Elena POV:
I woke up drowning.
Thick, warm liquid filled my lungs. I thrashed, panic seizing my chest. I clawed at the surface, breaking through with a gasp.
I wasn't in the ocean. I was in a pool of glowing golden liquid inside a cavern made of ice.
The Sanctum. The Sterling family's private healing spring in the Arctic Circle.
"Easy, Elena. Breathe."
Strong hands grabbed my shoulders. I looked up into the face of my father, Arthur Sterling. The most powerful Alpha in the world.
He looked ten years older than the last time I saw him. His eyes were red.
"Dad?" My voice was a croak. "Where... where is the baby?"
Father's face crumpled. He pulled me into a hug, burying my face in his chest so I wouldn't see him cry.
"We tried, El," he sobbed. "The doctors... the mages... the silver was in his system too long. We couldn't start his heart."
A scream tore out of me. It was worse than the birth. It was the sound of my soul ripping in half.
I pushed my father away and tried to dive back under the water. "Let me die! I want to be with him! Let me die!"
"No!" Father grabbed my wrists. His grip was iron. "Look at me!"
"Why did you save me?" I shrieked, scratching at his arms. "I am empty! I have nothing!"
"You have vengeance!" Father roared.
The word hung in the icy air.
"Vengeance?" I whispered.
"Damien Blackwood killed your son," Father said, his voice dropping to a deadly growl. "He tortured you. He humiliated you. He chose a fake Luna over his True Mate."
He grabbed my chin, forcing me to look at my reflection in the golden water.
My hair, once a dirty blonde, had turned completely white. My eyes were no longer brown. They were glowing violet.
The near-death experience had stripped away the suppressants I had taken for years. My True Bloodline had awakened.
I was the White Wolf. The rarest of all creatures. The symbol of judgment.
"Damien thinks you are dead," Father said. "We left a clone-a magical construct-in that hospital room. He buried it. He is mourning a doll."
"He is mourning?" I let out a dark, broken laugh. "Good."
"Mourning is too easy," Father said. "He needs to lose everything. His pack. His money. His sanity. And you are the only one who can take it from him."
Something clicked inside me. The grief didn't go away, but it hardened. It turned into a cold, heavy stone in my stomach.
I touched my flat belly.
*I promise you, my little one,* I thought. *Your father will pay for every breath you didn't get to take.*
I climbed out of the pool. The golden water sluiced off my naked body. My wounds were gone. My skin was flawless, glowing with power.
"How long have I been asleep?" I asked.
"Six months," Father said, handing me a silk robe. "You needed to heal. While you slept, Damien has been searching for you. He doesn't believe the clone is real. He's going crazy."
"Good." I tied the robe. "I need training, Dad. I forgot how to be a Sterling. I spent too long pretending to be a weak Rogue."
Father smiled. It was a terrifying smile.
"We start tomorrow. Combat. Economics. Politics. And... how to use the Voice."
*
*One Year Later.*
*I stood in the penthouse office of Sterling Global Headquarters in New York. The last twelve months had been a blur of grueling combat drills, high-stakes boardroom takeovers, and mastering the ancient magic of my bloodline. The weak girl who begged in a cage was gone, replaced by something colder. Sharper.*
My reflection in the glass showed a woman I barely recognized. Sharp tailored suit. Stilettos that could double as weapons. White hair styled in a sleek bob.
On the TV screen, a news anchor was speaking.
*"Breaking news: The Blackwood Pack is facing financial ruin. Their main creditor has called in all loans. Alpha Damien Blackwood is desperate for investors."*
I picked up the remote and turned up the volume.
Damien appeared on screen. He looked terrible. Gaunt, unshaven, with dark circles under his eyes. He was holding up a picture.
A picture of me. The old me. The "Rogue" Elena.
*"If anyone has seen this woman,"* Damien pleaded to the camera, his voice cracking. *"Please. She is my Luna. I will pay anything. I just want her back."*
I sipped my red wine.
"Mr. Sterling?" my assistant buzzed over the intercom. "The delegation from the Blackwood Pack is here for the acquisition meeting. They are waiting in Conference Room B."
I smiled. It didn't reach my eyes.
"Send them in," I said. "And tell security to stand down. I want to handle this myself."
I put the wine glass down.
"You want your Luna back, Damien?" I whispered to the screen. "Careful what you wish for."
I walked out of the office, my heels clicking like gunshots on the marble floor.
It was time to go hunting.
