✦ Chapter 14 ✦
Vynn's golden eyes were fixed on the practice dummy a few feet ahead, its carved wooden surface riddled with old scars from her arrows. Her long white hair was pulled into a severe knot high on her head, exposing the sharp lines of her jaw — a face sculpted with the same precision as a blade.
Female Alphas were as rare as winter lightning, and though her power was unquestioned, her gender was the first thing people saw. The first reason they dismissed her. Looked down at her.
That single thought split through her chest like a crack.
The next arrow flew with venomous force.
It struck the dummy dead center — right through the carved eye. The impact made the servant beside her flinch, shoulders jerking as the wood groaned under the blow.
"Your Highness…" the girl whispered, voice thin, trembling. She could see it — the tension coiling through Vynn like a beast with no leash. This was the worst possible moment.
"What?" Vynn snapped, not bothering to look at her. She notched another arrow to the bowstring, golden eyes burning with cold fury.
The servant inhaled slowly, forcing her voice to steady. She knew exactly how Vynn felt about weakness — stuttering, crying, cowardice. She'd seen servants dismissed, humiliated, sometimes worse.
"King Silvermoon has already chosen the next pack leader," the girl said.
Vynn lowered her bow.
Turned.
Her golden eyes narrowed, sharp and dangerous beneath the harsh sunlight. Her lips, pale rose, pressed into a thin, brittle line.
"He chose Alpha Lucien," the servant finished, her eyes squeezing shut as though bracing for an unseen blow.
She didn't see the bow hit the ground.
But she heard it — a violent crash that echoed through the garden, followed by a growl so deep it made the air vibrate.
When she dared to look, Vynn's eyes were glowing brighter — gold bleeding toward a molten orange. Her wolf ears twitched upward through her hair, fur bursting along the edges.
She was seconds away from shifting.
The servant stumbled back in terror.
Before Vynn could lose control, a calm voice drifted down from the canopy of trees above them.
"And ripping your servant apart — exactly how would that help you?"
Vynn's head snapped upward, a snarl caught between her teeth.
A woman crouched on a thick branch, long black hair spilling around her like ink poured over snow. Her skin was pale, luminous even in the shade, and her emerald eyes shimmered beneath thick, dark lashes.
She wasn't beautiful.
She was devastating.
A creature carved from myth.
Vynn's breath stalled in her chest — just for a moment — before anger kicked the air out of her again.
"What the hell do you want?" she barked, voice rough with barely restrained rage.
The woman only smiled.
She dropped from the branch with impossible grace and walked toward Vynn, her steps slow, deliberate, as though approaching a wild beast she already knew she could tame. Up close she towered over Vynn by several inches, her presence unsettlingly calm.
"I felt your anger from the other side of the grounds," she said softly, each word sliding forward like silk. She stepped closer.
Vynn stepped back.
"And I want to help."
Vynn's eyes narrowed, her irritation sharpening. "Who said I need your help?"
The woman's smile deepened — not mocking, but intrigued. Her pale fingers lifted, and dark smoke curled from her fingertips, swirling lazily like ink drifting through water.
"I don't help out of pity," she murmured. "I help because I enjoy collecting favors."
Vynn stared — eyes widening — unable to look away from the smoke. It pulsed, dark and alive.
"You're a witch," Vynn whispered.
The woman's eyes glittered. "Correct."
She stepped back and turned her hand, letting the smoke expand. "I see everything. Weaknesses. Fears. Desires. If you want to defeat your enemy, let me assist you."
The smoke swelled, growing into a thick black cloud behind her. With a snap of her fingers, it twisted and shifted — forming an image.
A boy with white hair stood in the castle gardens, violet eyes soft as he studied a tulip in his hands. Quiet. Fragile.
Elian.
Vynn froze.
"That irritating little beta…" she muttered under her breath, jaw tightening.
The witch's voice cut through her thoughts like a knife.
"And your enemy's most particular weakness… is him."
The servant gasped, hand flying to her mouth — only to freeze when Vynn turned a glare sharp enough to slice flesh in her direction.
The witch continued, unconcerned.
"If you determine whether that small creature is an omega or a beta in truth," she said, smoky shadows coiling around her wrist, "you can crush your enemy with very little effort."
A small pouch of shimmering powder materialized in her palm. She held it out, smiling sweetly at the shock widening Vynn's eyes.
"Give him this. In three or four hours, he will enter an intense rut… uncontrollable. He will mate with the first omega he sees."
Vynn stared at the pouch — then her lips curled slowly into a dangerous smirk. She snatched it from the witch's hand, grip tight.
"What do you gain from this?" she asked.
The witch leaned in, her breath cool against Vynn's ear.
"Your brother."
And with that, she dissolved into smoke.
Leaving the garden colder than before.
The servant still stood frozen, shaking, staring at the ground as though afraid to look up again.
Vynn brushed past her.
"Go find Lucien," she said, voice suddenly calm. Too calm. "Tell him to meet me in the library. And if he refuses…" Her smile widened, sharp as a knife. "Tell him I know that Father's new omega… is his little beta's mother."
She didn't wait for a response.
Vynn strode into the castle, white hair swaying behind her like a trail of cold fire.
✦ End Of Chapter ✦