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Chapter 1
Ember's POV
"Run, Ember!" Mom screamed through our mind link as claws tore through her side.
But I couldn't leave them. I watched my father take down four wolves before a massive brown wolf clamped its jaws around his throat. Mom howled in rage and threw herself at his killer. They went down together, rolling toward the cliff edge.
The last thing I saw was my parents falling into the darkness below, taking their enemies with them.
"No!" My wolf and I let out a heart-wrenching howl.
The war with the Shadow Wolves had lasted for months. Tonight, we won, but I lost my parents.
I stood among the bodies of our enemies, blood dripping from my own wounds, and felt nothing but emptiness.
I dragged myself to the edge of the cliff and looked down into the blackness where my parents had fallen. My wolf was howling inside my chest, a sound of grief so pure it threatened to tear me apart from the inside.
That's when it happened. The connection between me and my wolf, the bond that had defined my entire life, just snapped. The power that had always flowed through my veins went silent. I couldn't feel her anymore. I couldn't feel anything.
I don't remember much about the next few hours. I walked with my blood flowing out of my wounds that were taking time to heal and eventually found myself standing on a different cliff, staring down at rocks that promised an end to the pain.
My parents were dead. My wolf was gone. I had lost everything I held.
The sound that came out of me wasn't quite human. It was the cry of something broken beyond repair, a wail that echoed across the mountains like the song of a dying animal.
That's when I heard footsteps behind me.
"Whoa, hey," a male voice called out, gentle but urgent. "Don't do anything stupid."
I turned to see a man emerging from the tree line. He was tall and lean, with dark hair and concerned green eyes. He moved carefully, like he was approaching a spooked horse.
"I'm not doing anything," I said, my voice hoarse from crying.
"Standing that close to the edge sure looks like something to me." He took another step closer, hands raised where I could see them. "What's your name?"
"Ember." I didn't give him my last name, nor did I mention where I came from.
The Silver Moon Pack was one of the most powerful and dangerous territories in the werewolf world, and I was the last surviving Alpha bloodline of this pack.
"I'm Marcus," he said. "Marcus Grayfang. And I think you should step away from that cliff."
"Why?" The question came out flat, emotionless. "What difference does it make?"
"Because whatever happened to you, whatever brought you here, it doesn't have to end like this."
I smiled. Apparently, he thought I was going to end my life.
His concern touched me—just a little—even though it was our first meeting.
"What happened?"
"My parents are dead." The words felt like glass in my throat. "They died in a war. I can't even feel my wolf anymore and after what happened..." I let my voice trail off, letting him assume the worst.
Marcus was quiet for a long moment. When he spoke again, his voice was softer. "I lost my father in a territorial dispute last year. He died defending our borders from raiders. I know it's not the same, but I know what it feels like to lose someone who was supposed to be invincible."
"At least you still have your people," I could feel tears starting again.
"You have your life," he said simply. "If you want, let me be your family."
"Amber, my baby girl, I hope you can find an ordinary werewolf, live a simple life, and stay far away from the chaos of the battlefield."
Those were the whispers my mother had repeated in my ear countless nights. But at that time, all I longed for was to become a warrior like them.
I lifted my head and met his sincere gaze.
The next moment, Marcus reached out his hand to me.
"My pack isn't much," Marcus continued. "We're small, barely twenty wolves. We don't have much territory or resources. But we take care of each other. If you want, if you're willing to try living instead of dying, you could stay with us, with me."
I stared at him. I stared at him. I held out my hand, and Marcus smiled. For the first time in hours, I felt as if I could breathe again.
"Okay," I whispered. "Okay."
I looked up at the sky. Perhaps my mother had been right—perhaps I should find an ordinary werewolf and live a simple, happy life.
Marcus brought me back to his territory and let me stay. While I grieved, he sat with me. When nightmares woke me up screaming, he held me until I fell back asleep. He showed me kindness when the world had shown me only cruelty.
I thought it was love, even thourh we’re just each other’s chosen mate.
