A powerful full drama movie filled with love, secrets, and unexpected twists.
Follow a powerful story where relationships are tested, hidden truths are revealed, and lives change forever. From romantic moments to shocking surprises, this drama keeps you engaged from beginning to end.
Featuring stories about CEO, billionaire lifestyles, family connections, and life-changing decisions, this movie delivers strong emotions and unforgettable scenes.
Watch the full movie and discover what happens in the end.
New full drama movies uploaded regularly. Stay tuned for more captivating and trending stories.
#drama #fullmovie #lovestory #dramatic #billionaire #ceo #family #relationships #movie #story
Follow a powerful story where relationships are tested, hidden truths are revealed, and lives change forever. From romantic moments to shocking surprises, this drama keeps you engaged from beginning to end.
Featuring stories about CEO, billionaire lifestyles, family connections, and life-changing decisions, this movie delivers strong emotions and unforgettable scenes.
Watch the full movie and discover what happens in the end.
New full drama movies uploaded regularly. Stay tuned for more captivating and trending stories.
#drama #fullmovie #lovestory #dramatic #billionaire #ceo #family #relationships #movie #story
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00:00Le night before my wedding, my hair was gone.
00:02The silver hair passed down through generations of the Warwick Bloodline,
00:05the symbol of our lineage that could summon wolf packs under the full moon
00:08and make even the most feral beasts submit by instinct,
00:10had been shaved off while I passed out.
00:13I lay there with my bare scalp exposed,
00:15and I saw Zoe standing beside the bed.
00:16She wore a black tactical vest.
00:18She was fiddling with a bone blade in her hand.
00:20The blade had been coated with wolf bone extract.
00:22She grinned at Liam.
00:23She hasn't even completed her first transformation.
00:26What gives her the right to stand beside an alpha?
00:28Liam's inner circle howled along with her.
00:30Zoe, that's not really fair.
00:31One of them chummed in.
00:32That sleep sashage was a gift from the alpha himself.
00:34Wolf bait mixed with moonflower, enough to knock out a bear.
00:36The marking ceremony's tomorrow.
00:37Zoe waved a hand to dismissively.
00:39Not that it matters anyway.
00:40Once she's in our pack, her status was always up for re-evaluation.
00:42Looking like this, she's perfect for starting from the lowest rung.
00:45Amid the roaring laughter filling the room, Liam glanced at me.
00:48Just one glance, then he looked away.
00:50They're all brothers who fought alongside me in the north.
00:52He said,
00:52Just a joke. Don't take it seriously.
00:53Just wrap a veil around your head tomorrow. No one will notice.
00:55He paused. His tone suddenly softened.
00:57And you're still the woman I'm going to mark.
00:59My Luna.
01:00I shifted my body slightly.
01:02The drug hadn't worn off yet.
01:03My limbs felt like they were filled with lead.
01:05He didn't wait for my response.
01:06He turned around and walked out of the bedroom with his men.
01:08The door closed.
01:09The room was left with just me and that herbal sashage,
01:12still swaying slightly above the headboard.
01:14The way he looked at me was cold.
01:15Cold as if he was staring at a stranger.
01:17He was my chosen mate.
01:18The mate I chose.
01:19Not the one the moon goddess chose for me.
01:21I thought choosing for myself meant I was guaranteed to be right.
01:24I spent six years proving one thing.
01:26I was wrong.
01:29Got it from the Scottish Highlands.
01:31Added some moonflower from the border.
01:33Best thing for sleep.
01:35Rest well.
01:36Be my most beautiful bride tomorrow.
01:40Natalie, don't be mad.
01:42Zoe's always had a big mouth.
01:44We drove all night.
01:46Crossed three states.
01:48We thought it was a surprise.
01:54I looked at the hair scattered across the carpet.
01:56It was dead.
01:56Living silver hair flowed with moonlight.
01:58When my grandmother died,
01:59her hair was silver to the very last strand.
02:00My mother broke a leg,
02:01and her hair still fell silver to her waist.
02:03That was the power of the Warwick She-Wolves bloodline.
02:05Not decoration, but a vessel of strength.
02:07The root of sensing beasts calling upon moonlight
02:09and shielding the pack.
02:10Now it lay like snipped dead electrical wires,
02:12blanketing the floor in a dark mass.
02:14The moment it left my scalp, the luster died.
02:16I tried to extend my senses, reaching toward the window.
02:17Nothing.
02:18That sensory domain, once as clear as flowing water,
02:20felt like it had been filled with cement overnight.
02:22As if something, at some point, had already died.
02:25And I didn't even know when that moment had started.
02:29I was just curious.
02:31What kind of woman is worthy of Alpha Liam's mark?
02:35Now I see.
02:37Unworthy.
02:39Every wolf in that room understood exactly what she meant.
02:43Chosen mate.
02:44Pledged mate.
02:45I chose him.
02:46He chose me.
02:46I thought that was love.
02:48It wasn't until tonight that I realized
02:49this so-called choice was nothing but a handout
02:52he could snatch back whenever he felt like it.
02:54Natalie.
02:55Zoe meant no harm.
02:59She's been like this since we were kids.
03:01Never thinks before she speaks.
03:03Don't hold it against her.
03:05Whether I think you're worthy or not,
03:06Liam's still gonna mark you.
03:09So what are you still upset about?
03:13Just drape a long veil over your head tomorrow?
03:16Who's going notice?
03:17I said nothing.
03:18I didn't cry either.
03:20From the moment I woke up until now,
03:22not a single tear had fallen.
03:24Liam sighed and reached for my hand.
03:26I pulled away.
03:28He froze.
03:29He probably never imagined I would pull away.
03:31After they left, I sat there,
03:33pressing my palms against my temples.
03:35That pain was back.
03:36Not the stinging from having my hair shaved off,
03:38but something deeper.
03:39A burning sensation,
03:40like something was struggling desperately
03:42to break out from within.
03:43This feeling had actually been following me
03:45for six years now.
03:46Zoe is my second in command.
03:49She has no filter, but she means well.
03:51Let's leave it at that, okay?
03:53His voice softened.
03:54His calming scent washed over me.
03:57Natalie, I gave you the Sanch.
03:59If I knew Zoe would use it
04:00to pull something like this, I-
04:01He didn't finish.
04:03I looked at his face.
04:05A face I had looked at for so many years.
04:09Twelve years old,
04:09a bunch of young wolves were bullying me.
04:12Liam shattered one of their jaws.
04:14He got suspended for a month.
04:17He said it was worth it.
04:19Fifteen.
04:19My first awakening.
04:22But it wasn't a full wolf form,
04:24just the senses.
04:25He showed up at my father's estate gore
04:28the very next morning.
04:29He didn't wait a single day.
04:31That very day,
04:32something deep within my scalp
04:33trembled lightly,
04:35like the tip of a thread
04:36quietly pulling taut in a certain direction.
04:38I paid it no attention.
04:40All I saw was Liam standing in the morning light,
04:43his eyes red-rimmed.
04:45Eighteen.
04:46Before he was deployed to the north,
04:48he gripped my hand at the airport.
04:49eyes reddening,
04:51and said he'd come back.
04:53And hold the marking ceremony with me.
04:55He spent three years out there.
04:57I spent three years waiting for him
04:59in my apartment in New York.
05:02Every full moon,
05:03that thread buried deep in my soul
05:05would burn hot once.
05:06I thought it was longing.
