Maya's POV
I threw myself in front of Ethan just as the dark magic arrow reached us.
The moment it hit me, pain burst through every nerve in my body. But instead of controlling my mind like Dominic wanted, something amazing happened.
The magic bounced off me like I was made of mirrors.
The dark arrow shot back toward Dominic and hit him in the chest. He screamed and flew backward, smacking into what was left of my kitchen wall.
"Mama!" Ethan cried, wrapping his arms around my waist. "You're glowing!"
I looked down at myself and gasped. Silver light was pouring out of my skin like I was a human flashlight. But it didn't hurt. It felt warm and safe and powerful.
"The Silvermoon bloodline," Elder Marcus said in wonder. "You can reflect dark magic back to its source."
Dominic stumbled to his feet, blood trickling from his mouth. "That's impossible. The marriage potion should work on anyone."
"Not on a Luna Prime," Marcus answered. "Especially not one who's already bonded to her true mate."
I felt Kai move closer to me, and the silver light got brighter. The mate bond between us was like a living thing now, pulsing with shared power and love.
"I don't understand any of this," I said, my voice shaking. "Five years ago, I thought Dominic was my mate. I felt the link. I got pregnant. How can all of that be a lie?"
"Because he made you think it was real," Kai said gently. "Alpha compulsion is a rare skill. Most Alphas can only use it to give simple orders. But Dominic learned to use it on feelings."
"What does that mean?"
"It means he could make you feel whatever he wanted you to feel," Elder Marcus stated. "Love, desire, need. He could make fake mate bonds that felt completely real to the person experiencing them."
My knees went weak as the truth hit me. "Everything I felt for him was artificial?"
"Not everything," Kai said quickly. "The night Ethan was conceived, you came to me in tears. You said the friendship with Dominic felt wrong, forced. You said it was like someone else was controlling your feelings."
I remembered that night. I'd been so confused and hurt after Dominic announced his proposal to Victoria. I'd felt like my heart was being ripped apart, but I couldn't understand why. If we were true mates, how could he choose someone else?
"You found me crying in the garden," I whispered, the memory becoming clearer.
"You were sitting under the old oak tree," Kai said softly. "You looked so lost and broken. All I wanted was to comfort you."
"And when you held me..." I continued, remembering how different it had felt. How right.
"The real mate bond activated," Kai finished. "Just for that one night. Just long enough for Ethan to be made."
"But then why didn't I remember?" I asked. "Why did I go back to thinking Dominic was my mate?"
"Because the next morning, he found us," Kai said, his voice getting darker. "He used his Alpha compulsion to make you forget what happened between us. He made you think the pregnancy was his." The silver light around me flickered as anger built in my chest. "He stole my memories?"
"He stole everything," Marcus said sadly. "Your memories, your choices, your ability to spot your true mate. That's why the bond with him never felt completely right. Deep down, your soul knew it was fake."
I looked at Dominic, who was slumped against the broken wall. His red eyes had faded back to gold, and he looked smaller somehow. Less dangerous.
"Why?" I asked him. "Why would you do something so horrible?"
"Because I loved you," he said softly. "From the moment I saw you, I knew I had to have you. But you never looked at me the way you looked at Kai."
"So you decided to force me?"
"I decided to make you happy," Dominic said, but his voice lacked conviction. "I could give you everything. Status, power, a place as Luna of the most powerful pack in the area. What could Kai offer you? He was just a Beta then, nobody important."
"He offered me love," I said simply. "Real love. The kind you can't make with magic."
Dominic flinched like I'd slapped him.
That's when Ethan spoke up. "Are you my real daddy?" he asked Kai directly.
Kai knelt down so he was eye-level with my son. "Yes," he said simply. "I'm your real daddy. I always have been."
"Then why wasn't you here before?" Ethan asked with the harsh honesty only children could manage.
Kai's face filled with pain. "Because I didn't know you existed, son. Dominic used his magic to make me forget about the night you were conceived. I've been looking for something my whole life without knowing what it was. It was you and your mama."
Ethan observed Kai's face for a long moment, then nodded. "You smell right," he decided. "Like family."
"We are family," Kai said, pulling Ethan into a hug. "All three of us."
The silver light around me pulsed brighter as I felt the mate bond settle into place properly for the first time. This was what it was supposed to feel like. Complete. Perfect. Right.
But our moment of peace didn't last long.
"How touching," a new voice said from the doorway.
We all turned to see Luna Victoria standing in the entrance to my destroyed flat. She wasn't alone. Behind her were at least eight dogs I didn't recognize, all wearing the same red collars that marked them as rogue fighters.
"Victoria," Dominic said, trying to stand. "What are you doing here?"
"Cleaning up your mess," she responded coldly. "As usual."
She stepped into the room, and I could smell something wrong about her. Something dark and twisted that made my healing senses recoil.
"You see, Dominic, while you were playing with your obsession, I was making real plans," Victoria continued. "Plans that don't involve you anymore."
"What are you talking about?" Dominic asked.
Victoria smiled, and her teeth looked sharper than they should have. "I'm talking about an aggressive takeover. Your pack, your area, your power. All of it will be mine."
"That's impossible. Pack law states—" "Pack law states that if an Alpha is judged mentally unfit, his Luna can take control," Victoria interrupted. "And thanks to your little display here tonight, I have plenty of witnesses to your insanity."
She pointed to the rogue wolves behind her. "My new pack agrees that you're no longer capable of leadership."
Dominic's face went white. "You can't do this. The elders will never approve—"
"The elders are already dead," Victoria said casually.
Elder Marcus gasped. "What?"
"Oh, don't worry," Victoria told him. "You're not dead yet. But you will be soon. Along with Maya, her little son, and dear cousin Kai."
"Why?" I asked, though I was afraid I already knew the answer.
"Because you're all threats to my new order," Victoria explained. "Maya's bloodline is too strong. Ethan's promise is too great. And Kai... well, Kai knows too much about Dominic's sins."
She pulled out a silver dagger that gleamed with dark magic. "But don't worry. I'll make it quick."
That's when I realized something scary.
The rogue dogs behind Victoria weren't just wearing red collars. They were wearing collars made of the same dark metal as her knife. Metal that was meant to control minds and bind souls.
Victoria hadn't just hired rogues. She'd enslaved them.
"You're using soul magic," Marcus breathed in horror.
"I'm using whatever magic I need to win," Victoria amended. "Including the kind that will let me control every werewolf in North America."
She raised the knife, and I saw symbols carved into the blade that hurt my eyes to look at.
"Starting with you, Maya. Once I have a Silvermoon under my control, I'll be invincible."
The blade began to glow with sickly green light.
"But first," Victoria said with a cruel smile, "I think I'll start with the kid. Children's souls are so much easier to break."
She turned the knife toward Ethan.
And I understood that Dominic's obsession had been nothing compared to the evil we were facing now.