Chapter 1 The Night Everything Burned

The night reeked of blood and smoke.

Aria Nightshade stood at the edge of the clearing, her breath caught in her throat as flames licked the midnight sky. The air was thick with ash, screams, and the acrid scent of burning wood. Her once-peaceful pack - the Mooncrest - was under siege, torn apart by chaos she couldn't yet understand.

Only minutes ago, the world had been still. She'd gone to the river to fetch water for her mother, barefoot and half-dreaming of the stars, of stories whispered among the she-wolves about fated mates and moonlit runs. It was the harvest moon tonight-a sacred time. It was supposed to be a celebration.

Instead, it was a massacre.

The alarm howl had shattered the silence. Aria had dropped the water bucket, heart leaping into her throat as the echoes bounced through the trees. She had run, faster than ever before, branches slashing at her arms and legs. By the time she reached the edge of the village, it was already too late.

Now, she clung to a tree, watching her home being ripped apart.

Warriors from the Darkfang Pack stormed through the village, their armor dark as night, their movements ruthless and precise. She recognized none of them, except one-a towering figure moving through the smoke like death incarnate.

Alpha Kael Thorn.

The name alone brought chills to her spine. Her father had warned her of him, calling him a tyrant with a cursed soul. Stories told of the blood he spilled, of his pack's expansion across the western territories. No one had dared to challenge him until now.

Mooncrest had refused his alliance. Her father, the Beta, had said they would not kneel.

And this-this was their punishment.

"Mother," Aria whispered, her voice barely audible over the roar of flames. Her throat tightened as a high-pitched scream pierced the air. A child? A woman?

She couldn't stay hidden.

Her legs moved before her mind could stop them, sprinting into the heart of the village. The heat of the fires closed in around her. Smoke burned her lungs.

She found her house partially collapsed; the roof caved in, and the door ripped from its hinges. Inside, it was eerily quiet. She stumbled through the broken threshold, coughing.

"Mother? Father?" she cried, voice cracking.

There was no answer. Just the soft crackling of flames eating at the wood.

She made her way to the kitchen. Her mother's favorite shawl lay abandoned on the floor, blood smeared across the fabric. Her father's sword lay snapped in half by the fireplace.

They were gone.

Tears blurred her vision. Her wolf whined within her, restless and furious. She dropped to her knees and screamed-a raw, broken sound swallowed by the destruction around her.

Then came the footsteps.

Heavy. Measured. Drawing closer.

Aria rose slowly, her fists clenched. Her heart pounded so loudly she could hear little else.

He stepped through the doorway as if he owned it. Tall, broad-shouldered, his black armor glinting with firelight. His silver eyes scanned the room until they landed on her.

Alpha Kael.

Aria had seen him once, from afar, during a gathering of allied packs years ago. He had been younger then, not yet fully Alpha. But even then, he had radiated danger.

Now, that danger stood before her in flesh and blood.

"The Beta's daughter," he said, his voice low, rough like gravel.

She didn't reply.

He took a step closer. "You should have run further."

She backed away, breath coming fast. "Kill me, then. Like the rest."

Kael tilted his head slightly, studying her. There was something strange in his eyes now. Confusion? No-something else.

He inhaled sharply. And froze.

His expression shifted from curiosity to disbelief. Then to something far more dangerous.

Possession.

"No," he said under his breath. "It can't be."

Aria frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Kael stepped forward and she tried to run, but he was faster. His hand shot out, grabbing her wrist. His skin burned against hers, sending a jolt through her entire body.

Then came the heat.

It wasn't from the fire.

It was from within.

A strange pull surged through her chest, a magnetic force that made her legs weak. Her wolf stirred, confused and alert.

Kael yanked down the collar of her tunic, revealing the soft curve of her neck. He stared at it like he expected to see something.

"You're my mate," he growled, more to himself than to her.

Aria's eyes widened in horror. "No. No, that's not possible. I'd never-"

He didn't give her time to finish.

He pulled her to him, mouth at her neck and bit.

The pain was blinding. She screamed as fire surged through her veins. Her knees gave out, and the world tilted. Her body convulsed, the mark burning into her skin like molten steel.

And then-nothing.

---

When she woke, the world was quiet.

She blinked at the dim light flickering above her. Stone walls. Straw mattress. Iron bars.

A prison.

She sat up slowly, her head pounding. Her fingers flew to her neck. The skin was tender, raised-a fresh mating mark.

Her stomach turned.

Panic surged. She scrambled to her feet and grabbed the bars, shaking them.

"Let me out!" she screamed. "Cowards! Bastards! Let me out!"

The sound of footsteps echoed beyond the stone corridor. Slow. Deliberate.

He appeared a moment later, just as she remembered-tall, powerful, eyes glowing like the moon.

Kael Thorn.

"You should rest," he said calmly.

Aria threw herself against the bars. "You bastard! You marked me!"

"I did," he said. "You're mine."

"I'm not yours. I will never be yours."

He raised a brow. "That's not what the bond says."

She snarled the fury in her chest, unlike anything she'd ever known.

He studied her for a long moment, then turned away. "You'll understand, soon enough."

And then he was gone.

Aria slid to the floor, shaking, tears brimming in her eyes.

Her home was gone. Her parents were dead. She was a prisoner.

And worse than all of that-

She was the mate of the enemy Alpha