05:08And now,
05:09that satchad was still hanging above the headboard,
05:12making me sick.
05:13I didn't press him for more answers.
05:16The answers no longer mattered.
05:18Did he know about Zoe's plan?
05:20Did it make a difference?
05:22He indulged her,
05:23like he always did.
05:26That wasn't the first time
05:27he'd indulged her at my expense.
05:29Last year,
05:30I practically begged my father
05:32for permission to visit him
05:33in the Northern Territory.
05:34I stood outside his tactical tent
05:35for three hours.
05:36I had someone announced
05:37my arrival three times.
05:39Zoe had posted a sign
05:40outside the tent,
05:41no entry,
05:42authorized personnel only,
05:44including Natalie.
05:45He walked out and looked at me.
05:46His face was cold.
05:48Blame yourself.
05:49I should have known back then.
05:51That was the first time
05:52I truly felt it.
05:53My place in his heart
05:55didn't even weigh as much
05:56as a prank from his second-in-command.
05:58Natalie,
05:58do you have to be this petty?
06:00Liam's voice was trembling.
06:01Zoe is my second-in-command.
06:03Do you know how many times
06:04she saved my life up north?
06:05She bled for three years
06:06in the Northern Territory,
06:08gave way more than
06:08a sheltered princess like you
06:10who hides in your safe apartment,
06:11moping about how lonely you are.
06:13You see every other woman
06:14as a rival in your head.
06:16Zoe's vision is far bigger than yours.
06:18What fills her heart
06:19is the safety of the entire pack.
06:21And you?
06:22You can't even see
06:23beyond the four walls
06:24of this apartment.
06:25Zoe tugged at his sleeve.
06:27Liam, that's enough.
06:29She's still the mate
06:30you're going to mark.
06:32So what?
06:33Liam shook off her hand.
06:35She's been living
06:36in her comfort zone for too long.
06:38Her world is this small.
06:39Zoe just wanted to test
06:41your alertness as a werewolf.
06:42It's the most basic prank
06:44in any pack.
06:45Why can't you just let it go?
06:46I sat on the bed
06:47and listened to
06:48every single word he said.
06:50That burning thread
06:51pulled tighter
06:51than ever before.
06:53Like something in a distant direction
06:54was trembling with fury.
06:56Not for Liam,
06:57but for me.
06:58I pressed my hand
06:59to my chest.
07:00I wanted to tell myself
07:01to let go of Liam.
07:02I thought I already had,
07:04but there was a dull ache
07:05in my chest.
07:07I looked at the hair
07:08on the carpet.
07:09My hair.
07:10And then I knew.
07:11I hated him.
07:12Once hatred takes root,
07:14there's no going back.
07:15The sky was growing light.
07:16The sound of a delivery truck
07:17came from the street below.
07:19Liam's expression shifted.
07:20He immediately took
07:21those inner circle members
07:22and slipped out
07:22through the fire escape.
07:23My mother, Sarah,
07:24pushed the door open.
07:24She was holding
07:25a cup black coffee.
07:26She glanced at the hair
07:26all over the floor.
07:27The cup wobbled in her hand,
07:28coffee spilling onto the carpet.
07:30Natalie, who did this?
07:32I heard Zoe's soft laugh
07:34from the alley below.
07:35Mom, look at me.
07:36I need you to do something
07:37for me, right now.
07:38I didn't dig through
07:39the ventry drawer.
07:40I didn't take out
07:40any ancient tokens.
07:42I closed my eyes
07:43and pressed down
07:43on my own chest.
07:44There was a thread there.
07:45It had been faintly present
07:46since the day I awakened
07:47at 15,
07:47like a strand of silver
07:48spider thread buried
07:49deep within my wolf nature.
07:50I didn't choose that thread.
07:51It appeared without my permission
07:52the year I turned 15.
07:53It was the fated mate bond,
07:54true mate,
07:54destined by fate itself.
07:55I had deliberately ignored it
07:56for six years
07:57because I thought the person
07:58I chose was the right one.
07:59Now I understood.
08:00The moon goddess
08:00never chooses wrong.
08:01I took a deep breath
08:02and gathered all my despair
08:04and rage into a silent howl,
08:05pushing it out
08:06along that bond.
08:07It wasn't a cry for help.
08:08It was the first time
08:09in six years
08:10that I actively said,
08:11I'm here.
08:12That force was ancient,
08:13more primal than my family's
08:14blood oath.
08:15Like a current
08:15of silver electricity,
08:16it pierced through the steel
08:17and concrete of Manhattan,
08:18through the morning light
08:19shooting towards
08:20a specific direction.
08:21Upper East Side.
08:22On the other end of my soul,
08:23someone was waiting.
08:24That end,
08:24almost in the same instant,
08:25without a moment's hesitation,
08:26responded.
08:27Meanwhile,
08:28Upper East Side, New York,
08:29the ancient estate
08:30that was never open
08:31to outsiders.
08:32Nicholas stood before
08:32the floor-to-ceiling windows.
08:34He was holding
08:34an old pocket watch
08:35in his hand.
08:35It was too old.
08:36The gilded edges
08:37worn down to the brass beneath.
08:38A photo was embedded
08:39inside the watch cover.
08:40The profile of a 15-year-old girl
08:41at her awakening ceremony.
08:42That silver hair
08:43cascading over her shoulders
08:44like a waterfall.
08:45Six years ago,
08:46he first sensed that bond
08:47at the awakening ceremony.
08:49That scent belonging to her
08:50rushed into his soul,
08:51like a flame locked
08:52into his very bones.
08:53But she said
08:54she had chosen Leon,
08:55so he sealed that bond
08:56deep within his soul
08:57and waited for her.
08:59Waited for six years.
09:00In those six years,
09:02that bond was like
09:03a piece of shrapnel
09:04buried in his marrow.
09:05He felt it every single day,
09:07and every single day
09:08he had to actively suppress it.
09:09There were a few times
09:10he nearly lost control.
09:12His second-in-command
09:13found him more than once
09:14in the early morning.
09:15Half the walls of his study
09:17smashed apart
09:17by his bare hands.
09:19He never explained.
09:20He just cleaned it up,
09:22kept waiting.
09:23His second-in-command
09:24appeared at the door
09:25and bowed his head.
09:26Alpha,
09:26our people in the city
09:27detected a mate bond
09:28activation signal.
09:29Source,
09:30Miss Natalie Warwick.
09:31Target locked on you.
09:32The second-in-command paused,
09:34a cautious surprise
09:35in his voice.
09:36We didn't have time to react.
09:37You had already accepted it.
09:38Nicholas snacked
09:39the watch cover shut.
09:40In those golden wolf eyes
09:41was a killing intent,
09:42suppressed for far too long,
09:44that had finally found
09:45a righteous outlet.
09:46His fingers squeezed
09:47the watch case
09:48until the metal
09:48let out a faint groan.
09:49Send a reply to Miss Warwick.
09:51The ceremony proceeds
09:52as planned.
09:52Leave the rest to me.
09:53The second-in-command
09:54was about to withdraw,
09:56but was called back.
09:57One more thing.
09:57Bring out my mother's
09:58coronation crown.
09:59Notify Paris to dispatch
10:00a team of jewelists overnight.
10:01Adjust the measurements
10:02to Miss Warwick's file.
10:03I want it in New York
10:04before sunrise tomorrow.
