Chapter 47
(Siena’s POV)
The celebration dinner this evening feels bittersweet: joy at our accomplishment tempered by the constant pain in my chest where the mate bond continues to weaken.
Windhowl’s council members have spared no expense, transforming our pack’s communal dining hall into something almost regal with candles flickering in iron sconces and the long tables draped in deep green cloth embroidered with silver
thread
The council’s decision to back my proposal surprised even my most ardent supporters.
I smile and raise my glass to another toast, my third in the past hour, even as the dull ache beneath my breastbone flares sharper for a moment.
I wonder if Raiden feels it too, wherever he is tonight–that slow, inexorable unraveling of what once seemed unbreakable. Probably not.
He made his choice long ago.
“To Windhowl’s future, calls Elder Margot, her voice carrying over the sounds of celebration. “And to our Alpha who showed those stuffy bureaucrats what real leadership looks like!
The room erupts in cheers. I nod graciously, taking only a small sip of the rich red wine. I need my wits about me, especially now when the bond’s deterioration leaves me feeling hollow and off–balance in unexpected moments
Across the table, Rairity watches me with knowing eyes
My second–in–command is the only one I’ve confided in about the mate bonds condition. The official story–that Raiden and I mutually agreed to dissolve our political alliance–is technically true but misses the devastating personal reality.
“You should eat something” Rairity murmurs, sliding a plate of roasted venison closer to me. The pack healer said protein. helps stabilize the symptoms.”
I nod and take a small bite, though food has lost its taste weeks ago. I force myself to chew and swallow, knowing my body needs strength for what’s to come,
The negotiations have only just begun, and Silverfang won’t take today’s defear lying down. We needed that speech, and I’d worked on the logistics of the plan night after night
I worked my tail off.
But that didn’t change anything–Raiden lost.
He didn’t take kindly to that
“They’re waiting for you to speak” Rairity adds, nodding toward the expectant faces around the hall. Just a few words. Then we can get you out of here.”
I rise to my feet, ignoring the way the movement pulls at the emptiness inside me.
Tonight is about Windhowl’s victory, not my private grel
Ill allow myself to collapse later, alone in my quarters where no one can see their Alpha weep for something I willingly sacrificed for my people’s future.
“Today marks just the beginning,” I begin, my voice steady despite everything crumbling within. “Of a future that is bright
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Chapter 47
and well deserved! To Windhow!”
Π
The moonlight filters through the canopy of trees, casting silver shadows over the moonlit gardens.
My mind is a storm of its own, battling with the remnants of the territorial challenge, with the weight of the victory, and with the ever–present, gnawing ache that comes with the loss of the mate bond.
Raiden.
I can’t help but think of him, even now,
His presence lingers like a shadow, though he is not here.
The connection that once felt so unbreakable is weakening–its pull distant, its warmth fading. Every time I look at him, the bond flickers like a flame about to be snuffed out. It’s a cruel irony, really.
After all this time, after everything, I finally lead Windhowl to victory, only to feel like I’m losing him. Losing the one thing I never thought I’d have to fight for
For good.
1 step further into the garden, the soft crunch of the gravel underfoot the only sound that accompanies me.
I need to be alone. I need silence.
My pack, my people, they’re celebrating, but I feel like I’m drowning in their joy, suffocating under the weight of a victory that should have felt like triumph but instead tastes like ashes on my tongue.
The scent of roses hangs thick in the air. It’s both soothing and suffocating, like a promise of something beautiful that’s now wilting
Like us.
I walk further, needing to escape from the prying eyes, the whispering voices. But as I pass the rose bushes, something shifts in the air a presence, a disturbance in the quiet.
Freeze.
A shadow moves between the darkened leaves.
For a moment, I tell myself it’s just the wind. But then the shadow sharpens, takes shape, and a voice cuts through the silence.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the newly crowned Alpha of Windhowl, Lila’s voice drips with sarcasm, laced with venom. “Enjoying your little victory?”
My pulse quickens, not from fear but from the instinctive understanding of exactly who this is. I should’ve known I wouldn’t be left in peace. The victory, the public recognition, it’s too much for her to ignore.
