جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 17

The Great Hall had never held so many people. Every major Alpha in the kingdom had been summoned. Warriors lined the walls in perfect rows. Nobles filled the balconies. The royal council occupied the seats closest to the throne.And at the center of it all stood Ross.She wore a long silver gown embroidered with ancient symbols. A delicate crown rested against her dark hair. But Ross barely noticed any of it. Her eyes remained calm. Not like she had never wanted this. She had just never dreamed of standing before hundreds of wolves while they bowed to her.She had wanted something much simpler. Respect. Kindness. A home where she wasn't treated like a burden but then, if this was what she had to face, she would. Across the hall, Knox stood in black ceremonial clothing. He looked every bit like the terrifying Alpha King everyone feared. Yet, his attention remained fixed on Ross. He couldn't look away.A royal elder stepped forward. “Today

The palace changed within a week since Knox decided it had to.The first change came during the morning council.Several nobles stood around the long table discussing border taxes when Knox suddenly interrupted them. “Lady Helena.”The woman froze. “Yes, Your Majesty?”Knox stared at her. “You insulted the Queen during the winter banquet.”The room went silent.Helena's face paled. “I—I didn't mean—”“You called her defective.”She swallowed. “I was unaware—”“You were aware.” Knox's voice was cold. “You watched her being humiliated and laughed.”Helena lowered her head. “I apologize.”Knox's expression hardened. “Apologize to the Queen.”Ross, who had been sitting at the other end of the table, looked up.Helena turned toward her. “Your Majesty, please forgive me.”Ross stared at her even when she felt so good within her. At least, she could see a tip of an

Ross barely slept that night. Knox's request kept echoing through her mind: Just one chance.She had spent two years wishing he would look at her differently. Now that he finally did, she wasn't sure what to do with it.Standing beside the tall windows of her chamber, Ross watched the first light of morning spread across the kingdom. Once, she had dreamed of waking beside Knox. Once, she had believed being his wife meant she had finally found someone who would protect her heart.nShe had been wrong. But perhaps she had not been wrong about everything. Because before Knox became cruel, there had been another man.A man she had loved. Ross closed her eyes. She remembered the first time he had defended her. They had been newly married when one of the older nobles made a cruel remark about her lack of a wolf. Knox had turned toward him with such coldness that the entire room had fallen silent. "You will not speak about my wife that way."Ross had been

Ross sat quietly against the cold stone wall. Her wrists were still bound. The enemy guards stood outside the chamber, convinced their restraints on her were enough to contain the most powerful woman in the kingdom. They were wrong. Ross slowly looked down at the silver bindings around her wrists. They had been designed to weaken her connection to wolves. But they had misunderstood the source of her power. She didn't need a wolf. She was the bloodline that wolves obeyed. Ross closed her eyes. For a moment, she listened. Beyond the stone walls, she could hear a pack of wolves. Dozens of wolves. No. Hundreds. Their heartbeats moved beneath the forest like a distant drum. Ross reached for them. This time, she didn't force her power. She simply called. Come. The response was immediate. A deep rumble rolled through the forest. The guards outside exchanged confused looks. "What was that?" Another growl answered. Th