10:05Also,
10:06pull the application documents
10:07from the alliance.
10:08Joint confirmation
10:08from the three founding families.
10:10I submitted it three weeks ago.
10:11Understood.
10:12The final arbitration
10:13only requires notifying
10:14the three alphas to seal.
10:15Complete it tonight.
10:16The second-in-command
10:17left to carry out the orders.
10:18Nicholas placed
10:19the pocket watch
10:19back into his chest pocket,
10:21right against his heart.
10:23Then,
10:24to the empty room,
10:25he said six words,
10:26very softly.
10:27Not waiting anymore.
10:29Not this time.
10:30By evening,
10:31the reply arrived.
10:32Just one line.
10:33The ceremony proceeds
10:34as planned.
10:35Leave the rest to me.
10:36Along with the letter
10:37came a high-end
10:37carrying case.
10:38Opened,
10:39a homemade lace wig,
10:40so finely crafted
10:41that even my wolf eyes
10:42couldn't tell it was fake.
10:43A full set of custom
10:44diamond crown and jewelry.
10:45I couldn't sleep
10:46at all that night.
10:47I sat by the window,
10:48fingers tracing
10:49the pure white wedding dress.
10:50For the first time
10:51in all these years,
10:52it wasn't Liam on my mind.
10:54I truly hated him.
10:55In just a few more hours,
10:57I would be wearing
10:57this wedding dress
10:58standing before another alpha.
11:00Nicholas,
11:01whom I had seen
11:01a few times
11:02at alliance meetings
11:03but had barely
11:03exchanged words with,
11:05and he sent a wig
11:06and a crown.
11:07Like it was nothing.
11:08I held the crown
11:09in my hands.
11:10Moonlight struck
11:11the diamond facets,
11:12scattering fine silver light
11:14looking exactly like
11:15the strands of my hair
11:16that had died
11:16on that carpet.
11:17The thread in my chest
11:19lay warm and quiet.
11:20Not burning,
11:21just warmth.
11:22The bedroom door
11:23was suddenly shoved open.
11:25Liam,
11:25behind him,
11:26Zoe.
11:27This time,
11:28he didn't bring anyone else.
11:29He saw me sitting there
11:30holding the crown
11:31in my hands.
11:32The crest engraved
11:33on that crown
11:33was the wolf head emblem
11:34of the Lycan family.
11:35His face drained of color
11:37in an instant.
11:38Now we're even.
11:44I looked at those marks.
11:46A wave of nauseous
11:47trumped into my stomach.
11:49That's Satche.
11:50You inhaled it
11:51and fell unconscious.
11:52She shrugged.
11:52The curve of her lips
11:53carried no guilt whatsoever.
11:54But for an alpha male
11:55to smell it,
11:56the reaction is
11:56completely different.
11:57Wolf bowed.
11:58Not some sleep, sir.
11:59A full dose
11:59knocks the she-wolf out cold,
12:01but the same out
12:01pushes a male alpha
12:02into a rut.
12:02This,
12:03I knew from the start.
12:04My hand froze.
12:05You knew.
12:06I looked into her eyes.
12:08You knew from
12:09the very beginning.
12:10Zoe met my gaze.
12:11She neither denied
12:11nor explained.
12:12In her eyes
12:13was only a raw,
12:14primal satisfaction
12:15of being marked by Liam.
12:16I was prepping your gear.
12:17Probably got some residue
12:18on my skin.
12:19Liam caught the scent.
12:20He lost control
12:20in front of me
12:21and went into a frenzy.
12:22Didn't even give me
12:23time to run.
12:24She recited the excuse
12:25word for word
12:26like a script
12:26she had memorized.
12:27So there it is.
12:28You lost your hair.
12:29I paid with my body.
12:31We're even.
12:31I understood.
12:32She knew about
12:33the dual effect
12:33of wolf fails
12:34from the start.
12:35That night was her design.
12:36Shave my hair
12:37then use the residual herb
12:38to trigger Liam.
12:39Two birds with one stone.
12:40Strip away my bloodline marker
12:41then use the mark
12:42to bind Liam to her for good.
12:43It wasn't an accident.
12:46Natalie,
12:47given what happened
12:48I need to give
12:49the pack an explanation.
12:51Tomorrow's marking ceremony
12:53let's postpone it for now.
12:54Postpone.
12:55Postpone again.
12:57I was 15 when he proposed.
13:00Now I'm 21.
13:02Six whole years.
13:04I had no more time
13:05to give him.
13:07I'm not postponing
13:08the ceremony.
13:10Natalie,
13:11do you have to be
13:12this impossible
13:13to reason with?
13:13Whether I'm easy
13:15to reason with or not,
13:18I'm putting on
13:19this wedding dress tomorrow.
13:20He stared at me
13:21for a long time.
13:22His gaze shifted
13:23from the wedding dress
13:24to the lion crown
13:25in my hands
13:25then to my bare scalp.
13:27Fine.
13:28Since you have no intention
13:29of being considerate
13:30towards Zoe
13:30all for a Luna title.
13:31He stopped at the door.
13:32Don't regret this.
13:33The door slammed shut
13:34behind him.
13:35I faced the mirror
13:36and put that wig on
13:38securing the crown
13:39piece by piece.
13:41The woman in the mirror
13:42wore the crown
13:43of the lion family
13:44and a pure white wedding grass.
13:48She was nobody's
13:49second choice.
13:50Early the next morning,
13:51I stood before the mirror
13:52and put on that wig.
13:53I secured the diamond crown
13:55piece by piece.
13:56The pure white wedding dress
13:58was elegant
13:58and magnificent.
14:00It was time.
14:02My mother held my arm
14:03as we walked out.
14:04The apartment building's
14:05front door swung open
14:06and I saw Liam.
14:07He was wearing
14:07an old leather jacket.
14:08Behind him were two
14:09mud-splashed pickup trucks
14:10idling by the curb.
14:11No stretch Lincoln.
14:13No wedding convoy.
14:13A few of his men
14:14slouched in the truck beds
14:15looking hungover.
14:16There wasn't even a single
14:17decorative white rose
14:18on the vehicles.
14:21Natalie.
14:23My mom said
14:23the ceremony was cancelled.
14:25The whole drive here
14:26I kept thinking
14:26you really weren't
14:27going to stay with me anymore.
14:28But now,
14:29seeing you dressed like this
14:30and coming out,
14:31I knew you changed your mind.
14:33I looked at those
14:34two beat-up pickup trucks.
14:35Is this how an alpha
14:36comes to claim his Luna?
14:37You're the one who insisted
14:38on holding the ceremony today.
14:40Considering Zoe's situation,
14:41I had to follow the protocol
14:42for accepting
14:43and unranked stray
14:44into the pack
14:44to pick you up.
14:45We'll hold a proper
14:46formal ceremony later
14:47once things settle down.
14:48Unranked stray.
14:50Handmade lace trail.
14:51The Lycan family crown.
14:52Six generations of
14:53Warwick she-wolf
14:54bloodline flowing through me.
14:56And he said,
14:57unranked stray.
14:58The last half inch
15:00of warmth in my heart
15:01went completely cold.
15:02I am Natalie Warwick
15:03and I am nobody's
15:05backup plan.
15:09Look closely
15:10at what I'm wearing.
15:11I'm not going anywhere
15:13to be someone's sideshow.
15:16I told you yesterday,
15:17I have to give Zoe
15:19an explanation.
