LOGINCalla's POVI woke up slowly, stretching my arms above my head with a long, satisfied sigh. My body felt good … really good. The kind of deep, warm satisfaction that made my muscles loose and my skin tingle. My wolf was lighter inside me, almost playful, like she wanted to burst out and go for a run through the forest. The pull was still there, but it felt different now. Less like a chain and more like a gentle tug toward something I was starting to want.I sat up, rubbing my eyes. The room was quiet. Sunlight streamed through the window, painting the wooden floor in soft gold. I stretched again, arching my back, enjoying the way my body moved without pain for the first time in days. After taking my bath I dried up and walked to the small mirror on the wall to dry my hair. my long curly brown hair was still damp, falling in heavy waves down my back.I picked up the towel and started patting my hair dry, humming softly to myself. My eyes caught something in the mirror.A mark.Rig
Third Person POV Blade woke slowly, the first rays of morning light filtering through the heavy curtains of the cabin. His body felt heavy but content, the kind of deep satisfaction he hadn’t known in years. Calla was curled up beside him, her long curly brown hair spilling across the pillow like a dark river with threads of gold. Her face was peaceful in sleep, lips slightly parted, one hand resting near her chest. The mark he had left on her neck the night before stood out clearly against her skin … a claiming bite, deep and permanent.His wolf whined happily inside his head, a sound full of pure joy and possession. Ours. Finally ours.Blade couldn’t explain the happiness flooding his chest. It wasn’t just the sex, though that had been mind-blowing. It was her.The way she had looked at him when she came apart under his touch. The way she had whispered his name like a prayer. The way she had trusted him enough to let him mark her. For the first time in years, the constant storm
Third Person POV Bianca walked through the grand gates of the Ash Creek palace, her legs still shaky from the night’s chaos. General Kael walked beside her, steady and calm, one hand gently guiding her elbow.In his other arm, he carried Adele, the little girl fast asleep against his shoulder, wrapped in a warm blanket. The child’s dark curls peeked out, and her small hand clutched the general’s uniform as if even in sleep she needed reassurance.Bianca couldn’t stop staring.The palace was enormous. Towering spires reached toward the night sky, their tops glittering with moonlight on polished stone and crystal. Gardens stretched on either side of the wide path, filled with flowers that glowed softly even in the dark. Lanterns lined the walkways, casting a golden light that made everything feel magical. Servants moved quietly in the distance, their uniforms crisp and clean. Guards stood tall and alert, but their eyes were kind when they looked at her.It was nothing like the crumbl
Third Person POV The fire was finally under control. Guards and healers swarmed the ruins of the Tonks manor. Calla’s father had been dragged out unconscious, covered in soot and blood. He woke up screaming like a lunatic, thrashing against the chains the guards had put on him.“You can’t take me! This is my house! My blood!” he roared, eyes wild with rage and alcohol. “Calla! You ungrateful bitch! I made you!”Blade stood like a wall between the man and Calla. His gray eyes were cold as steel. “Take him to the palace dungeons. He will answer for what he’s done.”The guards nodded and hauled the struggling man away. Calla watched them go, her body still trembling from the fight and the smoke. She turned to check on Adele. The little girl was safe in Bianca’s arms, wrapped in a warm blanket, eyes heavy with exhaustion but no longer crying. Bianca rocked her gently, whispering soothing words.“She’s okay,” Bianca said softly, looking at Calla. “Just scared. But she’s strong. Like her
Third Person POV Blade stood in the center of the training arena, chest heaving, blood dripping from his knuckles. The morning sun wasn’t even enough to stop him from his training . The pack warriors around him were breathing hard, some on their knees, others nursing broken bones and bruised egos. He had fought them all … one after another, then in groups … and he had almost beaten every single one.His gray eyes were dark, empty. The rage inside him had no outlet except violence. Calla’s face kept flashing in his mind. Her lips under his. The way she had pushed him away. The way she had looked at him with confusion and fear after he called her his mate.He wanted to destroy something. Anything.Another warrior charged him. Blade sidestepped, grabbed the man by the throat, and slammed him into the ground with so much force. The warrior gasped, eyes wide, tapping out immediately.“Enough!” a voice called from the edge of the arena.Brynne walked forward, graceful as ever, but his b
Third Person POV Calla dragged herself to her feet, every muscle screaming in protest. Blood dripped from her split lip and the cut on her forehead, mixing with sweat and soot. The fire from the spilled lantern had spread around the house so fast that she didn’t know what to do about it. Flames licked at the old rug, climbed the curtains, and devoured the wooden furniture her mother had once loved. Smoke filled the room, it was very thick and choking, burning her lungs with every breath.She stumbled toward the stairs, vision blurring. “Bianca! Adele!”She didn’t need to call twice.Bianca was already running down the stairs, Adele clutched tightly in her arms. The little girl’s face was buried in her aunt’s shoulder, small hands gripping Bianca’s nightdress. They must have heard the fight because Bianca’s eyes were wide with terror, her long curly brown hair wild around her face.“Calla!” Bianca cried, voice cracking. “What happened? The whole house is on fire!”Calla didn’t wast
Calla’s POVI was sweaty, sore, and ready to collapse.Training with Tyson was not the kind of thing you walked away from feeling good about yourself. It was the kind of thing you walked away from feeling like your arms had been replaced with wet noodles and someone had quietly removed all the bon
Blade’s POVThe study had seen better nights.Two chairs had been relocated to the far wall after he’d thrown them there. A glass had met its end against the fireplace sometime around midnight and nobody had been brave enough to clean it up yet. The map of Ash Creek’s surrounding territories was
Calla’s POV We left before the city woke up. Tyson had the car packed and idling at the snow-capped 4:45. I carried Adele down in her blanket, her rabbit tucked under her arm, her boots left unlaced because she had insisted on wearing them despite the hour and I hadn’t had the energy to argue.
Calla’s POVI ran.The shadow touched my feet and my body made the decision before my mind caught up and I burst out from between the vans and sprinted for the loading dock with everything I had left.I almost made it.A hand closed around my arm from behind … an iron grip, brutal and sudden, yanki







