로그인The old Alpha King sat back against the heavy carved throne in the Citadel council chamber and signaled for his Beta aide, Darius Mercer. "Find out what happened during his journey across the territory," Cedric Bennett commanded, his deep voice carrying the weight of decades of absolute dominance. "A sudden refusal to claim his promised mate means something shifted out there."Eleanor Bennett reached over and rested her hand on the Alpha King’s arm, her scent spikes betraying her anxiety. "Lucien will be furious if he senses you tracking his movements. His wolf is already aggressive enough with the succession council pushing him. Speak with him again before you send hunters to trail him."Darius Mercer bowed his head respectfully. "The Alpha King is right, my Lord. Master Lucien’s temper is volatile right now."Cedric’s expression darkened into a granite glare. "With a temper like his, do you think a gentle talk changes anything? He can challenge me on pack policy, but he will not jeo
"Mommy, why are we packing our bags?" Kieran asks, his small hands clutching his stuffed wolf toy tightly as he stands in the center of our cramped living room."We are visiting a safer place for a few days, sweetheart," I lie through my tight throat, tossing our spare clothes into a battered leather duffel.My heart hammers a violent rhythm against my ribs."Is it because of that bad wolf who tried to take me?" Kieran demands, his dark eyes flashing with stubborn fury that reminds me entirely too much of the man who spawned him."Nobody is taking you anywhere," my mother, Martha Holloway, snaps as she hurries into the room with a stack of preserved rations and a bottle of wolfsbane tonic. "Freya, are you out of your mind? The Bennett Alpha Dominion guards are already patrolling the edge of our human sector!""I saw them from the window," I whisper, my fingers trembling as I zip the duffel bag shut. "Lucien is not going to leave us alone after what happened at the peacekeeper station.
"What do you mean Kieran was captured by the peacekeepers?!" I shouted into the communicator, my broad human shoulders tensing as I clutched the desk, my heavy body trembling with instant panic."A dominant male tried to haul him off in a dark moon chariot," the peacekeeper replied through the crackling speaker. "The boy raised an alarm in the middle of the trade district. Come to the central sanctuary station immediately, Ms. Holloway."My blood ran cold, fear flooding my chest as I grabbed my tunic to cover my full curves, sprinting out of the Bennett Alpha Dominion Hall design wing.Twenty minutes later, I burst through the double doors of the peacekeeper sanctuary, my heart hammering against my ribs. Sitting on a wooden bench was Kieran, looking completely unbothered while sipping sweet berry juice. Locked in iron restraints across the stone room, radiating pure, suffocating Alpha aura, was Lucien Bennett."Kieran!" I rushed across the floor, my wide hips brushing against the benc
"What do you mean my son is at the peacekeeper station?!" I gripped my desk, my heavy human frame rigid with instant terror."A man tried to haul him off in his moon chariot," the peacekeeper said over the receiver. "The boy screamed for help in the middle of the trade district. Come down to the central sanctuary station immediately, Ms. Holloway."My blood went ice-cold. I dropped the communicator, grabbed my coat to hide my full curves, and sprinted out of the design suite.Ten minutes later, I slammed open the doors to the central peacekeeper sanctuary. Sitting on a high wooden bench was Kieran, calmly sipping a cup of sweet berry juice. Standing near the iron cell bars, looking ready to murder every guard in the room, was Lucien Bennett."Kieran!" I rushed across the stone floor, my broad hips knocking against a desk as I threw my arms around my son, burying my face in his neck. "Are you hurt? Did he touch you?""I am fine, Mommy," Kieran whispered, his tiny arms hugging my neck.
"I'll watch him, Freya," Hazel whispered quickly, pulling Kieran toward the back desk. "Go on before the Beta loses his temper."I picked up the heavy bundle of whiteLuna silk, my blood running cold and hot all at once. I walked past Tristan without looking at him, my heavy boots thudding softly against the cold flagstones of the central corridor.The heavy double doors of the Alpha King's Chamber were propped open. As I approached, the high, sweet sound of a woman's laughter echoed out into the hallway, followed by a low, rumbling growl that made every nerve in my body snap to violent attention."You're pressing too hard, Lucien," Rowan Ashcroft purred from inside the room. "The pack elders will see the marks on my neck during the sacred vowing.""Let them look," Lucien Bennett's deep, rough voice echoed back, thick with possessive Alpha authority. "They know who owns you now."I stopped right at the threshold, the air suddenly torn from my lungs.Rowan was sitting on the edge of the
"Mommy, can I go to work with you?" Kieran asked, his small golden eyes fixed on mine as I straightened the silver collar of my tunic.I paused, looking down at my five-year-old son standing in the hallway of our small stone cottage. He wore his heavy wool coat, his dark curly hair falling over a forehead that looked far too much like the Alpha King who had abandoned us."No, Kieran," I said softly, crouching down so my heavy frame was eye-level with him. "The sanctuary design office is full of sharp tools and heavy fabrics today. I need to finish the formal garments for the visiting Alpha delegates.""I won't touch anything, Mommy," Kieran insisted, his small jaw setting in that stubborn, rigid line I knew all too well. "Grandma is taking Freya Jr. to the herbal market. I want to see where you draw.""Let the boy go with you, Freya," my mother, Martha Holloway, said as she walked out of the kitchen, wiping her thin, scarred hands on a kitchen rag. "He spends all day reading those thi







