Zev’s POVI pace. Back and forth. Back and forth. My boots barely make a sound on the stone floor, but inside my chest—my heart drums like thunder. My mind is racing. So much has happened so far, and now I feel trapped. Everyone's eyes digging into me.She's in trouble.Alyssa’s secret is out.Everyone saw her.And now the entire council wants answers.I stop pacing and glance at my father. He stands near the window, arms crossed, his face calm. Too calm. Like nothing just happened.I wish I could borrow his silence. But my blood is roaring."What is she, Zev?" Alpha Elric asks, his voice sharp, cracking the quiet like lightning.I turn toward him. My mouth is dry."I don’t know, sir."Elric slams his hand on the table. “Zev, we saw her. We all saw her transform. That kind of power hasn’t been seen in our kind for over a thousand years. So don’t stand there and tell me you don’t know!”I swallow hard, fists clenched at my sides. “I swear—I don’t.”“She turned into something that shou
Alyssa’s POVI feel it, a flicker of excitement in my chest.It’s faint, but it’s there. I already won the first round. That felt good. No, it felt great. But this… this one-on-one fight with Kira? It might be different. She's fast. Strong. Angry. But most importantly, she's the alpha's daughter.And I have to win. I have to beat her.I must leave Fenrath. I have to find Astra. I need answers that no one here is willing to give me.I step into the arena, the dirt crunching under my boots. The sun burns above, casting long shadows across the stone edges. My fingers curl around the hilt of my sword. It's warm, familiar. Like the weight of a promise.I smile. Just a little.Then I look up, and there she is.Kira.Her eyes burn into mine, wild and unreadable. Not anger. Not hatred. Something deeper. Sadder. And maybe even scared.Good luck, I whisper under my breath, more to myself than to her.The horn blows.I don’t wait.I sprint forward, sword raised, slicing through the air between u
Kira’sThe gates slam shut behind me.The sound echoes getting louder, deep and final, like the closing of a tomb. The heat rises from the arena floor, thick with dust, blood, and a thousand old battles. I walk forward slowly, shoulders high, chin up, just like Alpha Elric taught me.The crowd screams my name—“Kira! Kira of Fenrath! Heiress of the Flame!”—but it all sounds far away. Distant. Hollow. Like I’m watching this moment from the bottom of a well.All I can hear is his voice.All I can see is his blood.And my hand holding the blade that ended him.I did that. I ended the only man who ever truly loved me.And I told myself it was worth it. That this pain would fade once Alyssa fell.The plan had better work. It has to.Because there's no going back now.Across the arena, she stands—tall, proud, perfect.Alyssa.White armor catching the sunlight, hair braided in that annoyingly regal way, posture flawless like she’s the portrait of every heroic tale sung to pups at bedtime. She
Kira’s POV"Nora!" I burst through the front door, my voice sharp, panicked. The wooden frame groans behind me as it slams shut. My boots drag mud across her polished floor, but I don’t care. My heart races, wild and uneven."Nora!" I shout again, louder this time.She comes rushing out from the hallway, her robe half-tied, hair tousled like she just woke from a dream. Her face twists in annoyance."What are you yelling about?" she snaps, eyes narrowing.I grab her arm tight. "We have a problem," I say, my voice shaking."What?" she asks, searching my face. "What kind of problem?""I messed up," I whisper, then louder, "River… River knows everything."She freezes. Her mouth parts, but no words come. I see the color drain from her face."Everything?" she says slowly. "What do you mean when you say everything?"I let go of her arm and start pacing, my hands in my hair. "He’s suspicious. About me. About Fenrath. About who I really am. I could see it in his eyes, Nora. He knows. Or at lea
Kira's POVThe tent walls feel like they’re closing in. The air is too still, too hot. I lie flat on my back, arms stiff at my sides, staring at the worn fabric above me. There’s nothing to see, but I can’t stop looking.I haven’t slept. Not even for a minute. Gen and Gwen snore away.Anger won’t let me.It sits in my chest like hot coal, burning slow and deep. Every time I blink, I see her face—Nora’s face—calm and smooth and full of lies.I trusted her.She looked me in the eye and lied.The night groans around me. The trees creak. The wind presses soft fingers against the canvas of my tent.And then the owls start again.One call. Then another. And another. Low and drawn out, like they’re laughing at me from the branches. Like they know what she did. What she kept from me.My teeth clench. I sit up fast, the rough blanket tangled around my legs. I shove it off. My palms press into the cold earth as I breathe through my nose.It doesn’t help.The fire inside me is too loud.I grab m
