LOGINRavenna walked into the cabin, holding up her phone and greeting her viewers.
“Hello mooncakes it's been a while guess where we are today?" She said out loud before whispering something into Colt's ear that got a chuckle out of him and she glanced at me making sure I didn't miss it.
"Oh, Luna! I hope you don't mind, we were just catching up a bit, my moon cakes have really missed having the alpha on the stream!"
Her arm was wrapped in his and the previous me would have exploded only to be told to hush like a troublesome pup.
And as always her viewers-or as she called them her ‘mooncakes’ would explode with revulsion tearing me into shreds.
Now things were different.
Her taunts had no effect on me.
"Where am I sleeping, Colt?"I said not even regarding her at all as I hung my coat in the hanger in the entryway.
Before I could get my answer his other brothers, his Jaden and Rake came in from the living room area.
"Greetings, Luna, we weren't expecting to see you,"Rake said with an exaggerated bow.
My skin crawled remembering that these men had the same intimate parts of myself that I had only shared with Colt.
"I could say the same,"I told him icily before brushing past.
In the living room were their mates.
"Luna Lyra, what are you doing here?"Liliana, Jaden's mate said, like she was talking to a pup that had strayed on the road.
"Oh welcome, Luna Lyra,"that awkward greeting came from Becca, Rake's mate.
Colt came and explained the sleeping arrangements.
There were three bedrooms and three couples which naturally made Ravenna the odd number.
"That's not a problem,"she said unbothered, "I'll sleep in the loft, problem solved right?"
Colt approached her, his arm finding its way across her shoulder.
"Will you be comfortable in the loft?"anyone hearing him would think that she had agreed to sleep outside in the bushes.
She nodded fast.
"Yes, I'm the only single Pringle here, so I shouldn't get in the way of the couples..."she looked directly at me, "... Especially since some people can get so insecure,"
I wanted to snap at her, tell her that she didn't grab the crotches of the other men in this room or make lewd jokes to anyone but Colt.
But I didn't.
She wanted him? Fine she could have him at the end of this month he and I'll be out of the picture.
Everyone settled in, chattering with their little inside jokes that I was never a part of, the Livestream continued to pour in with comments and views.
Eventually it was time for lunch, and Ravenna offered to cook.
"I think my 20,000 viewers would like to know how a proper meal is made,” she tilted her head towards me, "Lyra maybe you can pick up a thing or two,"
Each person laughed a little and it was Colt that openly teased her ignoring what she said to me.
"Last time I checked your only skill in the kitchen was boiling water,"
"Meanie!"she stomped over to the couch where he was sitting and smacked him play fully on the shoulder.
"If you're so worried why don't you come watch me?"
She glanced at me from the corner of her eye as I sat cross leg with an old magazine.
So far she hadn't been able to dig any reaction out of me and I knew it was crawling under her skin.
"Don't worry I was going to follow you to the kitchen even if you didn't offer,"Colt looked at me almost as if his eyes were asking for permission yet again and I just shrugged
"Do what you want,"
The cabin had an open air framework that connected to the kitchen, so while I was seated on the couch and watching them make the lunch.
Well more of watching them flirt, Colt got behind her at one point.
"That's not how you cut a cucumber, it's this way you silly goose,"
She giggled loud enough to fill the cabin.
"I was just distracted because it's the size of Colt jnr,"
She pushed against him and again that shameless moan, I gripped the magazine.
Liliana misread it as jealousy when it was actually disgust.
"You guys should stop playing around like that, the Luna might start crying,"
They all burst into laughter, with Colt barely suppressing his own still smooched against Ravenna.
"You're all a bunch of meanies really, even my viewers agree" Ravenna said her throat still full of laughter, "Luna Lyra, don't pay them any mind, you know these are all jokes right?"
And right as she said that she pushed against his crotch.
This time the sound that came out of his throat was undeniable.
The laughter got a little awkward, all eyes were on me.
"Now that I think about it, I don't have the appetite for sesame peanut noodles,"
I got up to head to the assigned bedroom and in record time Colt followed behind me to tell me that I was doing too much.
