IXORA POVMorning came with no warning. The sun shine through the glass windows and they seemed like an accusation. I lay there for a long time, listening to Ronan’s breath as he slept beside me, steady, unshaken. His arm was draped loosely across my waist, like he feared I’d vanish if he let go.And maybe he wasn’t wrong.I rose quietly, slipping out from under his touch. The floorboards were cold beneath my feet as I walked toward his study, the place where I’d found the box. The place where truth had unravelled me.I didn’t open the box again. I couldn’t. But I sat before his computer, heart thudding as I typed in the Council’s encrypted system. He’d shown me his access once, casually, not knowing I’d ever need it.But I did now.I scrolled through lines of financial records...names, numbers, codes. Most of it made no sense. But then, buried beneath entries marked “Secure Transfer - Senior Access Only,” I found the ones that did.Flora. Flora. Flora.And Chris.Withdrawals that d
IXORA POV I walked into the house feeling betrayed and hurt.The world made no sense, how could Ronan know something like this and keep it all to himself for this long. I knew Chris was pure evil but to kill my parents?Ronan said it was to weaken me and I believed it. He wanted me vulnerable, weak, so he could feign to be the shoulder I cried on.All those nights.All those nights, I bore out my eyes to him, I told him of how guilty I felt of my parents death and all he could do was listen. He just listened when infact, he was the one who had murdered them.I sat on the sofa and cried." Ixora"I heard Ronan call." What do you want from me?"I was so angry at Ronan, yet there he stood, calm and gentle like he hadn't just made my entire world crumble." You have to stop feeling sad. I didn't tell you cause I knew you might want revenge and you're no match for Chris if we're being honest"" That was before. Now I have strength, power. I can take him down"" You can't Ixora"" Why do
IXORAI sat on the edge of the bed, hugging my knees to my chest as the cold morning light leaked through the curtains. My chest ached, hollowed out by the truth I hadn’t been ready for. I thought I’d cried all the tears I had left last night, but my pillow was still damp, and my eyes still stung.It wasn’t my fault.That truth should’ve been comforting, a balm to the years of guilt that had burrowed into my bones—but it wasn’t. Because now I knew whose fault it was.Chris.The name felt like poison. I kept repeating it to myself, trying to dull the sting, but it only made the wound sharper. He’d taken everything from me—my parents, my peace, my innocence. And the worst part?Ronan knew.That broke me more than the truth itself.I reached for the velvet pouch again—the one I’d found in the false bottom of the box last night. My mother’s ring glinted inside it, delicate and familiar. How long had he had this? How long had he known?The tears came again, soft at first, then violent. I p
IXORA POV Warmth. That was the first thing I registered when I woke up.My head ached faintly, but the warmth I felt was undeniable. Safe. Secure. Familiar. My fingers curled instinctively, brushing against the rough fabric of a chest I knew by heart. Ronan. His steady breathing against my neck pulled me deeper into that feeling of safety.For a moment, I just lay there, my body aching slightly, but my heart... calm. I remembered flashes of last night—the trap, the terror, Chris, the rogues. The searing pain in my leg. And then Ronan. Like a storm crashing through darkness, he came for me.I blinked back tears. I didn’t want to start the day crying, but gods, the emotions threatened to break through. I shifted slightly to face him, and as I moved, his arm tightened around me."You’re safe," he whispered, eyes still closed. "You’re mine."I smiled softly. "Always."His eyes opened slowly, and when they met mine, I saw it—the worry, the anger, the lingering fear. But also love. So much
(Ixora's POV)I knew something was off the second I read the note. The handwriting was rushed, the paper crumpled, and the message too vague—“Please come. Urgent. The eastern woods. We need your help.”But the guilt tripped me before my instincts could kick in. What if someone really needed help? What if another pack was under siege, or a rogue was cornering a pup? And what kind of person would I be if I didn’t at least check?So I slipped out the back door, heart pounding, senses on high alert. I didn’t tell Ronan. I didn’t tell anyone. That was my first mistake.The woods swallowed me whole. The moonlight barely reached through the thick canopy, and even though my wolf side itched beneath my skin, I kept walking in human form. My palms itched, my breath shallow. I called out once or twice. No response.And then he stepped out from behind a tree.Chris.I froze.He looked different. Gone was the pleading expression, the soft, broken gaze. His eyes were hard. Cold. Calculated. And som
IXORAI woke up with the sun filtering through the glass windows and crawling through my eyelids. I was too lazy to stand or open my eyes. Nothing moved, the morning was quiet. A certain stillness stung through the air, the stillness wrapped around me like a second skin, no birdsong, no rustling leaves. Just Ronan’s arm draped heavily over my waist, anchoring me to the bed. His chest rose and fell behind me in the slow rhythm of deep sleep.I didn’t move. I just watched the light trickle in through the window blinds, soft and golden. My mind was a storm beneath a calm surface. Even after the council meeting… even after showing them what I could do… the unease never left me. Like there was something bigger—something we couldn’t see yet.A memory flickered: the look on the Luna Council’s faces yesterday as I spoke. They didn’t mock. They didn’t scowl. They listened. And when I finished, one of them—the harshest one—nodded. Just once. But it was enough.Ronan had been still as stone besi