- 7 hours ago
La Luna del Alfa Roto: |New Movie| 2026
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Short filmTranscript
00:00I threw my body into the woods, no funeral, no grave, just crows, and that was the second time I
00:05died for him.
00:06In my world, being blind is a defect.
00:09Without a word, I know nothing.
00:10I am in a mother, the very bottom of the path I'm lucky.
00:13No strength, no shifting, no healing.
00:16A normal wolf book star, heals in my mouth.
00:20Give me a paper cut, and I'll bleed for days.
00:23But I have something no one needs to do.
00:25I don't see faces, and I see souls with jealousy, toxic green, paked, de-oily blackness.
00:31In my last life, I used it to build a king, Lucian, a forgotten fifth son.
00:36I picked him, I made him, I put him on the throne.
00:39In the day my sister Celeste died, he grabbed my jaw so hard I heard it crack,
00:45forced a wolf's vein tincture down my throat.
00:48You blind freak, you knew I never wanted you.
00:51Celeste should have been mine from the start.
00:53And because of you, she ended up with Marcus.
00:56They tortured her to death.
00:58It was your fault.
01:01I died in agony.
01:03He gave Celeste's corpse a royal burial.
01:06He gave me the woods.
01:08But the hurt, his hate, it was so consuming it dragged me right back to my death.
01:13I opened my eyes, seventeen again.
01:17Night, he made him out.
01:18Lucian walked straight past me and took Celeste's hand, like he was afraid someone might stop him.
01:24The bastard came back too, and he remembered everything.
01:27He is terrified I'll choose him again.
01:28Honestly, I couldn't care less.
01:30I swept my blind gaze across the back of the room.
01:33Then a sea of dark, rotten sorrows.
01:36My soul so pure it glowed like liquid gold.
01:39The man in the wheelchair, the true alpha.
01:42I choose Celeste as my mate.
01:45Lucian's voice cracked through the hall like a whip.
01:47She is my one and only Luna.
01:49He walked toward my sister with eyes full of a tenderness I knew was performance.
01:53The room went silent.
01:54Then the whispers hit me like a wall.
01:56No air in their right mind would want her.
01:58A blind Omega who couldn't even shift?
02:01What a joke.
02:02Why is she even here?
02:04Trash like her should be in the kitchen, not at a mating ball.
02:08I am an alpha's daughter born blind.
02:11When I came up there to my wolf, I was a girl who was a thief and a thief.
02:15That is not just weakness, that is a death sentence.
02:19Being wolf-less, that makes you a joke.
02:22My sister Celeste is the golden child.
02:24Born with a siren song.
02:27A voice that can calm even the most violent alpha in the world.
02:30The family treats her like a goddess.
02:33They treat me like a mistake they can't take back.
02:35Lucian dropped to one knee in front of her.
02:38Accept my mark Celeste.
02:41I will make you the most powerful woman alive.
02:44And as he spoke, he threw one look back at me.
02:47Not an apology, a warning.
02:49He thinks he can take the throne without me this time.
02:52He thinks I was what held him back.
02:54He has no idea what he just flew away.
02:57I didn't awaken a wolf in his age.
02:59I got something much more dangerous.
03:01The soul line.
03:05Jealousy is toxic green.
03:07Hate is a bottomless black.
03:09Love is pink.
03:10In the deeper the theme, the darker it burns.
03:13In my last life, I kept him alive with this.
03:16I spotted assassins before they moved.
03:19I told him who to trust, who to kill, this time.
03:22I am going to let him have exactly what he wanted.
03:25And watch him realize too late that without me, he is nothing.
03:29And I really hope, for his sake, he doesn't end up calling back to me, begging for a mercy.
03:36The moment Lucian's announcement landed, every eye in the room found me.
03:40I'm just a blind girl.
03:42I'm not worthy of a man like Lucian.
03:45Salelsta is the perfect match for him.
03:47At least you know your place.
03:49He stepped closer.
03:50An Omega with no wolf?
03:51I wouldn't choose you if you were the last woman breathing.
03:55Not even if you crawl to me on your knees.
03:58My mother Marilyn made a sound beside me.
04:00A sharp inhale, like she was about to say something she shouldn't.
04:04I squeezed her hand.
04:05She went quiet.
04:06I swept the room with my soul out of her.
04:08Marcus, murky charcoal, cruel underneath the surface.
04:12The other airs, muddy swirls of greed and want.
04:15In my last life, I chose Lucian because his soul looked cleaner than anyone else's in the room.
04:20It was a mask.
04:21I didn't see what was underneath until the day he killed me.
04:24The rotten, inappropriate laugh.
04:26I didn't just hate what it was.
04:28I hated her.
04:29I was blind in my last life in more ways than one.
04:32Never again, Celeste glided toward me.
04:34Face arranged into the perfect picture of a loving older sister.
04:38Don't be sad.
04:39Go ahead.
04:40I'll let you have whoever you want.
04:42Her soul was turning toxic green, edge to edge.
04:46Pure jealousy, barely holding its shape.
04:49Since no one's going to claim you anyway,
04:51you can always beg me for work.
04:53Celeste will need a personal maid.
04:55If you see us festmitching floors,
04:57scrubbing floors all a wolfless Omega is good for.
04:59I didn't live.
05:00I didn't even bother.
05:01None of them were worth the energy.
05:03And then, the sound of wheels.
05:05The chatter died.
05:07Then the room shifted.
05:09Kyle Ravenscroft had arrived.
05:12Uninvited.
05:13Unannounced.
05:14And completely unmoved by the spectacle.
05:16He sat in that wheelchair like a predator at rest.
05:19And then I saw.
05:20My breath caught.
05:22His soul was gold.
05:23Pure.
05:24Shimmering.
05:25Blinding gold.
05:26The mark of the moon goddess herself.
05:28The mark of a true king.
05:30I clenched my fists so hard my nails broke the skin.
05:34Last life.
05:35I picked the wrong man.
05:36I defied the moon goddess.
05:38Put a monster on the throne.
05:40And everyone paid for it.
05:41Not this time.
05:44I stood up.
05:45I walked past Lucian without a glance.
05:47Past every arrogant alpha air in the room.
05:49I stopped in front of Kyle's wheelchair.
05:51I choose him.
05:53The hall went dead silent.
05:54Then it exploded.
05:56Lifed off.
05:57From every direction.
05:59All at once.
06:00The blind girl and the cripple.
06:02Neither of you has a wolf.
06:05You really are a perfect match.
06:09Zaya.
06:10You can't see.
06:12You don't understand.
06:14He's in a wheelchair.
06:16She glanced at the crowd.
06:17Milking every second of it.
06:20I'll pretend I didn't hear that.
06:22Choose again.
06:24And if you truly can't find an alpha willing to have you.
06:27You're welcome to follow our caravan.
06:30Serve Lucian and me.
06:32At least you won't go hungry.
06:35I'm not anyone's servant.
06:36And I'm not a stray you take in out of pity.
06:39Kyle hadn't said a word through any of it.
06:41He just bit his chair forward until he was right in front of me.
06:45He took my hand.
06:46His palm was large and rough.
06:48Thick with calluses.
06:50The kind you only get from here is hard use.
06:56He took my hand and guided it to his knee.
06:59No flinching.
07:00No excuses.
07:01If he was lying.
07:02He didn't want pity for it.
07:04I left my hand there.
07:06I could feel the heat of him through the fabric and tense.
07:09Alive.
07:10Then a jolt.
07:11It shot through my fingertips.
07:12Raced up my arm.
07:13And hit my chest like a beast.
07:15This wasn't the soul line.
07:17It was something else entirely.
07:19My blood was screaming.
07:21I don't have a wolf.
07:22I was never supposed to feel a mate moment.
07:25But there it was.
07:29Kyle's whole body locked up.
07:31I looked into his soul.
07:32Warm pink threading through shimmering gold.
07:35I leaned in close and smiled.
07:37I can't fix your nuts.
07:39Lucian's face went ugly.
07:40The mating ball isn't over.
07:42And you're out here making promises you can't keep?
07:45If you fail to heal him, the Alpha Council will have your head.
07:49Can you actually do it?
07:50I didn't answer right away.
07:52I let my fingers trail slowly along his tensed thigh.
07:55I can.
07:57But it'll require a very specific kind of contact.
08:01He understood immediately.
08:02The tips of his ears went red.
08:04He turned his head away.
08:06Couldn't quite bring himself to look at me.
08:07In my peripheral vision, Lucian's soul ignited.
08:11A roaring wall of green fire.
08:14Jealousy.
08:14A cold laugh rose in my chest.
08:17Jealous of what?
08:18Except Lucian.
08:19You are the one who poured poison down my throat.
08:21The moment I stepped outside the hall, the world tilted.
08:24White hot pain detonated behind my eyes.
08:29Like something was being driven through my skull from the inside.
08:33That is the cost.
08:34Every time I use the soul eye on that many people at once,
08:38I pressed my freezing fingers to my tumblers.
08:41The cold always came after.
08:42After the ball, Lucian got to work.
08:44He pulled up everything from our past life.
08:47Her favorite flowers.
08:48Her secret hiding spots.
08:50Every word she'd been waiting her whole life to hear.
08:53I played her like he'd been practicing for years.
