The packhouse explodes into motion.
Wolves shift—bones cracking, claws slashing, clothes tearing—as dozens of bodies rush toward the forest. The air fills with snarls, the scent of adrenaline, the pulse of danger.
Kai grabs a jacket and throws it over his shoulder. "Rogues! South border!"
Ethan is already barking orders, pulling smaller wolves behind him.
Pack members sprint past me, half-shifted, eyes glowing.
The entire world is moving—
Except me.
I stand frozen in the dining hall doorway, heart pounding.
The moment the earth shook…
the moment the rogue roar split the air…
my magic reacted.
A sharp burning twist under my skin.
Not fear.
Recognition.
Someone familiar.
Someone dangerous.
Someone connected to my past.
Someone who knows what I am.
A Moonfire Witch.
And they weren't roaring at the packhouse.
They were roaring for me.
The Alpha in the Forest
Aiden doesn't look back when he runs.
He shifts halfway—massive wolf shoulders bursting through his shirt, claws elongating, teeth sharpening. His eyes blaze silver, bright enough to see from across the hall.
He leaps over the courtyard railing and lands on all fours, then explodes into the forest with a guttural snarl that shakes the trees.
The sound is primal.
Wild.
Terrifying.
And yet it thunders inside my chest like a heartbeat I'm not supposed to share.
My fingers curl against my sides.
I need to stay put.
I need to stay hidden.
I need to stay safe.
Because Aiden told me to.
Because the pack has eyes.
Because the Council is watching.
Because revealing myself now could be suicide.
Because—
Another explosion rocks the forest.
Aiden's roar splits the sky.
My feet move before my brain even catches up.
I run.
Into the Dark Woods
Cold night air slams into my lungs. Pine needles crackle beneath my shoes. Branches whip against my arms as I push deeper into the pitch-black forest.
The wolf roars grow louder.
Closer.
Violent.
Not one rogue.
Several.
I can hear the snapping of teeth.
The thud of bodies colliding.
The crack of bone.
The deep, vicious growl of a wolf who is not holding back—
Aiden.
I push faster.
The Moonfire mark on my wrist pulses with heat, guiding me, dragging me toward him like the moon pulling the tide.
The trees open into a clearing—
And I freeze.
Aiden stands in the center, fully shifted now—
a massive black wolf, twice the size of normal wolves, built of muscle and shadows.
His fur glows faintly silver under the moon.
His eyes burn like lightning.
He is magnificent.
He is terrifying.
Three rogues circle him, snapping, biting, claws slashing.
Another lies dead at his feet, throat ripped open.
Aiden isn't just fighting.
He's dominating.
But then—
A fourth rogue leaps from behind him—
Aiden wheels around too slow—
"AIDEN!" I scream.
The rogue lunges for his back.
Before I can think, react, breathe—
my magic erupts.
A wave of golden flame blasts from my palm, slamming into the rogue mid-air.
The wolf screams—
a horrible, piercing sound—
as Moonfire burns through its fur, its flesh, its bones.
It hits the ground, writhing, smoking.
The entire forest goes silent.
Aiden freezes.
The remaining rogues freeze.
Kai and three warriors skid into the clearing, eyes wide as they see me glowing under the moon.
Aiden turns—slowly, deliberately—his massive wolf form towering over me.
His silver eyes lock onto mine.
Not angry.
Not confused.
But stunned.
Like the earth just shifted beneath his paws.
He shifts halfway, his wolf melting into human shape in seconds—
shirt ripped, chest heaving, blood streaked across his arms.
"Aiden—" I begin.
He's across the clearing in a blink.
His hands slam onto my shoulders, firm, urgent.
"Liyana," he growls, voice raw, "why are you here?"
"I—"
"You were supposed to stay inside."
"There were rogues—"
He leans closer, forehead almost touching mine, eyes burning. "And they were coming for you."
The words hit me like ice.
"What?"
Kai arrives, panting. "He's right. Rogues weren't attacking the border. They were tracking a scent."
Aiden's eyes darken.
"Your scent."
My breath falters.
Moonfire.
Witch scent.
That spark on the rooftop.
Someone sensed it.
Someone found me.
Someone sent rogues to retrieve or kill me.
Aiden's grip on my shoulders tightens.
His voice drops to a deadly whisper.
"You're being hunted."
Magic and Wolf Blood
A low snarl comes from behind us.
The rogues are still alive.
Still watching.
Still choosing a target.
Aiden shifts in front of me instantly, blocking me with his body.
Kai draws two silver daggers. "Round two."
But something is wrong.
The air feels colder.
The forest is too still.
The rogues' eyes glow not yellow—
but red.
Dark magic.
Blood magic.
Witch magic.
My stomach twists.
This isn't a random attack.
Aiden lowers his body into a fighting stance, claws out.
"Stay behind me," he orders.
My magic flares. "No."
He snaps his head toward me. "Liyana—"
I step forward, eyes burning gold.
"I'm done hiding."
The nearest rogue charges.
Aiden moves to intercept—
But I raise my hand first.
Moonfire shoots from my palm in a straight, blazing line.
The rogue explodes into ash.
Kai curses loudly. "Holy goddess—!"
Aiden stares at me like I've just rewritten the laws of nature.
"Liyana," he breathes, "stop."
I can't.
My magic is awake.
Alive.
Hungry.
A second rogue lunges—
I catch it mid-air with a flick of my wrist.
It freezes.
Suspended.
Screaming as Moonfire eats through its body.
I drop my hand.
It drops dead.
Kai lets out a low whistle. "Remind me never to piss you off."
Aiden doesn't move.
He just looks at me.
Really looks.
Like I'm a puzzle.
A danger.
A temptation.
A storm he can't outrun.
His voice comes out rough, shaken.
"You're more powerful than I thought."
I lift my chin. "You know nothing about what I am."
His jaw tightens. "I'm learning fast."
Thunder rumbles across the trees.
The last rogue, bleeding and snarling, suddenly stops struggling.
Its eyes roll white.
Its jaw opens unnaturally wide.
And a voice—
cold, distorted, inhuman—
echoes from its mouth.
"Moonfire girl…"
My blood freezes.
Aiden steps in front of me instantly, claws out. "Who are you?"
The voice ignores him.
"We have waited. We have watched."
Aiden snarls. "Answer me!"
"The Moonfire witch belongs to the Shadow King."
The world tilts.
Shadow King.
A name I hoped was just a myth.
A name from the darkest part of witch lore.
Aiden's eyes snap to me. "Who is that?"
The rogue collapses into ash before I can reply.
Silence swallows the clearing.
Kai exhales shakily. "Well… that was horrifying."
Aiden turns fully to me, stepping closer, chest heaving.
His voice is low, fierce.
"Who. Is. The Shadow King?"
I swallow hard.
"He's the one who cursed my bloodline," I whisper.
"He's the one who made the Moonfire witches dangerous."
Aiden's eyes flare.
"And now," I continue, "he's coming for me."
Aiden's jaw clenches so hard I hear his teeth grind.
His voice goes full Alpha.
"No one is taking you."
My breath stutters.
He steps closer, gripping my face gently but firmly.
"I don't care if he's king of shadows or nightmares or hell itself," Aiden growls.
"If he wants you—"
His forehead presses to mine, breath shaking with fury he can't contain.
"—he'll have to go through me."
The bond pulses—
Warm.
Dangerous.
Alive.
And for the first time…
I'm not sure I want to break it.