CHAPTER FOUR

Silva’s POV

My throat burned.

The feeling of thirst clawed up my neck. I tried to swallow but couldn’t, my tongue was too thick and useless. My eyes fluttered open, only to find an unfamiliar white ceiling above me.

Was I in heaven? Is this when I meet the Moon Goddess—

“Did you sleep enough, or should I bring roses for your grave?”

That voice… It was calm, dry, and a little too amused.

David Moore.

I jerked up, the sheet slipping off me.

“You—” My voice came out raspy.

He stood at the foot of the bed, arms crossed, eyes focused on me.

“You are welcome.”

I stared at him, trying to piece everything together. I remembered the forest. The rogues never came, but David had. The rest… was a blur.

But as I reached for my face, my fingers froze.

My skin felt different. Smoother in places, rougher in others. I stumbled off the bed and lunged toward the mirror on the far wall.

A sharp scream tore through my mouth because of who I saw… what I saw wasn’t me at all.

My breath caught in my throat.

My nose looked smaller, turned up at the end while my cheekbones were much higher. There was a faint scar across my jaw that had never been there before. My eyes, still the same shade of deep brown, looked completely foreign in this face.

Panic surged in my heart as tears choked my throat.

“What… what did you do to me?!”

David didn’t even flinch.

“Relax, okay? You were at the verge of death. I asked my healers to save what they could. The rest… we adjusted–”

“Adjusted?” I snapped, spinning toward him.

“Calm down first, will you! I don't know what happened to you, but it left you badly disfigured. Half your face was torn apart, and the rest was frozen into a grimace. I saved what I could, and changed the rest.”

“Why?!”

His gaze darkened, but his voice remained calm. “Because I assume you don’t want your enemies to know you’re alive. Or would you rather go back and knock on Liam’s front door?”

I stopped, my heart pounding in my veins.

No, I couldn’t go back. Not yet.

I sat down slowly. My legs felt like jelly, but it registered with surprise that I was able to carry my own weight.

“But why… Why did you save me?”

I asked, quieter now. “Why did you help me at all?”

He smirked.

“You offered me anything! And I took the deal.”

Before I could answer, another voice cut in.

“Tch. This is a really bad idea, from start to finish.”

A tall man muttered as he entered the room, arms folded like David’s twin in posture, but far more openly hostile.

“She’s from the HoundStorm Pack, Alpha! They’re all bloody liars. She’s killed our warriors, and I don't trust a single word out of her mouth!”

I recognized him… David’s Beta, Ronan.

His glare was sharp enough to slice bone, and right now, he was glaring at me, like I alone was responsible for the centuries old rivalry between our packs.

“I protected my people,” I said, clenching my jaw. “Just as you protect yours. I was the Luna and the Delta of my pack! What did you expect me to do, allow you to torture our people to death?”

“And tell me, is your precious little pack safe now! Oh precious Luna and the brave delta?”

“It would be, if your stupid pack would let us stay peacefully! If I wasn't doing my duty, your savage warriors would’ve torn through our borders long ago.”

David’s eyes gleamed with approval, but Ronan wasn’t impressed.

“You’re the reason we couldn’t finish the war.”

He muttered.

I met his gaze without flinching.

“And you’re the reason there have been so many skirmishes in the first place!”

David chuckled. “Enough, you two. I didn’t bring her back to bicker like pups.”

“Silva!”

He said, turning to me,

“You’re not part of their pack anymore, so act like it. If you remember, they tried to kill you and leave you in the woods at the mercy of nature. It’s time for you to make the right choice and be on our side now.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“I’ll do anything you ask, as long as it doesn’t harm my pack. I want Liam, Emilia, and my father to burn, but the innocent wolves… they have never hurt me.”

“How sentimental!” Ronan scoffed.

I corrected him,

“I'm just being fair! A concept you might not be familiar with.”

David held up a hand, silencing his Beta.

“Relax, I don’t want you to betray them.”

I stared at him. “Then what do you want?”

He stepped closer, eyes locked with mine.

“A marriage contract.”