The pain started late at night.Alpha King Kaelion had woken drenched in sweat, his breaths ragged, every nerve in his body screaming like it was being scorched from within. He didn’t cry out. He didn’t yell. He simply gritted his teeth and waited until the worst passed, gripping the iron bedpost hard enough to splinter the metal.But this time, it didn’t pass.It only got worse.By the time Darion burst into his chamber, Kaelion was on his knees, one arm braced against the cold floor, his body trembling with rage and helplessness.“It’s worse today?” his Beta asked, though he already knew.Kaelion didn’t speak. He could barely stand.“Get the healer,” Kaelion managed to growl, jaw clenched.“No,” Darion replied, already crouching beside him. “You’re coming with me. You collapse again, no one will be able to carry you.”Kaelion didn’t argue.The walk to the healer’s house was brutal. Every step sent pain ricocheting through his bones, a firestorm trapped beneath his skin. His wolf sna
“You’re going to love this wing!” Maren chirped as she skipped ahead of Jenna, her curls bouncing and her apron dusted with flour from the kitchen. “It smells like warm sunlight. The best kind of forgotten.”Jenna trailed a few steps behind, arms folded, her steps cautious despite the cheer in her companion’s voice. Three days had passed since her last escape attempt. Three days since Kaelion had found her face down in the mud and carried her back with mud on his boots and patience in his voice.She hadn’t tried again.Not because she’d given up but because her body still ached from the fall and, more terrifyingly, her heart ached for something she didn’t yet have a name for.“You’re quiet today,” Maren said, glancing back over her shoulder.“I’m thinking,” Jenna replied, forcing a half-smile. “And following a very energetic tour guide.”Maren grinned. “Energy’s all I’ve got. Well, that and secrets.”They reached the end of the long hallway, where a heavy door stood partially open. It
Jenna placed her hands on her hips, staring up at the towering wall before her. At that moment, she envied every creature gifted with the ability to fly. Her gaze drifted to the side, and she sprinted a few meters behind a wide house, seeking cover as she prepared her escape.The rain continued to pour down relentlessly, soaking her to the bone. It did nothing to help her situation, but she had no control over that. She rolled her shoulders, pushed up the sleeves of her soaked gray dress, and stood before the tall wooden fence with steely determination.It was probably twice her height. Still, with the right skill, she believed she could scale it.Then reality hit.She wasn’t skilled. She was the opposite—utterly lazy.Regardless, Jenna planted her hands against the slick, brown wood and dug her nails in, trying to pull herself up. A sharp sting shot through her finger as a splinter buried itself in her skin. She cursed under her breath and considered shifting to tear through the damn
Two days.That’s how long it had been since he defended her.And still, Jenna felt like she was suffocating.Kaelion hadn’t touched her, hadn’t demanded anything, and hadn’t raised his voice once. He simply existed, watching with those quiet, stormy eyes, as if he was waiting for her to either break… or heal.He was polite, cautious. Respectful in a way that made her more unsettled than if he had demanded her obedience.And Maren…That girl was a storm wrapped in sunshine. A whirlwind of kindness and chatter. Jenna should’ve hated her. But Maren made it hard. The way she hummed while braiding Jenna’s hair, the way she dropped extra honey in her tea without asking. The way she looked at her like… she wasn’t broken.But that didn’t mean Jenna could stay.Kindness was a trick. She’d learned that lesson one too many times.It always came with strings.Sometimes she tried to trust that they were better peopleBut at night… the old ghosts returned.She couldn’t sleep without seeing her old
The next morning was unusually quiet.Jenna stood by the wide arched window of her chambers, the sky painted in soft hues of pale gold and misty blue. The courtyard below bustled faintly with movement—servants sweeping, warriors training but none of it touched her. She stood there, arms wrapped around herself, feeling like an ornament trapped in someone else’s glass castle.A soft knock pulled her from her thoughts.She turned just as the door creaked open and a bright-eyed girl with russet curls popped her head in with cheeks flushed pink and eyes so wide with excitement it made Jenna blink.“Um—hello?” the girl chirped. “Are you… Jenna? I mean—Luna Jenna?”Jenna blinked. “Yes but not your Luna”The girl beamed and stepped in, holding a folded apron in her hands. The girl curtsied with a little flourish. “My name’s Maren. His Majesty assigned me as your personal maid if that’s alright with you, of course.” She paused, her amber eyes hopeful. “I know I’m a bit… young-looking. But I pr
The silence was the loudest thing in the room.Ryker stood in Jenna’s old quarters, untouched since she vanished. The same gray blanket she used to curl under still rested at the foot of the bed. Her scent lingered on the pillow, faded but not gone. That soft blend of crushed lilacs and wolf pine that used to ground him.Now it haunted him.He stared at the space on the bed and tried to remember the last thing she said to him. Something cold. Something distant.He deserved that.He deserved worse.Outside, the Villa was restless. Whispers ran like wildfire: The Luna’s gone. Ryker lost his mate. The Lycan Alpha took her. They didn’t say it to his face, of course. But he felt their doubt like needles under his skin.He’d lost her.Again.Exhausted, Ryker sat slouched on the high-backed chair at the far end. His knuckles were bloodied—fresh from punching the stone wall of his chambers just minutes before.The taste of defeat still coated his tongue like ash.She was gone.Jenna.And not