All Chapters of Betrayed By My Mate, Now Claimed By The Lycan King : Chapter 1 - Chapter 5

The drums pounded and I felt it inside me like it wanted to crack my ribs open. I stood in the middle of the crowd with the full moon blazing down, and every eye in the Shadowpine Pack was locked on me.Tension took hold of me and sweat slid down my back under the white ceremonial robe. This was supposed to be my night. The night my wolf finally woke up and I took my place beside Sveinn Ragnarsson, the Alpha heir everyone said was mine since we were kids.I caught Sunna Gunnarsdóttir's eye at the front of the crowd. She gave me that quick, tight smile she always used when she was trying to hide nerves. You got this, Elva, she'd whispered earlier while we fixed my hair. You're the strongest one in the pack. Your wolf's probably just fashionably late but I trust you. I'd laughed then. Now the laugh felt stuck in my throat like a bone.My father, Jakob Bjarnarson, stood off to the side with the other elders. His chest out, beard trimmed sharp, looking every bit the proud Beta. He nodded

King Gunnar yanked the horse sideways. The wolf missed but slammed into the ground and rolled back up snarling."Stay on," Gunnar barked at me. He drew a long knife from his boot, silver blade catching the moon. No shift. He didn't need to. The horse reared and I gripped tighter, my legs burning.The second wolf went for the horse's flank. Gunnar leaned and drove the knife down behind its ear. A wet crunch. It dropped mid-leap. The third one: bigger, with a scar across its muzzle circled and lunged at me instead. His claws raked my arm. Pain exploded in me. I yelped, more pissed than scared.Something inside me snapped awake. Like a rush like fire under my skin. My vision sharpened. I smelled the wolf's breath, the blood on its fur. Without thinking I kicked hard with my heel, catching it in the jaw. It stumbled then Gunnar twisted, grabbed its throat mid-air, and slammed it into the ground hard."Enough," he growled. The wolf whined once and went still.Matthías rode back up, wiping

I saw a shadow crouch there. I was certain it wasn't Gunnar because it was smaller and had a female aura and a familiar scent.It was Sunna.She pressed a finger to her lips and slipped inside, eyes wide and wild. "Elva. I followed the scouts. They don't know I'm here. Listen, your mom sent me. She says Jakob is planning something bigger. He's not done with you. Neither is Sveinn. They're calling in the old packs. They want you dead before the next full moon."She grabbed my hand. Hers was shaking. "And there's more. Your bloodline? It's not just Lycan. It's something the elders buried. Something that could break every treaty on the continent."Outside, a guard's footsteps crunched closer.Sunna squeezed outside and disappeared back into the night.I sat there in the dark, heart racing, the spark in my chest burning like a promise.Whatever secret my parents buried, it was waking up with me.And tomorrow when we rode for the Lycan King's keep, I had a feeling the real war was only sta