I didn’t come here to dance.
I came to burn them all.
My boots glide over black marble, silent as a shadow, as I step into the Obsidian Spire. The air is thick with the scent of blood—real and metaphorical—mingled with jasmine and something darker, something old. Vampire musk. Power. Decay masked by perfume. The gala is a masquerade of elegance: crystal chandeliers drip with moonlight, gowns swirl like ink in water, and every smile hides a fang. I keep my face neutral, my spine straight, my fingers loose at my sides. Not clenched. Never clenched. Fear shows in the hands.
I am not afraid.
I am vengeance in a silver dress.
The forged papers in my clutch say I’m Lady Elira Voss, a minor noble from the Highland Coven. My blood says otherwise. Moonblood. The last of a line they slaughtered like rabid dogs. The only thing keeping me upright is the sigil carved into my ribs—a containment charm, etched in my own blood the night I left the hidden enclave. It hums faintly beneath my skin, a constant reminder: don’t let them feel your magic. Don’t let them know who you are.
And then I see him.
Kaelen Dain.
Alpha-King of the Northern Packs. Enforcer of the Vampire Council. The man who signed the order that lit the pyre beneath my mother.
He stands near the eastern arch, a statue carved from night and muscle. Shadow-woven armor clings to his frame, liquid dark, shifting with every breath. His hair is black as a raven’s wing, cut sharp at the jaw. His eyes—silver, like molten mercury—scan the room with cold precision. No emotion. No indulgence. Just control. Absolute, terrifying control.
And around his throat, pulsing with a slow, steady rhythm, is the mark of his rank: a silver wolf sigil, glowing faintly beneath his skin. The Alpha’s brand. A symbol of dominance. Of death.
I’ve seen that mark before.
On the decree that sentenced my mother to burn.
My breath catches. My pulse spikes. My fingers twitch toward the dagger hidden in my garter. One flick. One lunge. I could end him before he even shifts. I could carve that sigil from his throat and let him choke on his own blood.
But I don’t move.
I can’t.
Because he turns.
And his eyes lock onto mine.
Time stops.
It’s not a look. It’s a collision. A detonation. One second, I’m standing in a room full of predators, calculating angles and exits. The next—fire. Raw, searing magic tears through me, ripping up my spine, exploding behind my eyes. My blood doesn’t just rush—it boils. My skin ignites, every nerve alight, every breath a gasp. I stagger, my vision blurring, my knees buckling.
No.
No, no, no—
This isn’t possible.
Fated bonds are myths. Fairy tales told to pups and fledglings. They don’t exist for hybrids. They don’t exist for us. The Moonblood line was purged for a reason—we were the ones who could break the natural order. We could bind across species. We could twist fate.
And yet—
I feel it.
A tether, invisible and unbreakable, snapping into place between us. A thread of molten light, searing through my chest, connecting me to him. Mate. The word slams into my mind like a hammer. Mate. Enemy. Fire and ice. Predator and prey. The universe has just rewritten itself, and I am its prisoner.
Kaelen moves.
Three strides. That’s all it takes. He’s in front of me, towering, his presence like a storm front. The scent of him hits me—pine and smoke and something wild, something feral. Werewolf. Alpha. Mine. The last thought isn’t mine. It’s the bond. It’s whispering. Screaming.
His hand shoots out, gripping my wrist.
Fire erupts where his skin meets mine.
It’s not pain. It’s worse. It’s recognition. My body knows him. My blood sings for him. My magic—carefully contained, tightly leashed—flares in response, surging toward his touch like a starving thing. I try to yank away, but his grip is iron. His eyes blaze, silver fire, and his voice is a low, dangerous growl.
“You’re not supposed to exist.”
I bare my teeth. “Neither are lies. But here we are.”
He leans in, close enough that his breath ghosts over my ear. “If you’re here to start a war, little witch, you’ve already lost.”
“I’m not here to start a war,” I hiss. “I’m here to finish one.”
His jaw tightens. “Then you should’ve stayed in the dark.”
And then—
The room falls silent.
A gong rings, deep and resonant, vibrating through the floor. All eyes turn to the dais at the far end of the hall, where the High Elder of the Vampire Council rises from his obsidian throne. Malrik. The architect of my mother’s death. The man who called her a traitor to cover his own betrayal.
