LOGINThe murmuring started immediately."Forgive me," one of the wolf delegates said, rising. "But the anchor must be bound between wolf and Lycan. If the Lycan King serves as one end, surely the other should be a wolf of our own blood — His Majesty himself, or someone of the royal line. Why the Lycan Queen?"Magister Vale nodded, expecting the question. "Because balance matters more than nationality. The Lycan King's amplitude is extraordinary — beyond anything our instruments have measured in living memory. Pairing him with the Alpha King would create an imbalance severe enough to collapse the lattice within days.""Then who?" the delegate pressed."We ran the simulations for six years," Doctor Marchetti said. "Only one wolf ever registered high enough to safely counterbalance him. The Lady Luna of the Whitemore pack."A ripple of open disappointment swept the hall. Several delegates sat back in their chairs, the energy draining out of the room at once."Then the project is dead," someon
Marla collapsed the moment she truly saw her."El— Elena—" The name tore out of her, breathless, one hand clutching at her chest as she sagged sideways into her chair.Chaos rippled through the manor. Servants froze mid-step. The three pack elders — Uncle Corin, Uncle Faust, and Uncle Bertram, all of whom had agreed on the auction of a disgraced Lunda stared with faces drained of every drop of color."That's her," Bertram whispered hoarsely. "Gods above, that's her face—""Impossible," Faust said. "Look at her, that’s nothing like that worthless Luna!""But_ those eyes!" Corin stutters, voice shaking.Elena tilted her head, expression the picture of polite confusion. "What is this? You all look as though you've seen a ghost.""You—" Vivian's chest heaved, fury overtaking whatever sense she had left. "why the hell are you fucking here—""Vivian." Damian's voice cut across the room, low and warning."No, Damian, why! What is going on? Why is that bitch here?""I said enough." He rounded
A week of house arrest had stripped Ashwood Manor of every ounce of the triumph it had worn on festival night.They gathered in the living room, Damian, Marla, Vivian, her godmother, and the senior pack members, all of them seated stiffly before a single man who had arrived without escort and needed none.Dukelian Silvermore held the second-highest position in the Wolf Capital, Governor and Seer over all military jurisdiction, mate to Freya Silverfang and brother-in-law to the Alpha King himself. He was a tall man with a lean, disciplined build, broad enough through the shoulders to carry authority without appearing bulky, his body shaped by years of military training rather than vanity.His dark hair was neatly kept, his features sharp and mature, with a strong jaw and an expression so controlled that it was difficult to tell what he was thinking. His blue eyes were the most striking part of him, cold and watchful, carrying the unsettling stillness and the chill of a predator always
Issac carried her to bed himself, the wine still loosening her limbs, her head lolling comfortably against his shoulder the entire way.He laid her down gently, pulling the blanket over her, and for a moment he simply stayed there, kneeling at the bedside, watching her. Temptation flickered through him, quiet and undeniable — but he pushed it aside without much of a fight. He didn't want to be that kind of man. Not with her. Not after everything already taken from her without her consent.Instead, he brushed a strand of hair back from her face, voice dropping to something soft enough it was barely meant to be heard at all."You have no idea how beautiful you are," he murmured. "Or how happy you made me tonight, calling me yours in front of everyone." A quiet, disbelieving laugh escaped him. "I'm genuinely happy, Elena. I don't think I've felt like this in longer than I can remember."He didn't realize she was awake until she spoke."You're cute when you blush," she said softly.He sta
The formal dinner following the festival's chaos was, by unanimous unspoken agreement, considerably calmer than the ceremony itself.Herod raised his glass first, seated at the head of a long table joining Lycan and wolf royalty for the first time in decades."To an evening that will be talked about for generations," he said, eyes glinting with amusement, "for reasons none of us quite anticipated."Laughter rippled down the table. Issac inclined his glass toward him. "To your Festival, Herod. And to your restraint tonight — a wiser king than most would have let that fire burn hotter.""A wiser king listens when a Lycan Queen counsels mercy," Herod said, tipping his glass toward Elena. "I confess, Your Majesty, you've given me more to think about tonight than a decade of council meetings combined.""It’s nothing my king, besides," Elena said, smiling, "mercy is a form of punishment, in the simplest yet cruel style, keeping your subject in line without blood."Herod barked out a laugh,
The moment the car pulled through Ashwood's gates, Damian tore his tie loose, coat discarded across the nearest chair the instant he stepped into the living room.Vivian followed him inside, trembling, the fury radiating off him thick enough to choke on. She hadn't managed a single word before his wolf materialized fully, a blur of fur and rage lunging straight for her.Roland stepped between them instantly, a hastily formed shield absorbing the first strike."What the hell do you think you're doing!" Damian roared."You're in a rage, my lord," Roland said, straining against the pressure. "You'll regret this."Damian's claws tore straight through the shield a heartbeat later, sending Roland crashing backward across the living room, sofas splintering beneath the impact. Vivian flinched, nearly stepping forward, nearly exposing everything and caught herself just in time, forcing her feet still."How dare you speak back to me," Damian snarled, fully shifted eyes blazing, his Alpha rage r