Alyssa's POVNight falls like a heavy curtain.The sky stretches wide above me, black velvet pierced with cold, distant stars. The air bites at my skin. Each breath I take feels sharp, like it’s trying to cut its way out of my chest. The fire crackles in the distance, and I hear the others talking, low at first... until Cara’s voice slices through the night like a blade.“You need to fix this, Zev,” she snaps, loud and angry. “Or we might as well just forfeit the tournament!”Her voice makes me flinch.I don’t turn to look—I already know what I’ll see. Cain and Abel probably trying to stay out of it, their heads ducked, eyes low. Cara pacing or throwing her hands around, frustration thick in the air like smoke. And Zev… silent. Still. The way he always is when he’s deciding if he’s going to explode or walk away.But then I hear footsteps behind me.Soft, measured.“Alyssa.”Zev’s voice is calm. Too calm. That kind of calm that means he’s holding something back.“Cara’s right,” he says
Zev’s POVMy eyes stay forward, locked on the treeline, but I don't see it. Not really.I hear Alpha Elric’s voice somewhere behind me, low and steady like it always is when he’s trying to keep everyone calm.But it’s just noise now. A hum in the background. I can't hold onto his words. I can't hold onto anything.Because inside me, a war’s already started.Will you really marry her? my wolf hums, voice curling with disappointment. After everything?“Not now,” I whisper beneath my breath, jaw clenched so tight it hurts.The horn goes off.The race begins.Like startled deer, the groups burst forward, scattering into different paths like veins through the forest. The air fills with the sound of footsteps and adrenaline and rushing blood. But I only see her.Alyssa.Already off the ground like wind-born flame, leaving behind nothing but the fading scent of citrus and soap. It stings. That smell—hers—still stuck in my chest.“Zev, what was that?” Cara gasps beside me as we begin our spri
Kira’s POVI stare at my mother like she’s grown a second head.Alpha Conan? My father?No. No, that can’t be right. She’s lying. She’s doing it again—twisting things just to keep me in line.“You need to explain yourself!” I scream, my voice raw with disbelief. “You don’t just throw something like that at me and act like it’s nothing!”She doesn’t flinch. Of course she doesn’t. Nora always acts like she has everything under control.Conan stays silent. His lips are pressed in a firm line, eyes hard as stone. He looks at me, but doesn’t say a word.“Well?!” I yell at him, furious tears stinging my eyes. “Don’t you want to say something? Anything?”Before either of them can respond, a loud, deep horn echoes across the camp.No. Not now.The tournament.I glance toward the sound. My heart pounds—not from nerves, but from rage. Rage and confusion, twisting inside me like barbed wire.“You have some explaining to do,” I snap, backing away from them. “And you’d better believe I’m coming ba
Kira’s POVI feel like I’m floating.The air is thick with anticipation, but all I can taste is victory. All around me, the arena buzzes with energy—warriors stretching, sharpening weapons, whispering strategies—but I barely hear any of it.Because today… everything starts falling into place.I smooth a hand over my braid and smile to myself. The uniform I wore to training is tighter than usual, hugging my waist like a promise. My boots click neatly on the stone as I move. Today, I will show them all—the council, the pack, and her—why I Hulen will be mine. Why I’ve always belonged.And then I see him.Zev, walking toward me with that intense, focused look of his. Strong. Handsome. Angry. Perfect.I tilt my head, my smile blooming wider. He doesn’t know it yet, but I’m already winning. The moment he came to me—not to Alyssa—I won.“Zev,” I purr sweetly, flipping my hair over my shoulder, making sure it catches the light just right. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be getting you