He looked down at the lifeless wolf, his expression grim. "We can’t ignore this," he said quietly. "Even if it’s a trap."
He lifted the body carefully, his movents respectful, and carried him past the barrier. One of the soldiers approached imdiately, and Damon issued calm, firm orders for a proper burial, one befitting of werewolves.
When he turned back to , he cupped my face gently, forcing to et his gaze. His eyes were serious, heavy with understanding and sothing darker beneath it. We both knew what this ant.
War was no longer approaching. It was already here.
"We’re going to the Silver Moon pack," he said softly. "We’ll bring your family here where they’ll be safe."
My stomach twisted violently at the ntion of them, bile rising in my throat as old wounds throbbed painfully. But I nodded, swallowing it all down because this was bigger than my feelings.
Within minutes, Damon was already issuing orders, assembling warriors, and calling for witches who could assist. The pack moved with practiced efficiency, tension thick in the air.
I took a deep breath and stepped forward, raising my hand as magic gathered around once more. Without hesitation, I opened a portal to the Silver Moon pack, its glow reflecting the storm brewing inside my chest.
Whatever waited for us on the other side, I knew one thing for certain, there was no turning back now.
..
The mont we stepped foot into the Silver Moon pack, the sounds hit like a physical blow.
Whimpers echoed from every direction, sharp and desperate, mixing with feral growls and anguished cries that clawed at my ears.
The air was thick with the scent of blood and fear, so familiar that it made my chest tighten painfully. Flas burned at the edges of a few buildings, smoke curling into the night sky as shadows darted between trees and collapsed buildings.
The Silver Moon pack was already under attack.
Damon did not hesitate for even a second. The mont his feet touched the ground, he let out a thunderous roar that shook the earth beneath us.
His warriors surged forward around him, shifting mid-run, bones cracking and fur bursting through skin as they charged straight into the chaos. Claws t flesh, snarls collided with screams, and the forest turned into a battlefield soaked in violence.
I remained by the portal, my feet rooted to the ground as I stared at the place I once called ho.
This was where I had grown up. These woods, these paths, these walls had witnessed every mont of my childhood, and not a single one of them had been kind.
The mories ca rushing back without rcy, the cold rooms, the starvation, the constant fear, the suffocating weight of being unwanted and disposable. What should have been a place of comfort and safety had been nothing more than hell to .
A hollow ache spread through my chest.
A part of wanted to turn away and let the rogues burn this place to the ground. Let everything crumble the way I once had. Let the pack that had broken taste even a fraction of the pain they had inflicted.
But another part of refused to look away from the innocent faces darting through the chaos. Children crying for their parents, and ogas trying desperately to shield each other.
I clenched my fists tightly at my sides, my nails digging into my palms.
This place was not my ho. But the people bleeding here did not deserve to die without any help.
I shut my eyes, breathing in deeply as I forced myself to steady the storm raging inside . When I opened them again, everything inside went cold and still. The pain, the anger, the mories were pushed aside, sealed away behind walls I had learned to build long ago.
My fingers flicked outward.
The ground trembled violently as thick vines burst from beneath the soil, snapping upward with deadly precision. They pierced through the rogues’ bodies without rcy, dragging them down and crushing them before they could even scream.
More vines followed, coiling around the rogue’s limbs and throats, slamming them into trees and tearing them apart as if they were nothing more than weeds.
I lifted my hand higher, magic surging through as I cast a wide protective barrier around the pack. The invisible shield shimred briefly before settling into place, blocking incoming attacks and giving the Silver Moon wolves space to regroup.
The battle raged on fiercely, but it did not last long after that.
Between Damon and his warriors tearing through the rogues and my magic cutting off their escape, the invaders were quickly overwheld. One by one, their bodies hit the ground, lifeless, until the territory finally fell silent once more.
Heavy breathing filled the air, mingling with the crackle of dying flas and the soft sobs of survivors.
That was when I saw him.
Alpha Caelen lay on the ground near the main hall, blood soaking into the dirt beneath him. His once imposing form looked smaller now, fragile in a way I had never seen before. Witches knelt beside him, hands glowing as they worked frantically to stabilize his injuries.
I stood at a distance, unmoving. After hearing everything my mother had told , after learning the truth about the choices he had made, sothing inside had snapped.
The respect I once tried to force myself to feel for him had turned into sothing bitter and ugly. Watching him fight for his life did not bring relief, nor did it bring satisfaction.
It only reminded of how much damage one man’s decisions could cause.
Sebastian and Evelyn remained by his side, their faces pale and strained with worry. They hovered close, refusing to leave even as the witches ordered them back repeatedly. Seeing them stirred sothing complicated inside , a tangle of emotions I was not ready to face.
Then Maddie appeared. ’Speak of the devil.’
She walked toward with deliberate steps, her chin lifted high as if this were still her territory. Her three mates followed closely behind her, each wearing the sa calculating expression as they eyed from head to toe.
I felt their gazes like needles against my skin.
Maddie stopped a few steps away from , her lips curling slightly as her eyes swept over my blood-stained clothes and glowing magic. The silence between us stretched thick and heavy, loaded with unspoken history and resentnt.
I simply stood there, calm and unyielding, eting her stare without flinching, knowing that whatever ca next would not be simple, and that returning to this place ant reopening wounds that had never truly healed.
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