Kael’s POV“Pass me the towel,” the healer murmured, his hands moving swiftly over Donika’s head. The room smelled of herbs and incense.I knelt at Donika’s side, gripping her limp hand like it was the only thing holding me to this world. Blood matted her dark hair and streaked her pale skin. She looked still and fragile.Not again. Goddess, not again.“Don’t you dare leave me,” I whispered, my voice breaking in ways I hated. “Not you too.”Her lashes fluttered slightly, but she didn’t wake.The healer pressed a cloth soaked in salve to the wound. A faint glow pulsed beneath his palms, his power knitting flesh together, slowing the blood. “She’s strong,” he muttered, more to himself than me. “This one’s stronger than she looks.”I leaned closer, brushing a strand of hair from her face. Her skin was cold and clammy. My chest tightened until I felt like I couldn't breathe. Seeing her on the floor covered in blood triggered my memories of how SHE had died and made me feel like my life wo
Donika’s POVThe way she said my name made it sound like filth.Elena stepped forward as if to block her path. “You have no reason to—”“It’s fine,” I heard myself say, though my chest was tight. I wanted to know what this woman wanted. Verya smiled maliciously, looking at Elena up and down before letting out a loud hiss. She walked in, hips swaying, her presence filling the room until it felt smaller. She looked around my room, eyeing each corner weirdly.Then her eyes cut back to me, raking over me slowly. From head to toe.“So… you’re the one.” Her voice was mocking. “The Moon Goddess’s little gift to Kael. Little Miss Second Chance Mate.” She spelled it out like it was an insult.I said nothing. My jaw ached from clenching too tightly.Her gaze slid down to my frame. “I have to admit, I’m… surprised. You don’t have a wolf. Your presence is almost nonexistent. And this body…” she gestured lazily at me with a flick of her hand, “like a stick that might snap in the wind. Do you real
Donika’s POVThe walk back to my room felt longer than it should have.Kael had told me to go with Elena while he “handled something.” That “something” being the gorgeous, furious woman who had barged into his office the second we left. Whoever she was, she was really bold for raising her voice at a Lycan.I kept my head down as we passed through the road leading back to Kael’s, but I couldn’t block out the whispers. They didn’t whisper very quietly; it was as if they wanted me to hear them.“…from ThornClaw, can you believe it?”“…and she’s wolfless? The Moon Goddess must be joking with our Alpha.”“She doesn’t look like Luna material at all. She looks like a scared little thing Kael picked up out of pity.”Each remark hit like a pebble thrown at glass, not hard enough to shatter me completely, but enough to crack the surface.Then came one that lodged in my chest like a blade:“She won’t last here. She’ll be eaten alive.”My jaw tightened, but I kept walking. I’d heard these things
Kael’s POVThe second Donika stepped out with Elena, I turned to face Verya. “Are you going to abandon me just like that?” she snapped, planting herself in front of me with her arms folded. “Do you think I wouldn’t hear? That I wouldn’t find out?”“Find out what exactly, Verya?” There and then I realized that I gave her so much of my attention that she felt she could waltz in here and cause a scene. Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t play stupid with me. You’ve got yourself a mate.”“Her name,” I said slowly, “is Donika. And yes, she’s my mate. She’s my Luna and YOUR Luna. I do not appreciate you using that condescending tone when talking about her. You will respect her whether you like it or not.”She scoffed and let out a rough laugh, a brittle and ugly sound. “Respect? After everything I’ve done for you? After all the nights I’ve been there when you couldn’t sleep? All the times I—”“All the times you willingly offered yourself to my bed,” I cut in, my tone sharp enough to make her flinch
Donika’s POV“Test your limits?” I scoffed in his face angrily while trying to tug my arms out of his grip, but his grip didn’t loosen. If anything, his fingers dug harder into my arms. “Let go of me. I didn’t agree to any of this, and I’m leaving your pack.”“You’re not leaving,” he said calmly while holding me in place.I pushed against his chest. “You can’t just…”“I can. And I will.” His eyes locked on mine. “You’re my mate, Donika. That bond isn’t something you can walk away from.”“Mate, mate, mate,” I spat the word like it was poison. “You keep saying it like I’m supposed to fall on my knees and thank the Moon Goddess for blessing me with you. I don’t even know what it means! I can’t even feel what you feel, so why don't you just do me the favor of letting me go?” I screamed at the top of my lungs. His jaw tightened,, and I could see it was beginning to get on his last nerves. GREAT. “It means you’re mine. It means your soul was woven into mine long before either of us drew br
Donika’s POVMy ears were still ringing with that single word.Mate.I blinked rapidly, not sure if I’d misheard, but the room’s stunned silence told me I hadn’t. And if this was a blessing, I couldn’t say because it felt like a new curse to me. So this was why he had stormed into the wedding to hijack me? It all makes sense now, but why him? Not even that, how is he even my MATE, for goodness sake? It felt like my world was crumbling at this news. He didn’t tell me and felt it was okay to drop the bombshell in front of the elders like it was nothing. I know girls who would kill to be the mate to a Lycan, but me? Certainly not, especially not to this particular Lycan from the NightHowl pack. I just sat in the chair, and my head was spinning with the possibilities. He might just be telling a lie, but I knew he wasn’t. He didn’t seem like the type to lie over such crucial information, especially to the elders.Kael had released the elder, who now sat clutching his throat, glaring but