Chapter 7 : Fated mate

Chapter 7 

“You think washing away Marcus and shattering his little corporate empire is the end of our problems, Reaper? The true wolves are only just waking up.”

Jax Kane did not even blink as he stared down the sharp-eyed elder standing in the grand assembly hall of the Iron Fangs compound. The heavy oak doors were bolted shut against the cool night breeze, but the tension inside the room was thick enough to choke a lesser man. Razor stood guard by the threshold, his hand resting tightly on his sidearm, while Ava Sinclair sat regally beside her Alpha on the high-backed wooden throne, her amber-flecked eyes cool and steady.

“Lord Henderson, you always did talk too much when you were hiding behind your expensive silk robes,” Jax replied, his deep voice vibrating with dangerous, quiet authority. “If you have something to say about how I run my territory, spit it out or get out of my sight.”

The elderly wolf, a senior representative of the secretive North American Werewolf High Council, sneered openly. He adjusted his silver-trimmed lapel and took a slow step forward, his gaze sliding past Jax to land squarely on Ava. “We are not here to question your biker games, Kane. We are here about the woman sitting on your right. Ancient royal Omega blood does not simply belong to a local motorcycle pack. The council demands she be brought to headquarters for proper testing and alignment.”

Ava’s breath hitched slightly, but before she could speak, Jax was on his feet. The explosive surge of Alpha dominance shook the very dust motes in the rafters. His amber eyes blared with blinding crimson rage, and a low, guttural growl tore from his chest, forcing Henderson and his two elite guards to take an involuntary step backward.""*

“Touch her, or even speak her name with disrespect again, and I will feed your bones to the river dogs,” Jax snarled, his voice carrying the terrifying promise of absolute slaughter. “She is my fated mate. She is the Luna Queen of the Iron Fangs. She answers to no council, and she goes nowhere without me.”

Henderson swallowed hard, trying to mask his rising panic behind a mask of aristocratic pride. “You are defying ancient pack law, Kane! The Council holds dominion over all supernatural bloodlines. If you keep her hidden, you invite a war far greater than any petty feud with a human executive like Marcus Vance.”

“Let them come,” Ava spoke up for the first time, her voice clear, calm, and carrying an unexpected ring of royal command that made even the seasoned council elders freeze in astonishment. She stood up smoothly, smoothing down her dark trousers, her chin held high. “Tell your masters on the council that the Luna of the Iron Fangs does not hide in the shadows. But if they want an audience with me, they can come right here to our territory. And they better bring more than empty threats.”

Henderson’s eyes widened in shock as he felt the subtle, terrifying pulse of ancient territorial magic radiating from Ava’s skin—a power he had only read about in sacred scrolls. Realizing they were completely outmatched in the heart of the Iron Fangs fortress, Henderson bowed stiffly, turned on his heel, and stormed out with his guards trailing closely behind.

The heavy oak doors slammed shut behind the councilmen, leaving a heavy silence in the grand hall. Jax slowly exhaled, turning to look down at Ava with a mixture of burning fierce love and deep protective worry. He pulled her gently against his chest, burying his face in her dark hair as his wolf whimpered softly inside his mind, anxious over the looming storm.

“You shouldn't provoke them so openly, little bird,” Jax murmured, though a proud smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “Those elders are ancient, twisted vipers.”

“I am no longer the scared human girl who ran away from her wedding in the rain, Jax,” Ava whispered back, lifting her chin to meet his burning gaze. “We faced Marcus, we broke the Bloodhounds, and we survived the fire. Whatever council comes next, we face it together.”

Later that evening, long after the assembly hall had emptied and the camp had settled into peaceful slumber, a soft knock echoed at the private quarters door. Razor slipped inside, holding a thick, encrypted manila folder bearing a crimson seal that made even Jax’s eyes narrow with suspicion.

“Alpha, Luna,” Razor said quietly, setting the folder down on the oak table. “My scouts intercepted a digital transmission routed from overseas. It didn't come from Henderson or the High Council. It came from someone else—someone who claims to know the real truth behind Ava’s royal bloodline.”

Ava stepped forward, her fingers trembling slightly as she unlatched the heavy red wax seal. Inside lay a single old photograph and a handwritten letter written in ink that had faded decades ago. The name signed at the bottom of the page made the breath catch entirely in Ava’s throat.""*

It was signed by a woman Ava had believed died in a tragic car accident when she was just a small child—her biological mother, who had vanished from high society twenty-five years ago under mysterious circumstances.""*

“Read it, Ava,” Jax urged softly, wrapping a strong arm around her waist to anchor her against his solid frame. “Whatever is in that letter, we uncover it together.”

