LOGINDarius’s POV I arrived at the pack with Thomas after being gone for a week. We’d been investigating, trying to find out how Kiera was doing and if she was okay. The entire trip had been fruitless, filled with dead ends and people who either didn’t know anything or wouldn’t talk.What caught my attention immediately was the music playing. Loud, pulsing through the compound like this was some kind of festival.I turned to Thomas. “Is something going on in the pack?”He gave me a look that said I was asking stupid questions. “How would I know? We just arrived.”We walked through the gates and headed inside. A pack member spotted us and rushed over, bowing his head in greeting.“Why is there music playing?” I asked before he could say anything else.“Blackhowl won a biker race,” he explained, pride evident in his voice. “The council decided to host a party to celebrate.”Anger flushed through me like acid burning through my veins. The pack members were celebrating. Drinking and dancing a
Kiera’s POV The field went unnaturally quiet after Zeus ripped out the man’s heart.I couldn’t move, speak, or do anything but stand there as the blood scent overwhelmed every sense I had. It was thick and metallic, coating the back of my throat until I wanted to gag. My hands were shaking at my sides, and I clenched them into fists to make it stop.My wolf was frantic inside me. She was snarling, recoiling, screaming that this place was wrong. That we needed to run, and staying here would destroy us.But I couldn’t run. I was trapped on this platform, frozen in place by the horror of what I’d just witnessed.Zeus turned to look at me deliberately. He knew exactly what he’d done. Knew exactly how I’d react. This wasn’t an accident or a momentary loss of control. This was calculated.He didn’t wipe the blood off immediately. It dripped from his clawed hand, dark and viscous in the harsh light from the motorcycles. He watched me while the silence stretched, testing me.“What did you t
Kiera’s POV The knock came sharp and deliberate, cutting through the silence of the room like a blade. I’d been sitting by the window, watching the pack members work on their bikes below, trying to memorize the compound’s layout for when I’d eventually need to escape.The door opened before I could respond. Two guards stepped inside, their expressions unreadable masks of duty and indifference.“Prepare yourself,” the first one said.My stomach tightened. “Prepare for what?”The second guard held out a folded cloth, dark fabric that looked expensive even in the dim light. “Alpha Zeus wants us to escort you.”I took the cloth from his hands, my fingers brushing against the material. It felt like biker wear, leather and something softer underneath. Quality stuff, not the torn clothes I’d been wearing since the forest.“Where are we going?” I asked, but they were already turning toward the door.“Just be ready,” the first guard said over his shoulder. “We’ll return shortly.”The door clo
Kiera’s POV I stood frozen as Zeus entered the room, my body refusing to move even though every instinct screamed at me to run. He stopped just inside the doorway, his presence filling the space in ways that had nothing to do with physical size.His eyes locked onto mine, and I felt like he was seeing straight through me. Past the lie I was about to tell. Past the pretense of being lost. All the way down to the truth I needed to keep hidden.The silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating. My wolf tumbled inside me, restless and afraid in ways she rarely was. She wanted me to shift, to fight, to do anything except stand here under this man’s scrutiny.“Who are you?” I forced the words out, trying to sound confused rather than terrified.Zeus didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he moved closer, each step deliberate and measured. I wanted to back away, to put distance between us, but I made myself stay still. Showing fear would only make things worse.He stopped close enough th
Kiera’s POV I woke up slowly, my head pounding so hard I thought my skull might crack open. Everything around me was blurry, shapes moving in and out of focus like I was underwater. My body felt heavy, wrong, like I’d been unconscious for hours or days. I tried to move, but pain spread through my skull like fire, forcing me to stay still.I blinked several times, trying to clear my vision. The ceiling above me was unfamiliar. Wooden beams crossed overhead, dark and solid. Symbols were carved into them, intricate patterns I didn’t recognize. The smell in the air was different from the forest. Cleaner. More controlled. Like someone had deliberately removed all traces of wilderness.I pushed myself up slightly and immediately felt dizzy. The room tilted sideways, and I had to grip the bed beneath me to keep from falling.“Easy,” a voice said.I froze completely. Every muscle in my body went rigid.It was a woman’s voice. Older. Calm. Not threatening, but not exactly warm either.I turne
Sarah’s POV “Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?”Laura’s voice cut through the fog in my head. I turned toward her slowly, realizing I’d been standing frozen in the same spot since she’d entered my room. My nightwear still clung to my skin, the red silk that had done absolutely nothing to help me tonight. My phone was clenched so tightly in my hand that my knuckles had gone white.“Lock the door,” I said, my voice coming out rougher than I intended.Laura studied me for a moment, then did as I asked. The click of the lock sounded too loud in the quiet room. She walked closer, her eyes scanning my face, my posture, reading things I probably couldn’t hide even if I tried.“What happened?” she asked.I swallowed hard, trying to find words that made sense. “I got a message.”She frowned slightly. “From who?”“I don’t know.” My fingers shook as I held out my phone toward her. “It just says, ‘I’m alive.’”Laura took the phone from my trembling hand and read the screen carefully. Her







