Kieran’s POVIn no time, the council chamber was full. The long oak table stretched down the centre of the room, now surrounded on all sides by seasoned warriors, guards, and elders—everyone who still had a stake in this war. The younger warriors stood behind them, their hands resting on the hilts of their swords. The question was, were we ready for the war that was coming?Tobias stood to my right, jaw tight with his arms crossed. On my left, Elara and Saffron were both composed and alert, their presence grounding me more than I wanted to admit.I cleared my throat, the sound echoing in the sudden silence. Everyone turned their full attention toward me. "We are here to discuss our next course of action," I began, my voice steady despite the tremor in my gut. "Lilith has escaped.”Gasps and curses rippled across the room.“She escaped the dungeons an hour ago,” I continued, voice hard. “She killed one of our own, Nick, and escaped through a tunnel I didn’t even know existed, and I don
Kieran’s POV“Kieran, are you alright?” Elara’s voice was soft and careful. She always knew how to cut through the noise in my head.We’d just crossed into the foyer of the pack house, but I stopped and turned to face her. My hands stayed locked on her waist. I couldn’t let go. She was the only thing tethering me to sanity right now.“I just…” My voice cracked before I could finish. I hated that. I exhaled, dragging a hand through my hair. “I’m so tired of her. Using my mother, using that pup…” My vision got darker at the thought. “I swear, Moya… I want to tear her apart.”“I know,” she said gently. “I want that too, but we need to keep her alive for now so we can find your mother.”That word, ‘Mother', burned in my chest like a fresh wound. Every time it was spoken aloud, it reopened the gaping ache I’d been trying to bury for years. I miss her. I miss her so much. I don't even know how she's doing…Ugh….I clenched my jaw. If Lilith and Elara were telling the truth, and that was a b
Magnus POV I raised the glass of wine to my lips, the deep red liquid swirling like a whirlpool of blood. My gaze fell upon the roaring fire, and I saw his face in the flickering flames: Kieran. My half-brother. The precious heir. The one who had everything that was mine by right. Whenever I remembered how that old bastard that called himself our father had cast out my mother and me for Kieran and his mother's sake, I went down to the dungeon to take my frustration out on his precious mate.I’d just returned from there minutes ago, but even beating his mother no longer gave me the satisfaction it once did. I should have killed her a long time ago, but holding her captive is what is giving me the upper hand against Kieran. I can't let him win twice.Not after he took Elara from me. The thought of her name sent a jolt of pure, possessive energy through my veins. I had seen her grow up, watched her from the shadows, and felt a pull, a primal need that was unlike anything I had ever exp
Elara's POV Kieran’s grip on my waist was firm and possessive as he led me out of the dungeon. The dungeon’s stale, metallic smell still clung to my clothes, and I could feel the lingering heat of his fury and the storm of emotions swirling through our mate bond: anger, frustration, and a deep-seated ache for his mother."Kieran, are you alright?" I asked quietly once we reached the pack house. He stopped and turned me to face him, his hands still on my waist. "I just... I'm so tired of her," he confessed, his eyes darkening. "Using my mother, using that pup... I swear, Moya, I want to tear her apart.”"I know," I said softly. "I want that too, but we need to keep her alive for now so we can find your mother."Tobias approached us, his expression grim. "Kieran, Alex is taking the pen and paper to her. He'll stand guard until she's done. What will be our next move when we get the map?"Kieran let out a long sigh, running a hand through his hair. "I want you to verify every piece of in
Elara's POV We reached the dungeon in no time, and Tobias, who was visibly angry, was waiting outside for us with Alex and two other guards. He looked like he was seconds away from strangling Lilith, and when he saw our dressing, he just sucked in a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair.“Kieran, I'm sorry for waking and dragging you both out,” he said in a very low voice, almost sounding like a growl. “I just wish we could send her away.”“Good morning, Alpha and Luna,” Alex and the other two guards greeted.Kieran grunted in response, and I waved as I answered them. “Good morning.”“What happened? Who is he? And how did Lilith hold him at knifepoint?” Kieran asked.“She faked that she was in pain, Alpha,” Alex started. “She said she was having con…contra…”“... contractions,” the second guard completed for him.“Yes, contractions. I don't know what that is, but she said it was very painful and needed to see Mira, so I told Nick to go to her while I called Beta Tobias. While I
Elara’s POVI woke up on the same bed in the same damp room. I instantly remembered that I had been here before—the rough sheets, the cold air, the suffocating silence. Everything was exactly as it had been the first time. And then I heard it again, that same shrill scream from a woman.I didn’t even hesitate, I instantly leapt from the bed and bolted through the open doorway, running toward the direction of the woman's cry as it echoed down the hallway.My bare feet slapped against the cold, damp stone. The walls around me flickered with that same dying torchlight, and the metallic scent of blood choked the air.I followed the scream until it led me to a cell door that was slightly cracked open. My heart slammed against my chest as I stepped forward and looked inside.And there she was.Hunched in the corner of the cell, her body was a ruin. Skin and bones, bloodied and shaking. She was bleeding from her scalp and her mouth. Her dress was in tatters. Her back... Goddess, it was cover