Chapter one: The Letter

PROLOGUE: I'M SORRY PRINCESS

The air was thick with smoke, Screams echoeing through the night. The packhouse, the heart of Shadowfang, was crumbling.

Shadows moved in the chaos, figures clashing, growls and snarls tearing through the air but Ronan could only watch.

"Ronan!" Mira grabbed his arm, her face streaked with soot. "We have to go!"

Go? Where? His home was being destroyed. His people were dying. He was supposed to be out there, fighting alongside them, but he couldn't even shift. Couldn't do anything.

A deafening crash split the air as part of the packhouse collapsed,  Ronan flinched, instinctively shielding his face. The packhouse where he had grown was falling.

Mira tugged at him, her grip firm despite her shaking fingers. "We need to leave!"

But he barely heard her. His gaze was locked on a familiar figure standing near the blaze, untouched by the chaos around her. Celeste.

 Her eyes caught his through the firelight, and she smiled. A slow, knowing curve of her lips. As if she had been waiting for this.

His pulse pounded in his ears, his body snapping back to life with a jolt. He took a step forward, intending to confront her, demand answers but another blast of fire and debris forced him back. Mira yanked him toward the treeline, half-dragging him as he stumbled.

And then

he saw him.

Rook.

Standing just beyond the battlefield, just far enough that the bloodshed hadn't touched him.

Ronan's breath caught in his throat.

Rook had always been by his side. Through training, through fights, through late-night conversations about the future. He was the one person Ronan could always rely on.

So why wasn't he doing anything?

Ronan wanted to call out to him, but his voice wouldn't come. He wanted to run toward him, demand an answer, but his feet wouldn't move.

Mira had apparently seen him too. Without hesitation, she changed course, half-carrying Ronan toward the figure standing just beyond the battlefield.

Mira shoved Ronan toward him. "Take him," she ordered, breathless. "Protect him. I need to find the others."

Rook's expression didn't change. He tilted his head slightly, studying Ronan. Then, he gave a slow, almost amused exhale. "When have I ever not protected him?"

Something about the way he said it sent a shiver down Mira's spine. But she had no time to think further. She turned and ran back into the burning wreckage.

Ronan stood there, swaying, still too dazed to react. The firelight flickered in his vision, turning everything into a blur. His mind was barely catching up to what had just happened.

The fear that had been creeping up his spine finally reached his throat. His lips parted, and with effort, he managed to whisper a single word.

"Why?"

Rook exhaled softly, almost like he was in pain. Then, he stepped closer, pressing a hand against the back of Ronan's head, fingers threading through his hair.

"I'm sorry, Princess."

Pain exploded at the base of his skull, and the world went black.

CHAPTER ONE: THE LETTER

Life in the Shadowfang pack was anything but boring at least, not for Ronan. Sure, his father was obsessed with discipline, training, and making sure the pack remained strong, but Ronan? He had other priorities.

Like winning last night's football game and sneaking away from training whenever he could.

The village buzzed with its usual morning routine warriors sparring, hunters heading out, and elders gathering to discuss the "future of the pack," whatever that meant. Ronan jogged across the main clearing, wolfing down a stolen piece of bread from the kitchens, his boots kicking up dust as he dodged pack members who were actually busy doing important things.

"Ronan!"

ugh. Busted.

Rook, his best friend and future Beta, jogged up beside him. "You do realize your father expects you at training? Like, now?"

Ronan grinned. "I was just on my way."

Rook snorted. "Right. And I'm the Moon Goddess."

Before Ronan could throw back a sarcastic reply, a deep voice cut through the clearing. "Ronan."

Oh, fantastic.

Alpha Rael stood with arms crossed, his silver eyes locked onto his son. "Late. Again."

Ronan swallowed his bite of bread. "Fashionably late."

His father's scowl deepened. "You think this is a joke? While you're running around, the pack is working and training. We are preparing for the future Ronan."

"I train."

"Not enough."

Ronan sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Look, I'll do the drills, I'll fight Garrick, I'll even sit through another one of Jarek's 'leadership' lectures just, can we not do this whole disappointed-father thing before breakfast?"

Rael's jaw tightened, but before he could reply, a small voice piped up. "Ronan's always late."

