Mira's POV
We ran through the night until my lungs felt like they were on fire.
Ash led the way with twenty of his soldiers surrounding us—massive wolves moving silently through the darkness. Elias stayed close to my side, his brown eyes constantly scanning for threats.
"How much farther?" I gasped, stumbling over a tree root.
"We're crossing the border now," Ash called back. "Into werewolf territory. Stay close and don't wander off. There are things in these woods worse than cursed wolves."
Great. That was exactly what I needed to hear.
The forest changed as we crossed some invisible line. The trees grew taller, darker. The air felt heavier, charged with magic that made my birthmark pulse faster. And I could hear sounds—howls, growls, whispers that seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere.
"Welcome to our world," Elias said quietly. "Not quite what you expected?"
"I didn't expect any of this." I touched my glowing birthmark through my torn coat. "Yesterday I was a normal person with a bad sleeping problem. Today I'm being hunted by a crazy witch and running through a magical forest with werewolves."
"Normal is overrated anyway."
Despite everything, I almost smiled. Elias had a way of making terrifying situations feel less scary. Maybe it was his sarcastic humor, or maybe it was just nice to have someone my age who didn't treat me like a fragile weapon.
"So what's your story?" I asked, needing the distraction. "Ash said you were running from your problems."
Elias's expression darkened. "My pack wanted me to mate with an Alpha female I didn't love. Arranged marriage for political alliance—sound familiar? I refused and left. Been wandering ever since."
"Don't you miss having a pack? A home?"
"Every day." He looked at me. "But I'd rather be alone and free than stuck in a life someone else chose for me. I figured you'd understand that better than anyone."
I did. My whole existence had been chosen by someone else—Morgana creating me, Elena trying to save me, Kieran falling in love with me through dreams. I'd never had a say in any of it.
Until now.
"We're here," Ash announced.
I looked up and stopped breathing.
Bloodmoon Keep rose from the forest like something out of a dark fairytale. Massive stone walls covered in ivy. Towers that pierced the night sky. And everywhere—absolutely everywhere—wolves. Dozens of them, patrolling the walls and grounds, their eyes glowing in the darkness.
"This is where Kieran ruled from?" I whispered.
"Before the curse, yes." Ash shifted to human form, and I quickly looked away as his soldiers did the same. Right—werewolves didn't care about nudity when shifting. I'd need to get used to that. "Drake has been managing things in his absence, but the Keep still belongs to King Kieran."
We approached the main gates. Guards stared at me with open suspicion.
"Commander Ash," one called down. "Who is the human?"
"None of your concern. Open the gates."
"But Drake said no humans allowed—"
"I don't take orders from Drake," Ash said coldly. "I take them from my king. Open. The. Gates."
The gates opened.
We walked through into a courtyard filled with more wolves than I could count. All of them stopped and stared. I felt their eyes on me—curious, hostile, confused.
"They can smell the curse on you," Elias murmured. "And they're trying to figure out what you are."
"What do I smell like to them?"
"Like the Alpha King and dark magic mixed together. It's... unsettling."
A beautiful woman with long black hair stepped out of the Keep. She moved like a predator, graceful and deadly, and when her eyes landed on me, they filled with hatred.
"What is this?" she demanded, her voice dripping with disgust.
"Lady Vivian," Ash said formally. "This doesn't concern you."
"A human in Bloodmoon Keep doesn't concern me?" Vivian stalked closer, and I resisted the urge to back away. "I'm second in command under Drake. Everything that happens here concerns me."
"Since when does Drake have a second in command?" Elias asked. "Last I checked, he was just keeping the throne warm for Kieran."
Vivian's smile was cruel. "Things change. Kieran has been gone seven years. Some of us have accepted he's never coming back."
"He will come back," I said before I could stop myself. "I'm going to make sure of it."
Every wolf in the courtyard went silent.
Vivian's eyes narrowed. "And who are you to make such promises, little human?"
My birthmark burned hot. I pulled down my collar, showing the glowing crescent moon. "I'm Mira Ashford. And I'm the Bloodbane."
