All Chapters of The Alpha King’s Ruthless Claim: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

I was straddling the King of Frostfang. My chest heaved, my breath pluming in white clouds in the freezing air. Varek lay completely still beneath me, his massive shoulders pinned to the packed snow, his dark golden eyes locked onto mine with a terrifying, heavy amusement. "I won," I whispered, my voice trembling with adrenaline. The corner of his mouth twitched. "You tackled me." "And you're on the ground." "For approximately three seconds." "Still counts," I breathed, my grip tightening on his chest. Varek’s gaze darkened, tracking the movement of my hands against his skin. He didn’t shove me off. He didn’t demand I yield. He just looked at me, a low rumble vibrating in his chest. "You used what I taught you," he murmured. It wasn't a concession, but coming from him, it was the highest form of praise. Suddenly hyper-aware of the searing heat of his hips pressed beneath mine, I scrambled off him, my cheeks burning. I snatched the heavy war axe from the snow, expecting him

I had discovered that the royal kitchen was a much better place to eat than the royal dining room.There were no silver knives. No twelve-foot table. No Northern nobles pretending not to stare at me while pretending to discuss trade routes. Just Astrid, two bowls of rich, steaming lamb stew, a crusty loaf of bread between us, and a cook who had apparently decided that the southern Queen was going to eat until she developed a healthy fear of root vegetables."We could have eaten in the dining room," Astrid said, tearing off another piece of bread and dipping it into her broth.I followed her lead, tearing off a warm chunk and soaking up the savory gravy. "This is much faster."I took a bite, letting the rich flavors settle. "And delicious."Astrid nodded solemnly, chewing thoughtfully. "A compelling political argument."A quiet moment settled between us, broken only by the crackle of the hearth. But as I looked down at my bowl, my appetite suddenly vanished. My mind was still entirely

I woke slowly. The stone floor should have been freezing, but my cheek was pressed against something incredibly warm and astonishingly soft. The steady, deep rhythm of a heartbeat drummed against my ear, rising and falling in a soothing cadence. For a few seconds, I didn't remember where I was. My mind was floating in a hazy space between sleep and waking, snagging on disjointed fragments of the previous night. I care about you. I don't expect you to believe me. But I do. And then, a sharper, colder memory pierced through the fog. The panicked, hushed voice of the healer slipping through the heavy oak door. Moon— My eyes snapped open. I looked up. The enormous, pitch-black wolf was still there. He hadn't left. His massive head was resting on his paws, and as I shifted, one brilliant golden eye slid open to look at me. I screamed. It wasn't a damsel-in-distress shriek, but a violently startled, breathless, "OH—!" I scrambled backward across the carpet, my hear

"Your eyes... they're silver," Varek breathed, the words barely a whisper in the sudden, echoing silence of the chamber. I didn't answer him. I couldn't. The perspective of the room had completely shifted, plunging me into a world so sharp and overwhelming it made my head spin. I wasn't looking up at Varek from the floor anymore; I was looking at him almost at eye level. I looked down at my paws. They were massive, anchored by thick, lethal claws that dug effortlessly into the heavy rugs. My fur was blindingly white, shimmering with an ethereal, metallic silver sheen in the dying firelight. But it wasn't just my body that had changed. The world exploded into sensory detail. I could hear everything. Through the thick oak door, I heard the steady, synchronized thump-thump, thump-thump of the two guards stationed at the end of the hall. I could hear the microscopic hiss of individual snowflakes striking the glass of the high windows. I could hear the erratic, heavy pounding of Vare

I stared at the four jagged words, the harsh black ink stark against the pale parchment.THEY KNOW YOU LIVE.The raven was already a dark speck against the swirling, bruised gray of the winter sky, disappearing into the storm. The wind howled through the open window, biting into my skin, but I barely felt the cold.My first instinct—the deeply ingrained, human panic of a girl who had spent her life as a pawn—screamed at me to run. To throw the door open, find the Alpha King, and shove the paper into his chest. Let Varek’s massive, terrifying shadow swallow the threat. Let him burn the keep to the ground to find whoever sent it.But the silver wolf curled tightly around my heart didn't want to run. She wanted to hunt.And more importantly, a cold, calculating realization settled over me like frost.You always suspect too much, Varek.He had orchestrated the treaty. He had engineered Caelan’s rejection. He had known my blood would heal the iron cut in seconds, just as he had known I bel