I shifted before I even hit the ground.
The Lycan form came instantly now—no pain, no resistance, just power flowing through me like liquid fire. Seven feet of fur and fangs and claws, violet-gold eyes burning in the darkness.
*Elena,* Kael sent, already in his wolf form—a massive silver beast, nearly as large as my Lycan form but smaller, quadrupedal, less deadly but still formidable. *Stay close to the nursery.*
*I need to fight.*
*I know.* His mental voice was grim. *But the children—*
*Will be protected.* I nodded toward Astrid, who'd already positioned herself in the nursery doorway, knife in hand, flanked by four of our most trusted warriors. *Astrid will watch them. I need to be out there.*
*Kael hesitated, then nodded.
*Then we fight together.*
*Together.*
We ran out into the night.
And into hell.
***
They weren't just rogues.
I'd expected rogues—mutated, enhanced, insane. I'd fought them before. I knew how to handle them.
These were something else.
They moved in formation. Disciplined. Organized. Warriors from Blood Moon Pack, trained and armed, with enhanced wolves at the front lines and—*something else* behind them.
*What is that?* I sent Kael, staring at the massive shapes moving at the back of the enemy lines.
*I don't know.*
They stood on two legs.
Like Lycans.
But they weren't Lycan.
Their fur was matted with blood and filth. Their eyes glowed a sickly red. Their jaws were misshapen, filled with too many teeth, and their claws—
*They're wrong,* I sent. *They're—*
*Abominations,* Astrid's voice cut in. *Alpha Blackwood's experiments. Trying to create artificial Lycans. Failed miserably.*
*They're huge,* I observed. *At least nine feet tall. Broader than me. More—*
*More feral,* Astrid finished. *Less intelligent. But stronger. Faster. Harder to kill.*
*Can we kill them?*
*We can,* Astrid said. *But it won't be easy.*
The front line of Blood Moon warriors charged.
*BRACE,* Kael sent to our troops. *FOR THE PACK. FOR THE CHILDREN. FOR THE LUNA.*
Not "my Queen."
Luna.
The title hit me harder than I expected.
*FOR THE LUNA,* our warriors roared back, and I felt their surge of courage through the pack bond—through the strange, new connection I had to them as their future ruler.
We met the enemy in the middle of the pack grounds, and the night dissolved into chaos.
I fought with everything Astrid had taught me.
Claws extended, I tore through enemy warriors like paper. My Lycan strength made their weapons useless—swords shattered against my hide, spears bounced off my muscles, and I moved with a speed that blurred my form into darkness and death.
*Elena, behind you!*
I spun, claws raking across a rogue that had tried to flank me. It shrieked and fell.
*Left flank!* Marcus sent. *They're breaking through!*
*I got it.*
I leaped over the battle, landing in the middle of a group of Blood Moon warriors who were pressing our left flank. They froze for a second—just a second, but that was all I needed.
*RUN,* I used the Royal Voice, letting the power resonate through every cell of my Lycan body. *RUN OR DIE.*
Half of them ran.
The other half died.
*Good,* Kael sent, somewhere to my right. *But don't overextend. The abominations are still holding back.*
*Waiting for something.*
*The right moment.*
*What happens when they decide it's the right moment?*
*Then we find out how tough they really are.*
As if on cue, the abominations moved.
Three of them. Massive, misshapen, dripping with power that felt wrong—corrupted, artificial, but powerful nonetheless.
*Split up,* Kael ordered. *Marcus, take your team and engage the left one. Viktor, the right one. Elena, I'll take the middle—*
*No,* I cut him off. *They're too strong for normal wolves. You'll get killed.*
*Then what do you suggest?*
*I take all three.*
*What?*
*You heard me.* I positioned myself between our troops and the abominations. *I fight them. You cover me. Make sure no other warriors get past.*
*Elena—*
*I can handle this,* I insisted. *I'm Lycan. They're... they're poor imitations. There's a difference.*
*What if you're wrong?*
*Then avenge me,* I sent grimly. *But I won't be wrong.*
I didn't wait for his response.
I charged.
***
The first abomination met me head-on, massive claws raking toward my throat.
I ducked, twisted, and drove my claws into its chest.
It shrieked—high, wrong, like metal screaming—and kept coming.
*Wrong,* I realized. *They don't feel pain.*
*They also don't have survival instincts,* Astrid sent. *They won't retreat. They'll fight until they're dead.*
*How do I kill them?*
*Destroy the brain,* she said. *Or the heart. Or sever the spine. Anything that stops motor function.*
*Helpful.*
*Try not to die.*
*Working on it.*
The first abomination kept coming, ignoring the chest wound, and I barely dodged a swipe that would have taken my head off.