Today, it had been three years since I became the Luna of the Grayfang Pack. I spent the morning reviewing territorial expansion proposals, the same kind of strategic work I'd been doing since I arrived. Marcus always let me handle the politics while he focused on pack training and enforcement. The Grayfang pack now has their own enterprises and were counted as one of the rich Packs.
I walked to his office to deliver the documents, planning to suggest we grab lunch together afterward. We hadn't spent much time alone lately, and I missed him.
But when I pushed open the door to the pack house office, I found Marcus with his arms around Seraphina Nightclaw. Her hands were tangled in his hair, and their lips were pressed together in a deep kiss.
I froze in the doorway, the expansion proposals slipping from my numb fingers and scattering across the floor.
They broke apart at the sound. Marcus stepped back quickly, but Seraphina just smiled at me like she'd been caught doing nothing more scandalous than reading a book.
"Ember," Marcus said, and I could hear the guilt in his voice. "This isn't what it looks like."
Chapter 2
Ember's POV:
I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Seraphina stood intimately close to Marcus in his office, her hand resting possessively on his arm as if i am invisible to her.
"Who is she?" I asked, my voice sharper than intended, totally ignoring whatever Marcus wanted to say, my gaze fixed on her. I know her. I just wanted to confirm if she is truly the one.
Seraphina stepped forward with practiced grace. "I'm Seraphina Nightclaw, Alpha of the Nightclaw pack." Her smile was perfectly polite, perfectly cold. "And you must be the rogue orphan, Ember."
The name hit me like a physical blow. This was truly her—Marcus's first love, the one he'd pined for since childhood. The Alpha he claimed to have "gotten over" when he mated with me.
My eyes dropped to her neck, and my blood turned to ice. There, gleaming against her throat, was my mother's amulet. I stared at the silver amulet, entranced. The silver amulet was a sacred relic of the Silver Moon bloodline, passed down through generations of Royal Alpha Queens bloodline.
"That belongs to me," I said, reaching for it instinctively.
Marcus's hand shot out, blocking my path. "Ember, stop. This was my gift to Seraphina for becoming Alpha of one of the territories of Nightclaw pack."
"Your gift?" The words tasted like ash in my mouth. "That was what my mother left me! What right did you have to give away my possession to someone else?” I said, my usually serene face marred by a rare display of anger.
"You're Luna of this pack now," Marcus said coldly. "Everything you own belongs to this territory, including that amulet. I had every right to gift it to whoever I want."
Seraphina laughed, a sound like breaking of glasses on the ground, I knew she wants to mock me. "Oh please, I don't care about someone else's hand-me-downs." She unclasped the amulet and let it drop to the floor with a metallic clatter. "Keep your precious trinket. If I had known it was yours, I wouldn't have worn it around my neck. "
The amulet lay between us, glinting accusingly. I crouched slowly, my fingers trembling as I retrieved it. The silver was warm, humming faintly with the power of my ancestors.
"If you don't care about someone else's possessions," I said, rising to face her, "then why are you kissing someone else's mate?"
The office went dead silent. Seraphina's composure cracked for just a moment before she recovered.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," she said smoothly.
"Enough." Marcus stepped between us, his jaw tight. "This conversation is over."
But I wasn't finished. The amulet burned in my palm, reminding me of who I used to be before I diminished myself for him even though my wolf was gone, my bloodline still flows in my vein.
I tightly clutched the amulet in my hand. To Marcus, it was just an amulet, he didn’t know it was the symbol of the Silver Moon Pack’s Alpha for generations. He had no idea what it represented, just as he had no idea what he had just lost.
I had never really known him. He can treat his at will for other female werewolf.
Taking a deep breath, I recalled the mind-link message I had received before entering the pack house. It informed me that my late parents' Sacred Moon stones that were ready to be found at the cliff, set to arrive in the Northern Territories tomorrow.
“It's okay, let's not fight over this amulet anymore. Tomorrow my parents' Moon stones are being transported back,” I said, my eyes were on Marcus.
When powerful werewolves like my parents die, their hearts and bodies transform into Moon stones, but only the most powerful Alphas and spiritual leaders know this truth, to the lesser wolves the moon stones represent the goodwill a wolf has done before its death. If I fail to collect it, my parents soul won't rest in peace. “I would like you to accompany me to collect them.”