08:56That same day,
08:57a mating contract arrived at my door on heavy old parchment.
09:03I accept you as my mate.
09:05I will hold and protect you in this life and the next.
09:08Not even death will part us.
09:09The handwriting was deep and certain.
09:11No hesitation in a single stroke.
09:14It felt exactly like him.
09:15Both weddings were set for the same morning.
09:18The night before,
09:19Celeste walked into my room like she owned it.
09:21She didn't knock.
09:22Her maid tossed something at my feet.
09:24A tattered gray shawl.
09:26A kind worn by the lowest ranking,
09:28omegas.
09:29A mark of total submission.
09:31You're a blind freak, Zara.
09:37No real alpha will ever claim you.
09:40She leaned in.
09:41Voice honeyed and vicious at the same time.
09:45Lucian and I are being generous.
09:47We're keeping you on as a servant.
09:49But on the day of the ceremony,
09:51no carriage for you.
09:53You'll wear that and walk behind the caravan.
09:56Servant's entrance.
09:57Don't embarrass us.
09:58The morning came.
10:00I left the shawl on the floor where it landed.
10:03I put on the dress Kyle had sent instead.
10:05White silk,
10:06thousands of diamonds sewn into the fabric.
10:09Small enough to look like starlight.
10:11At the estate gate,
10:13two carriages waited.
10:15One was extraordinary.
10:17Draped in thumb-sized pearls.
10:19Built like a throne that happened to have wheels.
10:22The other was plainly standard work.
10:24Nothing remarkable.
10:27Celeste didn't hesitate for a second.
10:29She walked straight to the pearl carriage and stepped inside.
10:34The head guard turned.
10:36His expression didn't waver.
10:38You're in the wrong carriage.
10:40This was commissioned by Alpha Kyle
10:42for his Luna and no one else.
10:45He didn't get the time to argue.
10:47The guards took her by the arms and turned around.
10:49She caught her heel in her skirt
10:51and went down hard for his face into the dirt.
10:56Lucien arrived just in time to see it.
10:59Celeste scrambled up and threw herself at him,
11:02already crying.
11:05It's Zara!
11:06She planned this!
11:09She can't stand that I'm the one becoming a Luna!
11:13She turned to the crowd gathering around her,
11:15eyes glistening.
11:16Please, don't hate her.
11:18She's struggling.
11:20I know we're in love, Lucien,
11:23but I begged you to keep her safe.
11:25I pleaded for months just so she could be our servant
11:28and I not starve on the street.
11:31She's a blind, Omega.
11:33She should be grateful anyone even bothered to take her in.
11:36To pull a strunt like this on her sister's wedding day?
11:39It's thetic!
11:40The crowd was vicious.
11:42They always are when they smell wetness.
11:45Lucien's soul was drowning in black,
11:47thick and suffocating, ink dark.
11:49He pulled Celeste against his chest and turned on me.
11:53You're an Omega, Zara.
11:56You have no right to wear white!
11:58Take that dress off right now,
12:00or I'll shred it off your back myself!
12:04Celeste buried her face in his chest,
12:06but I could see her soul.
12:08She was smirking.
12:09Lucien,
12:11you don't have me watching her back this time.
12:14What's coming for you tonight isn't a wedding.
12:18It's a funeral.
12:21Celeste be foiled like I'd struck her.
12:23How can you curse him like that?
12:25Just because he didn't choose you?
12:28You dare curse an Alpha Heir!
12:31Guards!
12:32Seize her!
12:34The soldiers started moving in.
12:36Think carefully.
12:38You're laying a hand on Alpha Kyle's mate.
12:41Make sure that's a consequence you're ready to live with.
12:44Lucien laughed.
12:45Jagged.
12:46Ugly.
12:46Kyle?
12:47The cripple isn't even here.
12:49Probably hiding in his chambers,
12:51too embarrassed to show his face.
12:53He's using you for sport, Zara.
12:55Nothing more.
12:55He stepped forward,
12:56close enough that his shadow fell over me.
12:58Kneel.
12:59Beg Celeste's forgiveness.
13:02And maybe,
13:03maybe,
13:04I'll still find a use for you.
13:05Then a voice cut through everything.
13:07Who is threatening my mate?
13:08The crowd screamed.
13:10Kyle moved through them like they weren't there.
13:12Sharp black suit.
13:13Not a single piece of his voice.
13:15Even seated.
13:15His presence was suffocating.
13:17The moment he appeared,
13:18the street went silent.
13:20Beside him,
13:21Lucien suddenly looked like a boy
13:22wearing his boots.
13:25Kyle came straight to me.
13:27He took my hand and folded it inside his
13:29large,
13:30warm,
13:31unhurried...
13:33and he looked up.
13:35Now...
13:35His eyes fixed on Lucien
13:36like a blade finding its mark.
13:38Let's try that again.
13:39Who was it that told my mate to move?
13:42The temperature in the street seemed to drop.
13:44No one unlocked.
13:46No one breathed.
13:47He didn't shout.
13:48Didn't signal his men.
13:49He just watched Lucien the way a predator
13:52watches something it has already decided
13:53to deal with later.
13:55I'll remember that.
13:56I'm an alpha heir.
13:58Same as you.
13:58Who the hell do you think you are?
14:00Who the hell do you think you are?
14:02A forgotten fifth son
14:03trying to give orders to my mate.
14:06You're not a rival, Lucien.
14:08You're a fit note.
14:10The color drained from Lucien's face.
14:12This isn't over.
14:14Low and mean.
14:15You'll both regret tonight.
14:18I gave you a chance, Zara.
14:20When you come crawling back
14:21and you will,
14:23don't expect mercy.
14:25I looked at his soul
14:26and how he's in it.
14:27Murky and small.
14:28He genuinely believes he is the chosen one.
14:30He thinks the throne is already his
14:32and that I was just dead weight
14:34holding him back.
14:35He has no idea what is waiting for him.
14:37Without me clearing his path,
14:39he won't last the season.
14:41He'll be lucky to still be breathing
14:42by the time the leaves turn.
14:44Oh, our first night as mates was quiet.
14:46Just the two of us
14:47and the fire crackling low between us.
14:50We shared whiskey,
14:52amber and slow burning
14:54on the way down.
14:56I could feel his eyes,
14:57heavy and silver warm against my skin.
15:00My pulse wouldn't settle.
15:02Even sitting across from me in that chair,
15:04his presence filled the entire room.
15:06You said you could fix my legs.
15:10How?
15:12Help me with something first.
15:15I've never seen this room.
15:18Describe it to me.
15:20Then he started talking.
15:22The fires glow.
15:24The oil paintings.
15:25He told me their textures,
15:27not just their subjects.
15:28The velvet curtains.
15:29Deep and heavy.
15:30On the shelf above the nightstand,
15:34there's an old book.
15:36The cover is faded.
15:38My hand stilled around the glass.
15:40That shelf was high,
15:41nearly at the ceiling.
15:43From a wheelchair,
15:44the top of that book
15:45was completely out of sight.
15:47There was no way
15:48he could know the cover was faded.
15:50I didn't say a word.
15:51I just took another sip
15:53and filed that detail away somewhere.
15:55I wouldn't forget it.
15:56I stood up with my glass in hand,
15:58then let it slip.
16:00It hit the carpet with a dull thud
16:02and rolled toward the sofa.
16:05Kyle's body moved
16:06before his mind could stop it.
16:08His chest surged forward.
16:10The muscles in his thighs
16:11locked and coiled,
16:12dense as iron cables.
16:14For a single, unguarded second,
16:16he was about to stand.
16:18Then he caught himself
16:19and settled back into the leather
16:20as if nothing had happened.
16:22But I felt it.
16:23That reflex was all the confirmation
16:25I needed.
16:26I didn't say anything.
16:28Not yet.
16:29There's one more way to be sure.
16:33I stepped in close
16:35and I straddled his lap.
16:37Kyle stopped breathing.
16:40The heat from his hands
16:42soaked straight through the silk.
16:43It burned against my skin
16:45like a brand.
16:46My heart was slamming.
16:48I ignored it.
16:50I raised my hand
16:51and let my fingertips trace
16:52from his jaw down to his chest.
16:55Hard as stone beneath the shirt.
16:57Not the body of a man
16:58who hadn't used his legs
16:59in seven years.
17:00I looked into his soul.
17:02A storm deep crimson,
17:04soft pink.
17:05Something more tender
17:06than he'd admit.
17:07And threading through both.
17:08A sharp streak
17:09of dark green panic.
17:12He knew I was getting close.
17:14I leaned down.
17:19My lips barely grazed
17:21the corner of his mouth.
17:22Not a kiss.
17:23A question.
17:24His breathing came apart
17:26and then I took his hand
17:27and pressed his palm
17:28flat against my chest.
17:30The silk between us
17:31was nothing.
17:32My face was burning
17:33because in that moment
17:35his body gave me
17:36the most honest answer
17:37he had.
17:38His body reacted
17:39before his mind
17:40could stop it.
17:41I felt the shift
17:43in his balance.
17:44The sudden brace
17:45through his thighs.
17:46The instinctive drive upward.
17:48A man who hadn't
17:49used his legs
17:50in seven years
17:50wouldn't move like that.
17:52I pulled back
17:52just enough.
