LOGINLADY SARAPHINA'S POV"Zoey!"The moment I spotted her crossing the corridor, panic surged through me.Before I could lose my nerve, I rushed forward and grabbed her arm. She spun around, surprise flashing across her face, but I didn't give her a chance to react. I pulled her into my arms, holding on to her as if she might disappear again.For one foolish, desperate second, I let myself believe she would hug me back. Instead, she shoved me away with all her strength. The force of it nearly sent me stumbling backward, and the hope I had clung to shattered in an instant."Don't touch me."The words hurt far more than the push.My smile wavered."Zoella—""No."Her voice sliced through me.Cold.Colder than I had ever heard it."You don't get to do that."My throat tightened."What are you talking about?"Her laugh was bitter."What am I talking about?" Pain flickered behind her eyes before turning into anger. "Violet came back with your grandchild, and you haven't even gone to see them."
MERRIN’S POV“Move back!”Violet’s scream ripped through the room just as the scissors flashed toward her throat.Everything inside me stopped. Then my body moved before my mind could.I caught her wrist hard enough to force the blades away from her skin while my other arm locked around her waist. The scissors slipped from her hand and shattered against the marble floor with a metallic crack that echoed through the chamber.Violet fought me instantly—wild, terrified, broken.“Let me go!” she screamed, thrashing against my chest. “Let me GO!”Her nails tore across my skin. My neck burned. My jaw stung where she hit me, but I barely felt any of it because all I could think about was how close she had come to dying. If I had been even a second slower, there would have been blood everywhere by now.My wolf slammed against my ribs so violently I almost lost control.“Alpha!” Sophie cried.“Get back,” I snarled.The room froze. Even the guards stepped backward.Violet kept struggling in my
MERRIN’S POV“You killed him!”The scream stopped me cold. For one brutal second, I forgot how to breathe.Marrek’s tiny body shook violently in Violet’s arms, his fists twisted into the fabric of her dress as though he feared I would tear her away from him too.Tears soaked his face.“I hate you!” he sobbed. “You’re the one-eyed Alpha! You’re not my hero anymore!”His voice cracked.“You’re a monster!”Monster.I’d survived blades, wars, and executions. None of them cut this deep.The floor felt unsteady beneath me. For a heartbeat, all I could see was blood—fire crawling up palace walls, Silvan lying dead, Violet screaming while soldiers dragged her away.And Marrek…Looking at me with terror instead of admiration.I staggered back a step.No one moved. Not Violet. Not Sophie. Not even the servants trembling near the doorway.Because what defense could I possibly give?Marrek was right.Every ruined thing in this palace led back to me.My throat tightened until it burned, but I stil
VIOLET’S POVThe moment I spoke, someone in the courtroom laughed loudly. I turned immediately, only to realize everyone was laughing now, not just one person.Even now, the sound wouldn’t stop echoing inside my skull.Hours after the trial ended.Hours after nobles bent their knees before me.After servants started whispering Your Majesty with trembling voices and fearful smiles.After the crown was placed at my feet like an offering dipped in blood.Still—I heard the laughter.Sharp.Cruel.Patient.Waiting.I stood motionless in the center of my chambers while maids hurried around me like frightened birds, replacing curtains, lighting candles, and changing sheets no one had slept in. The scent of jasmine and smoke thickened the air until it became suffocating.“They were laughing…” I whispered again.Because Helena had been right.The moment Merrin revealed me… the moment he named Marrek Crown Prince… he didn’t protect us. He exposed us. Painted targets directly onto our backs.A
MERRIN’S POV“Enough.”The word cuts through the hall as my hands slam against the armrest.Sharp. Final.Everything stops.The elders fall silent mid-breath. Robes still. Voices dead.Good.Because if one more word is spoken, I might lose what little control I have left.Pain claws through my ribs as I rise, slow but unyielding. My body protests. I ignore it.“Stop talking,” I say, quieter now.No one moves.No one dares.The air thickens, suffocating. Every breath heavy, every heartbeat loud.And still…I feel him.Marrek.I don’t need to look to know where he is. Behind Violet. Hidden. Safe. Away from me.Something twists in my chest, sharp enough to blur my vision.What is the point of a throne if my own son won’t even look at me?A laugh escapes me.Low. Broken. Wrong.“What use is being Alpha,” I murmur, dragging my gaze across the room, “when my own pack turned me against my family?”No one answers.They can’t.Because they know.“What use is this title,” I continue, louder now
MERRIN’S POV I don’t hear the scream—I feel it.“Marrek—!”I’m already moving before I can think.The needles rip free from my arm with a wet, sickening pull. Blood follows instantly, hot and slick, sliding down my skin, but I barely feel it. Not when that voice sounded like my son.My feet hit the ground—and the world tilts.“Alpha—wait!” Nolan shouts behind me. “An alpha can’t run like this.”I stagger, but I keep going like I didn’t hear him. To hell with the rules.Pain detonates through my ribs. My side burns like it’s being carved open again. Something warm trails down my back—blood, I know—but it doesn’t slow me. Nothing can.“Merrin!” Nolan calls again. “Stop—you’re not healed!”“Where is he?” My voice scrapes raw against my throat.Nolan grabs my arm, and I rip free like he’s nothing.“Elder Ellis,” he says quickly. “Violet took him there. She didn’t trust the doctors.”Of course she didn’t trust anything tied to me.I run faster. Branches whip across my face, sting against
VIOLET’S POVI lock the door.The click echoes louder than it should… sharp and final.My hands won’t stop shaking.Outside, the hallway is silent.Too silent.The kind of silence that waits for something terrible to happen.Inside, my room smells of rose oil and burnt candle wick. Sweet. Bitter. S
MERRIN’S POVThe war ended two months ago.It still smells like blood.Even now, when I walk through the rebuilt streets of Wolves-Heaven, I swear I can taste iron in the air.Hammers strike against wood.Stone scrapes against stone.Wolves laugh again, and children run between half-built scaffolds
CELINE’S POVThe morning air smelled of rain on concrete and the soft burn of torches along the driveway.I walked downstairs and found Emily and Mirella already at the breakfast table, their laughter cutting through the quiet. Their hair was flawless, their perfume sharp and deliberate… like a war
VIOLET’S POVDarkness didn’t come all at once.It crept in slowly.Like cold fingers closing around my chest.Voices blurred together.Footsteps.Someone shouting my name.I felt arms around me. Strong. Tight. Familiar.“Merrin…” I whispered, though my lips barely moved.The world tilted.Glass sha







