Alpha Kael Dravenwood has one mission: kill the rogue wolf who murdered his Luna three years ago. He has tracked Ember Blackthorn across four territories, watching her slaughter his allies without mercy. She is death in wolf form, cursed by the Moon Goddess herself, wanted by every pack in the Northern Territories.
When he finally corners her in the Forsaken Lands, the mate bond slams into him like a physical blow.
His wolf recognizes her immediately. His soul screams to claim her. His duty demands her execution.
Ember feels it too, and her reaction is rage. She rejects him on sight, silver blade still wet with blood from his patrol wolves. She tells him the Luna he mourns was a monster who deserved worse than death. That his precious Silvercrest Pack is built on the bones of innocent wolves his father slaughtered. That she will never submit to the bloodline that destroyed her family.
Kael should kill her where she stands. Instead, he chains her in silver and drags her back to his territory as his prisoner. He will break her defenses, extract the truth, and make her pay for what she took from him.
But rival Alphas are circling with armies, determined to claim the bounty on Ember's head. His Beta is demanding her public execution. His pack is questioning his leadership. And worst of all, every moment in her presence makes the bond stronger, makes his wolf more feral with the need to protect her instead of punish her.
She knows secrets that could destroy everything he built. He holds the power to end her life with a single command.
The mate bond does not care about their hatred. It only knows they belong to each other.
One of them will have to break first.

Kael reached the border in fifteen minutes instead of twenty.


Dorian Ashford stood waiting with fifty armed wolves behind him. They were positioned in perfect military formation. A show of strength designed to intimidate.


Kael's own border guards looked nervous. Only twelve wolves on duty. Outnumbered four to one. If Dorian decided to attack, they would be slaughtered in minutes.


Dorian smiled when he saw Kael approaching. That politician's smile that never reached his eyes. He was handsome in a cold way. Silver-gray eyes that calculated everything. Perfect posture that screamed authority.


"Alpha Dravenwood." Dorian's voice was smooth as silk. "Thank you for meeting me on such short notice."


"You brought an army to my borders." Kael kept his voice level. "That does not feel like a friendly visit."


Chapter 8 - Dorian's Ultimatum