LOGINTheoroneBella's gaze was fixated on me.I didn't need anyone to tell me why.I didn't need anyone to plead with me in order for me to know what she wanted me to do.I knew.I had known from the very moment Sumi had been brought into the palace.But it was impossible."She's from Moonstone Pack and we can't trust her," I repeated.My voice sounded harsher than I intended, but I couldn't help it.I've forgotten how many times I had said those exact words now.Forgotten how many times I had tried to make Bella reason with my points.Forgotten how many times she had looked at me like I was the villain for refusing to bend."We can't even trace how she was able to escape," I continued.Not wanting the others to hear us, I dragged her to a corner and lowered my voice."Werewolf packs are known for their strict security."I stared directly into her eyes."They are known for how coordinated their guards are. Known for how difficult it is to leave once you're trapped inside."I paused.I want
BellaSumi looked so pitiful on the floor where she lay. I couldn't believe she had been reduced to this.Months ago, I had thought that she was dead. That she had been killed. That Jaxon had killed her because she had helped me escape.Only for me to find her here on the floor, weak, disillusioned, and broken after everything she had been forced to endure because of me.My chest tightened painfully as I stared at her frail figure. The sight of her made guilt claw at my heart.If she had never helped me, she wouldn't have suffered like this.If she had turned her back on me like everyone else had, she would probably still be living peacefully.Instead, she had chosen me.And this was what it had cost her."Theorone," I called him as he stood beside me.She was from Moonstone Pack, and that made me uncertain whether he would even allow her to stay. But I needed him to give her permission.I needed him to help her.His gaze itself already gave it away.He didn't look like someone who wa
BellaMy entire body felt numb as I stared at Sumi lying on the ground.For a moment, I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. All I could see was the woman before me—the woman who had risked everything for me, the woman who had helped me escape when everyone else had turned their backs on me. She had known exactly what kind of punishment awaited her if she was caught, yet she had still chosen to help me. And now she was here, covered in blood and looking as though life itself had nearly abandoned her."Sumi..." I whispered, my voice shaking as I immediately dropped to my knees beside her. The guards stepped back without being told, allowing me space as I carefully lifted her head into my lap. Her skin was cold. Far too cold. The sight alone made my chest ache. Her lips trembled slightly before her eyes slowly opened, and the moment she saw me, tears immediately gathered in them.That hurt more than seeing the blood.Sumi was never someone who cried easily. She was stubb
BellaI stopped myself from thinking as I watched the guard who rushed into the chambers, complaining about the person who was at the gates.Theoron was still on the bed, weakened and exhausted. He was still bleeding and his injuries had not yet been cleaned for a while, and to not hear this fuss that meant that he was truly weak and needed fast medical aid.The healer was already by his side, so I knew that it would be impossible for him to handle the matter that had made the guard rush into the chamber."Just report it. Don't worry, I will take care of it," I said to him.But his face did not look as if he believed a word of what I said.It was as if he was suspecting me, which I couldn't understand why, because we had just been in a good relationship with each other moments ago.Why was he now suspecting that something was off about me?"You are weak," I added, hoping that would make him lie back down in the bed and not bother about whoever it was that was at the gates."I do not t
BellaThe journey back to the palace should have felt relieving.Instead, an uncomfortable weight settled heavily in my chest.I couldn't explain it.The duel was over.Jaxon and the others were gone.The threat of an immediate conflict had been pushed aside.Everything should have felt easier.Yet the image of Theorone collapsing after the duel continued to replay in my mind.No matter how hard I tried to push it away.No matter how much I reminded myself that he was the Lycan King and far stronger than anyone I had ever met.I couldn't stop thinking about it.The moment his body had swayed.The moment the color had drained from his face.The moment he had nearly fallen.The healers had rushed to him immediately afterward and escorted him away before anyone could properly approach him.Since then, no one had said much.And somehow, that silence bothered me more than anything.The palace grounds were quieter than usual as I made my way through the corridors. The servants moved careful
BellaI watched as Jaxon and my parents were joining the cart that would take them away from the Lycan Pack.The morning air was cool against my skin, carrying the scent of damp earth from the grounds outside the arena. Wheels creaked against the dirt road as warriors moved around the departing cart, their armor catching flashes of sunlight. The defeat still lingered heavily in the atmosphere, hanging over everything like a storm cloud that refused to leave.I said nothing other than stare at them.I had no words.Not for them.Not for what they wanted to say.Not for the cold stares I received from Peony."It isn't my fault he lost and humiliated himself, sister," I had whispered to her when she turned to leave.I couldn't tell if she was simply stupid or if she was doing everything possible to make me agitated and angry. I couldn't understand why she was blaming me for Jaxon's loss when she was supposed to be happy about it."Jaxon would have taken me back to the pack if the deal ha
Chapter 17Theoreon’s POVI walked back into my chambers, heavy with thoughts I could no longer ignore. Doubts lingered in my mind, clawing at the edges of my control.I had wanted to execute Bella. When I first realized, through the mate bond, that she had tried to run from me, I had rushed to the
BellaThe weakness spread through my limbs like poison.My paws dug into the dirt as I forced myself to stay standing, but the strength that had filled my body moments ago was slipping away faster with every breath. My chest heaved as I struggled to draw in air, the sharp scent of blood and earth b
BellaThe cold night air tore through my lungs as I dragged Theoreon across the clearing, every step sending sharp jolts of pain through my arms and shoulders. His weight pulled against me like an anchor, his body leaving a faint trail in the dirt behind us as I forced myself toward the thick bushe
BellaThe moment the second rogue fell, silence swallowed the room again.For a brief second, everything seemed suspended in time. The scent of blood hung thick in the air, metallic and suffocating, clinging to the walls and floor like an invisible fog. The bodies of the rogues lay scattered across