15:20She holds the real power.
15:21You hold the title.
15:22It's perfectly reasonable.
15:23You didn't have time
15:24to prepare?
15:27I let out a cold laugh.
15:29Liam,
15:31you proposed to me
15:32when I was 15.
15:34Six years.
15:36Six whole years.
15:37Who exactly-
15:38You're still holding
15:39on to that?
15:42Can you just try for once
15:43to see the bigger picture?
15:44Zoe just came down
15:45from the territory.
15:45The situation is complicated.
15:47Come with me
15:47or you'll get everything
15:47you're owed.
15:48Do you really have to
15:48fight me on saving face
15:49right now?
15:50Liam instinctively
15:50turned sideways
15:51and reached for his gun.
15:52Heavy armored via back
15:52had just pickup truck gile
15:53and reached the scraping hall.
15:54Tire screamed against the asphalt.
15:55He snapped his head up.
15:56Those car doors slowly opened.
15:57Elite members
15:58in full tactical gear,
15:59wolf emblems
16:00of the Lycan pack
16:01engraved on their chest plates
16:02sealed off the entire street.
16:04The luxury car boy
16:05trailing behind
16:06stretched for several blocks.
16:08Helicopters hovered overhead.
16:10The whole street went quiet.
16:12An alpha scent
16:12carrying the raw edge
16:14of cedar and gunpowder
16:15brutally crushed its way
16:16through the entire street.
16:17It wasn't meant to soothe.
16:18It was pure physiological domination.
16:21Liam's wolf let out
16:21a whimper deep in his soul.
16:23At the very front of the convoy,
16:24the door opened.
16:25Nicholas stepped out of the car.
16:27Tailored pure black suit,
16:28golden eyes that held
16:29no warmth whatsoever
16:30in the morning light.
16:31He looked at Liam,
16:32looking down on him,
16:33only one sentence.
16:34My true mate,
16:36you think someone like you
16:37can treat her
16:38with such disrespect?
16:39His voice wasn't loud,
16:40like a razor blade
16:41slicing through the air.
16:43Do you have a death wish, Liam?
16:45Liam's face went utterly white.
16:47One spoke of an engagement.
16:49The other spoke of a faded bond.
16:51Even the words were different.
16:52For the first time in six years,
16:54I realized some things
16:55the moon goddess
16:56had chosen for me
16:57from the very beginning.
16:58I had only pretended not to hear.
17:00And now,
17:01someone had come
17:02to settle the score
17:02on my behalf.
17:03Every last debt
17:04collected one by one.
17:06Liam stood there,
17:07looking at me,
17:08then at Nicholas,
17:09who was radiating
17:10terrifying pressure.
17:12Natalie,
17:13what is going on here?
17:15Why is Nicholas saying
17:16you're his true mate?
17:17Because today is my bonding
17:18ceremony with him.
17:20I didn't look back.
17:21Liam,
17:22stop wasting my time.
17:23Footsteps chased
17:24after me from behind.
17:25Liam rushed forward,
17:26trying to grab my hand.
17:27An elite member's palm
17:28slammed into his chest,
17:29shoving him back.
17:30Liam's voice panicked.
17:30Why don't you say
17:31you have a mate vow
17:31with me first?
17:32The one you bond with
17:33can only me!
17:34How could you-
17:34I am Natalie Warwick,
17:36and I am nobody's
17:37backup plan.
17:38I turned around.
17:39Six years, Liam.
17:40I gave you six years
17:42to choose.
17:43Every single time
17:44you chose to make me wait.
17:45I'm done.
17:46With that,
17:47I turned and sat
17:48in the back seat
17:49of the Mayhach.
17:49The moment the car door closed,
17:51I saw Liam still frozen
17:52in place.
17:52Frozen.
17:52Lost.
17:53Nicholas stood beside the car,
17:54looking down at him.
17:55Liam,
17:56I'm genuinely curious.
17:57He pulled out a piece
17:57of heavy,
17:58textured letter paper.
17:59What made you think
17:59the silver wolf bloodline
18:00of the Warwick family,
18:01my life and family's
18:02true mate,
18:02would be willing to go
18:03to your pack
18:03and be an empty trophy?
18:05He unfolded the document.
18:06On the bottom left
18:07were pressed three
18:07bloodline signatures
18:08that could not be forged.
18:09The three founding families
18:10holding the highest seats
18:11in the North American
18:12Werewolf Alliance.
18:13Alliance ruling.
18:14Three weeks ago,
18:14I already submitted
18:15the application.
18:16This morning,
18:16the final arbitration
18:17was signed and filed
18:17across all of North America.
18:18Before sunset,
18:19this will be written
18:19into every single pack registry.
18:21In other words,
18:21the entire continent's
18:23wolf packs now know.
18:24You attempted to go against
18:25on the Alliance.
18:27Resolution of the
18:28three founding families.
18:29He withdrew the document,
18:31his eyes so cold
18:32they seemed to want
18:33to nail Liam to the floor.
18:34Rather, Liam,
18:35you should be at
18:36the Northern Border Defense
18:37guarding your post right now.
18:39What are you doing
18:40in Manhattan?
18:44He paused.
18:46No wonder you never received
18:48that emergency mate contract
18:50termination notice
18:51sent to the front lines.
18:54Natalie was planning
18:55to tell you in person yesterday
18:56that she was dissolving
18:58the chosen mate contract.
18:59And you hung a sleeping
19:00sashay over her bed
19:01and left
19:02without even giving her
19:03the chance
19:03to open her mouth.
19:05Abandoning your post
19:07without leave.
19:09Sneaking back
19:10into the core city
19:11right under
19:12the Alliance's nose.
19:14Nicholas tilted
19:15his head slightly.
19:16What do you think
19:17the Joint Alphas
19:18would make of this news?
19:20A misunderstanding
19:21or an insurrection
19:25requiring a purge?
19:27He turned
19:28and sat in the car
19:29giving orders
19:30into the comms unit.
19:31His voice was cold as ice.
19:33Convoy, move out.
19:34Going home.
19:36By the time
19:36the ceremony ended,
19:37the sky was already dark.
19:39The private estate
19:40was brilliantly lit.
19:41Wolfpack leaders
19:42and guests from all sides
19:44had gradually disperred.
19:45The master bedroom door
19:46was pushed open.
19:49In the mirror,
19:51the corner of his mouth
19:51curved into an arc
19:52gentler than any expression
19:54I had ever seen
19:55on his face.
19:56Liam is outside.
19:57He wants to see you.
19:59I looked at him
20:00through the mirror.
20:01I don't want to see him.
20:02Nicholas flashed me
20:03a tactical hand signal.
20:04Short.
20:05Sharp.
20:06The curve of his lips
20:07didn't fade.
20:08Do you want to see him now?
20:09He asked.
20:11I slowly nodded.
20:12Now I can see him.
20:14The basement.
20:15A reinforced room.
20:16Guards posted
20:17outside the door.
20:17When I walked in,
20:18there was a group of people
20:19standing in the room.
20:19Liam in the center.
20:20Those few interduccal members
20:21were there too.
20:22Zoe was there too.
20:23The moment that group saw me,
20:25the most submissive posture
20:26would a werewolf assume
20:27to show surrender.
20:29Luna!
20:30Please give Alpha Liam
20:31another chance.
20:32Luna, Alpha Liam
20:33does care about you.
