ilers, but by handmaids who treated me with a fearful, almost ritualistic reverence. They didn't see E

e water was scented with exotic oils, the soap made of costly flower essences, and every touch from the handmaids felt like a judgment. They washed away the mud and

-soft, heavy silk dyed in the dee

n eyes, usually dulled by exhaustion, were wide and terrified, I hav

lack Hills pack slums. The bedroom was enormous, dominated by a four-poster bed draped in

as massive, silent, and honorable-the Chief of Guard. His face was a closed book, b

p and respectful. "I am bound to ensure your safety and follo

no longer needed me. Commander Finn was not an ally; he was the highest-ranking watchdog. Still,

eption for the Luna, forcing the nobility to acknowledge his claim

thick enough to choke on. The worst of it came from the two people Demetrius c

ring like liquid poison. She dismissed Finn with

lt. "You would do well to remember that. We all know what you are. An omega who was rejected by a common

ut something shifted. I was no longer fighting f

e," I replied, my voice raspy but steady. "Perhaps you should worry less

had defied her. But before she could retaliate

disguised. "Your heritage is dangerous, Esmeralda. If you attempt any rebellion, any flight, or any communi

e truth: the "True Luna" title was rubbish. I had no f

bout. I have an angry king to see later in the eveni

***

tactical war room. The air was thick with the scent of dried ink, parchment, and tension.

the King-cold, calc

u are here for one purpose. You claim knowledge of a path through those canyons-a

mputer, not a Queen, no

I had to access the information Old Man Silas had given me. I closed my e

knowledge linked to the silver scars on my arm. When I described the

river flows in three channels there, but the Lycan scouts only see two. The third channel, though only six feet wide, is t

. "If you enter at the full moon, the illusion thins. The path follows the current for two days, then ri

oning from disbelief to icy comprehension. He didn't look impressed; he

closest he'd come to an emotional admission. "

confirmed. I had secure

smissed everyone except me. The moment the heavy oak doors shut, the cold

ed power. He didn't come close enough for the bond to flare, mai

e delivered the threat with the

ition, Luna?" he asked,

e, defiant resilience. I couldn't beat him, but I

Victor Sterling and the Aegis Initiative. Once the route is fully secured and u

throat feeling tighter than a noose.

, quietly and completely, I will ensure your death is painless. You will be remembe

int, desperate scent of his true Alpha to hit me. I

let the threat hang, heavy and final. "I will do to you what you did to Damon, magnified tenfold. You will guide my army, and then y

life had been defined by what others wanted-Damon's rejection

ed to love, and saw only my executioner

dded once, slowly. "I u

m. I will use his resources, his robes, his guards, and his war room to survive his plan.

lve was now locked in. I would not only guide his a