Gasps rippled through the crowd. Wolves shifted nervously. And Vivian's face went pale.
"No," she whispered. "You can't be. The Bloodbane is supposed to be a weapon, not some scrawny human girl—"
"She broke three curses with a touch," Ash interrupted. "She can see magical bindings. And she's connected to King Kieran through the dreams. She's exactly what the prophecy described."
"Then she needs to die," Vivian said flatly. "Before she destroys us all."
She shifted into a massive black wolf and lunged at me.
I threw up my hands—and silver light exploded outward.
But this time it was different. Stronger. The light didn't just push Vivian back. It wrapped around her like chains and froze her in mid-air.
Everyone stared.
I stared at my glowing hands, shocked. "I didn't... I don't know how I did that."
"Bloodbane magic," Ash said quietly. "It's awakening faster than we expected. We need to get her to the archives. Now."
But before anyone could move, a smooth voice called out from the Keep's entrance.
"Well, well. The Bloodbane has finally arrived."
A man stepped into the courtyard—handsome, with blonde hair and green eyes that seemed friendly but felt wrong. He smiled at me like we were old friends.
"Welcome to Bloodmoon Keep, Mira," he said. "I'm Drake Wolfsbane, beta to King Kieran and acting ruler in his absence. We've been expecting you."
Every instinct screamed that this man was dangerous.
This was the man who murdered Selene. Who framed Kieran. Who wanted me dead or controlled.
"Thank you," I said carefully, releasing my hold on Vivian. She dropped to the ground and shifted back to human, glaring at me with pure hatred. "I'm here to access the archives. Commander Ash said there are records about—"
"About Bloodbane magic and curse-breaking? Yes, I know." Drake's smile widened. "I've been studying those records for years, hoping the Bloodbane would appear. I want to help you save our king, Mira. We all do."
Lies. I could feel them even without my Curse Sight.
"Then show me the archives," I said.
"Of course. Right this way." Drake gestured toward the Keep. "Though I should warn you—the records are quite clear about the curse's requirements. There are only two ways it can end. Either you sacrifice yourself willingly to break it, saving Kieran but dying in the process..." He paused. "Or you refuse the sacrifice, Kieran dies permanently, and Morgana absorbs all the released power."
"Ash said there might be a third option."
Drake's friendly expression didn't change, but something flickered in his eyes. "Ash is grasping at hope that doesn't exist. There is no third option, Mira. Only those two endings. You should accept that now and decide which one you can live with."
He turned and walked toward the Keep.
Elias leaned close. "Don't trust him. Not for a second."
"I won't."
But as we followed Drake into Bloodmoon Keep, my birthmark suddenly flared with agonizing heat.
I gasped and grabbed my shoulder. Images flooded my mind—visions I didn't understand.
Kieran in his wolf form, chained in a dark forest clearing. Morgana standing over him, chanting. And something else. Something terrible.
The curse was accelerating.
"Two days," I heard Morgana's voice whisper in my mind. "You have two days now, Bloodbane. I've moved up the blood moon. Two days until you choose, or everyone burns."
The vision faded, leaving me dizzy and terrified.
"What's wrong?" Ash demanded.
"She changed it," I gasped. "Morgana moved the ritual forward. We don't have three days anymore. We have two."
Drake turned back, and for just a moment, I saw satisfaction in his eyes before he hid it.
"Then we'd better work fast," he said smoothly. "Follow me to the archives. Let's see if we can find a miracle in the next forty-eight hours."
As we walked deeper into the Keep, I felt the weight of dozens of wolves watching me.
Some looked hopeful.
Some looked scared.
And some—like Vivian, who followed behind with murder in her eyes—looked like they wanted me dead before I could make any choice at all.
The archives door loomed ahead, promising answers.
But all I could think about was Kieran, alone and chained, suffering while I ran around trying to find a way to save him.
And the horrible question I couldn't escape:
What if there really was no third option?
What if the only way to save him was to die?