CHAPTER 3

CAELUM 

Snow crunched beneath my boots, steady and unhurried. The woods were silent, covered in ash and blood. I could still smell the fire from miles away, the pack had fallen, just as the council demanded.

“Kill the cursed child,” they had said, with no hesitation or mercy.

My jaw tightened as I followed the trail. Blood, smoke and then…small footprints breaking through the snow. She had run hard, fast, and desperate. But she was weakening. Her scent was wild, and shrill, threaded with pain which clung to the trees like a beacon.

I was close.

My wolf growled inside me, restlessly. End it quickly. She’s only a girl.

I stepped into the clearing, and there she was.

A small body collapsed in the snow, trembling with cold and her skin marked with cuts and burns. She looked broken, fragile even and yet…she lifted her head. Eyes clouded with exhaustion, but still burning.

She saw me.

And the moment she did, everything in me shifted.

My chest tightened, a pull so violent it stole the air from my lungs. Pain…it felt raw and searing, shot through me, tearing down every wall I’d built. My heart roared, my wolf howled.

“Mate”.

I froze.

“No,” I breathed. My voice came out hoarse and unsteady.

The girl…Zara. The child I was meant to slaughter. The one the council called cursed. The one who should not have survived this night.

My mate.

Her lips parted as if she felt it too. Her eyes widened, disbelief painting her face. She uttered one word, broken and mild, yet it struck harder than any blade.

“Mate…”

I staggered a step back, clasping my fists. This wasn’t possible. The council had sworn she was dangerous, tainted, and a threat to every bloodline. I had agreed to their order. I had sworn I would carry it out.

But standing there, looking at her…

I couldn’t move. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t raise my claws to end her.

My wolf snapped at me, fierce and certain. She’s ours. Protect her.

I ground my teeth. “Damn it.”

She swayed, trying to push herself up. Her body betrayed her, weak and broken, yet she still met my eyes with stubborn fire.

“Who… who are you?” she spoke.

The question hit like a blade. I should have answered: Your death.

Instead, the words tangled in my throat.

I stepped closer, slowly.

“Caelum,” I said at last, my voice low and slightly shaky. “Alpha of Bloodthorn.”

Her breath hitched. She knew the name.

I crouched, inches from her, close enough to see the blood on her lips, close enough to hear her heart struggling in her chest. My hand lifted, almost on its own, to brush the ash from her cheek.

And then I stopped, trembling.

What in the gods’ names was I supposed to do now?

Her eyes locked on mine, fragile but fierce. That word still lingered in the air between us, heavy and binding.

Mate.

I wanted to deny it. To curse the moon for binding me to her. But no matter how hard I tried, the pull was undeniable, searing through my chest.

I moved closer to her now, brushing more ash from her cheek. Her skin burned under my touch, but not from fever or fire, it was the bond. It was real.

Her lips parted. “You came for me,” she spoke like a child clinging to hope.

Something inside me twisted. The girl thought I was her savior. If only she knew.

I closed my eyes for a moment. One choice. One act, and it would all be over. I would either betray the council…or betray myself.

My wolf raged at me, snapping and clawing my chest. Claim her. Protect her. She’s ours.

I gave in. 

For a heartbeat, I gave in.

I lowered my head, pressed my lips against her neck, and bit down, not to kill her but to mark. 

To bind.

She gasped, her body bending as the bond locked into place. Her hand gripped my arm, trembling but sure, and when she breathed out, there was relief in her voice.

“You… you saved me,” she whispered.

Her trust. Her hope. Her belief in me. It shattered me on the inside.

Because I knew what came next.

My jaw tightened as I pulled back. My hands shook, and my wolf howled in protest, but my voice came out cold and final.

“I reject you.”

Her eyes widened. “What…?”

“I reject you, Zara Alexandria Mooncrest. As a mate. As bond. As anything.”

Her breath hitched like I’d just crushed her chest. She choked on the words, shaking her head. “No… you can’t…”

Her pain ripped through me, gnawing at my insides. Rejection wasn’t just words, it was tearing out half of your soul. And I felt it too, every ounce of her agony mirrored in me.

But I had no choice.

I drew my blade. She stared at it, confusion and fear flickering in her eyes.

“Why?” her voice cracked.

The words burned my throat. “Because if I don’t, we both die. The council doesn’t forgive and you…” I swallowed hard, “…you were never meant to live.”

Before my resolve could falter, I drove the blade into her side.

Her scream tore through the night. Her blood splattered warm against my hand. The bond flared, then snapped like glass shattering, leaving only hollow silence in its wake.

Her body crumpled, her eyes wide and wet, saying my name like a plea that would never be answered.

And I hated myself. Gods, I hated myself.

I stood there for a moment, breathing hard, staring at the girl fate had cursed me with. My mate. My kill.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, so quietly the wind almost stole it.

Then I turned and walked into the shadows, leaving her to bleed out in the snow, convincing myself it was mercy. Convincing myself it was duty.

But deep down, I knew I’d just doomed us both.