The return

Mariana’s POV

After Zayan left for his meeting, I stayed in bed for a little while longer, mostly because my body still felt sore and because, for once, I had nowhere I needed to be.

But eventually, I grew restless. I pushed the covers aside and carefully got to my feet, stretching my arms above my head before making my way toward the door.

The moment I stepped outside, I found Clara waiting on the veranda with a tray in her hands. She looked up, and the second she saw me, a huge smile spread across her face. “My Lady is finally out!” she announced dramatically.

I laughed despite myself. “Finally? How long exactly have you been waiting for me?” I asked, and she shrugged innocently.

“Long enough to start wondering whether our Lord had finally decided to keep you locked in there forever.” My eyes widened, and Clara burst into laughter before I could respond.

“You are becoming very bold,” I told her, shaking my head, but I couldn’t stop smiling.

As we walked together, I remembered the letter. “Clara, I actually need your help with something.”

She immediately became attentive. “What is it, My Lady?”

“I want to write a letter to a friend and I want it sent today.”

Her expression softened. “Of course. You can write it in the study. I’ll bring everything you need, and once you’re finished, I’ll have the messenger take it straight to Mountcrest.” That was exactly what I wanted to hear. We made our way to the study, and Clara arranged parchment, ink, and a pen on the desk before leaving me to write. For a moment, I simply stared at the blank page. Then I began.

Dear Clarissa,

I don’t even know where to begin. I have missed you more than I can explain. I hope you’re safe. I hope you’re eating properly, and I hope you’re not getting yourself into trouble without me there to stop you. Things here are… different. Very different from what I expected. I wish I could tell you everything at once, but perhaps I’ll save it for when we see each other again. I just want you to know that I’m okay. More than okay, actually. And I miss you.

Please write back soon.

Mariana.

When I finished, I folded the letter carefully and handed it to Clara. “Please make sure it gets to her.” Clara nodded. “I will.” I watched her leave with the letter, and for some reason, I found myself following her all the way to the window.

I stood there long after she disappeared from view, my heart strangely light at the thought that Clarissa would soon know I was alive and well. I hoped she was happy. I hoped she had been safe. Most of all, I hoped I would hear from her soon.

That evening, I had dinner with Zayan in the dining hall. It was the first time we’d actually sat down together there, and somehow the enormous room didn’t feel quite as cold as it had before. We talked about his meeting, about the council and even about the books I’d found in his mother’s library.

Zayan listened whenever I spoke, occasionally teasing me just enough to make me roll my eyes. By the time dinner was over, I realized something that startled me. I had begun to look forward to these quiet moments with him. And that realization stayed with me long after we retired for the night.

Several weeks later…

I was in the garden with Clara when one of the palace messengers approached me. “My Lady, a letter has arrived for you.” My heart immediately jumped. “From Mountcrest?” I asked. He nodded and handed it to me. I barely waited for him to leave before tearing it open. The handwriting was unmistakable.

Mariana!

I smiled before I had even read the rest.

I have missed you so much. I was beginning to think you had forgotten me! I am so relieved to hear that you’re safe. But I have so much to tell you. I am getting married.

I stopped reading.

Married?

My eyes flew across the page.

To Felix.

A laugh escaped me before I could stop it. Felix. Nicholas’s Beta. Of all the things I expected Clarissa’s letter to contain, that certainly wasn’t one of them. She went on to explain the wedding arrangements and, toward the end, wrote the words that made my smile fade slightly.

I want you there, Mariana. Please come. I don’t want to get married without my best friend beside me.

I read that line twice.

There were many people in Mountcrest I never wanted to see again. My father. Wren. Nicholas. The entire place held memories I had spent months trying to bury. But Clarissa wasn’t one of them. She had stood beside me when everyone else had turned away. She had risked herself to get me out of that dungeon. She had never betrayed me.

If she wanted me there, I would go.

Even if it meant returning to the place I had sworn never to see again.

A few days later, Zayan and I were walking through the gardens when I finally told him. “Clarissa is getting married.”

He glanced at me. “Is she?”

“To Felix.”

His brows lifted slightly. “Okay…I don’t know him,but he sounds important ”

I nodded. “She invited me.”

He continued walking for a moment before looking at me again. “And you want to go?”

“I do.” I hesitated. “But I don’t know if I can. I don’t want to go back there alone. I don’t know what it will be like seeing everyone again.”

“Who said you were going alone?”

I stopped walking.

He turned toward me, looking almost confused by my question.

“I’ll go with you.”

My lips parted. “You?you’d actually come to Mountcrest?”

He smiled faintly. “If my mate wants to attend her friend’s wedding, why wouldn’t I accompany her?”

A warmth spread through my chest.

“Thank you.”

He took my hand as we continued walking. “Besides, I would like to meet this friend you’ve told me so much about.”

