MasukTalia’s POV Warriors poured in, scowls etched deep into their faces, bodies already braced for a fight that hadn’t started yet. I didn’t flinch. I crossed my legs instead, slow and deliberate, daring them to make the first move. They stopped a few feet away from me, forming a loose semicircle. Hands hovered near weapons. Shoulders were tense. Eyes flicked to my hands like they expected lightning to spill from my fingers. They’d heard, heard every rumor about my powers. Good. Let them be afraid. “Luna,” one of them said carefully, like he was approaching a wild animal. “You can’t be here.” “Hm.” I hummed, dragging my gaze over them one by one, committing faces to memory. “Funny. I don’t remember asking for permission.” The air thickened. I felt it then—that low hum rising in my chest, vibrating through my bones. It coiled tight around my ribs, impatient, hungry. The lights along the walls flickered. Dust trembled on the shelves. They were here for me. Not to escort. Not to w
Talia's POV I woke with only one goal. To find out what exactly I'd seen the night before—and what it meant. A glowing hourglass. The image clung to me, sharp and vivid, like it had been burned into the back of my eyes. It made no sense. And that alone made it dangerous. And my wolf’s warning, meeting her. It was odd, impossible, but it had happened. And I didn’t have time to dwell on it. Time was running out. I stepped into the pack house, bracing myself for the usual—whispers mixed with contempt, stares heavy with judgment. I got the stares, yes, and the whispers too. But they were... different. No sneers. No open hostility. Instead, I got fear. It prickled against my skin, followed me down the halls like a second shadow. Wolves stiffened as I passed. Conversations died abruptly. A few omegas averted their eyes altogether, as though looking at me too long might invite something awful. What the hell was going on? I kept my chin lifted and my pace steady, refusing to
"You're not real," I whispered. "This is—this is stress. Or a nightmare. Or the goddess finally decided I've had enough and snapped my mind in half." She snorted. "Still dramatic. Good. That hasn't changed." My stomach dropped. "You're... my wolf," I said slowly, the words tasting unreal. "Yes." "That's not possible." "And yet," she gestured around us, "here we are." Fear curled tighter around my ribs. "This doesn't happen. Wolves don't meet their wolves. Not like this." Her expression sobered. "No. They don't. Not unless something is very wrong—or very important." That did nothing to calm me. "What is this place?" I demanded. "Our mindspace," she replied simply. "Or what it's becoming." "Why now?" She stepped closer, her presence heavy, powerful, familiar in a way that made my chest ache. "Because you're waking up. And because you're running out of time." A chill slid down my spine. "Time for what?" Her gaze sharpened. "Cassian." My heart stuttered pai
Talia's POV My hair whipped violently around my face as the wind blew through the streets. The sky was dark—in an unnatural way. Not the soft, familiar darkness of night, but a heavy one, like something had draped a veil over the moon, plunging the pack into darkness. I swallowed, my heart lodged painfully in my throat as adrenaline surged through me. That low hum stirred again beneath my skin—the one I'd learned to recognise, the one tangled deep in my bones and blood. My power. It was restless, awake. Something was wrong. Really wrong. I needed Cassian. I spun around. The pack house loomed ahead of me, tall and imposing. I'd passed through its doors countless times without a second thought, but now... now it felt different. With the darkened moon hanging behind it, the structure looked less like a home, like something I couldn’t recognise. A shiver ran down my spine. "Cass?" I called, my voice swallowed almost instantly by the wind. Silence answered me. I
Nicole's POV I didn't make it past the third corridor. I knew the moment it happened—felt it in the air before I heard the footsteps. The pack house had gone unnaturally quiet, it wasn’t their usual quiet, this was the kind of quiet that comes right before violence. No distant chatter. No clinking armor. Just the low hum of power shifting. I slowed. Bad idea. The guards stepped out from the shadows in front of me—four of them, flanking the hallway like they'd rehearsed this. Dawnveil colors. Dawnveil insignia. Dawnveil loyalty. They were loyal, not to justice. To Serena, the cold bastard Alpha. "Move," I ordered coolly, not breaking stride. None of them did. "Beta Nicole," one of them said, his voice stiff. "You're not authorized to leave the premises." I laughed. A short, humorless sound. "That's funny. Because I didn't ask." I took another step. Steel scraped. Weapons drawn. Ah. There it was. "So this is how it is," I murmured, letting my wolf rise just enough for
Nicole’s POV The word landed like a blow. I closed my eyes, jaw clenched so tightly it hurt. “Explain.” “They said it was to keep her contained,” the omega continued shakily. “To suppress her wolf. But it wasn’t containment. It was punishment.” My stomach churned. “She was bound with it,” the omega said. “Chained to it. Every time she resisted, every time she refused to submit, it burned into her. Inside and out.” My hands curled into fists. I shouldn’t care, I shouldn’t. But a part of me raged at the thought of what they’d done to her. She’d gone mad, descended into darkness, betrayed her pack and friends but that kind of torture… for so long. I clenched my fists. “And when she escaped?” I asked quietly. “She took it with her,” the omega said. “Ripped it free. Killed the guard who tried to stop her.” I opened my eyes, staring hard at the wall. They’d accused her of seduction and killing. They’d hidden the real, ugly truth. “That’s why Serena lied,” I murmur