He smiles. A slow, serpentine thing.
“Ladies and lords of the Shadow Court,” he intones, his voice echoing like thunder in a cave. “We gather tonight not only to celebrate the Pact of Eclipse, but to witness a miracle.”
My stomach drops.
No.
Not now.
“For centuries, the Moonblood line has been extinguished. A necessary purge, to preserve the balance between our kinds. But fate—” he pauses, sweeping his gaze across the room, “—fate has intervened.”
He looks directly at me.
My blood turns to ice.
“The last heir of the Moonblood witches stands among us. And not only that—she has awakened the fated bond with our Alpha-King, Kaelen Dain.”
A collective gasp ripples through the crowd. Whispers erupt. Eyes burn into me—curious, hungry, hateful.
“By ancient law,” Malrik continues, “when a fated bond ignites between two leaders of allied species, their union must be sealed. Their marriage will bind the packs and the covens, ensuring peace for another century.”
My heart stops.
Marriage.
Marriage?
“The ceremony will take place in seven days,” Malrik declares. “Refusal is treason. Punishable by death.”
“No,” I breathe.
Kaelen’s grip on my wrist tightens. His voice is low, for my ears only. “You heard him. You’re mine now.”
“I am no one’s,” I snarl, yanking my arm free. “I didn’t come here to be paraded like a prize bitch.”
“Then you came here to die,” he says, cold. “Because you can’t run from this. The bond is law. The council is law. And I—” he steps closer, caging me in, “—am the law.”
I don’t hesitate.
I spin, shoving through the crowd, my pulse roaring in my ears. I don’t care about stealth anymore. I don’t care about the mission. I need to get out. I need to breathe. The bond thrums in my veins, a living thing, pulsing in time with his heartbeat. I can feel him behind me, not running, not chasing—following. Calm. Certain. Like I’m already his.
I reach the grand archway, the exit just ahead—
And the guards move.
Two vampires, clad in crimson, step into my path. Then two more. Then four. In seconds, I’m surrounded. Their eyes gleam with hunger. Not for blood. For spectacle. For the fall of the last Moonblood.
One of them speaks, voice smooth as poisoned silk. “Lady Voss. You are now betrothed to His Majesty, Kaelen Dain. Resistance is treason.”
I laugh. It’s sharp. Broken. “I am not Lady Voss.”
“No,” says a voice behind me. Kaelen. Close. Too close. “You’re something far more dangerous.”
I turn.
He stands there, bathed in the cold light of the chandeliers, his expression unreadable. But his eyes—his eyes betray him. There’s something in them. Not desire. Not anger. Recognition. As if he sees me. Not the lie. Not the mission. Me.
And then—
A searing pain flares on my collarbone.
I cry out, stumbling back, my hand flying to the spot. When I pull it away, my fingers are smeared with blood. And beneath the red, a sigil glows—silver, intricate, unmistakable.
A wolf.
His mark.
The bond has claimed me.
“What did you do?” I whisper, horror rising in my throat.
“Nothing,” Kaelen says. “The bond marked you. Not me.”
“I didn’t consent—”
“Consent has nothing to do with it,” Malrik cuts in, descending the dais with slow, deliberate steps. “The magic chooses. The law binds. And you, child, are now the Alpha-King’s promised. You will marry. You will submit. And if you attempt to flee again—” he smiles, fangs glinting, “—we will drag you back in chains and mark you properly. In front of the entire court.”
I look at Kaelen. “Is that what you want? A wife who fights you every step? A mate who despises you?”
For the first time, something flickers in his eyes. Regret? Amusement? I can’t tell.
“I don’t want a wife,” he says, voice low. “I want peace. And you—whether you like it or not—are the price of it.”
I close my eyes.
I came here to burn them all.
Instead, I’ve been bound to the one man who could destroy me without lifting a blade.
The mission isn’t over.
It’s just become infinitely more complicated.
And as they lead me away, flanked by guards, Kaelen walking beside me like a shadow, I make a silent vow.
I will not be a pawn.
I will not be a bride.
I will not be tamed.
And when the time comes—
I will make them all pay.