20:35He talked about you
20:36every day in the territory,
20:37said he'd come back
20:38and marry you
20:38as soon as the war was over,
20:39said it for three years.
20:41Luna, you and Alpha Liam
20:42grew up together.
20:43All those years of history,
20:44you can't just...
20:45They scrambled over each other,
20:46listing all the ways
20:47Liam had been good to me.
20:49My heart felt nothing at all.
20:51Enough!
20:53Zoe suddenly spoke up.
20:54The only one among them
20:55who hasn't lowered her head.
20:57She stood there,
20:58chin held high.
20:59What are you begging for?
21:00What's so special about her?
21:01Zoe looked at me.
21:03A smirk pulled
21:03at the corner of her mouth.
21:04Natalie,
21:05I underestimated you.
21:07Yesterday you were here
21:08playing the victim
21:08and today you've lashed
21:09onto Nicholas.
21:10Playing the victim
21:10while grabbing benefits
21:11for yourself.
21:12I didn't think
21:13like a sheltered flower
21:14like you would be
21:14so calculating.
21:16I said nothing.
21:18Liam spoke up.
21:20That voice was so,
21:22so harsh.
21:23I had never heard
21:24anything like it from him.
21:25Zoe!
21:26Shut your mouth!
21:27Zoe froze.
21:29She turned her head
21:30to look at Liam.
21:31What did you say?
21:32Liam stared her down
21:33with deadly intensity.
21:34His golden Alpha eyes
21:36were bloodshot.
21:36I said shut your mouth.
21:38Bow your head.
21:39Zoe's face
21:40instantly flushed red.
21:42Liam,
21:42have you lost your mind?
21:44You're using Alpha command on me?
21:45You're making me
21:46bow my head to her?
21:48Liam roared,
21:49releasing his dominance.
21:50Bow your head!
21:52Zoe's knees buckled.
21:53Her neck finally dropped.
21:54The expression on her face
21:55was anger
21:56and even more so defiance.
21:57Liam,
21:58you're yelling
21:59at me
21:59for her?
22:00Who am I?
22:01I'm your second in command.
22:03She turned around
22:03and bonded with Nicholas
22:04just like that
22:05and you're making me
22:06bow to her?
22:07Liam ignored her completely.
22:08He turned his head
22:09to look at me.
22:09His eyes were red.
22:11His voice was shaking.
22:12Nate,
22:13I was wrong.
22:14I didn't respond.
22:15He moved closer,
22:16trying to touch me.
22:16I stepped back.
22:17I know I screwed up.
22:18The hair thing,
22:19those things I said,
22:20but Nate,
22:21Zoe did save my life.
22:22Up north,
22:23when I was nearly torn apart
22:24by feral wolves,
22:25Zoe dragged me
22:26out of the wreckage.
22:27She said she wanted
22:28to test your alertness
22:29and I just,
22:30I just didn't stop her.
22:32The inner circle members
22:33kept their heads down
22:34and chimed in.
22:35Luna,
22:36Zoe saved the Alpha.
22:38The Alpha owes her his life.
22:39He couldn't just slap her
22:40in the face.
22:41The Alpha has you
22:42in his heart.
22:42He just didn't know
22:43how to refuse Zoe.
22:44Liam spoke again.
22:45The pleading in his voice
22:46was almost overflowing.
22:47Nate,
22:48you can hit me,
22:49yell at me,
22:50anything.
22:51Just don't abandon me.
22:53I'm begging you.
22:54Please,
22:55don't leave.
22:56I pulled a small lockbox
22:57from my handbag,
22:58opened it.
22:59I tossed that herbal-scented
23:00zacho at his feet.
23:01Then why did you do this to me?
23:03Liam looked down
23:03at the sashes.
23:05He couldn't say another word.
23:08The day before yesterday,
23:10you came to my apartment.
23:11I wanted to tell you in person.
23:13I was dissolving
23:14our chosen mate contract.
23:16Six years.
23:17I was done waiting.
23:19I paused,
23:20but you didn't let me finish.
23:21You just hung this sanchion
23:23over my bed,
23:24said something about it
23:25being the best thing for sleep,
23:26told me to rest well.
23:28Then you left.
23:29You didn't even leave me
23:30the chance to open my mouth.
23:32Liam's face went pale.
23:33Nate,
23:34I really didn't know Zoe would-
23:35Didn't know.
23:36I cut him off.
23:37You knew exactly
23:37the kind of person Zoe is.
23:39You knew she was waiting
23:39in the hallway.
23:40You knew she turned
23:41your indulgence
23:41into her hunting ground.
23:42You just never asked,
23:43because if you asked,
23:44you'd have to make a choice,
23:45and you were never willing
23:45to choose for me.
23:46I looked down
23:47at the satches at my feet.
23:48Liam,
23:49my voice was calm,
23:51like I was recounting
23:52in an old story
23:52from a long time ago.
23:54You told me it was
23:55moonflower
23:55from the Scottish Highlands
23:56inside there.
23:57The best thing for sleep.
23:58I raised my head
23:59and looked directly
24:00into his eyes.
24:01But it was wolf bone.
24:03You knew that.
24:04You hung it there yourself.
24:06Liam's lips moved.
24:08No sound came out.
24:09You said you didn't know
24:10what Zoe was going to do.
24:12But Liam,
24:13what was inside that satcha,
24:15you knew perfectly well.
24:16You just chose not to ask
24:17what would happen next.
24:19Because if you asked,
24:21you'd have to stop her.
24:22And you never,
24:23ever intended to stop her.
24:25The basement went silent.
24:26Even the sound of breathing
24:27seemed to stop.
24:28Liam knelt on the floor.
24:29Sweat slid down
24:30the side of his face.
24:31His mouth opened.
24:31Those defensive words
24:32rolled around on his teeth.
24:34And in the end,
24:34they crumbled into a puff of air
24:35that was nothing at all.
24:36He didn't deny it.
24:37That was the final answer.
24:39Nicholas walked in.
24:40No suit jacket.
24:41The sleeves of his white dress shirt
24:43were rolled up to his forearms.
24:44His collar was open two buttons,
24:46revealing the edge
24:47of an old scar.
24:48Those golden eyes
24:49burned in the basement.
24:50He didn't look at anyone.
24:52He looked at me.
24:53In that single glance
24:54was no question,
24:56no hesitation,
24:57only the silent confirmation
24:58that exists between true mates.
25:00Are you okay?
25:02What else do you need me to do?
25:04Then he turned
25:05and faced the room
25:05full of people.
25:07He didn't say a single word.
25:09He simply released
25:10his alpha horror.
25:11That force rolled over
25:13every corner of the room
25:14like a black tidal wave.
25:16No one could raise their head.
25:17No one could breathe.
25:19The inner circle members
25:20lay sprawled on the floor
25:21like prey
25:21with their throats seized.
25:23Even their groans
25:24were crushed in their throats.
25:25Zoe's knees
25:26slammed heavily
25:27onto the stone floor,
25:28the crisp sound
25:29of bone hitting rock.
25:30Liam was still standing.
25:31Every muscle in his body
25:33was sphezzling.
25:34Veins bulged
25:35on his forehead.
25:36His jaw was clenched
25:37so tight,
25:38it creaked.
25:39He was resisting,
25:40using that third-rate
25:41alpha bloodline of his
25:42to resist Nicholas's dominance.
25:44Nicholas looked at him,
25:45like looking at a bug
25:47still twitching its legs.
