MasukAsh's POVI watched Ember drive away with her human family and felt something inside me crack open. My twin sister was gone and the emptiness she left behind was suffocating.Everyone around me had found their person. Ember had Marcus. Luna had Aria. Even Uncle Ryder had built a life with his mate and children.But me? I had nothing. No one.I was thirty years old and completely alone. The protector. The warrior. The one everyone counted on for strength but nobody thought to check on.My romantic relationships never lasted more than a few months. Supernatural females found me too intense. Too damaged from the corruption that nearly destroyed me years ago.And I could not bring myself to date humans. Not after watching what Ember went through. The pregnancy that nearly killed her. The choice to give up everything.I would not
Luna's POVI folded another of Ember's shirts and placed it in the moving box while tears blurred my vision. This was really happening. My sister was leaving.We had been inseparable since childhood. Sisters bonded by prophecy and destiny and genuine love. We shared everything. Our fears and our dreams and our empathy link.Now she was moving away to give her daughter the normal life none of us ever had. I understood intellectually. But emotionally it felt like abandonment."Luna you are crying on my favourite sweater," Ember said gently.I wiped my eyes. "Sorry. I will wash it before I pack it.""Or you could keep it. As something to remember me by.""You are not dying. You are moving an hour away. Stop being dramatic."But my voice cracked. We both knew this was bigger than distance. Embe
Ryder's POVI held my great niece for the first time and marvelled at how completely ordinary she was. No glowing eyes. No supernatural strength radiated from her tiny body. No prophetic aura.Just a normal human baby who cried and ate and slept as human babies had done for thousands of years. It was unprecedented in our family line going back generations.Every child born to our bloodline had supernatural abilities. Even those with mostly human heritage showed some trace of wolf or lycan genetics.But Skylar Rose had nothing. The healers tested her three times to be sure. Completely entirely human.Part of me mourned. This child would not carry on the supernatural legacy. Would not have the abilities that made our family legendary. Would not be part of the prophecies.But another part felt relief so profound it shocked me. This ba
Ember's POVI woke to voices arguing above me and pain tearing through my body. The healers were debating options while my life slipped away with every heartbeat.Marcus stood beside my bed looking destroyed. His hand gripped mine so tightly I thought my bones might break. But I welcomed the pain because it meant I was still alive."We need her decision," the head healer said. "We are running out of time.""What are my options?" My voice came out barely a whisper. Every word hurt."We can terminate the pregnancy to save you. Put you in a medically induced coma and hope you both survive. Or suppress your supernatural abilities to reduce the biological conflict.""The third option. Do that one."Marcus leaned closer. "Ember you do not have to decide right now. We can discuss this.""There is
Marcus's POVThey are still asking me to choose who lived and who died.I stood in the healer's room watching Ember convulse in pain while healers worked frantically around her. Their hands moved quickly but their faces showed doubt.This was beyond their expertise. Beyond anyone's expertise.The head healer pulled me aside while the others stabilised Ember temporarily. Her voice was gentle but her words were brutal."We need to make a decision quickly. The conflict between Ember's hybrid body and the baby's mixed genetics is escalating.""What are the options?"She hesitated. "To save Ember we would need to terminate the pregnancy. Remove the source of the biological conflict."My stomach dropped. "And to save the baby?""We would need to put Ember in a medically induced coma for the remaining months. Let her body rest while the baby develops. But that carries significant risks.""What kind of risks?""She might not wake up. The coma could become permanent. Or her body could shut dow
Ember's POVThe baby was killing me and nobody knew how to stop it.My pregnancy progressed in terrifying unpredictable waves. The baby grew rapidly for two weeks then slowed to almost nothing for three weeks then exploded in growth again.There was no pattern. No logic. Just chaos in my body.The healers examined me constantly. Took blood samples. Monitored the baby's development. Whispered among themselves when they thought I could not hear.But I heard everything. My hybrid senses picked up every worried conversation and every uncertain diagnosis."Her body does not know how to handle this," one healer said. "Her metabolism keeps switching between human and supernatural rhythms. It is tearing her apart."My morning sickness lasted all day. Every day. I could not keep food down for more than an hour.My cravings shifted constantly. One minute I wanted raw meat. Next, I wanted ice cream and pickles. Then suddenly nothing tasted right at all.Sleep did nothing. I could rest for twelve
Chapter 30: The MarkingRoss's POVI had imagined this moment a thousand times in my mind but reality was overwhelming in ways fantasy could never capture. Skylar our mate was offering herself to us willingly and her scent was thick with desire and trust that made my wolf howl with triumph.Myron a
Myron's POVThe pack house transformed into a war room within hours of Ethan leaving.Alpha Rhys summoned his commanders and his elite warriors and anyone with combat experience who could help us prepare for what was coming in three days or less.Ross and I were included
Skylar's POVReality crashed back in waves that threatened to drown me in consequences I had not fully considered when I asked Ross and Myron to mark me. I scrambled to dress and pull on clothes that covered most of my body except my neck.My marked neck throbbed with pleasure and new awareness tha
Skylar's POVMyron told me about Ethan's offer and my reaction was immediate fury that burned through my chest like acid. I would not be bargained with like property or traded like some prize between alphas who thought they could control my choices."Absolutely not,"&n







