Sera's POV
Absolutely insane if you think I'm letting her go with you!
Kael's angry voice pulls me out of the darkness.
She'll be safer in Bloodmoon territory. Your own pack tried to hand her over to the Council!
That's Darius. Also angry.
I try to open my eyes, but they feel like they're glued shut. My whole body aches, but it's different from the silver burns. This is a tired ache, like I've been asleep for days.
My pack follows Marcus, not me. That's going to change.
And how many of your wolves will you have to kill to make that happen?
As many as it takes!
Something crashes in the other room. Glass breaking. More shouting.
I force my eyes open and immediately regret it. The sunlight streaming through the window feels like knives in my skull.
But I'm alive.
I'm in a bed with clean sheets. My arms are wrapped in bandages that smell like herbs. The silver burns are still there, but they don't hurt as badly.
Where am I?
The arguing in the other room gets louder. I hear a woman's voice now Dr. Winters, trying to calm them down. And another voice I recognize: Lyssa!
I try to sit up and the room spins. Okay. Bad idea. Let's try that slower.
On my second attempt, I manage to swing my legs over the side of the bed. The floor is cold wood under my bare feet. Someone put me in clean clothes a soft shirt and pants that definitely aren't mine.
The voices in the other room are getting more heated.
This is exactly why she needs to come with me! Darius shouts. You can't even protect her from your own Beta!
Marcus is a traitor, and I'll deal with him
When? After he kills her?
Nobody is killing anyone! Dr. Winters snaps. Now both of you sit down before I sedate you!
I stand up on shaky legs and make my way to the door. When I pull it open, the arguing stops immediately.
Six pairs of eyes turn to stare at me.
Kael and Darius are standing on opposite sides of a small living room, both looking like they haven't slept in days. Dr. Winters is between them, holding what looks like a medical bag. Lyssa is perched on the back of a couch, grinning at me with tears in her eyes.
And there's a huge man I don't know sitting in the corner covered in scars, arms crossed, watching everything with sharp eyes.
Sera! Lyssa jumps off the couch and runs to hug me, then stops herself. Can I hug you? Does it hurt?
It hurts a little, I admit. But I'll take the hug anyway.
She wraps her arms around me carefully, and I can feel her shaking. I thought you were dead. When they took you away, I thought
I'm okay, I tell her, even though it's not quite true.
You're not okay, Kael says, his voice rough. You almost died. Twice.
The silver poisoning nearly killed you, Darius adds. And then your power He stops, his jaw clenching. You lost control. We couldn't stop it.
I remember now. The silver light exploding from my body. The feeling of drowning in power I couldn't contain.
How long was I out?
Twelve hours, Dr. Winters says, coming over to check my pulse. Your body shut down to heal itself. You're lucky to be alive.
Where are we?
Safe house in the Neutral Grounds, the scarred man says. His voice is deep and gravelly. No pack authority here. Name's Thorne. I'm with him. He jerks his thumb at Darius.
Thorne is my Second, Darius explains. He helped get you out.
Thank you, I say to Thorne, who just grunts and nods.
Now that you're awake, Kael says, moving closer, we need to decide where you're going. Shadowpine or Bloodmoon.
She's not going to Shadowpine! Darius steps forward too. Half your pack wants her dead!
And your pack will see her as a weapon to use against us!
I'm not going anywhere with either of you!
My shout surprises everyone, including me. But once I start, I can't stop.
You're both arguing about me like I'm a piece of property! I don't belong to Shadowpine, and I definitely don't belong to Bloodmoon! I don't belong to anyone!
Both Alphas stare at me, stunned.
Sera Kael starts.
No! I didn't ask for any of this! I didn't ask for mate bonds or power or to be hunted by the Council! I just wanted to leave and start over somewhere new! My voice cracks. And now I can't even do that because apparently I'm some kind of freak that everyone wants to control or kill!
Silence fills the room.
Then Dr. Winters puts a gentle hand on my shoulder. Sera, can we talk? Privately?
I nod, grateful for an excuse to get away from both Alphas and their suffocating concern.
Dr. Winters leads me back to the bedroom and closes the door. She sits me down on the bed and pulls up a chair.
What you're going through is terrifying, she says quietly. I know that. But there are some things you need to understand about what you are.
I'm an omega, I say automatically.
No, sweetheart. You're not. Dr. Winters takes my hand. You never were. The omega designation was a lie to hide your true nature.
My heart starts pounding. What do you mean?
I've been researching your symptoms. The double mate bond, the power, the way you can command Alphas. She takes a deep breath. Sera, you're a True Luna. The rarest and most powerful designation in our species.
The words don't make sense. That's impossible. True Lunas are extinct. They died out hundreds of years ago.
They were hunted to extinction, Dr. Winters corrects. By the Council. Because True Lunas threatened the entire power structure. They could bond with multiple Alphas, command any wolf regardless of rank, and possessed magic that could challenge even the Elders.
But my parents
Your parents must have known what you were. They probably used a suppression spell to hide your true designation until you came of age. That's why you never shifted, why you always felt weak. Dr. Winters's eyes are sad. And that's probably why they were really killed. Someone discovered their secret.
The room tilts. I grab onto the bed to steady myself.
No. That can't be right.
It explains everything, Sera. The bonds, the power, all of it.
My mind is racing. If this is true, then my parents didn't die for betraying the pack. They died protecting me.
The Council, I whisper. They know, don't they? That's why Elder Cassandra came.
I suspect so. And that's why she'll kill you the moment she confirms what you are. Dr. Winters squeezes my hand. But there's a way to protect yourself.
How?
Complete the mate bonds. Both of them.
I pull my hand back. What?
When a True Luna fully bonds with her Alphas, they become exponentially stronger. All three of you. The bond creates a power connection that even the Council can't break. Dr. Winters leans forward. Bonded Alphas are supernaturally driven to protect their mate. It's your best defence, Sera. Maybe your only one.
You want me to bond with Kael? The man who killed my parents?
The man who was manipulated into signing an execution order based on lies, Dr. Winters says gently. And who risked everything to save you from the Council.
And Darius? A Bloodmoon Alpha? Our enemy?
An enemy who also came for you. Who fought beside Kael his sworn rival to protect you.
I shake my head. This is insane.
Yes. But it's also your reality. Dr. Winters stands up. I'll give you time to think. But Sera? Don't take too long. The Council won't wait forever.
She leaves, closing the door behind her.
I sit there in silence, my mind spinning with everything she just told me.
True Luna. Double bonds. Ancient magic. My parents died protecting this secret.
And the only way to survive is to bind myself forever to two Alphas one who destroyed my life, and one who's supposed to be my enemy.
Through the door, I can hear Kael and Darius start arguing again.
I close my eyes and reach for the mate bonds, feeling them pulse in my chest like second heartbeats.
They're real. Undeniable. Growing stronger every hour.
And if I complete them, there's no going back.
Ever.
The door bursts open and Lyssa rushes in, her face pale.
Sera, we have a problem. A big one.
What?
Council enforcers. They just found the safe house.
Outside, I hear wolves howling.
We're surrounded.