*Okay,* I reassessed. *Strength alone isn't going to work.*
I needed speed. Strategy. Intelligence.
Things these monsters didn't have.
I feinted left, then spun right, claws extended toward the abomination's throat.
It took the bait—lunged for where I would have been if I'd actually moved left.
I raked my claws across its neck, not trying to sever, just trying to damage, to distract, to—
It roared and swung at me.
I ducked under its guard, drove upward with all my Lycan strength, and sank my claws into its brain through the eye socket.
It collapsed instantly.
*One down,* I sent, gasping for breath. *Two to go.*
But the remaining two had learned from the first.
They didn't charge separately.
They charged together.
*Elena!*
I heard Kael's warning, but I couldn't dodge both.
I couldn't.
So I didn't try.
I stood my ground, claws extended, violet-gold eyes burning, and roared a challenge that shook the very air.
*COME FOR ME THEN.*
They came.
And I met them.
***
I took hits.
I couldn't avoid it—two massive abominations, both stronger than me, both attacking simultaneously—I couldn't dodge everything.
Claws raked across my side.
Teeth sank into my shoulder.
I screamed and drove my own claws into the abomination on my left, severing its spine, felt it collapse even as the other one's fangs burrowed deeper into my shoulder—
*ELENA!*
Kael was there.
His massive silver wolf slammed into the abomination, knocking it off me, giving me the split second I needed to recover.
*You're hurt,* he sent, panic in his mental voice.
*I'm fine.* I stood, blood pouring from my shoulder, but the wound was already knitting—Lycan healing was fast. *I can still fight.*
*We fight together.*
*Together.*
We faced the last abomination as a team.
And it was different.
Kael drew its attention—dodged, weaved, kept it focused on him while I positioned myself behind it.
*Now,* I sent.
Kael dropped.
I leaped.
My claws found the abomination's brain through the back of its skull.
It collapsed.
Silence fell over the battlefield.
Around us, the remaining Blood Moon warriors were retreating. Their secret weapons—the abominations—were destroyed. Their forward advance was broken.
*They're running,* Marcus sent. *Do we pursue?*
*No,* Kael decided. *Let them go. We need to tend to our wounded.*
*I need to check on the children.*
*Elena—*
*I'm fine,* I insisted. *The wound is already healing.*
I shifted back to human form, ignoring the blood that coated my body, and ran for the nursery.
Astrid was standing in the doorway, knife still raised, but she relaxed when she saw me.
*We're okay,* she said. *We're all okay.*
*Felix? Darius?*
I pushed past her and found my children exactly where I'd left them—Felix asleep in the corner, exhausted from his vision, Darius still sitting cross-legged, eyes closed.
*They're fine,* Astrid assured me. *I protected them.*
*Thank you.* I wrapped my arms around her, not caring about the blood. *Thank you.*
*I always will,* she promised. *You know that.*
*Darius?* I approached my son. *Sweetie? You can open your eyes. It's over.*
*Not over,* he whispered. *Not yet.*
*What do you mean?*
*The master,* Darius said. *He's coming. Himself.*
*Alpha Blackwood?*
Darius nodded.
*He's angry. About the abominations. About the failure.* My son opened his eyes and looked at me. *He's coming to finish this personally.*
*When?*
*Soon.* Darius's mental voice was tired. *Very soon.*
*How soon?*
*Tonight.*
Before I could respond, Kael entered the nursery, also shifted back to human form, bleeding from a dozen wounds but moving like they didn't matter.
*The enemy has retreated,* he said. *For now. But Marcus captured one of their warriors. A prisoner.*
*Good.* I nodded. *We need to interrogate him. Find out Alpha Blackwood's plans. Find out if there are more abominations. Find out—*
*We also need to talk about the spy.* Kael's voice dropped. *Darius said someone in the pack warned them. Someone close.*
*I can find him,* Darius offered. *If you want.*
*Can you?* I asked.
*I can try.* Darius closed his eyes again. *He's... he's thinking about it right now. Trying to decide if he should run or stay or—*
*Where is he?*
*Close.* Darius concentrated. *Very close. In the pack house. In the—*
His eyes snapped open.
*In the meeting,* he said. *Right now.*
*Who?* Kael demanded.
Darius looked directly at Kael.
*Her,* he said simply.
*Her?*
*The one you were going to marry.*
Kael went still.
