DONIKA’S POV

It’s been up to 45 minutes since I encountered the woman who seemed to be Kael’s mother, and she was exactly like her son; she looked so cold and maybe, just maybe, annoyed at my presence.

I’ve been in his room for what felt like forever, and it felt like the walls were breathing around me. I sat on the edge of the bed, my knees pulled up, Kael’s shirt swallowing my frame. The faint scent of his cologne clung to the fabric, not unpleasant, but sharp enough to remind me who it belonged to.

“I shouldn’t be here.” I thought to myself.

My mind slipped back to when the war between our packs took place; Mother had rushed me to a different room, which was smaller and darker.

“Don’t make a sound, Donika. You must stay alive no matter what, my princess.” My mother’s voice was shaking, and tears filled her eyes even as she gave me a weak smile and kiss on the forehead, and she shoved me under the bed. My small hands clutched the wooden floor, splinters biting my skin.

Just as Mother ran out the door, she was cornered by someone and killed on the spot. She fell to the ground, and her eyes met mine for a split second before going still forever. I felt my heart shatter into a million pieces, and sobs racked my body, but I couldn’t cry out loud. I had promised her to stay alive, and I didn’t want to fail her. Tears continued to flow from my eyes, and pain consumed me.

The door slammed open. Boots thundered in. The voices of my father and another man, who turned out to be Kael’s father, rang out, but with the noise from outside, I couldn’t make out what they said. But I knew for sure they were arguing, and soon after, Father’s body landed with a thud on the floor, lifeless.

I didn’t scream. I couldn’t. My throat had locked, my body frozen as his blood trickled toward me, pooling inches from my face.

The memory was so vivid, like it all happened yesterday.

Life after that had been a slow, grinding punishment. My uncle took me in, but not out of kindness.

“Wolfless brat,” he’d spit, throwing scraps of food at my feet. “You should have died with them.”

I learned to stay quiet, stay small, and never hope for kindness.

The pack members were worse. The omegas looked down at me as the alpha’s cursed child. The Gammas called me the wolfless clown, and the Beta of our pack avoided me like the plague.

“She can’t even shift.”

“What kind of Luna would she be? She can’t even protect herself.”

“Cursed pup.” All these and more were what I was called on a daily basis.

When I was old enough to dream of love, even that was torn away. The man I thought cared for me looked me in the eye after I caught him cheating and said,

“You’re useless, Donika, and you know that. You should be fucking grateful I’m marrying you so you can earn your place in this pack.”

I thought I’d buried all those voices the moment I left with Kael, but here they were, whispering in the quiet of Kael’s room. Fresh tears poured down my cheeks.

And now… I’ve slipped out of my own pack’s grip and into Kael’s.

Why? Was I that desperate to escape? Or was I just trading one cage for another?

What did Kael really want from me? His motives were a mystery, and the more I thought about it, the more a cold weight settled in my stomach.

A knock at the door startled me, and I rushed to wipe my wet face to look presentable for whoever that was. It should be Kael.

It opened a moment later to reveal a tall, broad-shouldered man with short dark hair and sharp hazel eyes. His presence filled the room before he even spoke.

“I’m Kael’s beta, and he’s told me about you, Donika,” he said simply. His tone was calm and friendly. “Name’s Ronan.”

Behind him stood a girl about my age, maybe younger, with warm brown skin, dark curls tied up in a messy bun, and a smile so bright it felt out of place in this fortress-like house.

“This is Elena,” Ronan continued. “Her mother was Kael’s nanny, so you could say she knows her way around here. She’ll be your personal maid. She’s also incapable of shutting up, so you’ll have to put up with her.” His lips twitched in a smile before he turned for the door. “I’ll leave you to it.”

And just like that, he was gone.

Elena stepped forward with a bright smile and stood next to the bedside.

“So… you’re the mystery girl everyone’s whispering about,” she said with an almost conspiratorial grin.

I stiffened. “I’m not…”

“Relax,” she interrupted, waving a hand. “I don’t care what they say. I’ve got better things to do than listen to gossip.” She tilted her head. “You don’t look okay; are you sick?”

“I’m fine,” I said, perhaps too curtly.

“Sure you are,” Elara replied breezily, moving toward the wardrobe. “Now, let’s get you something that actually fits, because right now you look like you’re drowning in that shirt. No offense to the Alpha’s taste in loungewear.”

I almost smiled at that, though I kept my face carefully neutral.

She was still going on and on about where she would pick out some clothes for me when the door opened.

Kael stepped in, filling the doorway like a storm cloud. His eyes swept the room, lingering on me before flicking briefly to Elena.

“Elena,” he said coldly, “give us a moment.”

She bobbed a little bow. “Of course, Alpha.” With a wink in my direction, she slipped out.

The moment she was gone, Kael’s gaze locked on me fully.

“You need to prepare,” he said.

I frowned. “Prepare for what?”

“To meet the Elders’ council. Tomorrow.”

The words slammed into me, cold and heavy. What does he mean by elder’s council? And why do I of all people have to meet with the elders of his pack?

I stared at him, my pulse spiking. “The… Elders?”

“Yes.”

My mouth went dry. The Elders. I detested them with my very being. The very kind of people who’d made my life a living hell before. People who didn’t just judge me but condemned my very existence. And now I was to meet yet another set of elders.

My stomach knotted, and fear clouded my mind. I don’t know the purpose for this meeting, but I suspect it’s tied to the reason Kael brought me to his pack.

“Why should I? Why should I meet with the elders of your pack, Alpha Kael?”