The Queen's Power

Ross sat quietly against the cold stone wall. Her wrists were still bound. The enemy guards stood outside the chamber, convinced their restraints on her were enough to contain the most powerful woman in the kingdom. They were wrong.

Ross slowly looked down at the silver bindings around her wrists. They had been designed to weaken her connection to wolves. But they had misunderstood the source of her power. She didn't need a wolf. She was the bloodline that wolves obeyed.

Ross closed her eyes. For a moment, she listened. Beyond the stone walls, she could hear a pack of wolves. Dozens of wolves. No. Hundreds. Their heartbeats moved beneath the forest like a distant drum.

Ross reached for them. This time, she didn't force her power. She simply called. Come. The response was immediate. A deep rumble rolled through the forest. The guards outside exchanged confused looks.

"What was that?" Another growl answered.

Then another. The sound multiplied until the entire fortress seemed to tremble.

Ross opened her eyes. They glowed ancient silver. The chains around her wrists snapped. The guard outside the door barely had time to turn before a massive black wolf slammed him against the wall.

Another guard raised his weapon but as a dozen wolves surrounded him, he dropped it immediately.

Ross stepped out of the chamber. Her dress was torn. Her hair was slightly disheveled. But one could see she wasn't afraid. The wolves parted for her. Every single one lowered its head.

Ross walked through the fortress as though she had never been a prisoner. The enemy warriors froze.nOne man stared at the wolves surrounding him. "Impossible."

Ross looked at him. "You made the mistake of thinking I needed to be rescued."

The man stumbled backward. "You are only one woman."

Ross's expression remained calm. "And you brought hundreds of wolves into my territory."

She lifted one hand. Every wolf in the fortress dropped to the ground. The enemy warriors followed.nSome out of fear. Others because their own wolves forced them down.

Ross continued walking. The gates opened before her. Outside, hundreds upon hundreds of wolves waited. Black. Gray. White. Brown. Every one of them bowed their heads as she passed. She had not called an army. She had simply reminded the wolves who their Queen was.

---

Knox reached the fortress minutes later. His horse came to a sudden stop.

Nash nearly crashed into him. "What—"

He didn't finish. Neither did Knox when the entire battlefield suddenly went silent. Hundreds of wolves surrounded the fortress. But they weren't attacking. They were kneeling. Every single one.

At the center of them stood Ross. Alive. Unharmed. Looking powerful. Her silver eyes glowed beneath the morning sky.

Knox slowly dismounted. He stared at her as if he was only meeting for the first time. She looked nothing like the helpless woman he had once believed her to be. She looked like what she truly was.

A Queen.

Nash stepped beside Knox. "Well..."

Knox didn't answer. Nash stared at the scene. "I suppose our rescue mission has been canceled."

Knox barely heard him. He watched Ross walk toward them. Every wolf moved aside. Not one dared challenge her. Knox's chest tightened at the realization. Ross would never need him to save her. She would never be weak. She would never need protection because she couldn't protect herself.

All these years, he had mistaken her silence for weakness. Her patience for submission. Her gentleness for helplessness. He had spent two years believing he was the powerful one. Yet she had possessed enough power to command an entire kingdom's wolves without lifting a weapon. And she had hidden it.

Knox swallowed, remembering her words: If you truly want me, prove that you want Ross. Not the Queen. He finally understood what she had been asking for.

She didn't need another Alpha to stand in front of her. She needed someone who would stand beside her. Beside her.

Ross stopped a few feet away. Knox looked at her torn dress. His anger returned instantly. "Who hurt you?"

Ross shook her head. "They're alive."

Nash raised an eyebrow. "That's surprisingly generous."

Ross glanced at him. "I considered letting the wolves chase them into the forest."

Nash nodded solemnly. "Much better. Very diplomatic."

Despite everything, Ross smiled and it made Knox feel at ease. She was alive. That was all that mattered.

He stepped toward her. Then stopped. He remembered. She had asked him to respect her choices. So he didn't reach for her.bHe simply stood there. "I came for you," he said quietly.

Ross looked into his eyes. "I know."

"I thought..." His voice faltered. Knox, the terrifying Alpha King who had made entire armies tremble, struggled to finish a sentence. "I thought I'd lost you."

Ross's expression softened. "You didn't." He looked at her. "Not yet."

The words carried a warning. But they also carried something that gave him hope. "I understand."

Ross looked at him for a long moment. Then she stepped closer. The wolves remained perfectly still around them. Knox held his breath. He didn't know what she was going to do. Neither did Nash.

When she got to him, Ross slowly reached out her hand while Knox stared at it. Her fingers were only inches from his. Then, he slowly lifted his hand toward hers. And just before their fingers touched— The wolves behind Ross suddenly raised their heads and released a thunderous howl.