Ronan turned to see his little sister, Elara, watching with an innocent smirk. She was ten, but somehow, she always seemed to have a sixth sense for when to appear and make his life more difficult.

"Traitor," Ronan muttered, flicking her forehead.

Elara giggled and dodged away as their mother, Lyria, appeared behind her. "Leave your brother alone," she said lightly, though the look she gave Ronan clearly meant, Listen to your father.

Rael exhaled. "Get to training."

Ronan gave a mock salute before jogging off with Rook, barely holding back a grin. "That went well."

Rook shot him a look. "You really have a death wish, don't you?"

.

When Ronan wasn't being nagged about training, he was at Blackthorn High the other place he ruled.

Here, he wasn't "Future Alpha Ronan" or "Stop-Disappointing-Your-Father Ronan." Here, he was just Ronan Grey, star athlete, class flirt, and the guy everyone wanted to be around.

The moment he walked in, heads turned.

"Ronan!"

A group of cheerleaders waved from across the hallway. He shot them his signature grin, winking at one of them just to hear her giggle.

Rook groaned. "You do realize you can't date half the school, right?"

"Why not?" Ronan asked innocently. "I'm very efficient."

Before Rook could respond, a teacher called from down the hall. "Mr. Grey! Where should you be right now?"

Ronan plastered on his most charming smile. "Ms. Kelly, I was just about to head to class. You read my mind."

Ms. Kelly crossed her arms, unimpressed. "Then move. Now."

Rook snickered as they hurried to class. "One day, that smile's not gonna save you."

Ronan smirked. "Maybe. But today is not that day."

.

.

Alpha Rael stood alone in his study holding a letter scanning the contents of it. No one knew who sent it, and no one but him would know what it said. After reading it he raised his head expression grave and walked towards the fire place, burning the paper.

By nightfall, he had summoned the entire pack to the central meeting hall.

The Shadowfang wolves gathered, their murmurs filling the hall. It was rare for the Alpha to call such an urgent meeting without warning, and tension hung thick in the air.

Ronan stood near the front with Rook at his side, watching his father step onto the raised platform. Rael's expression was unreadable. The moment he raised his hand, silence fell.

"Effective immediately, border security will be reinforced. Patrols will be doubled, and no one enters or leaves the territory without clearance from me or Jarek," Rael announced. "Training intensity will increase for all warriors. Those attending human school are to return directly to the village after classes no detours. No exceptions."

A ripple of confusion spread through the crowd. Even the council members exchanged uncertain glances.

Ronan frowned. What the hell was going on?

One of the older warriors, Garrick, stepped forward. "Alpha, is there a threat we should be aware of?"

Rael's gaze was ice cold. "You have your orders. Prepare accordingly."

And just like that, the meeting was over.

As the pack dispersed, Ronan pushed through the crowd toward his father,

"Father, wait." He caught up to Rael just outside the hall. "What was that all about?"

Rael barely glanced at him. "Focus on your training, Ronan. That is what matters."

Ronan scowled. "Come on, you can't just drop something like that and expect me not to ask questions. What's going on?"

His father stopped walking then, turning to face him fully. For a second, Ronan thought he'd finally get an answer. Instead, Rael sighed, his expression colder than usual. "Not now."

"Not now?" Ronan repeated, adding bitterly. "Or not ever?"

Rael's jaw tightened, but he said nothing. After a long pause, he walked away, leaving Ronan standing in the corridor, fists clenched where Rael couldn't see.

When he got home, as always Ronan found his mother in the kitchen, brewing tea.

Lyria looked up as he entered, immediately sensing the frustration in her son's face. "Something on your mind?"

Ronan sat down at the table, exhaling sharply. "You already know. The meeting, dad acting like I don't exist what's going on?"

Lyria stirred her tea, choosing her words carefully. "Your father carries burdens that are not easy to share. Sometimes, the weight of leadership means making difficult decisions alone."

"Yeah, well, I'm his son," Ronan muttered. "His heir. If something's happening to the pack, I deserve to know."

She reached over, resting a hand on his. "And you will. But not yet."

Ronan searched her face for something, anything, that would give him more than that vague reassurance. But her soft, understanding gaze told him nothing more.

He pulled his hand away, frustration bubbling up. "Right. Of course. Another thing I don't get to know."

Lyria sighed as he stood, but she didn't stop him as he walked out the door