My parents had always hoped to see me find my mate, even if he was only my chosen one.
A glint flickered in Seraphina's eyes as she, scornfully retorted, "Was a rogue’s parents’ Moonstone really worth Marcus setting aside all the pack’s affairs to collect it? You truly were a Luna who only caused trouble!"
I ignored her, keeping my eyes on my mate. "Will you come?"
Marcus hesitated, glancing at Seraphina before nodding reluctantly. "Fine. I'll be there."
I turned and left without another word, clutching my mother's amulet like a lifeline.
The following day, when the agreed time came, Marcus was nowhere to be found.
A flicker of unease subtly crossed my heart.
I mind-linked Marcus, only to be met with his impatient voice. "Seraphina's mother injured herself during a hunt. I'm taking her to the pack healer."
"Marcus, hurry over here and help me," Seraphina's voice echoed through the link, deliberately loud enough for me to hear.
"All right," Marcus responded, his voice ever so gentle, a tone he had never used with me.
Before I could say anything else, Marcus had already severed the mind-link.
I felt a chilling sensation enveloping my heart, as if my throat was being strangled. I wanted to howl out my rage, to let my wolf tear free, but in the end, I found myself unable to shift, my power still suppressed by years of diminishing myself.
How ludicrous. My mate could accompany his first love mother to the healer for a minor injury, yet is unwilling to accompany me, his bonded mate, to collect my parents' Moon stones.
Taking a deep breath, I firmly stood up, left the pack house, and drove to the entrance of the military district.
The military district was solemn and dignified. At the entrance, guards dressed in military uniforms stood with weapons at ready.
I stepped out of the car, my back straight and my steps firm.
Even though I had left my pack three years ago, abandoning my Alpha duties for love, my bearing still resembled that of the royal wolf I was born to be.
I made my way to the military camp step by step. Once I reached the front, I stood firm, raised my right hand, and executed a flawless military salute, the salute of the Alpha bloodline.
Even if I had to do it alone, I was determined to bring my parents' Moon stones back home.
Then, I called out with the authority that had been bred into my bones, "Ember Ashworth, former Alpha Queen of the Silver Moon pack, here to retrieve the Sacred moon stones of former Alpha King Montague Ashworth and former Luna Queen Arlene Ashworth!"
My voice pierced through the military district's morning air as the gates slowly swung open, and for the first time in three years, I remembered exactly who I was.
Chapter 3
Ember's POV:
Whoosh!
Four rows of pack warriors marched out in perfect formation, taking their positions at the entrance of the military district. Raising their right hands in synchronized unity, they saluted toward me, a salute I hadn't received in three years.
My wolf stirred restlessly within me, recognizing the ancient respect being shown to our bloodline.
Then I saw Commander Thane Blackwood, an old pack military leader dressed in his formal uniform, personally carrying a ceremonial ancestral coffer as he approached me. The sight of him, someone who had served under my father, made my throat tighten with emotion.
Atop the cremation ancestral coffer was the Silver Moon pack's royal crest. When I looked at it, my eyes stung with unshed tears. The symbol of the throne I had abandoned, the crown I had cast aside for a love that was never reciprocated.
The crest embodied my parents' steadfast conviction and the legacy I had walked away from.
Back then, when my parents accepted their final mission from the Pack Council to lead a peacekeeping force in the war-torn Eastern Territories, they were already prepared for the possibility of making the ultimate sacrifice. They knew the rival packs there showed no mercy, especially to Alpha royalty.
"The remains of your parents were found together after the territory was reclaimed," Commander Blackwood conveyed, his voice thick with regret. "Their wolves never separated, even in death. Their bodies and souls are now in their Sacred moon stones, Your Majesty."
The title hit me like a physical blow. Your Majesty. When was the last time someone had called me that?
"It's better this way," I gazed at the ancestral coffer beneath the royal crest, my voice barely above a whisper. "Mom and Dad were true mates. They would have wanted to be together even in death."
Commander Blackwood nodded, suddenly standing at full attention. He handed the Ancestral coffer to me with the reverence due to fallen royalty. "The spirits of fallen Alphas will never fade!"
