A collective gasp rises.
Faces pale. Some stare in horror. Others look stunned–like the ground has just crumbled beneath their feet. A few even look ready to drop to their knees.
“You… you can’t,” someone whispers.
“I can,” I say coldly. “And I just did.”
They’re panicking. I see it clearly on their faces–the dawning realisation that without me, their precious image as the strongest, most feared pack is collapsing. Their security, their dominance, their strength… gone.
But I don’t care. Let them squirm.
Then someone shouts, “Then who becomes our Alpha? Who will lead us now?”
“If you’re afraid of what comes next, you should be,” I reply, my voice calm but razor–sharp. Because I won’t choose the next Alpha based on brute strength. This time, it won’t be about muscles or how loud you can roar.”
“It will be a competition–open to all. And it’ll test not just your strength but your heart. Your mind. Your ability to lead with compassion, not just with dominance. A true Alpha isn’t one who rules with fear—but one who earns loyalty. Protects the weak. Knows when to fight—and when to stand down.”
I pause, letting the silence grow thick and suffocating, as if a funeral veil has fallen over the entire pack. Then, without another word, I turn and walk away.
I’m already moving–no, marching–toward the northern border of our territory. My muscles are tense, my skin crawling with the desperate need to shift, to feel my wolf beneath me again. I need to run. I need to get back to her–back to Kali.
Just as I reach the edge of the territory where I can safely shift and head to the King’s palace, my head snaps to the side as Fury’s voice cuts through the mindlink.
“Alpha… it’s Jasmine. She’s awake.”
I freeze mid–step.
Claws slide from the tips of my fingers. My heart stumbles, skips a beat, then slams into overdrive. I pivot without a second thought, breaking into a sprint, legs eating the ground
with every furious step.
My sister… she’s awake.
I burst through the clinic doors, lungs burning, hope exploding in my chest. I rush straight to her room and push the door open.
She’s there.
Propped up against pillows, pale but alive. Fury stands beside her like a silent guardian, his massive frame unmoving, his eyes scanning every corner of the room as if he’s expecting the devil himself to crawl through the walls.
Jasmine blinks slowly, groggy like she’s just surfaced from a nightmare. Her hands tremble slightly, but there’s something different in her eyes.
She’s fragile but not broken.
The vile, suffocating mark that bastard burned into her neck… it’s gone forever.
She looks… alive. Even without her wolf, she looks free. There’s no forced bond clouding her eyes anymore. No pain carved into her skin.
I stumble to her side and drop to my knees, grabbing her hand in both of mine. “You’re okay,” I murmur, my voice cracking against the emotion lodged in my throat. “You’re really okay…”
She nods slowly, and even though her voice is still weak, she manages, “Is he… gone?”
My jaw clenches. “You’ll never see Khoas again, Jasmine. I swear it on my life.”
She doesn’t ask if I killed him—she doesn’t need to. She simply reaches out and gently squeezes my fingers with hers.
But then, her lips tremble.
“… Kali?” she whispers. “Is she… is she alright? This is all my fault, Jack. She went to him for
me…”
Goddamn it.
Tears sting the backs of my eyes, but I fight them, gripping her hand tighter. “No. No, this is not your fault, Jasmine. He did this. He. Not you. Kali… she’s strong. She’s holding on. And she won’t die. I know she won’t.” I swallow the fear thick in my throat. “She’s too damn stubborn.”
Her lips curve slightly, but the shadows don’t leave her eyes.
I rise and glance at Fury, still standing there like a stone wall. “Stay with her. Protect her like she’s your Luna.”
“I always will,” he says simply, nodding once.
2/6
“Maybe you should run for Alpha,” I mutter, half–teasing, half–serious.
But he shakes his head. “No interest. I’m not meant to lead, Jack. I’m meant to protect someone… important.”
That makes me pause. “What do you mean-”
He cuts me off, locking eyes with mine. “Don’t worry. The Luna won’t die.”
I should be jealous–should feel that familiar spike of possessiveness–but I’m not.
Not this time.
I nod to him, grateful beyond words, and then turn back toward the border. I shift the second I cross it, my wolf tearing out with a guttural growl, paws pounding the earth beneath me as I race back to the Alpha King’s palace, wind slicing through my fur, heart beating like a war drum.
I don’t stop not once. When I reach the palace gates, I shift back and sprint inside, shoving open the doors to the room where Kali is being kept —
And freeze.
The Alpha King is still there, just as he promised. He remains seated beside her bed, his head resting on the mattress, one hand still gently holding hers. He truly wasn’t joking about being her father–and I won’t lie, a part of me had hoped it was.
His eyes lift slowly when he senses me. They’re red–rimmed and sunken, his face lined with exhaustion that mirrors my own.
Neither of us says a word.
He simply rises, gives me a small nod… and walks out.
I move closer.
She’s
are no bruises, no bandages. The doctor must’ve done something–her skin glows intly with that same ethereal softness that always left me breathless, but her eyes remain shut.
Why isn’t she waking up?
The door creaks behind me. The doctor walks in, reeking of nerves.
I snap around, teeth clenched. “Why isn’t she waking up yet?”
The man jumps back, paling. “Alpha–I–I’ve done all I can. Her body’s healed. Even the King gave her his blood. She should’ve woken up already. I–I don’t understand why she hasn’t-”
I rake a hand through my hair, pacing like a caged beast. “Then do something else! Try harder!”
“There… there is one thing, Alpha…” he murmurs, hesitating.
I stop. Turn.
“What?”
He gulps. “Maybe… maybe you should mark her.”
The fury in me spikes like a blade.
I stalk up to him, grabbing the front of his coat. “How dare you tell me to mark her against her will.”
“I didn’t mean–Alpha, I swear–it’s just… maybe the bond might help. If she accepts it, maybe it’ll bring her back.”
A laugh, bitter and sharp, cuts from my throat.
“You think I’m gonna force that on her after what she’s been through? You think I’d ever do to her what he did to my sister?”
“No! No, Alpha! I’m not saying that, I just—”
“Mark me…”
voice is so soft, I almost miss it.
reeze.
My grip slackens.
I turn, my breath lodged in my chest.
Kali.
Still motionless… still unconscious… yet her lips move.
“…Please, Jack,” she whispers again. “I want to… bear your mark…”
And in that instant, everything inside me shatters.
4
Because even half–conscious, lost in the darkness, somewhere deep within her subconscious- she still wants me. She still chooses me.
I drop to my knees beside her, my hand trembling as I reach for hers.
“Your wish is my command,” I whisper.
