Nyra’s shrill cries split the night like a wounded wolf’s howl, shattering the moonlit garden and pulling the entire pack to the poolside. Gasps of shock replaced the low hum of chatter as every eye widened at the scene.
Without hesitation, Alpha Alaric tore off his jacket, his wolf surging. He plunged into the pool, slicing through the icy water with lethal precision, every stroke driven by raw desperation. He reached Nyra in powerful swipes, scooping her trembling form into his arms like the most prized treasure of the Silverfang Pack.
Water poured from her gown as he lifted her out, his hold fierce yet careful. “Nyra, are you hurt? Tell me you’re all right!” His golden eyes, once my sanctuary, scanned her face with frantic devotion.
Nyra clung to him, shaking, lashes heavy with tears that caught the chandelier’s light. Then, with the skill of a predator, she flicked a glance at me, her fake anguish glimmering sharp and cruel.
“Kaia,” she whispered, loud enough for the pack to hear, “if I upset you, you could have told me. Why did you push me? You know I’ve always been terrified of drowning…”
Her venom-laced words poisoned the gathering wolves. Mutters rose like restless growls. My mother surged forward, her Luna authority slicing through the air like a whip, her eyes burning with fury as she snarled,
“Kaia, how dare you push Nyra into the pool in front of the entire pack!”
Before I could move, before I could defend myself, her hands struck out with ruthless force. The shove was not merely maternal anger; it carried the strength of a wolf seasoned in dominance. I staggered backward, my feet slipping on the slick tiles, and then the world vanished into freezing chaos.
The instant I broke the surface, the water’s icy grip wrapped around me like shackles of frost. Air tore from my lungs in a violent gasp as panic clawed through me, dragging me under. I thrashed blindly, each frantic kick burning what little strength remained.
I couldn’t swim. I’d never been taught; they always said I was too unworthy, too forgotten.
My chest burned as water flooded my mouth and nose, suffocating me. Above, voices warped into cruel laughter, merging with the thunder of my own heartbeat. Through the blur, I saw my mother’s cold silhouette at the pool’s edge, arms crossed, eyes gleaming with icy disdain, her voice sharper than any claw.
“Stop pretending, Kaia,” she sneered, her words dripping with venom.
“No wolf will fall for your pitiful act. You have been nothing but a curse since the day you were born. It was your weakness that allowed Nyra to be taken before, and now you try to destroy her again? I should never have birthed you into this world.”
Each word was a stone tied to my body, dragging me further beneath the surface.
Beside her, my father stood silent as the grave, his lips pressed into a line of condemnation that spoke more than words ever could. His piercing gaze cut deeper than any blade, declaring what I had known my whole life, that I was not their daughter, only their burden.
I broke the surface once, coughing, gasping, fighting for even a fragment of air, but it stole the last of my strength. My eyes, blurred by tears and chlorine, found Alpha Alaric. My soul clung to him as my final lifeline. He knew I couldn’t swim. He knew my fragility. He was my mate, perhaps not by love, but at least by bond. Surely, surely, he would not watch me die.
But he did not move.
Sitting at the pool’s edge with Nyra draped in his arms like a queen carried by her chosen king, he looked down at me with eyes hardened into stone.
“Do you even realize Nyra is carrying a child?” His words boomed like thunder across the silent crowd. “How could you be so heartless? You could have killed her, and the heir she bears!”
The word heir struck me like a blade, a reminder of the Silverfang bloodline’s obsession with lineage. My throat locked with anguish, but my pleas drowned within the water.
His lip curled in disgust, his amber eyes now darkened to the hue of his wolf.
“Stay in the water, Kaia, and reflect on your sins.”
With those damning words, he rose, hoisting Nyra into his arms. Her wet hair clung to his shoulder, her head pressed against him as if she truly belonged there. She dared one last, triumphant glance at me, her smile masked by false exhaustion.
The pack scattered, whispers thick with judgment, eyes sharp with disdain. My parents followed, turning away without a backward glance.
The night deepened. Cold water seeped into my bones, despair sinking its claws into my will. My limbs grew heavy, each kick weaker than the last. My body surrendered, sinking once more as the moonlight faded from view.
This time, I didn’t break the surface. Fire filled my lungs, my vision blurred, and my thoughts dissolved into nothingness. Just as the shadows claimed me, a splash tore through the silence.
Until a strong arm wrapped around my waist, yanking me upward with urgent, feral force. The scent that enveloped me was wild, untamed, cedar and stormy. My fading mind clung to one desperate question:
Who was he?
**
When my consciousness returned, it was not the cold water that greeted me but the stark white ceiling of a healer’s ward. The sterile air carried faint traces of herbs used in pack medicine. My body felt unbearably heavy, every breath dragging through my chest as though the water still lingered there.
Turning my head, I froze at the sight of Alpha Alaric seated beside me. His hair was disheveled, his shirt wrinkled, his face pale with exhaustion, though relief ignited the moment our eyes met.
He immediately began signing, his hands moving swiftly, his gestures filled with urgency.
“My love, you are awake! I never meant to leave you behind. Ronan Stormclaw was away, and Nyra needed me; she is pregnant, and I had to take her to the healers first. Please, you must understand…”
His movements slowed, his eyes softening, his tone shifting into one of coaxing persuasion. “You know how vital heirs are to the Silverfang Pack. If something had happened to Nyra’s child, the family would never forgive you. Even your parents would have cast you out. I only did this to protect you, Kaia. Please believe me.”
His face carried such sincerity that any outsider might have believed his lies. But I, bound to him by mate bond and betrayal, knew better.
The ache within my chest hollowed me, but I refused to break in front of him. I refused to allow him to see the depth of my pain.
I said nothing.
His smile faltered; the flicker of disappointment was undeniable. Slowly, hesitantly, he reached for my hand.
I neither pulled away nor accepted his touch. I simply turned my gaze toward the window, letting the silence between us grow heavier than any words, a silence that carried the weight of all the truths I could no longer ignore.
