Moonbound Lies

The wind howled across the barren stretch of land where the forest met the craggy hills, carrying the sharp, coppery scent of blood. Aria Wynn kept her cloak tight around her slender frame, eyes scanning the dark woods ahead. The borderlands were no place for a woman alone, especially not one with a secret.

She moved quickly, her worn boots kicking up dry leaves as she darted toward a crude shelter of moss and branches hidden beneath a fallen oak. Inside, a rogue wolf lay shivering on a bed of old pelts. His matted fur was thick with blood, a jagged wound running along his flank.

"You stubborn fool," she murmured, kneeling beside him. Her hands, small and pale, glowed faintly as she pressed them against the injury. The wolf whimpered, then relaxed as warmth seeped through him, knitting the torn flesh back together.

It wasn't the first rogue she'd treated in secret. The others called her a traitor, a danger to her kind. Healers weren't meant to help outlaws. But Aria had never cared for rules written by men who never bled for what they believed in.

A crack of a branch snapped her from concentration. Her head jerked up, and she grabbed the hilt of the dagger strapped to her thigh.

"Easy," a low voice murmured from the shadows. A figure stepped forward, a tall man, broad-shouldered, with a hood drawn low over his face. But it wasn't his size or the faint scent of wolf clinging to him that made Aria's pulse quicken. It was the silver insignia glinting on his chest: a half-moon entwined with a serpent.

A Moon Priest.

She kept her hand on the dagger. "You've got no business here."

"I could say the same," he replied. "You're healing rogues. That's treason, girl."

She lifted her chin. "They're people. War or no war, I won't leave them to die like animals."

The man's gaze didn't waver. "Then you're braver than most. Or more foolish."

"What do you want?"

He stepped closer, enough that she could see a jagged scar running from his temple to his jaw. His voice lowered, the weight of his words curling around her like the encroaching fog. "You need to leave. Now. The border packs are moving. War's coming, whether you believe it or not."

Aria's stomach clenched. She'd heard rumors, whispers from dying rogues about power-hungry alphas gathering armies. But the border had always held. It had to.

"Why warn me?"

"Because when the fighting starts, no one spares healers. And because..." He hesitated. "Because there's one more you need to save."

Without another word, the man vanished into the trees, his scent fading like mist on a cold morning.

Aria's hands trembled as she returned to the wounded wolf. The rogue's breathing had evened out, his pain dulled. She packed her herbs, hoisted her satchel over one shoulder, and turned toward the forest's heart.

If there was one more out there, she'd find him.

The night deepened as Aria moved through the undergrowth, senses sharp. The ancient woods were alive with sounds , the soft hoot of an owl, the rustle of unseen creatures. But something else tugged at her, a strange pull she couldn't name.

It wasn't long before she found him.

Half-submerged in a shallow creek, blood darkening the water, lay a wolf unlike any she'd ever seen. Massive, his fur pitch-black except for a silver streak down his spine. Even in his animal form, the power radiating from him was undeniable. His breathing was shallow, each rise of his chest a struggle.

Aria dropped to her knees beside him. "Moon above..."

His body was torn with wounds , deep gashes along his ribs, a brutal slash across his neck. No ordinary wolf survived injuries like these. Which meant he wasn't ordinary.

She brushed wet hair from her face, focusing. Her magic flared to life, casting a pale glow around them. The light revealed something that made her heart skip: a mark branded on his foreleg. A crest of a black moor encircled by twin moons.

Her stomach turned cold.

The Blackmoor Pack.

And not just any wolf. She'd seen his face once, years ago during a distant council gathering. Kade Varyn, Alpha of the Blackmoor, known across the territories for his ferocity in battle and his ruthless grip over his lands.

What was he doing here, alone, broken and bleeding on the border?

Aria hesitated. Every instinct screamed to walk away. Alphas didn't thank healers for kindness. They took what they wanted and crushed anything in their path. But even as the thought surfaced, the memory of her mother's voice rose stronger.

"Every life is worth saving, Aria. Even the ones the world tells you to abandon."

Damn it.

She laid a hand on his side. The energy thrummed under her skin, fighting her, as if his body rejected the touch of magic itself. He groaned low in his throat, his wolf's amber eyes flickering open to meet hers.

For a heartbeat, the world stilled.

Then he spoke, voice rough and broken.

"Help... me."

Aria swallowed hard. "Hold on, Alpha. I'm not done with you yet."

And she wasn't.