LOGINMaya's POV
I wake up feeling warm.
Not from the fire—it went out hours ago, leaving only ash and cold. No, this warmth is something else. It’s solid and steady. I open my eyes to find Caden's arms around me, his chest pressed against my back, his breath slow and rhythmic on my neck.
We're all tangled up—his legs intertwined with mine, his arm resting on my waist.
I should probably move, push away, say something about personal space a
Selena’s POVThe morning dawns soft and golden over Ironhold, the kind of morning that feels like a blessing after so many days of tension. I'm in Sera's chamber, adjusting the pillows behind her back while Greta prepares the morning remedy liquid that tastes like hell. Sera is sitting up—actually sitting up—her white hair brushed to a shine, her cheeks flushed with healthy color. She's laughing at something Greta said, a sound so light and free it makes my heart squeeze."You're spoiling me," Sera says, her voice stronger than it's been in weeks. "All this attention. I'll get used to it.""You deserve to be spoiled," I tell her, smoothing the blanket over her lap. "After everything, you deserve the world."She reaches out and takes my hand, her grip firmer than I expect. "I don't know what you've done, Selena, but I feel… I feel like myself again. For the first time in years, I can breathe without pain. I can think
Selena’s POVA week has passed. A whole week of holding my breath, of smiling at Sera while my heart pounds, of watching Mary serve tea and praying no one notices the slight difference in the aftertaste. And somehow, impossibly, nothing has gone wrong.No one suspects Mary. No one suspects me. The watchers—whoever they are seem to have retreated into the shadows, or perhaps they're simply waiting, like predators who know their prey will eventually stumble. I've walked these corridors every day, searching faces, trying to feel from my heart as I told Damian to do. But everyone I meet looks normal. Kind, even. The maids smile. The guards nod respectfully. It's almost unnerving, this peace.Sera is healing. That's the miracle in all of this. With the remedy tea replacing the poison, her body is finally fighting back. Color has returned to her cheeks. She more and more alive than yesterday, laughing at some story Gracia told her about Tristan's childhood mischief. She even asked to si
Damian’s POVThe morning air is crisp, carrying the scent of pine and sweat from the training grounds below the eastern battlements. I stand beside Gracia on a stone overlook, watching Ironhold's warriors move through drills with brutal precision. I've seen Silvermoon's forces, and I'm proud of them—but this is something else entirely.Gracia gestures expansively. "Walter and Eamon built all of this. Every training regimen, every defensive protocol. The men lives for Ironhold."I watch as squads shift formation in perfect synchronization. Beyond the main yard, I spot a rifle range where warriors fire with chilling accuracy, the crack of gunshots echoing against the mountainside.Further still, snipers practice on a ridge, their spotters relaying targets through earpieces. A separate ring hosts hand-to-hand combat, and the violence there is controlled but savage—joint locks, throws, and strikes that would shatter bone.Then my attention snags on a wide, fenced enclosure to the north. I
Maya's POVThe morning light is soft and blue, pouring through the window like a whispered prayer. I stand there, my palm pressed against the cool glass, the thin silk night gown slipping off one shoulder.Behind me, Caden sleeps peacefully, his breathing steady, his face relaxed. My phone is warm against my ear, I'm trying to absorb the words of my sister's voice.I've been talking to Selena for an hour. it still wasn't enough.As soon as I heard her voice I cried like a baby. Ugly, gasping sobs that I couldn't control. And Selena cried too. We shared everything. All the pain, all the guilt, all the words we should have said weeks ago. She apologized for not contacting me, for getting swallowed by the chaos of Ironhold, and I apologized too. I should have called. I should have reached out instead of waiting. But we're both stubborn, both trying so hard to be strong that we forget we don't have to be strong alone.She told me everythi
Selena's POV**The afternoon light pours through the curtains, soft and golden, warming the chamber. I'm settled on the bed, back against the headboard, Asher in my arms feeding him my milk, his tiny fingers curling and uncurling.Rina, Beth, and Lily sit in a circle on the bed, legs tucked beneath them, with Lydia at the center patiently enduring their ministrations. Rina is doing Lydia's makeup, talking nonstop, her voice filling every corner."And then I told Beth that arranging healing herbs properly is by color first, then by use, because if you do it by smell alone you'll end up with lavender next to wolfsbane, and…""Rina," Lily interrupts, sharp with exasperation, "shut up for one minute. Just one."Rina gasps, hand to her chest in theatrical offense. "Lily! You do not say such things to your elders! I am your older sister, which means you must respect me, and respect means listening when I speak, and I speak because I
Selena's POV"I don't care." My fingers grip his clothes, "I want you now. Please… I need to be with you."He kisses me deeply, and I know he's done fighting. Neither of us can resist this pull anymore. It's the bond. It has to be. And it's finally, truly awakening.His hands find the hem of my gown, lifting it slowly, reverently, as if unwrapping something sacred. The fabric slides over my shoulders, pooling around my waist. His lips never leave my skin—tracing my collarbone, the curve of my shoulder, the hollow of my throat. Each kiss is a promise. Each touch, a prayer.I tug at his cloths, desperate to feel him, and he helps me pull it over his head. The afternoon light catches the planes of his chest, the scars that map his years of battle, the warmth of his skin. I press my palms flat against him, feeling his heart thunder beneath my touch.He lays me back against the pillows, his body covering mine, and for a long m
I wake up to sunlight and the smell of something cooking.For a second, I forget where I am. Think I'm back home, in my tiny room, with Dad making breakfast downstairs. Then I see the white walls, the unfamiliar ceiling, the fireplace with cold ash in it.Right. Silvermoon. Damian's house. Not dead
I can't breathe.Caden stands in the middle of Damian's front yard like he owns it, he does owns everything. His dark hair catches the morning light. His ice-blue eyes sweep over the Silvermoon pack members with that look I know too well—the one that says *you're beneath me* without him having to o
I wake up in a bed that's not mine.That's my first thought. Before I open my eyes, before I remember anything—just that the sheets smell different. Like pine and something else. Something clean and sharp.Then everything comes rushing back. The rejection. The run. The rain. The wolves.I sit up so
My hands won't stop shaking.I press them flat against my thighs, but the tremors just move up my arms. The white dress my mom wore thirty years ago feels too tight around my ribs, or maybe that's just my lungs forgetting how to work."You'll ruin it." My dad's voice comes from behind me. Soft. Car







