Sera's POV
The summons arrives at dawn, slipped under my door by a servant too scared to knock.
The King requests your presence at breakfast. His private dining room. Don't be late.
I stare at the note, my hands trembling. After seven days of silence, now he wants to see me? After last night's confrontation in the hallway, after my hands glowed silver, after that warning howl?
Something's changed.
I dress quickly, my heart pounding. The silver mark on my forehead tingles beneath my hair. I make sure it's covered before leaving my chambers.
A guard escorts me through corridors I don't recognize. We stop at a door carved with wolves.
Enter, he says, then leaves me alone.
I push open the door.
Kael sits at a small table, reading reports like I'm not even there. He doesn't look up when I enter. Doesn't acknowledge me at all.
The anger from last night flares hot in my chest.
I walk to the table and sit across from him without waiting for permission. Servants appear immediately, setting down plates of food I'm too nervous to eat.
Five minutes pass in complete silence.
Kael keeps reading. I keep sitting. The tension builds until I want to scream.
Finally, I can't take it anymore.
Why did you marry me if you hate me so much? The words burst out before I can stop them.
Kael's eyes snap to mine. For the first time this morning, he actually sees me.
I don't hate you, he says.
Really? I lean forward. You avoid me for a week. You didn't even look at me during our wedding. You left me standing at the altar like a fool.
I looked. The words come out quiet, almost reluctant. Then his expression hardens like he's angry at himself for admitting it. This marriage is political. Nothing more. Your father's pack controls mountain passes I need for trade routes. You're part of the bargain.
Each word hits like a slap, but I refuse to flinch.
Then why am I here now? I demand. Why this breakfast?
Because my advisors think it looks bad that I ignore you completely. Kael sets down his report. We need to be seen together occasionally. For appearances.
How romantic, I say bitterly.
His lips twitch. Almost a smile. Almost. Romance is for fools.
My father said the same thing. The words come out before I can stop them. I guess that's why he sold me like a horse.
The temperature in the room drops instantly. Kael's power radiates out, making the air heavy and hard to breathe. Even the candles flicker.
What did you say? His voice is deadly quiet.
I've revealed too much, but I won't take it back now. He didn't ask if I wanted to marry you. He told me I was going, and I should be grateful you'd take someone like me. Someone broken.
Broken? Kael studies me with an intensity that makes my skin prickle. Who told you that?
Everyone. My whole life. The shame burns, but I force the words out. I never shifted like other wolves. I can't feel my wolf inside me. I'm... defective.
Kael sets down his fork carefully. Too carefully. Show me your wolf.
My stomach drops. I can't.
Everyone has a wolf.
Not me. I stand quickly, needing to escape this conversation. May I be excused? Or do you need to parade me around more for appearances?
Kael stands too, moving faster than should be possible. Before I can blink, he crosses to my side of the table.
I back up instinctively until I hit the wall.
Kael braces his hands on either side of my head, caging me in. He's so close I can feel the heat radiating from his body. His scent surrounds me pine and winter storms and something wild that makes my head spin.
You smell wrong, he says, leaning closer. His eyes search my face like he's looking for answers written on my skin. Not like omega. Not like alpha. Like something else. Something I can't identify.
My heart hammers against my ribs. I don't know what you want me to say.
Neither do I. Kael's expression shifts, confused and frustrated and something darker. Something that makes my breath catch.
We stare at each other. The air between us crackles with electricity. His eyes drop to my lips for half a second before snapping back up.
I can't breathe. Can't think. Can't
A sharp knock shatters the moment.
Kael steps back immediately, his face closing off like a door slamming shut.
Enter, he commands coldly.
Tessa walks in, bowing. My King, the council meeting starts in ten minutes.
Kael nods once. He looks at me, and something flashes in his eyes. Something I can't read.
We'll continue this later, he says.
Then he's gone, striding out of the room like I don't exist again.
The door closes behind him.
My legs give out. I slide down the wall until I'm sitting on the floor, my whole body shaking.
Not from fear.
From whatever just happened between us. From the way he looked at me. From the electricity still crackling under my skin where he stood too close.
I touch my chest, trying to calm my racing heart.
That's when I feel it.
A pulse of power, deep inside. Something waking up. Something that's been sleeping my whole life, just like the old woman said.
My hands start glowing silver again.
And suddenly, I hear a voice. Not in my head this time. A real voice, coming from the empty air beside me.
Finally, the voice whispers. Finally, you're waking up.
I scramble to my feet, looking around frantically. Who's there?
No one answers.
But in the corner of the room, a shadow moves. Not a normal shadow. This one has shape. Form. Eyes that glow silver like mine.
Who are you? I demand, power crackling around my fingers.
The shadow-figure steps forward, and my blood turns to ice.
It looks exactly like me.
Same face. Same hair. Same silver eyes.
But this version of me is smiling. And her smile is full of secrets.
I'm what you're becoming, she says. And it's about time. Because they're coming for you tonight, Sera. The ones who killed your mother. And if you don't wake up completely...
She leans close, her face inches from mine.
...you'll die just like she did.
Then she vanishes like smoke.
I stand alone in the empty room, my hands glowing, my heart racing, and one thought screaming through my mind:
Tonight. They're coming tonight.