chapter 5

Mina's POV

"Did you hear what the scouts brought back from the western ridge?" Marra whispered loudly, leaning across the supply crates toward Taran.

I paused, my fingers hovering over the bundle of dried moon-grass I was sorting. The morning sun was just starting to pierce through the high windows of the packhouse kitchen, but the atmosphere inside was already freezing with tension.

"They say the Bloodcrest pack didn't just cross the line for hunting," Taran replied, dropping his voice as he looked around nervously. "They are tracking unusual wolf activity near our border. They have been running patterns, searching the perimeter like they are hunting down something... or someone, newly awakened."

"Newly awakened?" Marra gasped, her eyes widening. "We haven't had a high-ranking wolf trigger an early shift in months. Who could they possibly be looking for?"

"I don't know, but the Alpha Council is panicking," Taran muttered, shaking his head. "They think a war is brewing. An unprotected pack is an easy target, and with the borders this unstable, anyone without a strong mate bond is a liability."

I kept my head down, but his words sent a cold shiver straight down my spine. *Newly awakened.* My mind flashed back to the golden eyes in the silver water bowl. My wolf had been stirring restlessly for the past two weeks, ever since the bonfire night when my life fell apart. Could it be me? Were the rivals tracking the scent of my dormant bloodline finally waking up?

"Still hiding in the corners, I see," a sharp, purring voice cut through my thoughts.

I looked up to find my sister, Odalys, leaning against the kitchen archway. She wasn't looking at the herbs; her eyes were locked onto me with a sharp, calculating intensity that made my skin prickle. She had been watching me closely for the last fortnight, her gaze tracking every single place Rhydian stood near me.

"I am doing my work, Odalys," I said coldly, refusing to let her see my hands shake.

"Make sure you do it well," Odalys sneered, stepping closer, her voice dropping so the other apprentices couldn't hear. "It has been two weeks since Alaric cast you aside, and you are already trying to crawl to his twin? Rhydian is a prince. He belongs to the royal line, and I won't let a fat, broken thing like you ruin my family's rising status. Stay away from him, or I will make sure Alaric exiles you myself."

"I am not playing games," I whispered fiercely, staring right back into her cruel eyes. "Get out of my way."

"Just remember your place, sister," she taunted, tapping her fingers on the table. "An unmated omega is nothing but a burden to Nyxmoor right now."

She gave me one last lingering, venomous look before turning on her heel and strutting out. The seed of her jealousy was planted, and I knew she would do anything to keep her newfound power.

By the time night fell, the entire packhouse was on lockdown. Guards patrolled the stone corridors, their heavy boots echoing through the walls. I sat alone on the edge of the small cot in my cellar room, the dark space quiet save for the sound of my own anxious breathing.

A soft, rhythmic knock rattled the wooden door.

My pulse took a sudden halt. I stood up, unlocking the iron bolt and pulling the heavy wood back.

Rhydian stood in the darkness of the corridor. His broad shoulders were tense, and his dark hair was damp from the night mist. Worry and restraint were written completely across his face, his jaw tight as his eyes scanned my face, searching for any sign of hurt.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his low voice instantly cutting through the heavy silence of the room. "The border scare... I wanted to make sure you were safe."

"I'm fine," I murmured, stepping back to let him inside. "I heard the kitchen staff talking. They say the Bloodcrest pack is looking for someone."

"Let them look," Rhydian growled softly, closing the door behind him and locking the bolt. The small room instantly felt suffocatingly tight, his massive alpha presence filling every square inch of the space. "No one is touching you, Mina. I spent the entire day dealing with my brother's council, but all I could think about was getting back down here. To you."

"Rhydian, we shouldn't do this," I whispered, though my voice lacked any real conviction. He was standing too close. The scent of cedarwood and rain flooded my senses, making my inner wolf claw against my ribs with a desperate hunger. "Odalys saw us earlier. She's watching. Alaric is watching."

"Let them watch," Rhydian muttered, his control visibly slipping. He took a final step forward, his large hands reaching out to grip my waist, pinning my lower body gently against the edge of the wooden table behind me. "I'm tired of waiting, Mina. I'm tired of pretending."

"Pretending what?" My breath caught in my throat, my eyes locked onto his lips.

"Pretending that I haven't wanted you since before I ever even understood why," he admitted, his voice dropping into a rough, gravelly whisper that sent a violent jolt of electricity straight through my veins. "Five years of training in another pack, and every single night I closed my eyes, it was your face I saw. I don't care about the rejection from two weeks ago. I don't care about their rules. I want you."

The tension finally broke.

Rhydian leaned down, his mouth crashing onto mine with a fierce, burning passion that completely shattered the last of my restraint. I gasped into the kiss, my hands flying up to grip the fabric of his shirt, pulling him closer until there was absolutely no air left between us. His lips were hot, demanding, tasting of rain and wild desire.

"Rhydian..." I breathed against his lips, my mind spinning.

"Don't fight it, Mina," he whispered heavily, his mouth finding mine again, deeper this time.

I let out a soft whimper as his hands slid down my back, his long fingers bunching into the fabric of my dress, lifting me slightly until I was sitting on the edge of the table. He pressed himself tightly between my thighs, his heavy warmth enveloping me completely. My inner wolf roared in absolute victory, her energy expanding inside my chest until my skin felt alive with power.

"Mina," he groaned against my mouth, his lips moving down to trace a burning path along my jawline to the sensitive skin of my neck. His teeth grazed my collarbone, making my entire body shiver with a desperate, heavy want.

"We need to slow down," I gasped, even as my hands pulled his shirt from his shoulders.

"I can't," he muttered, his breath scorching my skin. "I've waited too long."

Our hands grew frantic. I tugged at the hem of his shirt, craving the feel of his bare skin against my palms, while his fingers reached for the laces at the back of my dress. Control was slipping away from both of us, the raw, primal pull drawing us closer to the edge of something irreversible. His touch wasn't gentle anymore; it was heavy, possessive, and filled with a hunger that matched the fire burning in my own blood. He pulled my dress down slightly over my shoulder, his warm lips pressing against my bare skin, making me arch into his touch.

Right as his fingers touched the bare skin of my waist, Rhydian suddenly stiffened.

He let out a ragged, trembling breath, his forehead resting against my wet shoulder as he forced his hands to stop. His entire frame shook with the sheer effort of pulling back. He swallowed hard, his chest heaving as he slowly opened his eyes, looking up at me with an intensity that made my heart hammer against my ribs.

"I need to stop," Rhydian choked out, his low voice strained as he gently pulled my dress back up over my shoulder, his fingers lingering on the fabric for a second to slow things down for my sake. "Your bond only snapped two weeks ago, Mina. You are still healing. If we go further... I want it to be because you are entirely ready, not because you are running from the pain Alaric caused you."

He stepped back, giving me space, his hands dropping to his sides as he tried to regulate his ragged breathing in the charged silence of the room.

I sat on the edge of the table, my chest rising and falling heavily as I stared at him through the dim light. The room was completely quiet, but inside my soul, a quiet revolution had just finished. The lingering pain of Alaric's rejection was still there, but it didn't define me anymore. Looking at Rhydian, feeling the raw power vibrating under my own skin, the truth settled deep into my bones.

I was no longer the same broken girl who had stood humiliated at the bonfire night.

I felt something ancient, powerful, and absolutely dangerous inside me had already started to wake up.