25:51Kneel.
25:52His voice was calm.
25:53No roar.
25:54No threat.
25:55Just two words.
25:56Alpha command,
25:57the most primal,
25:58most unbreakable
25:58physiological domination
25:59of a higher-ranking alpha
26:01over a lower-ranking werewolf.
26:02Liam's knees shattered.
26:04The bones of both legs
26:05dislocated under the weight
26:06of that command.
26:06A dull,
26:07muffled snap.
26:08Liam collapsed to his knees,
26:10like a puppet
26:10whose strings had been cut.
26:12His knees hit the stone,
26:13blood seeped through
26:14his pant legs.
26:15He let out
26:15a piercing wolf howl.
26:18It was no longer
26:19a human sound,
26:20it was the wimp
26:20of a beast being subdued.
26:22The people in the room
26:23trembled on the floor
26:24in a heap.
26:25Nicholas stood before them,
26:26one hand casually
26:28tucked into his pants pocket.
26:29All of you,
26:31raise your heads.
26:32The necks of those people
26:33were yanked up
26:34as if by invisible threads,
26:35forced to lift their faces.
26:37Their eyes were filled
26:38with pure terror.
26:39Take a good look
26:39at your handiwork.
26:40Look clearly at her face.
26:42Remember this face.
26:43Remember this basement.
26:44Remember what you did
26:45to a she-wolf.
26:46Because from today on,
26:47you won't have the chance
26:48to forget.
26:50Zoe knelt on the ground,
26:51trembling all over.
26:53Her lips quivered,
26:54trying to say something,
26:55but no sound came out.
26:57Nicholas's gaze
26:58landed on her.
26:59Without a single
27:00extra movement,
27:00he just precisely crushed
27:02his alpha aura down on her,
27:03like a giant palm
27:04pressing down on Zoe's spine.
27:06Zoe's entire body
27:07was sent flying sideways,
27:08smashing heavily
27:09against the cold stone wall.
27:15That sound was
27:16no longer arrogance,
27:17no longer promotion.
27:18It was the expression
27:19she had never worn
27:20on her lace before.
27:21Absolute fear.
27:24Zoe Miller.
27:25His voice was neither loud
27:27nor soft,
27:27like he was confirming
27:28a name on a file.
27:29Former second in command
27:30of the northern 7th defense line
27:32absent without leave.
27:32Deliberate use of wolfsbane,
27:34pre-meditated assault
27:35and destruction
27:36of bloodline mark
27:37against the lunar
27:38of the Lycan family.
27:39I won't kill you.
27:40A pause.
27:41Not because your combat record
27:42deserves respect.
27:43It's because dying
27:44would be too easy for you.
27:45Zoe's pupils
27:46violently contracted.
27:47She opened her mouth,
27:48wanting to say something.
27:49No sound came out.
27:51Her lips were trembling.
27:52Not from cold,
27:53not from pain,
27:54but from the primal terror
27:55of an apex predator
27:56finally catching up
27:57with her mind.
27:58The terror carved
27:58into the bones
27:59of every werewolf.
28:00Nicholas didn't look
28:01at her again.
28:02He turned to those
28:02few inner sunny members
28:03still spalled on the ground.
28:05As for the rest of you...
28:06Those people were completely
28:07terrified out of their minds.
28:08Alpha, Span...
28:09Whales echoed
28:10through the basement.
28:10We were just following orders.
28:12We didn't know
28:13what Zoe was going to do
28:14to the Luna.
28:15We swear we didn't know.
28:18You laughed.
28:19His voice was light
28:20as a snowflake
28:21landing on a blade's edge.
28:22The night she was stripped
28:24of her bloodline marker
28:25in that apartment.
28:26After Zoe finished her speech,
28:29you laughed.
28:30Every single wolf laughed.
28:32Those people trembled violently.
28:34If someone humiliated
28:35your Luna right in front of you
28:36and you laughed,
28:39what do you think
28:40I should do with you?
28:41He didn't wait
28:42for their answer.
28:43The bonds...
28:44severed simultaneously.
28:46A chorus of whales
28:48erupted in the basement.
28:49Some thrashed desperately.
28:51Some reached out
28:52trying to grab the hem
28:53of my dress.
28:54Some slammed
28:55played their foreheads
28:56against the floor
28:57until they bled.
28:58It was useless.
28:59The speed of the bond severance
29:00was as precise
29:01as a surgical procedure.
29:02One by one,
29:03they collapsed on the floor.
29:04Selding spawning mammoth.
29:05Golden pupils faded
29:06into murky gray.
29:07Elite warriors
29:08who had once followed Liam
29:09into battle
29:09on the northern battlefields
29:11now turned into
29:11a pack of strays
29:12sprawl on the ground.
29:13They didn't even have
29:14the strength to stand.
29:15The basement fell silent.
29:16Only the ragged breathing
29:17of Liam sprawled on the floor.
29:19The faint pulse of Zoe,
29:20still unconscious.
29:22But it wasn't over.
29:24Nicholas turned around
29:26and gave a single nod
29:27to the enforcers
29:28at the door.
29:30The branding iron.
29:31Two armored elites
29:33stepped inside.
29:34They were carrying
29:35a portable silver furnace.
29:37Inside the furnace
29:38burned the shorthand
29:39of a silver branding iron.
29:40The iron glowed
29:41white hot in the coals,
29:42emitting a blinding
29:44silver light
29:44in the dim basement.
29:46Silver was lethal
29:47to werewolves.
29:48Contact with skin
29:49caused burns
29:50that could never heal
29:51on their own.
29:52The scars would remain
29:53on the body forever.
29:55Like a shame
29:56that would never fade.
29:57The enforcers
29:59moved toward Zoe.
30:00She was already unconscious.
30:02But the moment
30:03the searing silver branding iron
30:04touched her neck,
30:05she still let out
30:07a piercing scream.
30:08That sound
30:09tore through the basement,
30:10tore through the estate,
30:11echoing long
30:12into the night.
30:13The iron was lifted.
30:14A palm-sized scar
30:15was left on her neck.
30:16A broken wolf head,
30:17the mark of a rogue.
30:18In the world of wolves,
30:20this means,
30:20this person has been expelled
30:21from all packs.
30:22Any werewolf who sees her
30:23has the right to attack her.
30:25Any werewolf who shelters her
30:26shares her crime.
30:27True fear finally appeared
30:29in Liam's eyes.
30:30He scrambled backward
30:31with his shattered legs.
30:32Broken sounds
30:33escaped his mouth.
30:35No, no, not that!
30:37The enforcers
30:38didn't look at him.
30:39They simply carried out
30:40the order.
30:41A second iron fell.
30:44Liam's howl shattered
30:45into sobs in his throat.
30:47Then the inner circle members,
30:48one by one,
30:49the iron fell.
30:50The stench of burning flesh
30:52permeated the entire basement.
30:53Wailing, pleading,
30:54the sizzle of silver-searing skin
30:56all blended into one.
30:57It was over.
30:58I stood in the corner of the room
30:59and watched it all in silence.
31:00I didn't open my mouth
31:01to plead for anyone.
31:02They didn't deserve execution.
31:04That would be too easy.
31:05They should live.
31:06Live as the lowest form
31:08of existence.
31:09Waking up every morning
31:10and remembering
31:11in that silver scar
31:12that would never heal
31:13exactly who they were.
31:14A discarded wolf.
