LOGINDamon POVCouncilors ducked and shouted as I pulled Rayna against me, turning my body over hers while crystal shards exploded across the chamber like frozen rain.Glass struck my shoulders and my neck, but I barely felt it when they cut the material and skin.Smoke rolled in after the blast - thick, black, choking. This was no magic. It was gun powder. Explosives.My jaw clenched. So that was the game. Not gods. Not curses. This time we had cowards with fire and timing.The outer terrace wall had been ripped open, stone hanging in broken slabs over a widening breach. Cold wind screamed through it, carrying sparks, ash, and the scent of wet fur.Then shapes moved inside the smoke. - Wolves.Some in full beast form, charging low and fast over shattered marble. Others shifted mid-stride, bones cracking, landing on two feet with swords, axes, hooked blades.Raiders. Our own kind. For one sharp second, I hated them more than Nythera. At least monsters don’t pretend to be family.Gasps tore
Damon POVThe second sound shook the chamber hard enough to rattle the silver lanterns overhead. Dust drifted from the carved ceiling. For one suspended heartbeat, no one moved. Then the room erupted. Voices crashed over each other - fear sharpened into outrage, outrage into panic.“The eastern wall!”“No, that came from the north!”“This is because of her-”“We should evacuate the palace!”“Seal the gates!”“Protect the archives!”Of course. Gods forbid the scrolls suffer. My wolf rose inside me, teeth bared. "Pathetic."I agreed.Another impact thundered through the city. This one closer.A crack split one of the crystal windowpanes high above the council ring. Several members flinched like prey animals not the prime wolves they should be.Rayna stood beside me, spine straight, face unreadable - but I felt the pulse of strain through our bond. Beneath her calm was pain. Beneath the pain was power.She was still recovering. And the world had chosen now to test us again. Unfortunate
Rayna POVThe doors opened before I reached them. Damon did something. A quiet flick of his hand, a silent command - and the guards on either side stepped back and opened the door.Of course he didn’t let me walk in unannounced. Not after what I’d survived. Not after what I’d become.The council chamber stretched wide and cold ahead of us. And every single seat was already filled. They were waiting. That alone told me everything.I stepped inside.The sound of the doors closing behind me echoed like a verdict. Silence hit first. Then eyes - watching me. So many of them. Councilors. Alphas. Envoys. Old blood, new blood, all of it staring like I was a fracture in their carefully built world.I didn’t flinch. Didn’t lower my gaze. Didn’t rush. I walked slow and steady. Damon stayed half a step behind me - not because he was controlling me or some royal rule - he was anchoring me. I felt it in the bond. His steady present. Ready to burn the world down if I stumbled.I didn’t intend to,
Rayna POVI should have known he wouldn’t make this easy. But I needed to get up. It's been days since the battle. I was fine. And he knew it. Especially after our last night together. “You’re not leaving this bed.”Damon stood at the foot of it like a wall - arms crossed, expression calm, voice final.I stared at him. “You do realize,” I said slowly, “that I am the Queen.”“Yes,” he replied without missing a beat. “And you’re a Queen who nearly died not so long ago.”I pushed myself up against the pillows, narrowing my eyes. “I feel fine. Really.”“You’re still glowing.” he countered.I blinked. “That’s not exactly a symptom of weakness.”“It’s not exactly reassuring either.”I swung my legs over the side of the bed anyway. The moment my feet touched the floor, he moved.Fast.One step, two - and suddenly he was right there, hands catching my waist before I could take a full step forward. Not rough. Not stopping me completely. Just… reminding me he could.“Rayna.” he warned quietly.
Rayna POV I don’t remember falling asleep. Only warmth.Damon’s arms around me, solid and unyielding even in rest. His chest rising slow and steady beneath my cheek, his heartbeat a quiet rhythm that lulled mine into matching it without effort.For the first time in what felt like forever… there was no fear. No shadows creeping at the edge of my mind. No whisper of Nythera. No pull toward that in-between void. Just him.Even in sleep, Damon didn’t let go.One arm was wrapped tight around my waist, pulling me against him, his hand splayed across my back like he needed constant proof I was still there. The other rested just beneath my neck, fingers curled slightly - protective even in unconsciousness. Maybe a little possessive. But I liked that. It made me feel safe. And only Goddess knew how much I needed this right now. I shifted slightly, and his grip tightened instantly.A low sound left him - not quite a growl, not quite a warning, but something instinctive. His body reacted b
After that last kiss, after the heat and tension and everything that almost tipped over the edge… Damon just stayed there, hovering above me, his breath uneven, his forehead resting against mine.For a moment, neither of us spoke. We just… breathed.His hand slid from my waist to my cheek, slower now. Careful. Like he needed to feel me, not just want me. His thumb brushed under my eye, tracing something invisible there.“You’re here. With me.” he murmured.Not a question. Not quite a statement either. More like he was convincing himself.“I am.” I whispered.His eyes searched mine - really searched, like he was still half-expecting me to slip through his fingers again. Like the memory of me fading was still sitting somewhere in his chest, sharp and fresh.I softened.My hand came up to cover his, pressing it more firmly against my cheek. “Damon… I’m not going anywhere.”Something in him broke then - not loudly, not dramatically. Just a quiet shift. A release.He exhaled, long and heav
Rayna POVThe earth stirred.At first I thought it was the exhaustion pulling me under. But then the shadows shifted at the edge of the battlefield. A ripple moved through the trees, dark and silver, like moonlight walking. Wolves bristled, growls trembling in their throats.Female stepped out.The
Damon’s POVThe howls had only just begun to fade when reality hit like a blade to the gut.Hundreds of wolves knelt before her. Not just rogues. Not just Moonclaw. Others too, Alphas who had thought to measure her and ended up bleeding for it. Now they were hers - bound, sworn, but still wolves wi
Rayna’s POVThe council broke at last, Garrick already barking orders as he left the building, Kael at his side, blood still streaking down her cheek. Lira lingered longest, her strange silver eyes lingering on me in a way that made my wolf bristle - half warning, half blessing. Then she too slippe
Rayna POVFor a moment, all I could hear was my own breathing - ragged, shallow, scraping through my chest like broken glass. My knees buckled, and I only just kept myself upright, claws digging into the blood-soaked earth.Damon staggered beside me, blood running in thick lines down his ribs where







