Aria's POV
The meeting hall door stood before us like a mouth ready to swallow me whole.
Behind it was Drake. The man who'd destroyed me in front of everyone. The man who'd called my feelings pathetic.
And apparently, the man who'd risked his life to warn me about something.
You don't have to do this, Kade said quietly. His hand rested on the small of my back protective, steady. Say the word and I'll send him away.
Part of me wanted to run. But I needed answers more than I needed safety.
I have to know what he wants.
Kade nodded and pushed open the door.
Drake stood in the center of the room, flanked by two of Kade's warriors. He looked terrible his clothes torn, a bruise darkening his jaw, his eyes haunted.
When he saw me, relief flooded his face. Aria. Thank god you're alive.
The sound of my name on his lips made anger flash through me. Don't.
I know you hate me
I don't hate you. My voice was cold. I nothing you. Just like you nothing me, remember?
Drake flinched like I'd hit him. I deserve that. I deserve worse. But that's not why I'm here. He looked at Kade. Alpha Marcus is planning something. Something terrible.
Kade's voice was ice. You have thirty seconds to explain why I shouldn't throw you off my territory.
Because he's going to kill her. Drake's eyes found mine. Marcus isn't your uncle, Aria. He's your father's younger brother
I know, I interrupted. Kade already told me about my parents. About who they really were.
Drake's eyes widened. Then you know you're in danger. Marcus has been looking for you since the ceremony. When he realized you'd run, he went crazy. He's gathering allies, building an army
An army? Kade stepped forward. For one girl?
For a Lycan. Drake's hands clenched into fists. He knows what she is. He's always known. The suppression spell was his idea.
My blood turned cold. What spell?
Drake looked at me with something like pity. You were never wolfless, Aria. Marcus hired a dark witch twenty-three years ago. She cast a spell on you when you were a babya spell to hide your Lycan abilities until your twenty-third birthday.
The room spun. Why?
Because he needed you weak. Broken. Easy to control. Drake's voice cracked. My father was there that night. He helped Marcus kill your parents and cast the spell. Before he died last year, he confessed everything to me. That's why I... that's why I was nice to you all those years. I was supposed to watch you. Report to Marcus if you showed any signs of power.
Betrayal cut through me fresh and sharp. So it really was all a lie.
At first, yes. Drake took a step toward me but stopped when Kade growled. But then I got to know you. You were kind when everyone was cruel. Strong when anyone else would have broken. I started to care, Aria. Really care.
Then why? My voice broke. Why humiliate me like that?
Because Marcus found out. Drake's eyes were wet. He found out I actually cared about you. He threatened to kill my mother and sisters if I didn't publicly reject you. He wanted you completely destroyed before the spell broke. He said if you had any hope left, any reason to fight, you'd be dangerous when you awakened.
Kade's hand found mine. And the ceremony? The spell breaking?
Was supposed to happen during the full moon, where Marcus could control it. Drake shook his head. But something went wrong. The spell didn't break at the ceremony. It broke later, when Aria was alone. Marcus is furious. He doesn't have her under his control.
Why are you telling us this? Kade demanded.
Because what he did to Aria's parents Drake's voice dropped to a whisper. He's planning to do to her. The Council summit in five days? Marcus petitioned for it. He's going to demand Aria be returned to Crimson Moon Pack for 'protection.' And if the Council refuses, he's going to take her by force.
Silence fell like a stone.
There's more, Drake said. The witch who cast the original spell? Morgana. She's still alive. And she wants Aria's blood for something. A ritual. Marcus is working with her.
My knees went weak. Kade's arm went around my waist immediately.
Get out, Kade said to Drake. You've delivered your warning.
Aria, I'm sorry. Drake's voice was desperate. For everything. I know you can't forgive me. But please believe me be careful. Trust no one from Crimson Moon. Marcus will stop at nothing to get you back.
The warriors escorted Drake out.
The moment the door closed, my legs gave out. Kade caught me and guided me to a chair.
Breathe, he said gently.
I couldn't. Everything was closing in. Marcus had always known. He'd killed my parents. Suppressed my powers. Made me his slave. And now he was coming to finish what he started.
Hey. Kade knelt in front of me, his hands on my knees. Look at me.
I forced myself to meet his amber eyes.
You're not alone anymore, he said. Marcus wants a war? He'll get one. But he won't get you. I promise.
You barely know me.
I know enough. His thumb traced circles on my knee. And the mate bond doesn't lie.
Felix appeared in the doorway. Alpha, the Council's official summons just arrived. Five days. Neutral territory. All major Alphas required to attend.
Kade stood. Then we have five days to make Aria untouchable. He looked at me. Can you walk?
I nodded and stood on shaky legs.
Good. He headed for the door. We start training now.
The training clearing was surrounded by tall trees. Empty except for us.
First lesson, Kade said. Call your Lycan. Consciously this time.
I don't know how.
Close your eyes.
I did.
Reach inside yourself. Past the fear, past the doubt. Your Lycan is there. She's part of you. She's been waiting for twenty-three years to be free.
I searched inside myself, tentatively at first. Then I felt it a presence. Wild. Powerful. Angry at being caged for so long.
I feel something, I whispered.
Good. Now call to her. Tell her you're ready.
I reached for that presence. I'm sorry you were locked away. But I need you now. Please.
Pain exploded through my body.
My bones began to crack and reshape. It hurt, but less than before. This time, I knew what was happening.
Silver light poured from my skin as fur erupted across my body. My spine arched. My senses sharpened.
When the transformation finished, I opened my eyes.
The world looked different in Lycan form. Sharper. More alive.
Kade had shifted too a massive black wolf with those amber eyes. He was huge, but I was bigger.
You're magnificent, his voice said in my mind.
I could hear him in my head?
Mate bond, he explained. We can communicate when we shift.
He spent the next hour teaching me to move, to control my new body. By the time we shifted back to human form, I was exhausted but exhilarated.
You're a natural, Kade said, helping me stay upright.
I'm exhausted.
First shifts always are. He guided me back toward the packhouse. Rest tonight. We train again tomorrow.
That night, I fell asleep the moment my head hit the pillow.
But sleep brought nightmares.
I was five years old again, hiding behind my mother's legs. The house was burning. Smoke filled my lungs.
My father stood in front of us, facing someone.
Please, Marcus, my father begged. She's just a child. Your own niece
She's an abomination. That voice. I knew that voice. Alpha Marcus. Lycans are too powerful. Too dangerous. They all have to die.
Then kill me, my father said. But let Seraphina and Aria go.
Marcus smiled. No.
He raised a knife.
My mother screamed and pushed me into a closet. Don't come out, Aria. No matter what you hear. Don't come out.
Through a crack in the door, I watched Marcus stab my father. Watched my mother try to fight. Watched a dark-haired woman the witch raise her hands and chant.
My mother fell.
The witch walked toward the closet. Toward me.
The child, she said. Where is the child?
The closet door opened
I woke up screaming.
Kade burst through my bedroom door. Aria!
I remember, I gasped. I remember everything. Marcus killed them. I saw it. I was there.
Kade sat on the bed and pulled me into his arms.
And the witch, I said against his chest. Morgana. She was looking for me. She wanted to kill me too. But my mother hid me.
You're safe now, Kade murmured.
But I wasn't safe. Because I'd seen something else in that memory. Something that made my blood run cold.
The witch Morgana had looked directly at the closet where I was hiding.
She'd known I was there.
She'd let me live.
Why?