*Seraphina.*
*Darius nodded. *She told them when we arrived. She told them about the children. About me. About—*
*About everything,* I finished. *Of course. Who else would it be?*
*She's confined to quarters,* Kael protested. *Under guard. There's no way she could—*
*She has ways,* I said grimly. *People she's bribed. Guards she's compromised. She didn't need to leave her room to send a message.*
*I'll kill her,* Kael growled.
*No.* I rested my hand on his arm. *We need proof. Evidence. A confession. If we just execute her without due process, the pack will lose faith in your leadership.*
*She tried to get our children killed,* Kael snarled. *Due process be damned.*
*I know.* I looked at our children. *I know how you feel. But we need to be better than her. We need to show the pack what real justice looks like.*
*What does that look like?*
*A trial,* I said. *Evidence presented publicly. Witnesses heard. Judgment passed by the pack collectively.*
*And if she's found guilty?*
*Then she faces the consequences.* My voice hardened. *Whatever those may be.*
*I don't want her to die,* Kael surprised me by saying. *I want her to suffer. I want her to live a long, lonely life knowing she lost. Knowing I chose you. Knowing she'll never have what she thought she was buying.*
*That's...*
*Petty?* Kael gave a bitter smile. *Maybe. But it's also what she deserves. Death is too easy for someone like Seraphina.*
*So what's the alternative?*
*Exile,* Kael decided. *Strip her of rank, of status, of everything she values. Send her back to her father in disgrace. Let her live with the humiliation.*
*That might work.*
*It's better than she deserves,* Kael said grimly, *but it's what justice demands.*
*Okay.* I nodded. *We hold a trial. We present evidence. We let the pack decide.*
*And in the meantime?*
*In the meantime,* I said, *we prepare for Alpha Blackwood's arrival. Because if Darius is right—and he usually is—we haven't seen the last of this war.*
*We haven't even seen the worst of it.*
*No.* I looked at my children, at my exhausted mate, at the blood covering both of us. *We haven't.*
But we would survive.
We had to.
Because the alternative was unacceptable.
***
Later that night, after the wounded had been tended and the dead mourned, Kael and I sat in the nursery watching our children sleep.
*We won tonight,* he said quietly.
*We did.*
*But it's going to get worse.*
*I know.*
*Alpha Blackwood isn't going to stop,* Kael continued. *Not after this. Not after we humiliated him by destroying his abominations.*
*I know.*
*And there's still the spy,* he said. *Seraphina. I trusted her. I almost—*
*Don't.* I cut him off. *Don't do that to yourself. You didn't know. None of us knew.*
*I should have known.*
*Why?* I challenged him. *Because you're psychic? Because you can read minds?*
*Because I'm Alpha,* Kael said heavily. *It's my job to know these things. To protect the pack. To—*
*You can't protect everyone from everything,* I said. *Sometimes people betray you. Sometimes they lie. Sometimes they—*
*I almost married her,* Kael whispered. *I almost spent the rest of my life with her. If you hadn't come back...*
*You would have been miserable,* I finished. *The bond wouldn't have let you be happy. You would have spent every day wishing you'd chosen differently.*
*I know.* He looked at me. *But that's not comforting.*
*No.* I shifted closer. *But it's the truth. And the truth is better than lies.*
*Is it always?*
*Almost always.*
*Elena?*
*What?*
*Can I ask you something?*
*You can ask.*
*If I had chosen differently,* Kael said quietly. *If I had chosen you three years ago... if I had rejected the alliance... if I had stood up to my father and Seraphina and everyone else and chosen us... would we be happy?*
*I don't know.*
*You don't know?*
*I don't.* I thought about it. *We might have been happy. Or we might have been miserable. We were different people then, Kael. You were a boy terrified of responsibility. I was a girl who'd never known anything but shame and humiliation.*
*I chose wrong,* he said.
*You did,* I agreed. *But you're choosing right now. Today. This battle... you fought by my side. You protected our children. You didn't run.*
*I couldn't run.* Kael took my hand. *Not from you. Not from them. Not from—*
*From what you could have had?*
*From what I threw away.* His voice dropped. *I threw away the best thing that ever happened to me, Elena. And I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself for that.*
*I don't need you to forgive yourself,* I said quietly. *I need you to do better. To be better. To choose right every single day from now on.*
*I will.* Kael squeezed my hand. *I swear to you—I will.*
*Good.* I leaned my head on his shoulder, exhausted beyond measure, and let myself rest. *Because that's all I can ask.*
*And maybe,* Kael said cautiously, *someday... it might be enough.*
*Maybe.*
I closed my eyes, listening to our children's breathing, feeling Kael's warmth beside me, and for the first time in three years, I felt something I'd almost forgotten how to feel.
Hope.