ログインMy head swam with the weight of Silver Lake's sins. After hours of methodically cataloging every infraction, every cruelty inflicted by those I'd once called family, exhaustion pulled at me like gravity. Each transgression we'd documented had been a fresh cut across old scars. Marcus's calculated rejection, Elena's deliberate cruelty, Alexander's self-serving betrayal. Yet beneath the pain lurked a savage satisfaction. Tomorrow, they would answer for it all. Justice, after so many years of su
I woke to cold sheets where Amelia should have been. Panic surged through me before I spotted her silhouette on the balcony, copper hair gleaming silver in the moonlight. Ares stirred within me, a conflicted mess of protective instinct and primal fear. ‘Mate alone,’ he growled, pushing me to go to her even as he maintained his distance from Athena. I slipped from the bed and padded across the room, my bare feet silent on the marble floor. She looked small and vulnerable, curled into herself on the stone bench, and something twisted painfully in my chest.I slid the door open and stepped out into the night air. Amelia didn’t turn, though she must have heard me. Her shoulders tensed briefly, then slumped—a gesture that cut deeper than any accusation.“May I join you?” I asked, my voice unnaturally loud in the midnight stillness.She nodded once, shifting slightly to make room beside her. I sat down, careful to leave space between us, unsure if my touch would be welcome. Sh
I lay still in the darkness, Lukas’s arm heavy across my waist, his breath warm against my neck. He slept, but I remained painfully awake, counting the beats of his heart against my back. Each thump felt like the ticking of a clock, measuring the precious moments before everything changed. Before the blood moons. Before whatever was supposedly “suppressed” in me awakened. Before I somehow became the weapon they all believed me to be. I could feel him pulling away, not physically, his body remained pressed against mine, but emotionally, where it mattered most. Where our bond should have been strongest.The mate bond between us, once a blazing connection of light and warmth, now felt thin and fragile. I could sense his conflicted thoughts even in sleep, worry, fear, doubt. Not that I could blame him. But what hurt more than his fear was what I felt through our wolves’ connection. Athena reached constantly for Ares, seeking reassurance, comfort, that primal acknowledgment that
I settled into my desk chair, pulling Amelia onto my lap in a gesture that was as much for my comfort as for hers. The weight of her against my chest, the familiar cinnamon scent of her hair, these things anchored me when everything else seemed to be spiraling beyond my control. Her hands trembled slightly as she held the envelope, that innocent-looking rectangle of cream paper that might contain our doom. Ares pushed against my control, golden fur rippling beneath my skin as he sought to protect what was ours. ‘Lock her in,’ he insisted within my mind. ‘Keep mate safe until danger passes.’ I pushed back against his primitive solution, though a treacherous part of me couldn’t help but consider it. What if confinement was the only way to prevent whatever the Voice had planned?“Do you want me to open it?” I offered, sliding my hand over hers.She shook her head, copper strands brushing against my cheek with the movement. “No. I should do it.” Her voice was steadier than her h
I ran my fingers over the yellowed parchment, the ancient symbols of Lupine Primordial shifting and dancing beneath my touch like living things. Each character whispered its meaning directly into my mind, as if I’d been born knowing this language that had died centuries ago. The private reading room was silent except for the occasional rustle of pages and my own uneven breathing. Outside, the setting sun cast long shadows through the tall windows, painting the stacks of texts in amber and gold. I should have found it beautiful, this connection to something ancient and powerful, but instead, cold dread pooled in my stomach. How could I read words no one had spoken aloud in generations? What did it mean that these cryptic symbols appeared as clear to me as my own native tongue?“Fourth Dynasty military accounts,” I murmured, translating the title of a leather-bound journal I’d pulled from the bottom of the stack. “Written by Alpha General Theron during the Summer Wars.” The words
I left Amelia in the library surrounded by ancient texts, her copper hair falling forward as she bent over pages of Lupine Primordial she shouldn’t have been able to read. Her guards stood at attention by the door, and I nodded to them as I passed, trying to ignore the tightness in my chest at leaving her, even for an hour. Three decades as Alpha King had taught me to trust no one completely, but the recent revelations about my mate’s mysterious origins had me second-guessing even my most loyal staff. Ares bristled beneath my skin, his golden presence restless and protective as I strode toward my office where Nico and Dominic awaited.The corridors of the palace seemed longer tonight, shadows pooling in corners despite the warm glow of the ornate sconces. Guards straightened as I passed, eyes carefully averted, a sign of respect, yes, but also a reminder of the growing unease spreading through my court like poison. Rumors about the Queen’s past, about mysterious letters and anci
Silence fell as the last words left her lips. I felt cold despite the warmth of the morning sun streaming through the windows. Ares growled within me, his golden presence bristling with protective fury, yet beneath it lay something I rarely felt from my wolf, fear.With deliberate slowness, Amelia crumpled the letter in her fist, her knuckles white with tension. “Selene told me I have a choice,” she said, her voice low and tight. “Apparently the Voice disagrees.”“Selene?” I repeated, the name striking like lightning through my confusion. “The Moon Goddess? When did you speak with her?”Amelia’s eyes met mine, guilt flashing across her face before she looked away. She rubbed her free hand across her face, shoulders slumping as if in defeat. “Last night,” she admitted. “In a dream. Or...not exactly a dream. Something more.”Dominic and Ni
I watched Amelia dress for the council meeting with equal parts pride and concern. Less than twenty-four hours had passed since she'd snapped Lysander's neck in the arena, yet here she was, insisting on returning to royal duties as if yesterday had been nothing more than a minor inconvenience. Th
The moment I saw the dart protruding from Amelia's shoulder, something in me snapped. Red washed across my vision as Ares surged forward, a tidal wave of protective fury that threatened to drown my human consciousness. My claws extended without conscious thought, teeth sharpening behind lips pull
I gripped the balcony railing so tightly the stone might have cracked beneath my fingers. Nearly six hours of watching Amelia fight through the effects of wolfsbane had left me raw, every muscle in my body coiled with the need to intervene. When Lysander finally shifted, a cruel smile twisted my
I leaned back against Lukas's chest in the bath, water hot enough to steam but still not matching the fire burning through my veins. The wolfsbane felt like liquid metal beneath my skin, each heartbeat spreading the toxin despite the antidotes the doctor had administered. I tried to focus on the







