Masuk~NYRA~
“Nyra! Nyra!” I woke to a sharp tug through the mind link. “Yes,” I answered groggily. “Wake up, Nyra. There’s an intruder.” Aaron’s voice sharpened my senses, every nerve sparking awake. “An intruder?” “Yes. Come down soon.” The link cut off. I scrambled out of bed, rushing to the bathroom. Hot water stung against my skin, my shoulder wound—once raw—was gone, leaving only a faint scar. Good thing no one knew. Yanking on a black tank top and track pants, I raced downstairs, heart thudding. Aaron and Knox were waiting, tense. “What happened?” I demanded, joining them. “A man attacked our patrols at night,” Knox said as we headed toward the grounds. “Why didn’t they kill him?” “He’s human,” Aaron muttered with disdain. Human. My pulse spiked. “Then why the trial? Uncle can just command him,” I pressed. “That’s the problem.” Knox’s tone was grave. “Alpha command didn’t work on him.” “What?” My steps faltered. That was…impossible. Humans bent instantly under Alpha’s will. Always. Does that mean — No. Don’t overthink, Nyra. “What happens now?” “The council members are here. They’ll decide.” I swallowed hard. Council. “Why did the council get involved?” Aaron asked, voicing the question sitting like a stone in my chest. “That human carried silver and matches. He attacked our men deliberately. They suspect he knew what we are.” Aaron frowned. “We don’t kill humans… but if the command doesn’t work, then—” “Execution,” Knox finished. The word felt like ice in my veins. Not that I fear blood, but something doesn't feel right. We entered the training grounds. My gaze swept over the gathered crowd—elders, council, warriors—and then froze. I sensed him before I saw him. My mate. Bound in chains at the center of the grounds. No. No, no, no. This couldn’t be him. Not here. “Nyra?” Aaron called softly. I tore my eyes away, following them up the stage where Uncle, Aunt and council members presided, deep in discussion. We took our places behind them. But the pull burned through me, in every vein, fierce and undeniable. 'We need to save him!' Nina, my wolf, snapped in my mind. 'Let’s wait for their decision,' I muttered. 'He’s our mate. They can’t kill him!' I ignored her. She wouldn’t understand. Even I couldn’t. Why did he come here? Why did he attack? Why didn’t my command erase his memory? 'He's our mate.' 'Is that why he's immune to my command?' I asked. 'Answer me, Nina' Fucking great. Now she's ignoring me. Alpha Allen stood, his voice cutting through the crowd. “Why did you carry silver knives? Who sent you?” “No one sent me,” the human spat. “Why attack our men? Who told you about silver?” “Speak or you’ll be dead,” Uncle’s Alpha voice thundered. The man’s glare burned. “You monsters kill without mercy. But I won’t let that happen. I’ll end you.” “Human.” Uncle Daniel sneered. “Let's just kill him.” “But he’s human,” Aunt argued weakly. “A human who is immune to my command!” Uncle roared back. Alpha Allen exhaled, weary. “There’s no other choice. Finish him and file the report.” “No!” Nina’s growl reverberated inside me. “Save him now!” “Nina, please—” But the warrior stepped forward, sword raised. My wolf surged. “Now! Save mate! You can’t sit here!” Pain split through my skull as I tried to hold her back. “Nyra,” Knox whispered beside me, concern in his eyes. I clenched my teeth. 'Please, Nina, don’t. Everyone will know—' 'I don’t care!' The shift tore through me. My body cracked, bones snapping as Nina forced her way out. Knox stumbled back as my wolf growled at him. Then, without hesitation, she leapt over the elders and landed in the dirt, the crowd scattering in terror. Her paws pounded against the earth until she stood before him—our mate—snarling at the warrior. He faltered, dropping the sword and backing away. “He’s mine! My mate!” Nina’s Alpha command boomed through the mind link, echoing across every wolf in the pack. Gasps rippled through the crowd. Confusion. Shock. Horror. Knox’s face paled. “Impossible,” he whispered. Aaron’s eyes darted between me and the human, wide with disbelief. 'What have you done, Nina?' I whispered. 'The right thing,' she replied, unapologetic. “Nyra!” My uncle’s voice roared with fury.~NYRA~ He leans in… closing the only gap between us. And then I feel him — hard, undeniable. The world slams still. A jolt surges through me — heat, anger, hunger — all at once. My breath stutters. My instinct roars. I wrench free, twisting out of his grip with force and fury, stumbling as my back hits the shower wall. I need this distance to breathe again. Without looking at him, I snatch the towel, wrap it around myself, and step away—putting inches, air, sanity between us. Only then do I look back. Ethan stands there, chest heaving, hair dripping into eyes that are dark and reckless and still hungry with something he doesn’t understand. Steam coils around him like it’s trying to drag him back toward me. I shut that possibility down with a single breath. “Don’t try that again.” My voice is crisp, steady, unshaken despite everything burning under my skin. And I walk out, leaving him in the heat, in the chokehold of almost, in the moment neither of us will