"Okay I guess how you would misunderstand that..."he said setting his hand on the door and using his Alpha strength to keep it closed.
"But can you be a little bit more understanding? I didn't-"
"I understand,"I told him mechanically, "it's fine,"
The smile that swept his features made me sick to my stomach.
"I'm glad you're finally relaxing, maybe at the end of this weekend we can all be friends,"
I didn't answer that and he just cupped my cheeks, my stomach churned at his touch and I couldn't have been more relieved when he pulled it away.
I didn't realize just how weighed down I was both emotionally and physically until I crashed on the bed and I couldn't get up until hours passed then I finally forced myself to get up and shower.
After stepping out in my robe I found Colt sitting on the bed.
"Why did you shower on your own? We could have showered together, this is supposed to be our romantic getaway right?"
"Really?"I said dryly, "I thought it was a group vacation and a booster for Ravenna's streaming channel, considering you spent the entire day with your friends,"
His face reddened.
"You were the one who abandoned me first to sleep here for hours, I was just being a good host and-"
He had not finished when Ravenna burst into the room without even knocking she rushed into his arms and he stood up to hold her and she adjusted the phone in her hand
"What's wrong Ravenna?"he said to her trembling form.
"I fell asleep doing my lifestream…now the nightmares..."she whimpered into his chest, "... The nightmares are back, can we go to the living room and just keep talking with my viewers?they heard me scream and they're worried. Maybe I can pass on sleep tonight."
Colt shook his head, "you know what the pack doctor said, they will only get worse when you don't sleep," he turned to me.
"I can't sleep alone, that's the worst!"
Colt turned to me still holding her in his arms,"Lyra... Could you... Just for tonight,"
"You're asking me to leave for her?"I said it's not because I was jealous but just so that he knew the full weight of his words.
His face flushed, "she's having a nightmare, do you expect me to abandon her?"
Ravenna propped up her phone, showing the livestream.
" Guys, you don't have to worry about me. My Alpha is here to take care of me so nothing to fear!”
She looked at me.
“Luna, you're…still here?”
She spoke to me the way she always did, like I was the uninvited guest not her.
And I didn't want Colt anymore, but that did not mean that her disrespect didn't reach into my bones.
“Do you know what you are, Ravenna?" I said looking at her directly in her eyes after five years of forcing myself to stare at the ground, “You’re shameless,”
Then before either her or Colt could recover from shock I continued unrelenting; “You could have gone to any other man in this cabin, but you came to him, you always come to him,"
Colt like instinct wanted to defend her.
“That's because we're best-"
“Her brother is in this cabin, and she's known Rake longer than she's known you!" I snapped, “She's here because she doesn't respect me and she doesn't respect me because of you let her walk all over me and our relationship like a doormat!"
I didn't mean to, but some of my true aura slipped out and immediately both of them looked like they were struggling to breathe. Quickly I sealed it back, still seething.
“Take the room I don't care!” I hissed with venom and slammed the door, shaking the whole room behind me. When I reached the loft I turned on my phone to see what the comments had said but I couldn't believe my eyes.
