ANMELDENLouis’s POV……..I told myself this was strategic.Nothing more.Sharing a house with Damien was a decision, not a surrender. One roof, two Alphas—visibility, accountability, balance. The elders had insisted, the council had pushed, and I had agreed because it made sense, we had to keep a united font.But how was I supposed to survive with him being so close to me.Or scent.Or the way my pulse reacted when I heard his footsteps on stone.The house sat at the edge of the shared territory—newly built, solid, broad shouldered like the two packs it now represented. Dark timber, pale stone, wide windows. Neutral ground. No markings from either pack.Inside, it was divided cleanly down the center.His room across from mine.A corridor between us.A line.I stood in the doorway of my side, arms crossed, surveying the space like I was preparing for war. Which—honestly—I was.“Rules,” I said flatly.Damien leaned against the opposite wall, arms folded, looking far too comfortable for someone w
Louis’s POV….The Power shift in the air was what I felt before I saw them.Not from fear—never that—but from weight. Presence. Power.I stood at the edge of the eastern clearing, cloak pulled tight around my shoulders, watching as Damien’s pack emerged from between the towering pines. Warriors first, disciplined and alert. Then builders, elders, children. The pregnant she wolves were guided into the pack.A migrating pack.Coming to settle on my land.My chest tightened, not with resentment—but with the heavy understanding of what this meant. This wasn’t a visit. This wasn’t temporary shelter.This was coexistence.Damien walked at the front, shoulders squared, chin lifted, his presence commanding even without effort. He wore no cloak, no armor—just dark trousers and boots dusted from the road. He and the warriors started working on their part of the pack, they arenahed their fence and started building some things.I had to watch him.He was so mesmerizing.And he was not wearing
Louis — POV…..I felt it before I heard it.That sickening pull in my chest.That tightening in my lungs.The bond stirred like something restless and unwelcome, scraping against my ribs as if trying to wake me from the inside. I froze mid-step in the council corridor, my fingers curling into fists.No.Not now.A warrior brushed past me, bowing quickly. “Alpha—have you heard?”“Heard what?” I snapped.He swallowed. “The decree.”The word landed like a blade.“What decree.”His eyes flicked nervously down the hall, toward the council chamber. “From the royal pack. A— a temporary union.”The world tilted.I didn’t wait for him to finish. I turned and stormed toward the chamber, my boots striking stone hard enough to echo. My wolf surged forward, snarling, sensing the same thing I did.Damien.Of course.The doors were already open. Elders murmured. Scribes whispered. A royal seal lay broken on the table like a mockery.I crossed the room in three strides and slammed my palm down on the
Damien — POV……Crossing into Aria’s territory felt like stepping into a memory I hadn’t asked for.The land shifted subtly beneath my feet—trees standing taller, the air cleaner, the earth humming with a steady, disciplined strength. Aria’s pack had always been like this. Controlled. United. Unbreakable.Everything mine was not.My wolf slowed as the familiar scents hit me—pine, iron, and the unmistakable trace of royalty. I shifted back into human form at the edge of the clearing, rolling my shoulders as if I could shake off the weight pressing against my spine.Focus.This wasn’t about pride.It wasn’t even about Louis.It was about survival.Two guards stepped forward, hands resting on their weapons.“State your business,” one demanded.“I’m here to see Luna Aria,” I said evenly. “Tell her Alpha Damien requests an audience.”Their eyes widened—just slightly—but they nodded and disappeared into the trees.I didn’t have to wait long.Aria emerged from the hall moments later, her pre
.Damien — POV…..I shouldn’t have left.That was the first thought pounding through my skull as I stormed out of the Louis's quarters.But staying would have been worse.Louis’s eyes—cold, furious, wounded—had cut deeper than any blade. The scar on her neck burned itself into my mind, a thin reminder of how close I’d come to losing her. Of how close I’d come to becoming something else entirely.I clenched my fists as I walked, my wolf pacing violently inside me.Useless.Weak.You almost watched her die.“Shut up,” I growled under my breath.The forest swallowed me whole the moment I crossed the tree line. The air grew thick, damp with moss and rot. Shadows stretched unnaturally long, even though the sun hadn’t fully set yet.I didn’t slow down.I needed distance. Space. Something to bleed this rage into before it tore me apart from the inside.My lungs burned as I ran, feet pounding the earth harder than necessary. Branches whipped against my arms. Leaves tore at my clothes. I welco
.Louis — POV…..I woke to silence.Not the peaceful kind—the heavy kind. The kind that presses against your chest and reminds you that something terrible almost happened.For a moment, I didn’t move. My body felt… strange. Too light. Too heavy. My throat ached faintly, like a memory rather than pain itself. I lifted a hand slowly, carefully, afraid of what I might find.My fingers brushed my neck.Skin.Whole. Smooth.Just beneath my fingertips, I felt it—a thin ridge, barely raised. A scar.My breath caught sharply.“You’re awake.”His voice came from the corner of the room.Damien.I turned my head, heart stuttering despite myself. He stood with his arms crossed, leaning against the wooden post near the window. His face was drawn, eyes dark with something I couldn’t name—relief, maybe. Or something heavier.“How long?” I asked hoarsely.“Half a day,” he said. “You scared everyone.”I swallowed and pushed myself up on the bed, wincing as my body protested. “Mireya?”Damien’s jaw tig