31:16The fringes of any pack
31:17would be their fate.
31:19Expulsion by any werewolf
31:20would be their daily life.
31:22Death was release.
31:24I didn't intend
31:25to give them release.
31:26Nicholas turned around
31:27and looked at me.
31:28In those golden pupils,
31:29that overwhelming killing
31:30inversed was slowly receding,
31:32replaced by a quiet inquiry
31:33meant only for a mate.
31:35He mouthed two words to me
31:36without making a sound,
31:37but I read them clearly.
31:39Enough?
31:39I nodded.
31:40He reached out,
31:41gently picked up the wig
31:42I had taken off
31:43and left lying on the table
31:44and placed it back
31:44into my hands.
31:45His fingertips
31:46didn't touch my scalp.
31:47Let's go.
31:48Leave this to the enforcers
31:49to clean up.
31:50I didn't look back.
31:51Every step walking
31:52out of that basement
31:52with the stone steps
31:53beneath my feet
31:54ground the past six years
31:55into the powder.
31:55Left behind.
31:57No longer belonged to me.
31:59By the time we returned
32:00to the main hall,
32:02Alexander's figure
32:03had already disappeared
32:04down the estate corridor.
32:06He really was here tonight.
32:08Nicholas had told me
32:09using tactical hand symbols
32:10in the car,
32:11he came as a witness
32:11to bear witness
32:12to a high-ranking bonding
32:13registered with the Alliance.
32:15One of the three
32:16founding family heads
32:17of the North American Alliance,
32:18Alexander Koval.
32:20But in the end,
32:21Nicholas didn't let him
32:22enter that basement.
32:26This is my personal matter.
32:29I don't need anyone else
32:30to adjudicate for me.
32:32I looked at him.
32:33You could have let
32:34Alexander handle it for you.
32:37That would have been
32:37too clean.
32:39He pulled his cuffs down,
32:41covering that old scar.
32:42His tone was casual.
32:44Some debts.
32:45You need to settle
32:46with your own hands.
32:48He turned and walked
32:50into the night.
32:51I watched his back
32:53for a long, long time.
32:56Over the next few days,
32:57the estate gates
32:58remained tightly shut.
32:59Liam's family sent people
33:00to plead with me
33:01several times.
33:02I didn't see any of them.
33:03This day,
33:03I was on the terrace
33:04basking in the sun.
33:05The maid came to report
33:06that Liam's mother
33:06was waiting outside
33:07the estate's
33:08warrant iron gate
33:08and refused to leave.
33:10I got up and went
33:11to the gate.
33:11Liam's mother stood
33:12on the stone steps.
33:13Her hair was disheveled.
33:14Her eyes were red and swollen.
33:16Seeing me come out,
33:17she crawled forward
33:17on her hands and knees
33:18and prostrated herself
33:19at my feet.
33:20Luna, please.
33:21You grew up with him.
33:22You know his true nature.
33:24When you were kids,
33:25he always saved
33:25the best prey for you.
33:27That was real.
33:27You can't say
33:28none of that counted.
33:29I looked down at her.
33:30I haven't forgotten.
33:32But I also haven't forgotten
33:34he knew full well
33:35Zoe was waiting
33:36in the hallway
33:36and he still hung
33:37that sashy over my bed,
33:39closed the door,
33:40and left
33:40without leaving me
33:42a single word's worth
33:43of time.
33:43Liam's mother froze.
33:45I also haven't forgotten
33:46what he said
33:47when he told me
33:48I'd enter his family
33:49as an unranked stray.
33:51Her face turned ashen.
33:53Madam,
33:54we're done here.
33:55The tears poured
33:56from Liam's mother's eyes again.
33:57But Natalie,
33:59he does care about you.
34:00He was just blinded by Zoe.
34:01It was a judgment
34:02personally handed down
34:03by Nicholas.
34:04No one can change it.
34:05I took a step back,
34:06pulling the hem of my dress
34:07out of her grasp.
34:08Don't let the gate
34:08hit you on the way out.
34:09I turned and walked
34:10back into the estate.
34:12Liam's mother's cries
34:13came from behind me.
34:14I didn't care anymore.
34:16The estate's wart iron gate
34:17slowly closed behind me.
34:19Those cries would never
34:20reach inside again.
34:21That night,
34:22Nicholas came
34:23to my bedroom.
34:24He sat across from me,
34:26watching me remove
34:27the lace wig,
34:28revealing my scalp,
34:29now covered with
34:30a layer of short,
34:31dark stubble.
34:33You're quite unfazed.
34:35I touched my scalp,
34:36smiled a little.
34:38It'll grow back eventually.
34:40I've always been curious.
34:41Nicholas' tone
34:42carried a casual probing.
34:43How did you become
34:44completely dead set
34:45against Liam overnight?
34:47My hand paused.
34:48I thought I'd have to wait
34:50for you a lot longer.
34:51He continued.
34:52I turned around
34:53to look at him.
34:54Wait,
34:55what do you mean
34:55longer?
34:56There was no trace
34:57of a joke
34:58in his golden eyes.
34:59It means
35:01my wolf claimed you
35:02a long time ago.
35:04I couldn't speak.
35:06Do you remember
35:07your awakening ceremony
35:08when you were 15?
35:09I blinked.
35:10That day,
35:11your scent rushed
35:12into my senses.
35:13My wolf roared
35:14the same word
35:15over and over
35:15in my mind,
35:16mate.
35:17I knew.
35:18That was the soul bond
35:19the moon goddess
35:20personally tied for us.
35:22A self-dificated curve
35:23tugged at the corner
35:24of his mouth
35:25but his golden pupils
35:27were startlingly dark.
35:29But the very next day
35:30Liam proposed
35:31a chosen mate contract
35:32to you
35:32and you said yes.
35:34True mate.
35:35Not chosen.
35:36Not pledged.
35:37Not a choice
35:38that could be taken back.
35:40A knot the moon goddess
35:41tied between his soul
35:42and mine
35:42with a thread
35:43I couldn't see.
35:45Tied tight
35:45since I was 15 years old.
35:47He knew.
35:49He had always known.
35:50and he waited
35:51six years
35:53not because
35:54he didn't want me
35:56because he respected
35:57my right
35:58to choose
35:58the wrong person
35:59for myself.
36:01You have no idea
36:02how much strength
36:02it took me
36:03to force down
36:03the wolf inside me
36:05that wanted
36:06to tear his throat out.
36:08You waited for him
36:09in New York
36:09for three years
36:10and then three more.
36:11As the alpha
36:12of the Lycan family
36:13I could have leveled
36:13the Northern Territory
36:14and take you by force.
36:16But the one thing
36:17I could never trample on
36:18was the free will
36:18the moon goddess
36:19granted you.
36:21I thought you loved him.
36:23Until a few days ago
36:24when Alexander
36:25relayed to me
36:25that you intended
36:26to dissolve the contract.
36:27Nicholas smiled
36:28with a fervent
36:29that had been suppressed
36:30for six years
36:31finally tearing
36:32through the disguise.
36:33In that moment
36:34I knew
36:35no need to wait
36:36any longer.
36:37The moon goddess
36:38returned my luna to me.
36:40The night I got the news
36:42I shifted into wolf form
36:43in the forest orde
36:44and ran for an entire night.
36:45I opened my mouth
36:46so if I had never
36:48seen clearly
36:49if I had insisted
36:50on binding myself
36:51to Liam
36:53wouldn't you have
36:53just waited for nothing?
