DONIKA’S POV

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was… warmth.

Not the scratchy heat of my old mattress in ThornClaw. Not the restless, cold ache of sleeping on the floor in my uncle’s cramped house on some nights. This felt different and surreal; I low-key wished all my mornings would be like this from now on.

Soft sheets. A quilt that smelled faintly of lavender. A pillow that felt like it had been made just for my head.

And for once, just once in years—I hadn’t dreamt of screams, blood, and shadows under a bed.

I wanted to stay in it forever.

Which, of course, was when a voice cheerfully shattered the peace.

“Up, up, up! Sleeping beauty, we’ve got a long day ahead of us.” Elena’s cheery voice rang out.

I groaned and buried my head under the blanket. “Go away.”

“Sorry, no can do.” The blanket was yanked off me with surprising force, letting in a wave of cool air that made me hiss. She flung the curtains to let the sun in, which even made my senses more awake now… ugh!

I peeked out from under my arm. Elena was standing there, grinning at me like she didn’t just break my little fantasy of having great mornings.

“You’re evil,” I muttered under my breath, but she heard me loud and clear thanks to her damned abilities.

“Not evil. I’d say efficient with tasks given to me.” She crossed her arms. “The Alpha says you need to be ready in an hour.”

I blinked blearily, trying to get the remnant of sleep out of my eye. “An hour for what?”

She raised her brows. “For your meeting with the elders, obviously. Which means we have to make you presentable before you face a group of ancient wolves who will probably glare at you the entire time.”

“Oh, great,” I mumbled. “Exactly the way I wanted to start my day.”

“Come on, Miss Donika. Let’s get moving.”

Elena didn’t wait for me to respond. She went straight to the vanity, picked up a brush, and started gently working through my hair.

“You have nice hair,” she said while brushing through the knots. “Soft. Not too thick, not too thin. The kind you can actually style without wanting to throw the brush out the window.”

I almost smiled. “Thanks… I think?” I’ve not received any compliments in ages, and hearing one now sounded very…foreign.

She grinned at my response and kept brushing, humming a light tune under her breath. When she was satisfied, she ushered me toward a door on the side of the room.

“This way. Bath time.”

The bathroom looked like something out of a magazine with white marble floors, silver fixtures, and a tub big enough to swim in. Steam curled gently from the water already drawn.

“You ran the bath before waking me?” I asked. If that’s the case, she probably woke up a long time ago, got into the room, and I didn’t even stir, then prepared for me to get ready. I felt bad to be the one to put her in such a situation.

“Of course,” Elena said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Can’t waste precious minutes if you’re going to be on time. Now hurry. Soap’s on the side.”

It felt strange being taken care of like this. Not ordered around like a servant. Not ignored. Not insulted.

Just… cared for.

When I got out, wrapped in one of the fluffiest towels I’d ever touched, Elena had already laid out clothes on the bed.

“From the packhouse boutique,” she said proudly. “I picked them myself. Figured you might like to look like someone who isn’t about to be executed. Also, I’m yet to know your dress style to meet your needs.”

Dress style? Me? First it was my taste in meals, now my dress style? I shook my head as I wondered when last I had the luxury to pick out any meals or outfits I really wanted.

I eyed the outfit, a deep blue blouse with fitted black trousers, simple but elegant. “You’re good at this.”

“I know,” she said with a wink. “Now get dressed. We still have fifteen minutes.”

As I buttoned the blouse, I glanced at her. “Elena… can I ask you something?”

“Sure. Shoot.”

“What’s Kael like? How is he as a person?”

Her hands stilled for a moment as she smoothed the quilt, and she looked lost in thoughts. “He’s… complicated.”

“That’s not an answer.”

She sighed and looked at me. “He’s a good Alpha. A good man, even if he hides it under all that coldness. He’s… suffered a lot. Loss and stuff I probably shouldn’t tell you.”

I tilted my head. “Why not?”

“Because they’re his stories to tell, not mine. You might get to know them with time. Talk and gossip fly all over the pack, so you might gather bits and pieces of gossip over time.”

I thought about that for a second. “Fair enough. And the South Wing?”

Her whole body went completely stiff this time around, and her eyes were round like saucers.

“Elena,” I said slowly, “what’s in the South Wing? Who stays there?”

“Storage. Offices. Nothing interesting.” The words came too quickly.

I narrowed my eyes. “You’re lying.” She wasn’t even good at masking the fact that she just told a lie.

She busied herself with folding my nightwear. “I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. You just went from bubbly to awkward in half a second.”

Her shoulders lifted in a small shrug and awkward smile. “Some things are… better left alone.”

“Elena—” I tried to push for more when a knock cut me off. The door opened, and Kael stepped inside without waiting for permission. It was his house anyway.

“Good morning, Alpha.” Elena greeted him while bowing to him. I just followed suit, bowing at him without saying a word. Even though I wanted to put up a fight the very moment I saw him step in, he’s a Lycan, which means even without a word his aura would speak, leaving me defenseless.

He looked at me once, head to toe, as if assessing whether I’d pass inspection. His eyes lingered just long enough to make my pulse skip, and when our eyes met halfway, I could feel my cheeks flush while he moved his eyes away from my body, and then he nodded.

“It’s time to go, Donika,” he said simply.

I swallowed. “For the council?”

“Yes.”

Elena gave me an encouraging smile, but I barely saw it. My stomach was twisting into knots.

Kael extended a hand, not to hold, just a subtle gesture toward the hallway. “Let’s go.”