17:54Let the smile
17:54come slowly.
17:55Your legs are fine.
17:57That much, I know.
17:58Kyle closed his eyes.
18:00His throat moved
18:01as he swallowed.
18:02Then he stood up.
18:03One hand stayed
18:04at my waist.
18:05The other still
18:06pressed against my chest.
18:08He lifted me
18:09and I felt just
18:10how much of him there was.
18:11Nearly six foot
18:12and all of it muscle.
18:14My whole world
18:15was suddenly just him.
18:17How did you know?
18:18I just smiled
18:19and gave him
18:20something vague
18:20enough to pass.
18:21He set me down
18:22gently on the edge
18:23of the bed
18:24then stepped back.
18:26The hand that
18:26touched my chest
18:27was shaking.
18:28I'm sorry,
18:28I shouldn't have.
18:30Don't.
18:30I'm the one
18:31who put your hand there.
18:32He looked at me
18:33for a long moment
18:34and laughed.
18:35A real laugh.
18:37Warm and unguarded.
18:38Like seven years
18:39of tension
18:39finally giving way.
18:41Seven years?
18:43Seven years
18:43fooling everyone.
18:44The whole damn world.
18:47And my blind mate
18:48catches me
18:48on the very first night.
18:50We didn't go
18:50any further that night.
18:51We ended up
18:52on the rug
18:53in front of the fire.
18:54The bottle of whiskey
18:55between us
18:55and we just
18:56talked.
18:58He told me
18:58about the night
18:59his parents were killed.
19:00They called it
19:01a rogue wolf attack.
19:03Everyone knew
19:04what it actually was.
19:06The Alpha King
19:06had ordered it.
19:07He was 15 years old.
19:09Standing at their funeral.
19:10And he made a decision.
19:12He would become
19:13the cripple.
19:14Invisible.
19:16Unthreatening.
19:17Off the king's list
19:18entirely.
19:19It was the only way
19:20to stay alive.
19:21I told him about Lucian.
19:23All of it.
19:24What he was underneath.
19:26I didn't choose you
19:27because I had
19:28no other options.
19:29I chose you
19:30because you were
19:31the only one
19:31worth choosing.
19:33I watched his soul
19:35begin to shift.
19:36The gold bleeding
19:37slowly
19:38into a deep
19:39and glowing lake.
19:40Late into the night
19:41it came back.
19:42The splitting pain
19:43behind my temples
19:44like an axe
19:45working its way
19:46through bone.
19:47I tried to keep
19:48my hands still.
19:49They were shaking
19:50anyway.
19:51Kyle stopped
19:52mid-sentence.
19:53Your head.
19:54Before I could deflect
19:55his thumbs were already
19:56at my temples.
19:58The pressure.
19:59Exact like he'd
20:00mapped the pain
20:00before he touched it.
20:01My mother used
20:02to get them.
20:03I've known what to do
20:04since I was a boy.
20:05The pain didn't ease.
20:07It vanished.
20:08We shared the same bed.
20:09His arm lay heavy
20:10and warm across my waist.
20:12My head settled
20:13against his chest.
20:14I listened to his heartbeat
20:15through my soul eye.
20:17I watched his soul settle.
20:18The gold softener
20:20deepening into a rich
20:21and quiet pink.
20:22For the first time
20:23in two lifetimes
20:24I felt safe.
20:25Lucian's wedding night
20:26was far apart.
20:27In my last life
20:28a maid tried to spike
20:29his wine with wolf's bear.
20:30I caught her
20:32before she could get close.
20:33I read the murder
20:34in her soul
20:35swapped the glasses
20:36had her detained
20:37before he'd taken
20:38a single seat.
20:39This time
20:40I did nothing.
20:41Celeste couldn't notice.
20:42She wouldn't know
20:43a threat
20:43if it sat down
20:44beside her
20:45and introduced itself.
20:46The next morning
20:47Kyle and I arrived
20:48at the Alpha King's estate.
20:50No sign of Lucian.
20:52No sign of Celeste.
20:53The corridors were alive
20:54with hushed
20:55urgent voices.
20:56He said there
20:57was poisoned
20:57in his own chambers.
20:59He hasn't wakened.
21:00The healers say
21:01the dose was enough
21:02to drop a grizzly.
21:03I kept my face
21:04perfectly still
21:05but underneath it
21:06I was smiling.
21:07Lucian's fall
21:08had started
21:09and this time
21:10wasn't going to stop it.
21:12The carriage had barely
21:13rolled to a stop
21:14when Celeste
21:14appeared at the gates.
21:16She looked like
21:16she hadn't slept
21:17in days.
21:18Zara!
21:19You poisoned him!
21:22Give me the antidote
21:23right now!
21:25I felt the temperature
21:26inside the carriage shift.
21:27Kyle went very still
21:28beside me.
21:29I placed a hand
21:30on his arm.
21:31I've got this.
21:33I leaned in
21:34and pressed a quick kiss
21:35to his cheek.
21:36Then I stepped out
21:37into the morning air.
21:38Antidote?
21:40I don't have one.
21:42Whatever happened
21:43to Lucian
21:44has nothing to do
21:45with me.
21:46Liar!
21:48Then how did you know
21:49he'd be dying
21:50on his wedding night?
21:51I tilted my head.
21:53That's a serious accusation.
21:56Where's your proof?
21:58Did you catch the killer?
21:59Did you find the poison?
22:01I already knew she hadn't.
22:03The spy Marcus sent
22:04was a professional.
22:05Without my soul eye
22:06she was a ghost.
22:07By now she was likely
22:09across the border
22:10untouchable.
22:11Celeste stood there
22:12mouth open
22:13nothing coming out.
22:14If you keep causing
22:15a scene on my land
22:17my warriors
22:18will remove you.
22:20Her eyes dropped
22:22to my neck.
22:22She saw the red mark
22:23Kyle had left there.
22:25You actually slept
22:26with him?
22:27A blind girl
22:29and a broken man?
22:30I suppose trash
22:31finds its own level.
22:32I suppose trash
22:33finds its own level.
22:34I thought about
22:35last night
22:35the fire
22:36the whiskey
22:36the long silence
22:37after he finally stood up
22:39and I felt the full weight
22:40of him for the first time.
22:41Kyle wasn't broken.
22:42He was ten thousand times
22:43the man Lucian
22:44would ever be.
22:45I laughed.
22:48What is so funny?
22:49I stopped
22:50looked at her
22:51or close enough to it.
22:52I'm laughing
22:52at how blind you are.
22:54Lucian is going to die
22:57and when he goes down
22:58he'll take you with him.
23:00If you want to survive
23:01what's coming
23:02sever the bond now
23:04while you still can.
23:05That was it for her.
23:06She swung at my face
23:08wide
23:08furious
23:09telegraphed
23:10from a mile away.
23:11I shifted my weight
23:12and stepped aside.
23:13She hit nothing but air.
23:14The momentum carried her forward
23:15and she went down hard
23:16palms and knees
23:17in the dirt.
23:18I looked down at her.
23:19Remember this
23:20because the next time
23:22you raise a hand to me
23:23I won't step aside.
23:24She stared up at me
23:25from the ground
23:26trembling.
23:26For the first time
23:27in her life
23:28she was actually
23:28afraid of me.
23:29The blind girl
23:30she used to torment
23:31wasn't there anymore.
23:32Someone else
23:33had taken her place.
23:35Kyle was waiting
23:36when I stepped back
23:37into the carriage.
23:38He just watched me
23:38with those gray eyes
23:39and in them
23:40not worry
23:41not pity.
23:42Admiration
23:42he trusted me
23:43to handle my own affairs.
23:45That respect
23:45landed heavier
23:46than any shield
23:47he could have raised.
23:48He turned to his lead guard
23:49and spoke low.
23:50No one from Lucian's pack
23:52crosses onto my land again
23:53for any reason
23:56ever.
23:58After Celeste
24:00was escorted out
24:01he turned to the business
24:02of leaving.
24:02We were heading
24:03for Thorn Harbor.
24:04The courtyard filled
24:05with people
24:05and supplies
24:06controlled for us
24:07and through all of it
24:08my soul
24:09I found a single target.
24:11A guard named Vaughn.
24:12His soul
24:12was a muddy
24:13treacherous gray.
24:14I leaned close
24:15to Kyle's ear.
24:16Who is that man?
24:18Vaughn.
24:20He's been with me
24:21since I was 15.
24:22Saved my life twice.
24:24I pulled back
24:24and looked at him.
24:25Kyle do you trust me?
24:26His soul flushed
24:28deep dark pink
24:28all at once.
24:30You're my mate.
24:31Of course I do.
24:32He's a traitor.
24:33We change the route
24:35to Thorn Harbor
24:36and we tell no one.
24:38In my last time
24:39this was where
24:40it ended with Kyle.
24:41Ambushed on the road
24:42to the harbor.
24:43Wounds that never healed.
24:44He died defending
24:45the city walls.
24:46I finished speaking.
24:48Let my lips
24:49brush his cheek.
24:50Kyle's arm came
24:51around my waist
24:52immediately.
24:53Pulling me in.
24:54Across the yard
24:55I felt Vaughn
24:56watching us.
24:57He clocked
24:57how close we were
24:58and looked away fast.