~NYRA~ “Ethan.” His name leaves me like a blade—sharp, clean, meant to cut. Steam coils around us in thick, rolling waves, turning the shower into something small and suffocating. A cage. A battlefield. The water beats down my back, hot and merciless, and every drop that hits my skin feels like, somehow, it echoes inside him too. He stands in front of me—drenched, cornered, rigid with rage he doesn’t have space to put down. His chest rises against my forearm—slow, deliberate—like a test of how far I can go before I snap. And the worst part? I am hyper aware of everything. Every pulse thundering under his skin. Every stutter in his breath. Every wrong, impossible thread of the bond humming beneath my ribs, sharpening my senses until the entire world narrows down to a single focus. Him. His eyes lock on mine—bright, fevered, defiant. “Why the fuck are you attacking me?” he rasps, voice cracked and unsteady. My grip tightens on instinct—then slips, fractionally, like even m
~NYRA~ “I don’t feel anything,” he cuts in. A clean fact, it slices through me—even though I never asked for this bond, the truth still lands like a bruise under my ribs. “Good,” I snap. “Maybe that’ll make this easier.” His eyes narrow. “Easier for what?” “To use this bond,” I lean forward until the air between us tightens, “and then break it.” His nostrils flare. He steps closer, slow, deliberate, until heat rolls between us. “You wolves,” he murmurs, face inches from mine, “are absolutely insane.” “You haven’t seen my insanity,” I say, quiet as death. “If I didn’t need you to become Alpha, I’d have killed you and ended this shit show already.” His brows twitch. “Alpha?” he echoes, eyes flicking toward Aaron like he’s piecing together a language he’s never heard. Understanding snaps into place: He’s human. A clueless, infuriating, fragile human. He knows nothing. Absolutely nothing. "You know nothing." I say. His jaw hardens. “Not everyone grows up as a mo
~NYRA~ Satisfaction hums beneath my skin as I walk out of the dungeon, the cold stone still clinging to my clothes, the metallic scent of blood and rust trailing behind me. His defiance cracked. Not fully—just enough to show the fracture beneath. And that—goddess help me—felt good. 'It wasn’t', Nina growls, low and disapproving. 'Don’t hurt mate.' 'Mate or not', I huff back, 'this is what we need. What the pack needs.' She wails at that, but doesn’t fight me. Not on this. “Nyra!” Aaron’s voice cuts through the hallway, sharp as a blade. I turn. He strides toward me, the afternoon light slicing across his features—brows drawn, shoulders tense. It makes him look older, more Alpha than he’ll ever admit. “So?” he asks quietly. “What happens now?” 'Not here. My office', I mind-link. His jaw twitches, but he nods and leads the way. The office door shuts with a soft thud behind us—still too small, too cramped, smelling faintly of old paper and the lemon cleanser the
~ETHAN~ I freeze. Instinct takes over. The transmitter goes under the mattress in an instant, my hand snapping back just as the door swings open. Aaron stands there, suspicion darkening his features. For a heartbeat, neither of us moves. His gaze sweeps the room—slow, assessing, like he’s mapping every lie I could be hiding behind. Then he exhales through his nose. “Relax. I’m not here to bite.” Could’ve fooled me. He steps inside, holding something small—a first-aid box. “I forgot this,” he says, tossing it onto the bed. It lands inches from where the transmitter’s hidden. My pulse spikes. “Do you need a doctor?” he asks after a beat—like he’s already calculated my odds of dying on their floor. “I’m not weak,” I say through my teeth. He chuckles under his breath. “Great. Stay that way.” He doesn’t leave immediately. His gaze drifts around the room—bed, window, sink—slow, deliberate, disguised as casual. But he’s checking. Making sure nothing’s out of place… or
~ETHAN~ “But if you cooperate with me,” she says, voice calm but edged with steel, “I promise you protection. And everything you’ll need.” Protection. From what—her? The thought almost drags a laugh out of me, bitter and dry. Her hands — the same ones that were ready to end me moments ago — rise. Fingers brush the split on my lip, cold against bruised skin. Her eyes shift, liquid green swallowing the brown, faintly glowing in the half-dark. My breath catches. I should pull away. I should move. But I don’t. I can’t. How’s she doing that? My pulse hammers against the bruises on my neck. Every instinct screams to run, but my body refuses to obey. For a second, her gaze feels like gravity itself — fierce, inescapable. Then she exhales, breaks the spell, and turns for the door. The faint scrape of her boots echoes off the damp walls, each step peeling away the haze she left behind. And without her influence, I snap back into myself. I can’t stay here. No chance I’ll escape