POV: LyraKael stood across from me in the center of the battlefield.His sword was drawn. His eyes were cold. His warriors formed a circle around us.The fighting had stopped.The Bloodmoon pack had retreated to the edges of the field. My warriors held their positions. The wounded moaned in the grass. The dead lay where they had fallen."You wanted this," I said.Kael smiled."I did."He circled me slowly."You wanted to prove yourself. You wanted to show the packs that you are worthy of the crown. You wanted to earn their loyalty."I turned with him."And you wanted to destroy me."He nodded."I did."He stopped."Because you are everything I hate. You are a northern queen who came south and claimed what was not yours. You are a wolf who wears a crown she did not earn. You are a leader who thinks she can unite the packs with words and smiles and empty promises."I met his eyes."And you are a wolf who would rather fight than build. A wolf who would rather destroy than create. A wolf
POV: LyraThe messenger arrived at dawn.He rode through the camp gates on a horse that was foaming at the mouth and trembling with exhaustion. He dismounted before the animal had fully stopped and stumbled toward the great hall with a scroll clutched in his hand.I was already awake.I had been awake for hours.The fire in my tent had burned down to embers and the sky outside was still dark when I heard the hooves. I pulled on my boots and stepped outside just as the messenger reached the steps.He dropped to his knees."High Alpha."I took the scroll from his hand."Eat. Rest. We will speak after."He nodded and collapsed against the stone.---I broke the seal and read.High Alpha Lyra,The Bloodmoon pack has declared war. They have gathered warriors from across the southern territories. They have sworn to destroy the alliance and crown their own High Alpha.They march north. They will reach the border in two weeks.We need you.Alpha Marcus, Southern Territories---I read it twic
POV: LyraThe challenge came at midday.I was training with Vara in the center of the camp when a wolf stepped out of the crowd and threw a blade at my feet.The blade stuck in the dirt.The camp went silent.I looked up.He was tall. Broad. His arms were covered in scars and his eyes were cold and hard. He wore the mark of the Bloodmoon pack on his chest."My name is Torin," he said.I straightened."I know who you are."He smiled. It was not a kind smile."You have been here for two weeks. You have trained with our warriors. You have eaten at our tables. You have slept under our roofs."I said nothing."But you are not one of us. You are not Bloodmoon. You are not a southern wolf. You are a northern queen who thinks she can walk into our camp and claim our loyalty."I met his eyes."I have not claimed anything."He laughed."You have claimed everything. You have claimed our Alpha's ear. You have claimed our warriors' respect. You have claimed a place at our fires."He stepped closer
POV: LyraThe blade came within an inch of my throat.I caught the wrist and twisted. The knife clattered to the stone floor. I drove my elbow into the attacker's chest and heard the breath leave their lungs in a rush.They hit the ground hard.I pinned them with my knee and looked down at their face.Vara.She stared up at me with wide eyes and blood on her lip."You," I said.She did not struggle."I had to know."I pressed my knee harder into her chest."Know what?"She met my eyes."If you could be killed."---I held her there for a long moment.The camp was silent. The warriors who had been watching from the shadows stepped forward. Jaden burst out of his tent with his sword drawn and his eyes wild."Lyra—""I am fine."He stopped.Vara did not look away from me."You left your flank open," she said. "You have been here for a week and you still do not know the camp. You still do not know who watches you. You still do not know who wants you dead."I released her.She sat up slowl
POV: LyraI woke to the sound of blades.The clash of steel on steel rang through the camp, sharp and relentless. I was on my feet before my eyes fully opened, hand reaching for the knife beneath my pillow.Old habits.I pulled on my boots and stepped out of the tent.The camp was alive.Warriors trained in the center of the valley, their movements precise and brutal. No wasted motion. No hesitation. A woman with a scar across her face disarmed a man twice her size and had him on his back in the dirt before he could blink.She looked up.Our eyes met.She did not bow.I held her gaze and said nothing.---Alpha Kael appeared beside me with a cup of something steaming in his hand. He offered it to me without a word.I took it.The liquid was bitter and hot and it burned going down. I did not flinch."You are up early," he said."I am up when I need to be."He nodded slowly."Good."We stood in silence for a moment, watching the warriors train."Your wolves are skilled," I said."They h
POV: LyraThe great hall was quiet.I sat on the throne with the crown of the High Alpha on my head and the weight of every pack pressing down on my shoulders.The fire burned low in the hearth.Shadows danced on the walls.The only sound was the wind outside the windows.Jaden stood at my right.Becca stood at my left.Selene stood behind me with a scroll in her hands and a look on her face that was serious and steady."The reports are in," she said.I nodded."And the southern territories?"She hesitated."The Bloodmoon pack has been gathering warriors. Their scouts have been seen near our borders. They have refused every attempt at negotiation."I leaned back."Then they have made their choice."She nodded."It appears so."I looked at the fire."Good."---The next morning I called a council meeting.The Alphas gathered in the great hall with their advisors and their warriors and their maps.I sat at the head of the table with the scroll in my hand and the crown on my head and the







