What if the monster you were sold to wasn't the real danger?

They call him the Monster. Nine wives. Nine graves. No heirs.

I was supposed to be the tenth.

Sold by my family to save a sister who betrayed me, I thought survival meant staying invisible.

 But when I healed Alpha Kael Cinderclaw in the snow, I accidentally bound us together, a mate bond neither of us wanted and neither can sever.

Now I feel his rage like fire beneath my skin.

 He feels my fear like a blade against his throat. And the fortress that buried nine wives is watching us both.

My family wanted me erased.
His enemies want me dead.

And Kael? He looks at me like I'm the one thing he can't afford to want—but can't let go.

They wanted a sacrifice.
They're getting an awakening.
In a world where power is everything, the wolfless girl just became the Alpha's greatest weakness, and his most dangerous obsession.

Chapter 84 – The Control He Never Had


I had almost forgotten what it felt like to wake up without pain.


Not physical pain. That was easy enough to recognize.


I meant the constant pressure that had followed me for years. The invisible weight that sat somewhere beneath my skin and inside my mind, always present even when I pretended it wasn't.


For the first time in a very long time, it was gone.


I stood alone on the balcony outside my chambers, watching the fortress slowly come alive beneath the morning light. Wolves crossed the courtyard below. Guards changed positions. Servants moved between buildings carrying supplies.


My hand tightened against the stone railing.


The bond between me and Liora was clearer than it had ever been before. Ever since her awakening, the connection had changed completely. I no longer needed to see her to know how she was feeling.


Chapter 84 - Chapter 84 – The Control He Never Had