LOGINThe blood on my hands had dried to rust by the time Morgana found me.She appeared from nowhere, her violet eyes blazing with a fury that made Scarlett's rage feel like a candle flame. Without a word, she grabbed my arm and hauled me toward the bar's back entrance, her grip hard enough to bruise. Dimitri followed, his footsteps silent on the wet cobblestones. The sky was turning gray with approaching dawn, and somewhere in the distance, I heard sirens. Human sirens. The magic that hid us from the normal world was flickering, weakened by whatever I had done. I stumbled over my own feet, still dazed, still trapped in the nightmare of what had happened in that street. Three wolves dead. My hands. My fire. The young female's voice echoed in my skull: Lena was my sister. She had a two-year-old daughter. A child who would grow up without a mother because of me. Because I couldn't control the thing living inside me. Morgana shoved me through a door I hadn't seen before, and I fell into darkn
The street smelled like rain and fear.I could taste it on my tongue—the sharp, metallic tang of wolves who knew they might die tonight. Fifty of them surrounded me in a half-circle, their eyes glowing in the darkness of the French Quarter. Behind them, tourists walked past without seeing anything. Morgana's magic hid us from the human world, but it couldn't hide me from the man who had destroyed my life. Holden stood at the front of his pack, tall and golden and beautiful in the way a knife is beautiful. Seven years I had loved that face. Seven years I had begged for scraps of affection from those cold green eyes. Now those eyes watched me like I was something to be put down. Serena stood beside him, her blonde hair perfect, her smile sharp as broken glass. She looked at me the way you look at a bug before you crush it. But I wasn't a bug anymore. Fire danced across my skin, warm and alive, and Scarlett's power hummed through my blood like a second heartbeat. For the first time in my
The Louisiana humidity hit like a wall when we finally reached New Orleans two days later. We'd switched vehicles three times, dodged four more bounty hunter attacks, and I'd barely slept. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her—Scarlett, the First Witch, standing in flames with eyes like molten gold."She's getting stronger," I told Dimitri as we drove through the French Quarter."I know. Your eyes have been glowing on and off for the past hour."Luna was quiet in the backseat, clutching a stuffed wolf Dimitri had bought her at our last stop. She'd been different since the attack—quieter, more observant. Sometimes I caught her staring at nothing, like she was listening to something only she could hear."There." Dimitri pointed to a building squeezed between two tourist shops. The sign read "Midnight Moon"—a bar that shouldn't exist, according to the human world."How do humans not see it?""Witch magic. They see what Morgana wants them to see." He parked and turned to me. "Let me go f
"Five million dollars?" I paced Dimitri's office, trying to process the magnitude of what Holden had done. "Where did he even get that kind of money?""Serena's family. The Blackthornes own half of Seattle." Dimitri pulled up something on his laptop. "But that's not the worst part. Look."He turned the screen toward me. A video played—Holden at a podium, addressing what looked like hundreds of wolves. His face was perfectly composed, the loving Alpha everyone believed him to be."My ex-mate, Camille Bell, is a hybrid abomination who has been hiding among us," his recorded voice said. "She killed her own mother in a fit of rage when she was young, and now she's kidnapped my daughter. She is dangerous and unstable.""That's a lie!" I slammed my hand on the desk, and it splintered under my touch. I stared at the cracked wood in shock."Your strength is increasing too." Dimitri observed calmly. "The witch blood is enhancing your wolf abilities.""I was three when my mother died. How could
I woke to sunlight streaming through unfamiliar windows and Luna's giggles coming from somewhere nearby. For a moment, I forgot where I was. Then yesterday's events crashed back—Holden's betrayal, my mother's secret, Dimitri's rescue."Mommy! Come see!" Luna burst through the door, her face bright with excitement. "There's a huge garden and horses and other kids!""Other kids?" I sat up, taking in the elegant bedroom we were in. Soft gray walls, a massive bed with silk sheets, and a view of mountains I didn't recognize."Three of them! And they can all turn into wolves like me!" She bounced on the bed. "The lady with pretty eyes said I can play with them after breakfast."A knock interrupted us. A woman entered carrying a tray of food—tall, elegant, with striking violet eyes I'd never seen on a wolf before."Good morning, Luna Camille." Her voice was melodic. "I'm Thea, Beta of Shadow Moon Pack. Alpha Stone requested I help you settle in.""Thank you." I accepted the tray gratefully.
I threw clothes into a bag with shaking hands while Luna slept on. My mind raced as I packed only essentials—we had to move fast. Whatever Dimitri Stone wanted, staying here for Holden's rejection ceremony would destroy us both."Mommy?" Luna stirred, rubbing her eyes. "Where are we going?""On an adventure, baby." I forced a smile, lifting her into my arms. "Remember how you always wanted to see new places?"She nodded sleepily against my shoulder. I grabbed our bags and headed downstairs where Dimitri waited, his presence filling my small living room like a storm barely contained."Ready?" he asked.Before I could answer, the front door exploded inward. Holden stood there, his chest heaving, eyes blazing with fury. Behind him stood three of his warriors."Going somewhere, Camille?" His voice was deadly calm—the kind that came before violence."That's none of your concern anymore." I held Luna tighter. "You made your choice.""You're not taking her." He stepped forward. "Luna stays w







