The branches clawed at my hoodie as I sprinted through the dark forest, gasping for breath.
Behind me, the howls of the rogues grew louder — savage, bloodthirsty, closer.
"Keep running, Sienna," I told myself. "Don't stop. Don't look back."
The night air burned my lungs. My legs were heavy from exhaustion.
I stumbled over a hidden root but caught myself just in time.
Somewhere deep inside me, my wolf whimpered — weak, frightened, nearly silent.
She was no help. She hadn't been for a long time.
Another howl shattered the night, closer now — so close I could almost feel hot breath on my neck.
I pushed harder.
The trees thinned. I didn't think — I just ran through the break, desperate for escape.
A deep growl rumbled ahead of me.
I skidded to a stop.
Too late.
From the shadows, a dozen dark figures emerged, cutting off my path. Their eyes gleamed under the moonlight. Uniforms. Symbols stitched into black jackets.
Not rogues.
Worse.
Dark Ash Pack.
Their warriors formed a wall in front of me, weapons drawn, eyes cold.
Trapped.
I spun around — but the rogues had caught up. They snarled and snapped at the border, too afraid to cross onto pack land.
One of the Dark Ash warriors stepped forward, heavy chains in hand.
"No—" I gasped, backing away.
"Seize her," he commanded.
Before I could move, two soldiers grabbed my arms. I kicked and fought, but I was weak from the chase — it was like fighting stone walls.
Cold iron clamped around my wrists and ankles. My wolf whimpered again, falling silent inside me.
They dragged me to my knees.
"Please," I begged, voice cracking. "I didn't mean to cross your border. I was just— I was running—"
"Save your lies for the Alpha," the warrior sneered.
The world spun as fear and exhaustion slammed into me.
An Alpha.
I would be dragged before their Alpha — whoever he was — judged, punished… maybe worse.
Heavy footsteps approached from the darkness. The warriors stiffened immediately, heads bowed in respect.
I forced myself to lift my head, and the breath froze in my chest.
The man walking toward me was taller than anyone I had ever seen. His black hair fell carelessly over his forehead, shadowing intense, almost inhuman eyes. He wore a leather jacket dark as midnight, and power clung to him like a second skin.
Alpha Daemon Blackwood.
I knew his name even before he spoke. Everyone did.
He was a legend… and a warning.
A killer. A ruler. A man who trusted no one.
And at that moment, as his eyes locked onto mine, something impossible happened.
The air cracked like a lightning strike.
A pull, fierce and undeniable, yanked at my soul.
Mate.
My heart stuttered. My body froze. My wolf, silent for so long, stirred weakly inside me — a soft, broken whimper of recognition.
Daemon's face twisted — not in joy, but in horror.
He knew it too.
He strode forward, grabbed my chin roughly, and forced me to look up at him. His touch burned — not with warmth, but with fury.
"You," he said in a voice like iron and ice. "Of all the cursed creatures in this world… it had to be you."
I couldn't breathe. I couldn't speak.
I could only stare into the eyes of the man the Moon Goddess had chosen for me —
the man who looked at me like I was his death sentence.