25:00Kyle pressed his face
25:01into the curb
25:01of my neck.
25:02His breath
25:03was warm
25:03against my skin.
25:04Are you trying
25:05to fix my legs again?
25:06Because I'm happy
25:07to wait until tonight
25:09or we could start now.
25:11The next morning
25:12Vaughn was gone.
25:13Kyle sat beside me
25:14at breakfast
25:15cutting my steak
25:16into careful pieces
25:17without being asked.
25:18You were right.
25:20Vaughn was Marcus' man
25:21buried so deep
25:23I never suspected him
25:24once in seven years.
25:26It took some
25:29persuasion
25:29to get him to talk.
25:31He looked at me.
25:33How did you know,
25:34Zara?
25:34I looked into his soul
25:36gold and pink.
25:37Wound together.
25:38No suspicion.
25:38No fear.
25:40Lucky guess.
25:41The words were barely out
25:42when the pain hit.
25:43White.
25:44Hot behind both temples
25:45at once.
25:46My hand went to my head
25:47before I could stop it.
25:48Kyle didn't say a word.
25:50He just moved his chair
25:51flush against mine.
25:52Un in hand
25:52kept cutting my food.
25:54The other reached up
25:54and wrapped around
25:55the back of my neck.
25:56The pain dissolved.
25:57He has stopped asking
25:58why it happens.
25:59He just makes sure
26:00he is there when it does.
26:01Thorn Harbor.
26:02Kyle's territory.
26:04The land was rough.
26:06Resources thin.
26:07The kind of place
26:08the Alpha Council
26:09never bothered
26:09to look at twice.
26:11The wolves here
26:12were loyal to Kyle.
26:13The way wolves
26:14are loyal to someone
26:15they've chosen.
26:16Out of true devotion.
26:18When I went to the market
26:19they called me Luna
26:20and refused my coin.
26:21Every stall.
26:22Every vendor.
26:23I had to set the money down
26:24and walk away
26:25before they touch it.
26:26I came back
26:27to the estate breathless
26:29and my maid
26:30watched me come
26:30through the door.
26:32The Luna is blind
26:34but she moves faster
26:35than any soldier
26:36I've trained with.
26:39Kyle heard her.
26:40That night his fingers
26:41found the edges
26:42of my eyes.
26:44Zara.
26:45Is it really just
26:47nothing?
26:49I nodded.
26:50He pulled me in
26:51against his chest
26:52and held me there.
26:53It doesn't matter
26:54I'll be your eyes.
26:56Every sunrise.
26:57Every star.
26:59Whatever you want to see
27:00I'll find the words for it.
27:01I watched his soul
27:03through all of it.
27:04The gold was shifting
27:05becoming something
27:05warmer, deeper.
27:07The more time
27:07we spent together
27:08the deeper the gold grew.
27:10Every shared meal.
27:11Every quiet evening
27:12beside him.
27:13It only became richer.
27:14But then something strange
27:15started happening.
27:16When I was away from him
27:17even briefly
27:18I got restless
27:19not just missing him.
27:20It was physical.
27:21A deep pulling ache
27:22I couldn't reason away.
27:23The further I walked
27:24the worse it pulled.
27:25Until it hurt.
27:26I told myself
27:26it was the intensity
27:27of a new bond
27:28but I knew that wasn't it.
27:30I don't have a wolf.
27:31I was never supposed
27:32to feel this.
27:33That night when he kissed me
27:34his soul shifted
27:35into something
27:36I'd never seen before.
27:37A pink so saturated
27:38and alive.
27:39It looked like
27:40the first day of spring
27:41breaking open
27:41all at once.
27:42The most beautiful thing
27:43I had ever seen.
27:44It didn't last.
27:45The next morning
27:46a piece of encrypted
27:47intelligence arrived.
27:49Lucian is awake
27:49but the damage
27:50is permanent.
27:51Intermittent mania
27:52He has lost control
27:53of his wolf.
27:54A slow smile
27:54touched my lips.
27:55This was just the beginning
27:56of what was coming for him.
27:58But then
27:58the catch.
27:59The alpha council
28:00had issued a mandatory summons.
28:02Marcus was hosting a banquet.
28:03Every air was required
28:04to attend.
28:05No exceptions.
28:06Kyle had no choice.
28:07We were going back.
28:08Marcus's estate
28:09reeked of bad intentions
28:10before we even stepped inside.
28:12I swept the ballroom
28:13with my soul eye
28:14the moment we crossed
28:15the threshold.
28:15Oily green for greed.
28:17Thick in every corner
28:18of the room
28:18a deep sickening crimson
28:20for lust
28:20and underneath all of it
28:22something flat
28:22and purposeful
28:23that made my skin crawl.
28:25I found Kyle's hand
28:25under the table
28:26and held it.
28:27Don't eat.
28:28Don't touch the wine.
28:29And don't leave my side.
28:30Not for a second.
28:31Kyle glanced at me.
28:33As you wish my Luna.
28:34I couldn't explain.
28:35Not here
28:36but I remembered this night.
28:37In my last life
28:38this banquet ended in blood.
28:40Their souls were
28:41a flat professional grey.
28:42The color of people
28:43who had killed before
28:44and slept just fine after.
28:46Last time
28:46when the blades came out
28:48I didn't think.
28:49I just threw myself
28:50in front of Lucian
28:50and took a poison silver dagger
28:52to the legs.
28:53Carried that scar for years.
28:54Lance when Lucian
28:55was already king
28:56I mentioned it.
28:57He looked at me
28:58with something close to boredom.
29:00Protecting your mate
29:01is your duty Zara.
29:02You're already Luna.
29:04What more do you want?
29:05I don't make the same mistakes twice.
29:06It happened fast.
29:08The three dancers
29:08reached into their silts.
29:10Short blades
29:11jagged
29:11silver
29:12and they lunged.
29:14Kyle moved
29:14before I could blink.
29:16He didn't care
29:16about the secret anymore.
29:18He came half
29:19out of his chair.
29:20One arm
29:20sweeping me behind him
29:22and his guards
29:22materialized from the dark
29:24like they'd been part
29:25of the shadows all along.
29:26A wall of bodies
29:27between us and everything.
29:28We were safe.
29:29I looked past them
29:30toward Lucian.
29:31No one moved
29:32to cover me.
29:33The moment
29:34the first blade
29:34flashed
29:35Celeste screamed
29:36and ran.
29:37Straight for the exit
29:38and didn't look backwards.
29:39Lucian was surrounded.
29:41A silver dagger
29:42soaked in
29:43concentrated wolfsbane
29:44buried itself
29:45into his thigh.
29:46Dark blood
29:47hit the floor.
29:48He went down
29:48hard gasping.
29:50Through the screaming
29:51the overturned chairs
29:52the crush of bodies
29:53trying to flee.
29:55His eyes
29:55found mine.
29:56He was begging.
29:58His soul
29:58was a wreck.
30:00Terror
30:00and pain
30:01and underneath it all
30:02a dark
30:03green tide of regret.
30:04I held his face.
30:06Kept my face
30:06completely still.
30:08Didn't move
30:08a single muscle.
30:09I am blind
30:10after all.
30:11I can't see a thing.
30:12I didn't make it
30:13two steps
30:13into the carriage.
30:15The spike
30:15hit the moment
30:16the door closed
30:17red hot
30:17straight through
30:18the center
30:18of my skull.
30:19It was the worst
30:20backlash I'd ever
30:21suffered.
30:22I scanned the
30:22entire ballroom
30:23every soul
30:24every shadow
30:25every blade
30:26before they struck.
30:27It cost me
30:28everything.
30:29The world
30:29went black.
30:30My knees
30:31folded.
30:32Kyle caught me
30:32before I hit the floor.
30:34His arms locked
30:35around my waist
30:35like onion
30:36pulling me hard
30:37against his chest.
30:38Zara.
30:39I'd never heard
30:40that in his voice
30:41before.
30:41Fear.
30:42My head
30:42was all I could
30:43get out.
30:44He didn't wait.
30:44He pulled me
30:45in against him
30:46and pressed both
30:47palms to my temples
30:48and something
30:48happened that I
30:49still can't explain.
30:50It wasn't just
30:51pressure.
30:52It wasn't just
30:52warmth.
30:53It felt like a
30:53hand reaching
30:54through the pain
30:55and pulling it
30:55out from the root
30:56gone completely
30:57in seconds.
30:58I lay against
30:59his chest
31:00dazed
31:00listening to his
31:01heart pound.
31:02Why does his
31:03touch do that?
31:04This isn't comfort.
31:05This is something
31:05older.
31:06Something that runs
31:07deeper than either
31:08of us understands
31:09and it is starting
31:10to frighten me
31:11while I recovered
31:12in Kyle's arms.
31:13Lucian is learning
31:14what that blade
31:15actually felt like.
31:16The wolf's vein
31:17on those daggers
31:17was pure.
31:18It doesn't just
31:19wound.
31:19It destroys
31:20whatever the body
31:21would normally
31:21feel.
31:22It shredded his
31:23body's ability
31:23to heal from
31:24the inside out.
31:25In my last life
31:26I took that blade
31:27from him.
31:27I felt the silver
31:28eat into my flesh.
31:29I felt the poison
31:30dissolve everything
31:31I had.