The warriors standing behind Commander Blackwood echoed in unison, their voices carrying the ancient pack blessing: "The spirits of fallen Alphas will never fade!"
Their thunderous howl pierced through the morning air, and I felt something shift inside me, a stirring of the power I had buried for three years.
Tears welled up in my eyes. I held my back straight and, drawing on instincts bred into my bones, I gave a solemn salute to Commander Blackwood and the warriors.
"I, Ember Ashworth, former Alpha Queen of the Silver Moon pack, hereby welcome my parents home!" I took the Ancestral coffer from Commander Blackwood, feeling its weight settle against my chest like a missing piece of my heart.
Though it was heavy, it inexplicably provided me with a sense of peace I hadn't felt in years.
Three years ago, my parents died defending territory that wasn't even ours, honoring ancient alliances while their own daughter played house with someone who couldn't appreciate what he had. At last, I could bring them home.
After completing the ceremony, Commander Blackwood finally noticed that I had come alone.
"Your Majesty, where is your mate? He didn't come with you?" Commander Blackwood was aware of my mating, though he had never approved of my abdication.
With a slightly lowered gaze, I softly said, "He was... occupied. So he didn't come."
Commander Blackwood had watched me grow up. I was once a fierce young Alpha full of energy and ambition, destined to unite the Northern Territories under Silver Moon's banner. But three years after mating with Marcus, my face was etched with a weariness that had nothing to do with age.
His expression darkened with understanding. "Your Majesty, if you ever face any trouble, just reach out to me. The Silver Moon pack's military forces remain loyal to the royal bloodline."
The weight of his words settled over me. Even in exile, I still commanded loyalty from those who remembered what I was born to be.
"Thank you, Commander Blackwood," I said, my voice stronger than it had been in months.
"Also, if things don't work out in your current... situation, you can always return. The pack elders have kept your throne empty. The Silver Moon territory will forever welcome its true Alpha Queen home," Commander Blackwood added, his eyes holding a hope I wasn't ready to acknowledge.
I nodded, not trusting my voice. After bidding farewell to Commander Blackwood, I returned to the car, cradling my parents' ancestral coffer against my chest.
With utmost care, I placed the Ancestral coffer on the passenger seat and started the car. "Dad, Mom, I'm taking you home."
But where was home now?
*
When I returned to Marcus's pack house, a place that had never truly felt like mine, I could hear voices drifting from the main living area before I even crossed the threshold.
"Now that Seraphina is back and has claimed her Alpha position, you should hurry up and reject Ember so you can pursue a proper mate," came the sharp voice of Lydia Grayfang, Marcus's mother.
I froze in the entryway, my parents' ancestral coffer still clutched in my arms.
"We're just allies, Seraphina and I," came Marcus's measured response, but his voice lacked the conviction it should have had.
"What allies? Everyone in the territory knows you've been obsessed with Seraphina since you were kids, she is your first love. She has royal connections, Alpha training, and she commands the Nightclaw pack. Ember has nothing to offer. She's unworthy of having a wolf bloodline, let alone an Alpha!" Jacinda Grayfang, Marcus's younger sister, exclaimed with obvious disdain.
A chill ran through my heart. Here I was, returning from honoring my fallen Alpha King and Queen parents, only to hear myself dismissed as worthless by wolves who didn't even know my true lineage.
I had been mated for three years, supporting Marcus's pack ambitions and business ventures. I had worked myself to exhaustion, pushing through pain and sickness for the sake of his success. I had used every connection from my former life to help him gain territory and influence. Yet all my efforts were now met with the casual dismissal that I was "unworthy."
Just then, Jacinda spotted me hovering in the doorway. "Ember, you really have no shame, lurking around and eavesdropping like that!"
I stepped forward, my chin raised with dignity I had almost forgotten I possessed. "I wasn't hiding, so how could I have eavesdropped? This is supposed to be my home too."
"It's good that you heard me," Jacinda's tone was as dismissive as ever. "If you know what's good for you, you should break the mate bond yourself. Don't hold Marcus back from being with Seraphina."
"Enough, Jacinda!" Marcus warned, but his voice lacked real authority.