36:56Then I would have
36:56just leveled his territory
36:57and taken you anyway.
36:58I choked on his words
36:59you're impossible.
37:00He laughed.
37:01His eyes crinkled
37:02with a wild grin.
37:03My pack strength
37:04is God knows
37:04how many times greater
37:05than his pathetic
37:05little territory.
37:06Stealing a mate?
37:07Was Alexander gonna
37:08blow my head off
37:09with a silver bullet?
37:09I shot him a helpless look.
37:11Nicholas put away his smile
37:12looked at me
37:12his gaze was steady.
37:14Natalie
37:14no one will ever
37:15make you wait again.
37:16He reached out
37:16and touched my short
37:17bristly hair
37:17with extreme gentleness.
37:19His fingertips
37:19carried the scorching heat
37:20unique to the lichen bloodline
37:22but the pressure
37:22on my scalp
37:23felt like touching a berry
37:24freshly picked from a branch
37:25still wrapped in morning dew.
37:27This is more proof
37:28of your strength
37:29than any silver hair
37:30could ever be.
37:31He pulled a blood-stained
37:32wolf fang from his pocket
37:33and gently placed it
37:34in my palm.
37:34The enamel of the fang
37:35was cold.
37:36The dried blood
37:36was a dark rusty color.
37:38This is the fang
37:39of the enemy leader
37:39who killed my uncle.
37:40I kept it to remind myself
37:41what hatred and strength are.
37:43His fingers lifted
37:43the back of my hand
37:44folding my curled nubbles together
37:46wrapping the wolf hail
37:46inside my palm.
37:47Now I'm giving it to you.
37:49His golden pupils
37:49contracted slightly
37:50under the lamplight
37:51reflecting my bald head.
37:52Because you taught me
37:53what is more powerful
37:54than hatred.
37:55Outside the window
37:55the roses his mother
37:56had planted
37:57with her own hands
37:58swayed gently
37:59in the night breeze.
38:00I looked down
38:01at the wolf fang
38:01in my palm.
38:02The bloodstains
38:03touched my fingerprints.
38:05Those dried traces of blood
38:07had once been
38:08one person's hatred
38:10and now
38:10they had become
38:11another person's promise.
38:14I raised my head
38:16and looked at him.
38:17Nicholas stood before me
38:18his golden pupils
38:19reflecting the image
38:20of my bald head.
38:21The smile still
38:22languid at the corner
38:23of his mouth
38:23but the depths
38:24of his eyes
38:25were serious.
38:26He had long since
38:27grown into a forest
38:28within my heart
38:29one that could never
38:30be shaken again.
38:31From that night on
38:32every lamp in the estate
38:33was lit for me.
38:35A photo of me
38:36appeared on his study desk
38:37not the silver-haired girl
38:39from the awakening ceremony.
38:40It was a bold woman
38:41with calm eyes.
38:43He said that one
38:44was better.
38:46I asked him why.
38:48Because this one
38:49you chose for yourself.
38:52Some strength
38:53doesn't need long hair
38:54to prove it.
38:57I strung the wolf fang
38:58onto a chain
38:59and wore it
39:00close to my chest.
39:02Not as a warning
39:03as a token.
39:05The silver hair
39:06grew back slowly
39:07over the following months.
39:08Still a moonlit silver.
39:10Still flowing
39:11with the power
39:12of the Warwick bloodline.
39:13But this time
39:14when I extended
39:14my senses
39:15and reached out
39:15the window
39:16that sensory domain
39:17once sealed solid
39:18with cement
39:18was flowing again.
39:20Clearer than before.
39:21Reaching further.
39:22I could even sense
39:23the lost heartbeat
39:24of a stray pup
39:24crossing Central Park
39:25two blocks away.
39:26I was a little stunned.
39:27Nicholas walked
39:28into the study
39:28and saw me spacing out.
39:30What's wrong?
39:31He asked.
39:32I thought after
39:33it was shaved off
39:34even if it grew back
39:35the senses wouldn't return.
39:37He sat down
39:38beside me.
39:39The silver hair
39:40is a vessel
39:41but what fills
39:42that vessel
39:43is your own.
39:44Zoe shaved off
39:45your vessel
39:45but no one
39:47can shave away
39:47your power.
39:48It was always there
39:49it just temporarily
39:51couldn't find
39:52an outlet.
39:53I looked at him.
39:55You knew all along
39:56it would grow back.
39:58I've always known.
39:59He shrugged dismissively.
40:01That look on his face
40:02made me want to laugh.
40:03The Alliance
40:04sent several inquiries
40:05about the follow-up
40:05to the exile of Liam
40:06and his former subordinates.
40:08Nicholas replied
40:09with only one line
40:10handled per the code.
40:12He didn't say
40:12another word about it.
40:13Zoe was reportedly
40:14sighted by someone
40:15on the western border.
40:16The silver scar
40:17on her neck
40:18made it impossible
40:18for her to stay
40:19in any pack
40:20for more than three days.
40:22She never came
40:22looking for me.
40:24Probably knew
40:24it was useless.
40:25Liam's mother
40:26still occasionally
40:27had letters delivered.
40:28Each letter
40:29was shorter
40:30than the last.
40:31The final one
40:32had only one line.
40:33On the old
40:34northern battlefield
40:34he wowed it
40:35all night long alone.
40:36I folded the letter
40:38and placed it
40:38in the deepest part
40:40of a drawer.
40:42No reply.
40:44Some wounds
40:45no apology can heal.
40:46When winter came
40:47all the roses
40:48on the back hill
40:49of the estate bloomed.
40:50Nicholas said
40:51his mother planted them
40:52when she was alive.
40:53They hadn't bloomed
40:53in decades.
40:55This year
40:56for some unknown reason
40:57they all bloomed overnight.
40:58I stood among the flowers.
41:00by newly grown
41:01silver hair
41:02had it already
41:02reaches the waist.
41:04Moonlight spilled
41:05over it
41:05flowing with living silver.
41:07Nicholas walked up
41:08from behind
41:09and draped a wool shog
41:10over my shoulders.
41:11Cold?
41:12I shook my head.
41:13He rested his chin
41:14on the top of my head
41:15and stood there
41:16quietly for a long time.
41:18There's one thing
41:19I've never asked you.
41:20He suddenly spoke.
41:22What?
41:23That morning.
41:25The moment you sent
41:26that signal along
41:27the truemate bond.
41:28Were you afraid?
41:30I thought about it.
41:33I was.
41:35Afraid you wouldn't respond.
41:36He turned me around
41:37and looked at me.
41:38His golden pupils
41:39were so gentle
41:40under the moonlight
41:41that they didn't belong
41:42to an alpha.
41:43I would never not respond.
41:45He said,
41:46I waited six years.
41:47Wait another six,
41:48wait another sixty.
41:49As long as you call,
41:50I will always answer.
41:51I looked at him
41:52and smiled.
41:53The wind blew in
41:54from the back hill.
41:55The roses
41:56all across the garden
41:57swayed gently
41:58under the moonlight.
41:59Those flowers
42:00were white as snow.
42:02White as my silver hair.
42:03White as everything
42:04that starts over
42:05from the beginning.
42:06I placed my hand
42:06in his palm.
42:08Let's go home.
42:10He squeezed
42:11and raised my hand
42:12tightly.
42:12Okay.
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