and how weak the pack had become under his reign. They couldn't protect their territory from just half of my army. That was a far stretch from who the Moonblessed used to be.

I locked eyes with Lira. I knew that if I left her in this prison for one more day, I would be condemning her to death.

No matter how much Salcan claimed to hate her, I knew he was too selfish to let anything be taken from him.

“Take them,” I ordered. Marcus dragged Ronin by the neck. I bent and took Lira's arm myself. She flinched but didn't fight it.

“Let the Moonblessed remember this night,” I growled. “ The night of my vengeance.

For an instant, I could see the fear in Salcan's eyes as they darted towards his daughter.That was when I knew he was hiding something more than locking her wolf away.