Jacinda wasn't one to back down. "I'm not wrong, Marcus. Ember has nothing. She gave up whatever pitiful territory she had to chase after you, which is why you ended up mated to her in the first place!"
The casual cruelty of her words hit harder because there was a grain of truth to them, I had given up everything for Marcus. But they had no idea what "everything" actually meant.
Marcus frowned. "Jacinda, are you finished?"
Jacinda pursed her lips but said nothing more, though her eyes promised this conversation wasn't over.
Lydia stepped forward, eyeing the ceremonial ancestral coffer in my hands with obvious distaste.
Marcus finally looked directly at me, his gaze falling on the ancestral coffer adorned with the royal crest. "This is..."
"My parents' Sacred moon stones," I said, my voice steady despite the emotional turmoil churning inside me. "I've brought them home."
A flicker of regret flashed in Marcus's eyes, so brief I almost missed it. "I'm sorry. I was supposed to accompany you today, but Seraphina's mother injured herself during a hunt, so—"
Before Marcus could finish his explanation, he was abruptly interrupted by a sharp voice that cut through the room like a blade.
"What, moon stones?" Lydia glared at me with pure disgust. "How could you bring such an unlucky thing into our pack house?"
Unlucky? I looked at Lydia in disbelief. "These are my parents' Sacred moon stones. They died serving the greater good, protecting territories and saving lives!" They were Alpha royalty who sacrificed themselves for peace you now have and they deserve the utmost respect.
"No matter whose stones they are, they bring bad fortune!" Lydia said irritably. "Remove them immediately. Don't allow such inauspicious items in our home!"
I held the ancestral coffer tightly in my hands, feeling my wolf snarl with barely contained rage. "I'm not leaving. This is my home too, a place I helped Marcus establish when we first mated!"
"What do you mean you helped Marcus establish this? He built this pack house with his own resources," Jacinda interjected. "Then, she called out, "Marcus, your mother just had her wolf venom removal treatment. The healer said she shouldn't get agitated. Quickly, send Ember away!"
A flicker of hesitation flashed through Marcus's eyes, but eventually, he said, "You should take the stones elsewhere for now. Find somewhere appropriate to keep them."
I could only feel my heart steadily sinking. How could he ask such a thing?
"Do you also think my parents' Sacred Moon Stones bring bad luck? Can't we keep them in our home temporarily?" I stared at him intently, demanding an answer that might salvage what was left of our bond.
Marcus didn't utter a word, but his silence spoke volumes.
"What if I refuse?" I stepped forward, feeling something ancient and powerful stirring in my chest.
"Marcus, in the three years we've been mated, I've never wronged you or your family. When you started building this pack, I was there by your side, sharing every hardship and challenge. When your mother has a large amount of Wolf venom in her body, many healers said it couldn't be treated. It was I who used every connection I had, reaching out to contacts across multiple territories to secure an appointment with the best supernatural healer in the region. That's how we managed to save her wolf! I've always treated your family with respect and loyalty, but have any of you ever shown the same to me?"
My words caused the expressions of the Grayfang family members to shift uncomfortably.
Jacinda said indignantly, "What do you mean you helped Marcus with his pack? It was your mate supporting you, that's all! His territory expanded because of his own abilities and leadership, not because of you. Don't make it sound like it was all your doing!"
I simply looked at Marcus. "We've been mated for three years. Is it really unreasonable for me to keep my parents' Moon stones in our home for a few days?"
Marcus frowned, his internal conflict visible. "Ember, stop making this difficult."
"What if I refuse?" I stepped forward again, and this time, I felt it, the dormant Alpha power that had been suppressed for three years beginning to surface.
In a fit of rage, Lydia stormed up to me, raising her hand and slapped me. "As long as I'm here, don't you dare think about bringing any moon stones into this house!"
I stumbled slightly as her hand connected with my cheek, but I held onto the ancestral coffer protectively.
As I was still struggling to steady myself, Lydia seized the opportunity and forcefully shoved at the ancestral coffer in my hands. It almost slipped from my grasp, and I watched in horror as it tilted dangerously toward the floor…
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