31:32I survived it
31:32barely and he never
31:34once mentioned it
31:34again.
31:35He treated my body
31:36like a shield he was
31:37entitled to stand
31:38behind.
31:38This time he got
31:39to find out what
31:40it actually costs.
31:41The healers
31:42couldn't do a thing.
31:43The damage was
31:44permanent.
31:44Lucian would never
31:45walk again.
31:46The man who spent
31:46his whole life
31:47looking down at
31:48everyone from a
31:49great height
31:49is never going
31:50to stand again.
31:51The intelligence
31:51reports kept
31:52arriving, one after
31:54another, like a
31:55slow collapse.
31:56Lucian confirmed
31:57permanently disabled.
31:59Celeste began her
32:00exit strategy the
32:01moment he lost
32:02his strife.
32:03She spent months
32:04petitioning the Alpha
32:05council to dissolve
32:06their bond.
32:07Six months later
32:08the Alpha King
32:09had seen enough.
32:10He stripped Lucian
32:11of his inheritance.
32:12No title.
32:13No claim.
32:14No future.
32:15In the werewolf world
32:16no one pledges their
32:17sword to a man who
32:18can't lead from a
32:19front.
32:20In our last life
32:21Lucian thought
32:22seizing the throne
32:23was simply a matter
32:24of wanting it badly
32:25enough.
32:25He had no idea
32:27what was actually
32:27holding him.
32:28He thought those
32:29allies followed him
32:30by choice.
32:31I made sure they
32:32were worthy long
32:33before they ever
32:34pledged themselves.
32:35The traitors he
32:36feared never had
32:37the chance to
32:37strike.
32:38I silenced them
32:39first and the
32:40commanders he
32:41trusted with his
32:42army were placed
32:42there by my hand.
32:44One by one paid
32:45for in blood.
32:46Without me he
32:47couldn't have held
32:48a border crossing
32:49let alone throne.
32:51Celeste didn't
32:52mourn.
32:53She stripped his
32:54estate clean.
32:55Jewelry, gold,
32:56every coin she
32:57could find.
32:58Then she was
32:59lost.
32:59She went back to
33:00Marcus.
33:00But the terms
33:01had changed.
33:02He didn't want
33:03a luna this time.
33:04He took her as
33:05a mistress.
33:06I ran into her
33:07yesterday.
33:07A high-end
33:08perfume shop
33:09near the harbor.
33:10I was holding
33:10a bottle.
33:11A rare blend
33:12when she reached
33:13over and plucked
33:13it straight out
33:14of my hand.
33:15I'll take all
33:16of these.
33:16She told the
33:17clerk.
33:18She was draped
33:18in diamonds.
33:19Her soul was
33:20the same toxic
33:21green as always
33:22been.
33:22She looked me
33:23over.
33:24Oh Zara,
33:25she said.
33:26Perfume seems
33:26a bit pointless
33:27for you,
33:28doesn't it?
33:28She leaned in.
33:30Expensive wine
33:30on her breath.
33:31It's not as if
33:32your man can stand
33:33up to get close
33:34enough to smell
33:34it.
33:35A little gasp.
33:36A hand over
33:37her mouth.
33:37Eyes wide
33:38with performed
33:39regret.
33:40That was awful
33:41of me.
33:41You don't mind,
33:43do you?
33:43I smiled.
33:44Not at all.
33:45I said,
33:46take them all.
33:47The clerk looked
33:48baffled.
33:48I didn't explain.
33:50There is no point
33:51arguing with a
33:52woman who is
33:52already walking
33:53toward her own
33:54end.
33:55She just doesn't
33:56know the road
33:56she is on yet.
33:57It was late.
33:58Thorn Harbor
33:59was in a hard
34:00rain.
34:00My headguard
34:01appeared in the
34:02doorway,
34:03his face tight.
34:04Lupin is at
34:05the front gate,
34:05Luna.
34:06He has been
34:06dragging himself
34:07through the mud
34:08for the better
34:08part of an hour.
34:09He won't leave.
34:11I walked out
34:12to the entrance
34:13and looked
34:13through the
34:14iron bars.
34:15He was there
34:15soaked in
34:16blood,
34:17shaken,
34:17coated in the
34:18felt in the
34:18road.
34:19When he saw
34:20me,
34:20something
34:21desperate
34:21ignited in
34:22his eyes.
34:23He urged
34:24forward,
34:24and the
34:25guards
34:25broke
34:25him back.
34:26He went
34:26down into
34:27a crazy
34:27mud.
34:28Why?
34:29The word
34:29tore out of
34:30him like
34:30it had been
34:30caught on
34:31something.
34:32Zara,
34:33tell me.
34:33In the
34:34last life,
34:35you always
34:36knew what
34:36was coming.
34:37I thought
34:37if a blind
34:37girl could
34:38build a
34:38kingdom for
34:39me,
34:39then all
34:39I had
34:40to do
34:40was take
34:41the credit.
34:41So why
34:42did I
34:42lose
34:42everything?
34:43He started
34:44screaming,
34:44slamming
34:45his fists
34:45against his
34:46own useless
34:46legs.
34:47The sound
34:48of it got
34:48swallowed up
34:49by the
34:49thunder.
34:50When he
34:50finally ran
34:51out of
34:51breath,
34:52he looked
34:52up at
34:53me.
34:53He looked
34:54small.
34:55The arrogance
34:55was gone.
34:56What was
34:56left underneath
34:57wasn't much.
34:58Zara,
34:59like he said,
35:00quietly,
35:01his voice
35:02doing something
35:02approximating
35:03humility.
35:04I made a
35:05mistake.
35:06Come back.
35:08Come back.
35:10The Luna
35:11title,
35:12it's yours.
35:13Truly,
35:13this time,
35:14we can rebuild.
35:15Together,
35:16like before.
35:18We can take
35:18it all back.
35:19I looked at
35:20his soul,
35:21thick,
35:21oily green,
35:23bottomless with
35:23it.
35:24He wasn't
35:24performing.
35:25He was
35:25genuinely
35:26drowning in
35:26regret.
35:27That almost
35:27made it worse.
35:28Lucian,
35:29you still
35:30don't understand
35:31what you
35:31had.
35:31I was
35:32never your
35:32Luna because
35:33you became
35:33king.
35:35You were
35:35only ever
35:36king because
35:36I chose
35:37to stand
35:37beside you.
35:38I turned
35:39my back
35:39on him,
35:40walked toward
35:41the warm
35:41lights of
35:42the estate.
35:43Lock the
35:43gates.
35:44If he
35:45sets foot
35:45on this
35:46land again,
35:46you have
35:47my permission
35:47on permission
35:48to treat him
35:49accordingly.
35:49The iron
35:50gates slammed
35:51shut.
35:51The sound
35:52cut through
35:53the rain
35:53like a
35:53verdict.
35:54He was
35:55still
35:55screaming
35:55my name
35:56when I
35:56walked
35:56through
35:56the
35:57front
35:57door.
35:57I
35:58didn't
35:58look
35:58back.
35:59That
36:00door was
36:00never
36:00opening
36:01again.
36:01Celeste
36:02is
36:02dead.
36:03The report
36:03arrived this
36:04morning.
36:05History
36:05repeated
36:05itself
36:06down
36:06to the
36:06last
36:07attack.
36:08Marcus
36:08both
36:08weren't
36:09told
36:09there was
36:09nothing
36:09to
36:09go.
36:10And
36:11they
36:11carried
36:11her body
36:11out of
36:12society.
36:13Someone
36:13noted the
36:13scent
36:14still on
36:14me.
36:15The perfume
36:15she'd
36:16snatched
36:16from my
36:17hands in
36:17that shack.
36:18She was
36:18wearing it
36:19when she
36:19died.
36:20Ocean
36:21heard the
36:21news
36:21around
36:22him.
36:22He
36:22didn't
36:23grieve.
36:23He
36:23didn't
36:24rage.
36:25Good.
36:25She
36:25watched
36:25me
36:26fall
36:26and
36:26ran
36:26straight
36:26to
36:27another
36:27man's
36:27bed.
36:28I
36:29gave
36:29up
36:29everything
36:29in
36:29this
36:29life
36:30for
36:30her.
36:31And
36:32that's
36:32how
36:32she
36:32repays
36:33it?
36:33He
36:33beat
36:34his
36:34fists
36:34against
36:34the
36:35heels
36:35of
36:35his
36:35chair
36:36until
36:36his
36:36knuckles
36:37bled.
36:37I
36:37never
36:38should
36:38have
36:38poisoned
36:38Zara.
36:39I
36:39never
36:39should
36:39have
36:40chosen
36:40Celeste
36:40over
36:41Zara.
36:41I
36:41was
36:42still
36:42holding
36:42the
36:42report
36:43when
36:43I
36:43heard
36:43the
36:43bedroom
36:44door.
36:44I
36:45crumpled
36:45the
36:45paper
36:45in
36:46my
36:46fist.
36:46Kyle
36:47walked
36:47in.
36:48I
36:48turned
36:48toward
36:49the
36:49window.
36:50The
36:50sun
36:50had
36:50gone
36:50down.
36:51I
36:51was
36:52just...
36:52Before
36:53I
36:53could
36:53finish,
36:54he
36:54reached
36:54out and
36:55took
36:55the
36:55crumpled
36:56note
36:56from
36:56my
36:56hand.