I turn to face her, my jaw set, eyes narrowing. Her beauty, that polished, perfect exterior, is marred by the malice in her gaze. It’s raw, unfiltered
Without the stage of Raiden’s adoration, she doesn’t bother with the charm. There’s only cold, vicious satisfaction in her
eyes now.
The woman I’ve seen in fleeting moments over the years, the one who wears the mask of sweetness for his benefit, is standing before me in full, unrestrained form
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Chapter 47
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Π
Lila’s lips curve into a smile, sharp as a blade. “It won’t last, you know. Your little victory. Raiden and I? We’re strengthening our true mate bond every day”
Her fingers slide to the mark on her neck, and she touches it, possessive, claiming, marking it in front of me.
A gesture meant to wound. I feel the sting of it, deep in my chest, like a physical blow, but I don’t flinch
I won’t
I swallow the knot in my throat, steady my breath. “If you’re so confident in your position, why confront me at all?”
I don’t know why I say it–perhaps to get under her skin, to try to take some control of the situation. But it works.
For a moment, the smile falters, a flash of doubt, something unguarded, before she catches herself and steps closer. narrowing the distance between us.
Her voice drops, low, dangerous. “Because I want you to know that I’ve won. I’ve always won. Your father understood that- why do you think he was so desperate that day he came begging for help?”
The words hit me.
My stomach drops, and I’m frozen, rooted to the spot.
The mention of my father. It’s like the world stops spinning for just a beat, like time hallts in its tracks. My heartbeat slows, and all the air leaves my lungs
“What do you know about my father?” My voice comes out colder than I intend, but the anger, the disbelief, it cuts through
me like a razor.
Lila laughs. The sound is dark, almost mocking. “Oh, you don’t know? You really don’t know? He came to us, desperate, begging for help. And when we refused… well, it all fell apart, didn’t it?”
We? Raiden did this with her.
I can feel my blood turning to ice. I step forward, ignoring the instinct to run, to retreat from the hurt. “What are you talking about?” I demand. “What are you implying?”
Lila’s smile widens, like a snake showing its fangs. She tilts her head, eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “I don’t need to imply anything. You’re not stupid, Siena. You’ve always known, deep down. Your father… he made has choices. He came to the wrong people for help. And when he realized that well, the consequences were.. unfortunate, weren’t they?”
The ground beneath me feels like it’s shifting, like I’m falling, and I can’t catch my balance.
My father–begging for help? The questions Blood my mind, a torrent of confusion and disbelief. What did Lila know about him? What did she have to do with his death?
“No.” I say, my voice shaking, my chest tight with a grief that I can’t yet name. “You’re lying. This this isn’t true.”
Lila just shrugs, her expression one of feigned indifference, though I see the satisfaction flickering in her eyes. She knows. She knows exactly what she’s doing to me. “Maybe. But I wouldn’t be so sure if I were you.”
She turns, a slow, deliberate movement, like she knows exactly how much damage she’s done. “Think about it, Siena. Really think about it.” Her voice drips with mock sympathy. “How much do you really know about your father’s business? Who he was working with? Who he was really working with?”
She glances back at me over her shoulder, the cruel edge to her smile never leaving. “And now? Now he’s gone. And so are you. One way or another, I’ll win.
She knows-
16:26 Mon, 21 Apr
Chapter 17
The last words hang in the air long after she’s gone, her footsteps retreating through the roses, fading into the night.
The garden feels too still now, too silent.
I can’t breathe. I can’t think.
The weight of her words presses down on me, suffocating. My father. My father, who I thought I knew, who I thought I understood. What if everything I’ve believed is a lie? What if–what if–Lila’s right?
I try to shake it off, but it clings to me like a shadow, refusing to let go.
I
I turn away from the rose bushes, my steps heavy as I head back to the house, back to the celebration I’m supposed to be a part of. But all I can feel is the cold of the garden, the bitterness in my chest, and the growing sense of unease.
What don’t I know about my father?
And what did Lila mean when she said she’d always won?
Raiden, what have you done?
