เข้าสู่ระบบCORAThe hall stretched endlessly ahead but the monster kept appearing every time I thought I escaped. My lungs burned, and fear kept pushing my legs. I turned right, then left, but the beast stepped out of everywhere I turned to.I looked over my shoulder and saw nothing, so I slowed and leaned against the wall, breathing hard. My legs shook. I wiped sweat off my palms and looked again.Still nothing.But I didn’t feel safe.I started walking again and soon noticed the walls changing. The air turned really creepy and the torches became fewer. I didn’t remember ever seeing this part of the fortress before.A stairway led upward and I took it fast, hoping the height would help me find a landmark. When I reached the top, the place looked almost abandoned. Dark halls, closed doors, and not a single sound except my breathing. I wondered if I was dreaming and squeezed my arm.It hurt. I wasn’t dreaming.My hands were shaking a little. I walked slowly, trying to calm myself. Every corner lo
CORAThe silence in my room felt really awkward than anything Liam said. He didn’t come back after dinner. Cade didn’t show up either. And Ronan, who always tried to make me laugh, didn’t appear once.Breakfast didn’t come. My stomach growled but I didn’t want to be the one begging the guards. I paced the room slowly, then sat on the bed, then paced again. Hours passed like nothing mattered outside this door.I thought about the black wolf and Liam calling it brother. I thought about how fast they locked me away. They didn’t want me to see anything. They didn’t want me asking anything.When a maid finally knocked, she didn’t lift her head as she entered. She placed my lunch on the table.“Where are the Alphas?” I asked.She kept her gaze on the floor. “I am not allowed to speak of them,” she said quietly, then she left fast.I stared after her. Nobody in this place looked at me properly. Nobody wanted to talk to me. I didn’t know if it was fear or something else.I walked to the windo
CORACade did not look happy to see me standing in front of him. His expression was cold and distant. Water ran down his neck and chest, tracing over hard muscles. My heart reacted before my mind did, and the mate bond pushed through me like an instinct I couldn’t control. It wanted me to reach out and touch him. It wanted his attention.He stepped around me like I wasn’t even in his way. He didn’t say a word. I turned quickly before he could leave.“You didn’t join us for breakfast,” I said.He stopped but didn’t look back. “I was out hunting,” he replied, his voice low.“Oh.” I stared at his back. He didn’t move. He waited like he expected me to be done speaking. I wasn’t.“Why are you avoiding me?” I asked.He finally turned his head a little, looking at me from the corner of his eye. “I’m not avoiding you.”“That’s not true,” I said. “Ronan and Liam come to see me almost every day, but you don’t. I’ve only seen you once since I got here.”He faced me fully now, his jaw tight. “You
CORALiam told me to get ready, so I went back to my room with the guards following behind me. A maid was already waiting inside with a set of riding clothes. They were dark fitted pants, a simple shirt, and a leather vest. It looked nicer than anything I had ever worn. The fabric felt soft and strong, not like the rough clothes from the slums.I changed and stared at myself in the mirror. I didn’t look like the girl who used to scrub floors in Moonclaw. I didn’t know who I looked like anymore. But it was comfortable and it fit me well. I tried not to think too much about why they cared enough to give me something like this.The guards led me back downstairs and out of the fortress. I felt eyes on me again but I kept looking forward. When we reached the stables, Liam wasn’t there yet. A stable boy prepared a huge black horse that looked like it could crush me easily. Its coat was shiny but the smell of dust and animal fur filled the air.“How often do you wash them?” I asked quietly.
CORAI dreamt of Ruel. It started with the good parts, the ones that used to make me believe life could change. He would sneak me out to the beach when everyone was asleep and say the night was better because no one could judge us there. I never understood why he refused to see me during the day, and I never asked, because I wanted to believe his excuses about Alpha training and duties.He made promises under the moon, long promises about lifting me out of the slums and giving me a place by his side. I even told my family and Kira, thinking the future was sure.Then the dream shifted. Ruel rejected me the same way he did that day, and the humiliation dragged me awake before I could scream.Someone knocked. “The Alphas request your presence for breakfast,” a maid said quietly.I sat up fast. My heart was still heavy from the dream but I got ready. I wore something simple and followed the guards assigned to my door. They kept a small distance today, still close but not breathing down my
CORAI stayed by the window for a long time. The mountains were the only thing that didn’t feel dangerous. Everything else in this fortress felt like a threat. The walls were too dark and too quiet, and the silence made me think too much.Two days passed like that. Cade brought food and left without saying anything. Ronan came by a few times and talked, but I didn’t know how to respond to him. I didn’t trust him, and I didn’t think he understood why I would be terrified of all three of them.I barely saw Liam again. Whenever I looked into the training grounds, he wasn’t there. It was like he was avoiding me on purpose.I wanted answers, but no one was giving me any.When Cade came in with breakfast again, I forced myself to speak.“Can I leave this room?” I asked.He paused. His expression didn’t change. “You could leave anytime.”So I stared at the guards posted by the door. “They don’t let me leave.”Cade turned to one of them. The guard wasn’t even doing anything wrong but Cade gra