36:57He
36:57smoothed
36:57it
36:58flat and
36:58lifted
36:59it
36:59to
36:59the
36:59light.
37:00Then
37:00he
37:00lowered
37:01it
37:01and
37:01looked
37:01straight
37:02at
37:02me.
37:02You're
37:03not
37:03blind
37:03in
37:03the
37:03way
37:04you
37:04let
37:04everyone
37:04believe,
37:05are
37:05you?
37:07My
37:07throat
37:08closed.
37:16Don't
37:17I
37:17deserve
37:17the
37:17truth?
37:19I
37:19marked
37:19you.
37:20I
37:20made
37:21you
37:21my
37:21mate.
37:22I
37:22would
37:22have
37:22protected
37:23you
37:23regardless.
37:24Blind,
37:24wolfless,
37:25it
37:25didn't
37:25matter.
37:26But
37:26for
37:27a
37:27year
37:27you
37:27let
37:27me
37:28believe
37:28I
37:28understood
37:28you.
37:30And
37:31I
37:31didn't.
37:31The
37:32blind
37:32girl
37:32and
37:33the
37:33cripple.
37:34Two
37:34people
37:34who
37:34had
37:34made
37:35an
37:35art
37:35form
37:35of
37:35being
37:36something
37:36they
37:36weren't.
37:37Standing
37:37in
37:38this
37:38room
37:38in
37:38the
37:38dark.
37:39Every
37:39mask
37:39we'd
37:40ever
37:40worn
37:40was
37:41gone.
37:41He
37:41turned
37:42for
37:42the
37:42door.
37:42And
37:43I
37:43felt
37:43something
37:44I
37:44hadn't
37:44felt
37:44in
37:44two
37:45lifetimes.
37:46Genuine
37:46terror.
37:47I
37:47threw
37:47myself
37:48off
37:48the
37:48bed
37:48and
37:49wrapped
37:49my
37:49arms
37:49around
37:50him.
37:51Held
37:51on.
37:52I
37:52could
37:52feel
37:53the
37:53anger
37:53in
37:53him.
37:54But
37:54underneath
37:55it,
37:55his
37:56soul
37:56was
37:56already
37:56shifting.
37:57The
37:57orange
37:58queen
37:58leading
37:59toward
37:59something
38:00else.
38:00The
38:01harder
38:01I
38:01held
38:01on,
38:02the
38:02faster
38:03it
38:03faded.
38:03My
38:04voice
38:04came
38:04out
38:04small.
38:05I
38:06pressed
38:06my
38:06face
38:06against
38:07his
38:07back
38:07and
38:07just
38:08held
38:08on.
38:08His
38:09soul
38:09turned
38:10pink.
38:10His
38:11pride
38:11hadn't
38:11moved.
38:12He
38:12was
38:12still
38:13standing
38:13there,
38:13every
38:14muscle
38:14locked
38:15against
38:15him.
38:15But
38:16his
38:16heart
38:16had
38:17already
38:17answered.
38:18I
38:18came
38:18around
38:19to
38:19face
38:19him,
38:20pressed
38:20my
38:20cheek
38:21against
38:21his
38:21chest
38:22and
38:22listened.
38:23His
38:23heartbeat
38:24was
38:24fast,
38:25uneven.
38:26His
38:26soul
38:26was
38:26so
38:27pink
38:27it
38:27was
38:27almost
38:28blinding.
38:28Kyle.
38:29I
38:30steadied
38:30my
38:30voice
38:31as
38:31best
38:31I
38:31could.
38:32That
38:33wasn't
38:33the
38:33only
38:34thing
38:34I
38:34lied
38:34about.
38:35This
38:35was
38:35the
38:35secret
38:35I'd
38:36carried
38:36through
38:36two
38:36lives
38:37without
38:37telling
38:37a
38:38single
38:38person.
38:38I
38:38see
38:38souls.
38:40I
38:40can
38:40read
38:41the
38:41truth
38:41inside
38:41people.
38:42He
38:42went
38:43completely
38:43still.
38:43And
38:44I
38:44know
38:44what's
38:44coming.
38:46The
38:46werewolf
38:46world
38:47is
38:47about
38:47to
38:47burn.
38:49Thorn
38:49harbor
38:50will
38:50be
38:50under
38:50siege.
38:51I
38:52looked
38:52up
38:52at
38:52him.
38:53In
38:53my
38:53last
38:54life
38:54you
38:54died
38:55when
38:55the
38:55city
38:55walls
38:55fell.
38:56His
38:56breathing
38:56changed.
38:57I
38:58searched
38:58his
38:58soul
38:59one
38:59last
38:59time.
39:00Not
39:00a
39:00flicker
39:00of
39:01doubt.
39:01Not
39:02a
39:02trace
39:02of
39:02fear.
39:03Only
39:03gold
39:04could
39:04kill
39:04his
39:04smell.
39:05Shimmering
39:06gold.
39:06Do
39:06you
39:07believe
39:07me?
39:07I
39:08asked.
39:08He
39:09didn't
39:09answer
39:09with
39:09words.
39:10He
39:10pulled
39:11me
39:11into
39:11his
39:11chest.
39:12Both
39:12arms
39:13no
39:13space
39:13between
39:14us.
39:14And
39:15buried
39:15his
39:15face
39:15against
39:16my
39:16neck.
39:22I
39:26Kyle
39:27gave
39:27me
39:27the
39:27Alpha
39:27War
39:28seal
39:28and
39:28put
39:28every
39:29warrior
39:29in
39:29the
39:29pack
39:30under
39:30my
39:30command.
39:31We
39:31didn't
39:31just
39:31hold
39:31Thorn
39:32Harbor.
39:32We
39:32took
39:33the
39:33fight
39:33to
39:33the
39:33Alpha
39:33King's
39:34fortresses.
39:35Then
39:35came
39:35the
39:35first
39:35night
39:36of
39:36the
39:36great
39:36siege.
39:37The
39:37Voss
39:37army
39:38hit
39:38the
39:38valley
39:38and
39:39the
39:39sea
39:40of
39:40black
39:40bird
39:40wall
39:41to
39:41wall
39:41as
39:42far
39:42as
39:42as
39:42far
39:43as
39:43sat
39:44in
39:44his
39:44chair
39:44at
39:45the edge
39:45of
39:45fortress
39:45wall
39:46watching
39:46it
39:47come.
39:47Then
39:47he
39:47stood
39:48up.
39:48Not
39:48in
39:48our
39:48bedroom.
39:49Not
39:49in
39:49the
39:49dark
39:50where
39:50no
39:50one
39:50could
39:50see.
39:51The
39:51front
39:51of
39:52every
39:52soul
39:52on
39:52that
39:53battlefield.
39:53He
39:53shrugged
39:54off the
39:54heavy coat
39:55he'd
39:55hidden
39:55behind
39:55for
39:56seven
39:56years
39:56and
39:57let
39:57it
39:57drop.
39:57His
39:58bones
39:58began
39:58to crack
39:59the
39:59ship
39:59into
40:00the
40:00moon
40:00earth.
40:00He
40:01transformed.
40:01A
40:02massive
40:02silver
40:02wolf.
40:03He
40:15dropped
40:15their
40:15heads
40:16not
40:16from
40:16orders.
40:17From
40:17something
40:17older
40:18than
40:18orders.
40:18Seven
40:19years
40:19of
40:19buried
40:20power.
40:20Of
40:20swallowed
40:21rage.
40:21Of
40:22playing
40:22the
40:22broken
40:22man
40:23while
40:23the
40:23world
40:23underestimated
40:24him.
40:24He
40:25snapped
40:25his
40:25head
40:25around
40:26before
40:26the
40:26echo
40:26died.
40:27That
40:27silver
40:28gaze
40:28cut
40:28straight
40:28through
40:29the
40:29smoke.
40:29Through
40:29the
40:30fire.
40:30Through
40:31everything
40:31between
40:31us
40:32and
40:32found
40:32me.
40:33I
40:33felt
40:33at
40:33the
40:33moment
40:34it
40:34landed.
40:34Not
40:35just
40:35a
40:35look.
40:36Something
40:36that
40:37went
40:45away
40:45for
40:45seven
40:46years.
40:46The
40:47bond
40:47had
40:47been
40:47sealed
40:48with
40:48him.
40:48But
40:49now
40:49his
40:49wolf
40:49was
40:50fully
40:50awake.
40:51And
40:51everything
40:51he
40:52held
40:52back
40:52came
40:52through
40:53at
40:53once.
40:53He
40:54shifted
40:54back.
40:55Dropped
40:55one
40:55knee
40:56on
40:56the
40:56stone.
40:57Chest
40:57he
40:57went.
40:57Hands
40:58braced
40:58against
40:58the
40:59ground.
40:59Trumbed.
41:00When
41:01he
41:01looked
41:01up
41:01at
41:01me.
41:02It
41:02was
41:02like
41:02the
41:02first
41:03time.
41:03Like
41:04he
41:04was
41:04seeing
41:04something
41:04he
41:05been
41:05reaching
41:05toward
41:06without
41:06knowing
41:06it.
41:07It's
41:07you.
41:08His
41:08voice
41:09was
41:09right.
