تسجيل الدخولKAELI sat across from Elder Thorne, neither of us speaking as we sized each other up. His face showed no emotion as he stared straight into my eyes, the only resemblance between him and Selene.I schooled my features to hide the turmoil Maya's rejection had caused. I had almost not attended the meeting because I was heartbroken, but I was the Lycan Leader, and my position didn't care about my emotions.Finally, I broke the silence."Everyone out," I ordered the room. "Leave us."Caius immediately leaned towards me, whispering into my ears, "Alpha, I don't think you should be alone with him. He could have weapons, or who knows what other schemes he has up his sleeves.""It's fine, Caius," I murmured without taking my eyes off Elder Thorne. "It's fine," I repeated firmly. "Go."He hesitated for another second before leaving the room, he and the warriors that came with Elder Thorne.I leaned forward once the room emptied, leaving just me and Elder Thorne. "Is this really about me not ke
MAYAI woke up feeling oddly refreshed. For the first time in a long while, I'd had a dreamless sleep; no nightmares about Finn, no visions of the Dark One, just peaceful darkness.When I opened my eyes, I saw Terra brewing something at the small table by the window; the familiar scent of herbs filled the room."You're awake?" she asked, noticing my movement.I nodded and slipped out of bed, moving to the window. I was in Kael's bedroom, the Alpha suite on the top floor of the pack house. Outside, everything looked peaceful. Birds chirped in the nearby trees, pack members went about their morning routines, and there was no sign of chaos or battle. The attack from Silvermere hadn't started yet.That should be a good thing. But I had this strange feeling that something was hanging over us, looming in the darkness, waiting to strike, like a fearful premonition. I didn't know what this meant, and I never anticipated that Silvermere would suddenly turn against us.Did it have something to
KAEL"What?" I stared at him, confused. "The Obsidian Throne is our pack's leadership seat. It has nothing to do with Silvermere."He shook his head, a bitter smile playing on his lips. "You know so little of our true history, Kael. The Obsidian Throne wasn't always ours. It was governed by a Lycan from Silvermere, particularly from Thorne's family. In those days, the Throne would choose its successor, and it was always from Silvermere, until my great-grandfather…well, removed by many generations, though, discovered the secret behind the Obsidian Throne's selection.""Secret?" I stared at my grandfather, confused. "What other secret, other than the powers of it, are controlled by the Moon Goddess?"He laughed. "Rules, laws are for werewolves, Kael. A lot of Lycans do not care so much about the Moon Goddess. We love the celebration, of course, but we won't go out of our way for her.""So, the Obsidian Throne doesn't have powers like you all claim?""It does," my grandfather sighed. "Th
KAEL"How many are there?" Maya asked, and I could see her brain running in motion, already thinking of strategies."Nearly their entire fighting force, about three hundred warriors. They've set up fortified positions all along the border," I replied."And our response?""I've mobilised our defence units, but I've ordered them not to engage unless attacked," I explained. "I'm hoping to resolve this diplomatically first. I've sent a messenger requesting a meeting with Elder Thorne at dawn."She nodded. "Good. We need to understand their motivation before we fight. This isn't like the Silvermere Pack; we have a common enemy; we should be fighting Xander side by side, not fighting each other, and I refuse to believe that Elder Thorne, with all his sensibility, would pick a fight because you refused to marry his daughter."Elder Thorne is a very shrewd man. He would never do anything if he thought he would lose. There must be a reason for this," I agreed thoughtfully. "Something significa
MAYAThe door burst open suddenly as Caius rushed in. Though his face remained carefully blank, I knew immediately that something was wrong. He approached Kael directly, bending to whisper in his ear.I watched Kael's expression, searching for any reaction, but he maintained perfect control. He nodded once before Caius straightened and left the room as quickly as he'd arrived."What was that about?" I asked, concerned."It's fine," Kael replied, suddenly gathering the maps on the table and forgetting about the tears he had seen in my eyes. "It's nothing to worry about. I'll take care of it.""Kael—""You need rest," he said, cutting me off gently. "Let me take you back to the pack house.""Don't do that with me, Kael," I said with a deep sigh. "I know Caius didn't come bearing good news. Just tell me what the problem is; I swear, I won't act on my own volition. I need to know.""Baby," he said quietly, looking into my eyes directly. "It's nothing to worry about, I promise."I wanted t
MAYAKael stared at me for a few seconds. The news of Tobias finally waking up was certainly the last thing he was expecting to hear."Are you sure?" he asked in a whisper. "The healer said he wasn't responding to any treatment and we should prepare for the worst.""Well," I shrugged, "Good thing you have me. I know how much Tobias means to you; sometimes I wonder if you love him more than me. Bottom line, I was able to heal him; it was a nasty poison, but I took care of it. He's fine and resting now."He stared at me again as if his brain was still processing my words. "Tobias is… healed?""Yes," I confirmed again, still a tad surprised at what I'd done. "The poison is gone. He's resting now, but he'll make a full recovery."For a moment, Kael didn't move or speak, and then he scoffed, lowering his head until it was almost touching my lap."I thought—" His voice broke. He ran a hand over his face, trying to hide the sudden wave of emotion that passed through him. "I thought I was goi