“You’ll like her.”

“I’m sure I will.”

I smiled. “And you’ll behave?”

He gave me an offended look. “When have I ever misbehaved?”

I laughed. “Should I make a list?”

He squeezed my hand. “Careful, Mariana.”

The wedding arrived sooner than I expected.

That morning, I stood before the mirror while Clara helped me with the final touches of my dress. I was nervous. More nervous than I wanted to admit. But knowing Zayan would be there made the fear easier to bear.

When I stepped out of my room, I found him already dressed and preparing to leave.

“I’m heading to the council first,” he said. “There are a few things I need to sign. You should go ahead with Clara. I’ll join you in a couple of hours.”

I frowned. “You’re sure?”

“I’ll be there.”

I smiled and leaned forward, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. “Don’t keep me waiting.”

His eyes followed me as I walked away.

The journey to Mountcrest was quiet.

But the moment the carriage crossed the familiar gates, my stomach tightened.

I hadn’t been here in months.

The same walls. The same people.

Only this time, I wasn’t arriving as the rejected daughter of Master Graham.

I was arriving as the mate of Zayan Alastor.

When I stepped out of the carriage with Clara beside me, conversations around the courtyard slowly died.

People stared,Some openly and others let out whispers.

I could almost hear their thoughts.

She’s alive.

Wasn’t she supposed to die?

The warlord didn’t kill her?

Look at her.

I kept my head high as I waked past them,letting them stare.

Clarissa’s mother was the first person to reach me. The moment she saw me, her eyes filled with tears before she pulled me into a warm embrace.

“Mariana! Oh, my dear girl.”

I hugged her tightly.

“It’s so good to see you.”

“Clarissa has been waiting for you all morning. She’s upstairs. Come, let me take you to her.”

My heart lifted.

I followed her upstairs, and the moment Clarissa saw me, she practically ran across the room.

“Mariana!”

We collided in a hug.

“I missed you!” she cried.

“I missed you too.”

She pulled back, holding my face between her hands. “You look amazing.”

“So do you.”

She smiled, but then her expression became serious. “How have you been? And don’t you dare lie to me.”

I laughed. “I’m actually fine.”

“Fine?”

“More than fine.”

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Is that a bite mark…is it from the warlord?”

I immediately looked away.

Clarissa gasped.

“Mariana.”

“Don’t.”

“Did you actually—”

“Clarissa!”

She burst into laughter while I covered my face.

“You cannot ask me things like that!” I lowered my hands and smiled.

“Yes.”

For a moment, she just looked at me.

Then she hugged me again.

“I am so happy for you.”

Before we could continue, Clara reminded us that the ceremony would begin soon.

I handed Clarissa the small box I’d brought with me.

“What’s this?”

“Open it.”

Inside was a delicate necklace.

Clarissa’s eyes immediately filled with tears.

“Mariana…”

“I wanted you to have something from me.”

She hugged me again, squeezing me so tightly that I laughed.

Eventually, she pulled away to finish getting ready, and I headed downstairs with Clara.

The moment I entered the hall, I saw them.

Nicholas.

And Wren.

Our eyes met.

For one brief second, the entire room seemed to disappear.Then I simply looked away as though I hadn’t seen them at all.

I took my seat near the high table, beside several powerful Alphas and members of the higher-ranking families. Almost immediately, whispers began spreading through the room.

“Why is she sitting there?”

“Isn’t that a seat for the higher ranks?”

“She married the Frostcrest warlord.”

“So that makes her important now?”

“She was practically a slave when she left.”

I ignored every word.

Then Nicholas’s voice came from behind me.

“You need to move.”

I didn’t turn.

“Mariana, I’m speaking to you.”

Still nothing.

Wren suddenly pressed a hand against her nose.

“Nicholas,” she murmured dramatically, “that scent… It’s overwhelming.”

Several people looked at her.

“I don’t know where it’s coming from.”

Her eyes slowly moved toward me.

“Oh.”She smiled faintly.”I think it’s coming from Mariana.”

The whispers grew louder.

Nicholas’s expression hardened. “You heard her. You’re scent is making wren uncomfortable…Leave the seat.”

I continued looking ahead.

A soldier standing nearby scoffed.

“What gives a low-ranking wolf the right to ignore an Alpha’s command?”

Before I could respond, he stepped toward me, his hand reached for my wrist.

And then—

A dark figure appeared behind him, his hand closed around the soldier’s throat.

The entire hall went silent.

The soldier’s feet barely touched the ground as he was lifted effortlessly.

I didn’t even need to turn around to know who it was.

That familiar presence.

That overwhelming Alpha aura.

Zayan.

His voice was calm, almost frighteningly calm.

“If I were you,” he said, his fingers tightening slightly around the man’s throat, “I wouldn’t do that.”