41:09It
41:10was
41:10always
41:10you.
41:13The
41:13moon
41:13goddess
41:14didn't
41:14give
41:14you
41:14to
41:15me
41:15for
41:15your
41:15gift.
41:17She
41:18gave
41:18you
41:18to
41:18me
41:18because
41:18you're
41:19mine.
41:20I
41:20felt
41:20the
41:21truth
41:21in
41:21my
41:21own
41:22family.
41:22Every
41:22piece
41:23of it
41:23clicking
41:23into
41:24place
41:24all
41:24at
41:24once.
41:25The
41:25jolt
41:26when
41:26our
41:26fingers
41:26first
41:26touched
41:27at
41:27the
41:27maiden
41:27ball.
41:28The
41:28way
41:28his
41:29hands
41:29could
41:29pull
41:29the
41:29pain
41:30out
41:30of
41:30my
41:30skull.
41:31The
41:31suffocating
41:32dread
41:32every
41:32time
41:33he
41:33wrecked
41:33the
41:33ring.
41:34I
41:34don't
41:34have
41:34a
41:35wolf.
41:35So
41:36the
41:36bond
41:36had
41:36come
41:36through
41:37quietly.
41:37A
41:38whisper
41:38where
41:39it
41:39should
41:39have
41:39been
41:39born.
41:40But
41:40it
41:40had
41:40always
41:40been
41:41there.
41:41From
41:42the
41:42very
41:42first
41:42moment
41:43when
41:43he
41:43reached
41:43out
41:44and
41:44touched
41:44his
41:44knee.
41:45Our
41:45blood
41:46had
41:46already
41:46made
41:46it
41:46to
41:47take
41:48your
41:48place
41:49as
41:49Alpha
41:50King.
41:51The
41:51Grand
41:51Hall
41:52was in
41:52ruins
41:52around
41:52him.
41:53dust
41:53still
41:54settling
41:54from
41:54the
41:55siege.
41:55And
41:56Zara
41:56shall
41:57be
41:57your
41:57Luna.
41:58Kyle
41:58didn't
41:59hesitate.
42:00No.
42:00One
42:00word.
42:01It
42:02landed
42:02in
42:02that
42:02hall
42:03as
42:03the
42:03stone
42:03dropped
42:03into
42:04stone.
42:05I'm
42:05issuing
42:05two
42:06commands.
42:07First
42:08we are
42:09establishing
42:10a
42:10dual
42:10kingship.
42:12Zara
42:13and I
42:13rule
42:13together
42:14as
42:15equals.
42:16The
42:16silence
42:17cracked.
42:18Impossible!
42:19There
42:19has
42:19never
42:20been
42:20a
42:20woman
42:21on
42:21that
42:21throne!
42:22Kyle
42:22stepped
42:23up
42:23onto
42:23the
42:23platform.
42:24He
42:24looked
42:24out
42:25across
42:25the
42:25council.
42:26Every
42:26face,
42:27every
42:27objection,
42:28with
42:28the
42:28kind
42:28of
42:29calm
42:29that
42:29has
42:29nothing
42:29left
42:30to
42:30prove.
42:31When
42:31Thorn
42:31Harbor
42:31was
42:32under
42:32siege,
42:33Zara
42:33stood
42:33on the
42:34front
42:34lines
42:34beside
42:35me.
42:36Every
42:36wound
42:37I
42:37took,
42:38she
42:38felt.
42:39Every
42:40sacrifice
42:40I
42:41made,
42:41she
42:42had
42:42already
42:42paid
42:42a
42:42higher
42:43price
42:43for.
42:44He
42:44brought
42:44his
42:44hand
42:44down
42:45flat
42:45on
42:45the
42:45stone
42:46table.
42:46Crack
42:47without
42:48her,
42:49I'd
42:49be
42:49in
42:49an
42:49unmarked
42:50grave
42:50on
42:50the
42:50battlefield.
42:52You
42:52don't
42:52get to
42:52erase
42:53what
42:53she
42:53built
42:53just
42:53because
42:54she
42:54isn't
42:54what
42:54you
42:54expected.
42:58I
42:59am
42:59the
42:59Alpha
42:59King
43:00and
43:00so
43:01is
43:01she.
43:02Alpha
43:02King
43:03He
43:03leaned
43:03forward,
43:04voice
43:04dropping.
43:05If
43:05anyone
43:06here
43:06has
43:06a
43:06problem
43:06with
43:07that,
43:07step
43:08forward
43:08now.
43:09No
43:09one
43:09moved.
43:09I
43:10have
43:10spent
43:10seven
43:10years
43:11being
43:11underestimated.
43:12I
43:12have
43:12no
43:12patience
43:13left
43:13for
43:13it.
43:13Not
43:14for
43:14myself
43:14and
43:15not
43:15for
43:15her.
43:16The
43:16bond
43:16had
43:16been
43:16a
43:16river
43:17with
43:17no
43:17outlet
43:17for
43:18years.
43:18The
43:18night
43:19the
43:19war
43:19ended
43:19the
43:19dam
43:20broke.
43:25not
43:25pain
43:26or
43:26not
43:26only
43:27pain
43:27something
43:28that
43:28felt
43:28like
43:28being
43:29struck
43:29by
43:29lightning
43:29from
43:30the
43:30inside.
43:31My
43:31bones
43:31began
43:31to
43:31shift.
43:32I
43:32screamed.
43:33Kyle
43:33didn't
43:33let
43:34go.
43:34He
43:34pulled
43:34me
43:35harder
43:35against
43:35his
43:35chest
43:36and
43:36held
43:36on.
43:37His
43:37soul
43:37blazing
43:38gold
43:38in my
43:38sight.
43:39Steady
43:39as a
43:39quick
43:40star.
43:40An
43:40anchor
43:41in the
43:41middle
43:41of
43:41everything
43:42coming
43:42apart.
43:43Something
43:43that
43:43had
43:43been
43:43waiting
43:44under
43:44my
43:44skin
43:44for
43:4517
43:45years
43:45was
43:46finally
43:46waking
43:46up.
43:47It
43:47was
43:47never
43:47missing.
43:48It
43:48was
43:48just
43:48too
43:48powerful
43:49to
43:49soak
43:49my
43:50sun
43:50sun
43:50that
43:50needed
43:51something
43:51equally
43:51matched
43:52to
43:52call
43:52it
44:16in
44:16the
44:17old
44:17legends.
44:17The
44:18white
44:18wolf
44:18is
44:18the
44:18living
44:19avatar
44:19of
44:19the
44:19moon
44:20goddess.
44:20She
44:21hadn't
44:21walked
44:21the
44:21earth
44:22in
44:22500
44:22years.
44:23I
44:23had
44:24never
44:24been
44:24broken.
44:25My
44:25wolf
44:25had
44:26never
44:26been
44:26missing.
44:27She
44:27was
44:27just
44:27waiting
44:28for
44:28the
44:28one
44:28person
44:28strong
44:29enough
44:29to
44:29bring
44:29her
44:30home.
44:30Kyle
44:31shifted
44:31back.
44:32He
44:32pulled
44:32me
44:33into
44:33his
44:33lap
44:33and
44:33held
44:34me
44:34there.
44:34Both
44:35of
44:35us
44:35still
44:35catching
44:36our
44:36breath.
44:37The
44:37soul.
44:37as I
44:38looked
44:38at
44:38it
44:38I
44:39had
44:39no
44:39words.
44:40Golden
44:41pink
44:41woven
44:42together
44:42so
44:42completely
44:43they'd
44:44become
44:44a
44:44single
44:44color
44:45that
44:45didn't
44:46exist
44:46anywhere
44:46else.
44:48I
44:48knew
44:48from
44:49the
44:50moment
44:50you
44:50chose
44:51me
44:51at
44:51the
44:51ball.
44:53I
44:53didn't
44:53know
44:53what
44:54you
44:54were.
44:56But
44:56I
44:56knew
44:56you
44:57were
44:57something
44:57the
44:57world
44:57hadn't
44:58seen
44:58before.
45:00You
45:00were
45:00just
45:00waiting
45:01for
45:01someone
45:01to
45:01finally
45:02find
45:02you.
45:03I
45:03never
45:03let
45:03myself
45:04dream
45:04this
45:04far
45:05in
45:05my
45:05last
45:05life.
45:06I
45:06was
45:06too
45:06busy
45:07holding
45:07someone
45:07else
45:08to
45:08ever
45:08look
45:08up
45:08for
45:08myself.
45:09Now
45:10I
45:10sat
45:10at
45:10the
45:10highest
45:11seat
45:11in
45:11the
45:11council
45:11hall.
45:12Kyle
45:12beside
45:13me.
45:14Every
45:14outlet
45:14had
45:15their
45:15heads.
45:16The
45:16intelligence
45:17network
45:17was
45:18mine.
45:18The
45:19land
45:19rights
45:19were
45:19mine
45:20to
45:20grant
45:20or
45:20revoke.
45:21The
45:21power
45:21I
45:22had
45:22spent
45:22a
45:22lifetime
45:22building
45:23for
45:23someone
45:23else.
45:24It
45:24was
45:24finally
45:25in
45:25my
45:25own
45:25hands.
45:26And
45:26then
45:26they
45:26brought
45:27in
45:27Lucian.
