MasukThe war room inside Blackridge definitly had not been built for comfort. Stone walls. Heavy maps. Long wooden tables scarred by generations of claws, blades, and bad decisions.Tonight it held something else too. Expectation.My brothers arrived just before sunset. And Blackridge felt them immediately. Not because they came loudly. The very opposite.Predators who didn’t need to prove they were dangerous rarely wasted energy pretending otherwise. The fortress guards straightened instinctively the second the front gates opened. Six black vehicles rolled through the courtyard in precise formation.No wasted movement. No unnecessary display. Just lethal efficiency. And still, it all screemed: money.I stood beside the war room balcony overlooking the main entrance while Mara leaned against the doorway behind me eating something that smelled aggressively caffeinated.“You know,” she said casually, “normal families exchange hugs.”“We do exchange hugs.”“You sent your brothers coordinates
By morning, all of Blackridge knew. - Not rumors. Not whispers behind closed doors. - Truth. The kind that poisoned the air after it finally escaped. The council had hidden the conditioning program. Children were taken. Wolves had been turned into weapons. Cameron’s father died trying to stop it. And conditioned wolves still lived among the pack.There was no containing information like that. Especially after what happened in the training grounds.The entire fortress felt raw. Exposed.I stood outside the medical wing watching warriors reinforce internal checkpoints while healers moved between exhausted wolves across the courtyard below. Nobody spoke loudly anymore. Like the pack itself feared disturbing something fragile.Behind me, Cameron was arguing with his healer. Again.“You are not leaving this room.”“I’m the Alpha.”“You’re stitched together by spite and questionable decisions.”A pause.“That feels disrespectful.”“It’s medically accurate.”I bit back a smile. Barely. The h
The training grounds smelled like blood, smoke, and rain by the time the healers arrived. Not real rain yet. Just the heavy metallic promise of it gathering above Blackridge like the sky itself had decided this pack had suffered enough and needs it to wash it off.I knelt beside Cameron while healers crowded around us, their hands moving fast over the wounds in his side and shoulder.Too much blood. Still too much blood.“He needs the medical wing now,” one of the healers said sharply.“No kidding,” Mara snapped from somewhere behind me.My hands were still pressed against Cameron’s side. I couldn’t seem to make myself let go. Like the second I did, something terrible would happen.My wolf paced violently beneath my skin. "Mate hurt. Mate bleeding. Fix it. Now."Cameron hissed sharply as the healer pushed silver-threaded bandages against the wound.“That’s unpleasant.”I stared at him. “You were stabbed and shot.”“Yes.” His voice sounded weaker now. “And somehow you’re still scarier.
The first conditioned wolf hit the barricades before the panic even finished spreading. Then everything collapsed at once.Screams ripped across the training grounds as civilians scattered in every direction. Warriors surged forward to intercept the attackers while more conditioned wolves emerged from inside the crowd itself.Blackridge turned on itself in seconds.“Tomas, stop!” his mother screamed.He shoved straight through her without even looking at her. Like she was nothing. Like he couldn’t see her at all.My wolf recoiled in horror.Mercer stood at the center of it calmly watching the chaos unfold like a man admiring his own masterpiece. Psychopath.The first conditioned warrior reached Cameron. Bad choice. Cameron met him head-on with terrifying force, slamming him into the dirt hard enough to crack stone beneath them before pivoting instantly toward the next attacker.More came immediately. Too many actually. Not warriors, just weapons following orders. No fear. No hesitatio
Mercer had just spoken the words when the chamber doors burst open hard enough to slam against the stone walls. One of Cameron’s warriors stumbled inside breathing heavily, blood running from a cut across his forehead.“Alpha -”His gaze landed on Mercer pinned against the steel beam. Then on Elias. Then on Lucien kneeling on the floor. Confusion flashed across his face for half a second before training shoved it aside.“We’re under attack.”Every muscle in Cameron’s body tightened instantly.“Where?”“The training grounds.” The warrior swallowed hard. “Multiple armed wolves. Internal security turned on the western patrol units.” His breathing sharpened. “Council members are outside.”Cold rolled through me. No more hiding. No more hidden threats. They were escalating openly now.Mercer smiled. Satisfied. Cameron noticed this. His grip tightened violently against Mercer’s throat.“You planned this.”Mercer’s expression barely changed despite the pressure crushing his airway. “No,” he
The chamber went completely silent. The kind that comes right before violence.My wolf pressed forward instantly beneath my skin, every instinct locked on Elias. Alive. Thank Goddess. But something was wrong. He stood beside the stranger too still, shoulders were rigid, eyes distant in a way that made cold crawl down my spine.Conditioned. Triggered. Controlled. - Again.The man above us continued descending the metal stairs with calm, measured steps, like he had all the time in the world.He was older than Cameron, but younger than Lucien. Dark hair streaked faintly with silver at the temples. Military posture. Precise movements. Dangerous type. Not because he looked violent. Because he looked intelligent. The worst kind of monster.Lucien made a broken sound from the floor beside me.“Oh no,” he whispered.The stranger’s eyes slid toward him briefly. “Commander Vale.” he said smoothly. “I was wondering how long you’d survive the interrogation.”My stomach twisted instantly. “You exp
The moment that lone howl split the night, the entire mansion went dead still.A single, cracked, wounded sound - distant but sharp enough to slice straight through bone.My wolf detonated inside my chest.I didn’t bother explaining, didn’t bother shifting. I just ran. Kicking my shoes off. Bare f
The first blow came from the left.I smelled him a heartbeat before he struck - cheap cologne trying to drown out fear, iron and sweat underneath. I twisted, claws ripping through fabric instead of flesh as he staggered back with a hiss.So much for subtle.The catacombs exploded into motion.Shado
My room felt too small. Too bright. Too clean. Too empty.The walls of the mansion were supposed to be safe, but after what happened in the forest… every corner felt like it hid a shadow with bloody hands. Every sound made my heart jerk like it wanted to sprint outside and track Cameron down on raw
Rowan didn’t speak. He didn’t have to. The look in his eyes when he handed me the tablet was enough to make my stomach drop into my boots.My pulse kicked. I snatched the device from his hand.The screen lit up. The message glared back at me, cold and calculated:Midnight. Come alone.If you want