“If this letter is real, Jax... then everything my father told me about my family was a complete lie.”

Ava’s voice trembled slightly in the quiet shadows of the master bedroom as she stared down at the yellowed parchment resting on the wooden table. The candlelight flickered against her face, casting soft shadows over her wide, bewildered eyes. The handwritten ink on the page was decades old, yet every single word cut through her heart like a sharp knife.

Jax Kane stood directly behind her, his large hands resting firmly on her shoulders. His warm, solid chest pressed against her back, providing an anchor of absolute strength and safety as the terrifying weight of her past threatened to pull her under. His amber eyes scanned the faded handwriting over her shoulder, his jaw tightening with every line.

“Read it out loud to me, little bird,” Jax murmured, his deep voice rich with a quiet, soothing reassurance. “Let’s hear what secrets they tried to bury.”

Ava took a deep, shaky breath, her fingers gently tracing the edge of the old paper. She began to read the words written by her mother, Helena Sinclair, a woman Ava had spent her entire life believing died in a fiery car crash when she was only three years old.

‘My dearest Ava, if you are ever reading this letter, it means I was right. It means Vance Senior and his loyal servants failed to keep you hidden from the truth. You are not just an ordinary human girl, and you were never safe in the high-society world of the city. Your blood carries the ancient, sacred lineage of the Royal Moonlit Dynasty—a bloodline that the Werewolf High Council and greedy corporate men have hunted for centuries. Vance Senior did not take you in out of kindness after my disappearance; he and Marcus planned your entire life as a legal cage to drain your royal blood and control the pack territories. Do not trust the council. Do not trust the men in silver suits. Find the true Alpha whose soul mirrors yours, and let him burn down the cage they built around you.’

The letter ended abruptly with a smeared ink blot and her mother’s initials. A heavy, suffocating silence filled the room. Ava’s hands shook so violently that Jax had to gently take the paper from her fingers and lay it flat on the table before pulling her fully into his arms.

“My mother didn’t die in a car crash,” Ava whispered, hot tears spilling over her lashes and soaking into the fabric of Jax’s dark shirt. “She went into hiding to protect me. And Vance Senior—the man who raised me, the man who called me his daughter—was the one hunting our family all along.”

“Shh... I’ve got you, Ava. I’ve got you,” Jax growled softly, burying his face in her dark hair as his inner wolf paced restlessly inside his chest, howling with pure, protective fury. “Vance Senior is already locked in a federal cell for his corporate crimes, but if he or anyone else ever touches you again, I will tear their entire empire down to dust. No one hurts my mate.”

Before Ava could reply, a sudden, sharp rap echoed at the door of the private quarters. Razor pushed his way inside without waiting for permission, his face unusually grim, holding a tactical radio tablet in his hand.

“Alpha, we’ve got a massive problem,” Razor said quickly, his eyes darting between Jax and Ava. “Our outer perimeter scouts just tripped silent alarms near the western ridge. It’s not the Bloodhounds. And it’s not local poachers.”

Jax’s amber eyes flared instantly into bright, dangerous gold. He stepped away from Ava, his posture shifting into that of an apex predator ready for war. “Who is it, Razor?”

“It’s the High Council’s elite enforcers,” Razor replied grimly, tapping the screen. “Lord Henderson didn't leave empty-handed after all. They brought a full battalion of silver-armed mercenaries and ancient wolf warriors. They’re surrounding the compound right now, demanding that Luna Ava be handed over to them immediately, or they burn the entire forest to the ground.”

Ava stepped forward, her tears instantly drying, replaced by a fierce, royal spark of courage that burned deep within her chest. The fear she had felt moments ago vanished, superseded by the bloodline of her ancestors screaming for justice.

“They want me?” Ava said, her voice steady, cold, and carrying an unmistakable ring of absolute authority that made even Razor stare at her in shock. “Then let’s go out there and show them what happens when you corner a royal Omega.”

Jax looked at her, a fierce, proud smile breaking across his rugged face. He grabbed his heavy leather jacket, sliding his hunting blades into their concealed sheaths, and pulled Ava close against his side. “That’s my Luna,” Jax declared, his voice echoing with lethal promise. “Let’s ride.”

They burst out of the clubhouse doors into the cool night air, where hundreds of Iron Fangs pack members had already gathered, weapons drawn, engines roaring to life in a unified wall of thunderous sound. Across the clearing, under the pale glow of the moon, the silver-armored guards of the High Council stood waiting