45:28He
45:29dragged
45:29himself
45:29across
45:30the
45:30stone
45:30floor
45:31on his
45:31hands.
45:31He
45:32reached
45:32my
45:32boots
45:32and
45:33stretched
45:33out
45:34one
45:34trembling
45:34hand
45:35toward
45:35the
45:35hem
45:35of
45:35my
45:35robes.
45:36A
45:37guard
45:37stepped
45:37forward.
45:38His
45:39sword
45:39flashed.
45:39The
45:40blade
45:40stopped
45:40an
45:40inch
45:41from
45:41Lucian's
45:41fingers.
45:42Lucian
45:43didn't
45:43even
45:43register.
45:44He
45:44just
45:45started
45:45sitting
45:45over.
45:46This
45:46isn't
45:47right.
45:47That
45:48seat
45:48belongs
45:49to
45:49me.
45:50You
45:50were
45:50my
45:50instrument,
45:51Zara.
45:52I
45:52promised
45:53to
45:53make
45:53you
45:53my
45:53Luna.
45:54Why
45:54isn't
45:55that
45:55enough
45:55for
45:55you?
45:56Get
45:56down.
45:57Help
45:57me
45:57up
45:57there.
45:58That's
45:58where
45:58I'm
45:58supposed
45:59to
45:59be.
45:59I
46:00looked
46:00at
46:00him
46:00for
46:00a
46:00long
46:01moment.
46:01I
46:02remembered
46:02the
46:02last
46:02line.
46:03The
46:03rebel
46:04wolves
46:04had
46:04us
46:04surrounded.
46:05He
46:05didn't
46:06reach
46:06for
46:06me.
46:06He
46:07didn't
46:07hesitate.
46:08He
46:08turned
46:08and
46:09ran.
46:09And
46:10when
46:10they
46:10caught
46:10him
46:10anyway,
46:10he
46:11offered
46:11me
46:11up
46:11to
46:12buy
46:12himself
46:12another
46:12day.
46:13And
46:13at
46:13the
46:13very
46:14end,
46:14he
46:15was
46:15the
46:15one
46:15who
46:15forced
46:16the
46:16wolf's
46:16ban
46:16down
46:16my
46:17throat.
46:17He
46:18was
46:18the
46:18one
46:18who
46:18gave
46:18Celeste
46:19my
46:19title
46:19and
46:20my
46:20burial.
46:21He
46:21threw
46:21my
46:21body
46:22to
46:22the
46:22crows.
46:23And
46:23now
46:23he
46:23was
46:23on
46:24the
46:24floor
46:24of
46:24my
46:24hall,
46:25demanding
46:25I
46:26come
46:26down
46:26and
46:26handed
46:27all
46:27back
46:27to
46:27him.
46:27I
46:28looked
46:28at
46:28his
46:28soul.
46:29There
46:29was
46:29nothing
46:29wrecked
46:30in
46:30hold
46:31hold
46:31him.
46:32The
46:32guards
46:33pinned
46:33him
46:33to
46:33the
46:33stone.
46:34He
46:34thrashed,
46:35he
46:35tried
46:35to
46:35bite.
46:36He
46:36screamed
46:36until
46:37his
46:37voice
46:37cracked.
46:38They
46:38forced
46:38his
46:39jaw
46:39open,
46:40and
46:40I
46:40poured
46:40the
46:40wolf's
46:41bane
46:41myself.
46:42A
46:42quick
46:42death
46:42would
46:43have
46:43been
46:43mercy,
46:43and
46:44I
46:44had
46:44none
46:44left
46:45to
46:45give
46:45him.
46:46This
46:46was
46:46something
46:47else,
46:47a
46:48slow,
46:48total
46:49erasure.
46:50First,
46:50the
46:50taste
46:51would
46:51go,
46:51then
46:52the
46:52smell
46:52of
46:52air,
46:53then
46:53the
46:53light,
46:54fading
46:54at
46:54the
46:54edges,
46:55dimming
46:55inward,
46:56then
46:56sound,
46:57then
46:57touch,
46:58then
46:58nothing
46:58at
46:59all.
46:59A
46:59living
47:00body
47:00with
47:00no
47:00world
47:01left
47:01inside
47:01it,
47:02trapped
47:02in
47:02the
47:02dark
47:02he
47:03had
47:03always
47:03carried,
47:03with
47:04nothing
47:04for
47:04company
47:05but
47:05his
47:05own
47:05guilt.
47:06It
47:06took
47:06a
47:07week.
47:07The
47:07guard
47:07came
47:08to
47:08me
47:08on
47:08a
47:08quiet
47:08morning
47:09and
47:09delivered
47:09the
47:10news
47:10without
47:10ceremony.
47:12Lucian
47:12was
47:12dead,
47:13died
47:13in
47:13total
47:14silence,
47:15total
47:15darkness,
47:16without
47:16a
47:16single
47:17sensation
47:17to
47:17mark
47:18the
47:18end.
47:19What
47:19should
47:19we
47:19do
47:20with
47:20the
47:20body?
47:20I
47:20didn't
47:20look
47:21up
47:21from
47:21my
47:21work.
47:21Take
47:22it
47:22outside
47:22the
47:22territory,
47:23no
47:24retts,
47:25no
47:25marker,
47:26leave
47:26nothing.
47:27I
47:28gave
47:28his
47:28remains
47:28exactly
47:29what
47:29he
47:29gave
47:29mine,
47:30down
47:31to
47:31the
47:31last
47:31detail.
47:32The
47:32account
47:33was
47:33closed.
47:34The
47:34fire
47:35had
47:35burned
47:35down
47:35to
47:36embers.
47:36The
47:37room
47:37was
47:37almost
47:37quiet.
47:40Kyle's
47:40arms
47:41came
47:41around
47:41my
47:41waist
47:42from
47:42behind.
47:43His
47:43breath
47:43was
47:44warm
47:44and
47:44even
47:44against
47:45my
47:45neck.
47:49You
47:49went to
47:49see him
47:50today?
47:50I
47:51did.
47:52I
47:53watched
47:53a
47:53monster
47:53reach
47:54the
47:54end
47:54he
47:54earned.
47:55I
47:55leaned
47:55back
47:56into
47:56him.
47:56Are
47:57you
47:57jealous
47:57of
47:57a
47:57dead
47:58man,
47:58Kyle?
47:59A
47:59low
48:00sound
48:00in
48:00his
48:00chest.
48:01Not
48:01quite
48:01a
48:01laugh.
48:02He
48:02reached
48:02up
48:02slowly
48:03and
48:03found
48:03the
48:03knot
48:04of
48:04the
48:04silk
48:04blindfold
48:05I
48:05still
48:05wore
48:05in
48:05public.
48:06Worked
48:07it
48:07loose.
48:07Let
48:07it
48:08fall.
48:09The
48:09moonlight
48:09came
48:10through
48:10the
48:10window.
48:11Neither
48:11of
48:11us
48:11spoke
48:12for
48:12a
48:12while.
48:12Then
48:13he
48:13took
48:13my
48:13hand
48:13and
48:14guided
48:14it
48:14to
48:14his
48:14chest.
48:15Pressed
48:15it
48:15flat
48:16right
48:16above
48:16his
48:16heart.
48:17Zara,
48:17tell
48:17me
48:17what
48:17color
48:18it
48:18is.
48:18I
48:19laughed,
48:19soft,
48:20surprised
48:20by
48:20it.
48:21I
48:21closed
48:21my
48:21eyes
48:22and
48:22turned
48:22everything
48:22I
48:23had
48:23toward
48:23him.
48:23This
48:24man,
48:24who
48:24gave
48:24me
48:25his
48:25trust
48:25before
48:25I
48:37don't
48:37have
48:37the
48:38words
48:38for
48:38it.
48:38Even
48:39now,
48:39a
48:39pillar
48:39of
48:40gold,
48:40deep
48:40and
48:41unwavering
48:41and
48:42running
48:42through
48:42the
48:42heart
48:42of
48:42it.
48:43A
48:43tide
48:43of
48:43pink
48:44so
48:44rich
48:44and
48:44so
48:44dark
48:45it
48:45looked
48:45like
48:45the
48:45last
48:46light
48:46of
48:46sunset
48:46seen
48:47through
48:47clear
48:47water.
48:49It's
48:50the most
48:50beautiful
48:51thing
48:51I've
48:51ever
48:51seen.
48:53And
48:53I've
48:53seen
48:54a lot
48:54of
48:54ugly
48:54things.
48:55His
48:56arms
48:56tightened
48:56around
48:57me.
48:58Describe
48:59it.
48:59I
48:59want
48:59to
48:59hear
49:00it.
49:00I
49:00turned
49:00in
49:00his
49:01arms,
49:01found
49:02his
49:02chest,
49:03pressed
49:03my
49:03lips
49:04to
49:04the
49:04place
49:04above
49:04his
49:05heart
49:05and
49:05held
49:06them
49:06there.
49:06I
49:06don't
49:06think
49:07any
49:07language
49:07has
49:08the
49:08right
49:08words.
49:08I
49:09looked
49:09up
49:09at
49:09him.
49:10I
49:10have
49:10the
49:10rest
49:10of
49:10my
49:11life
49:11to
49:11try.
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