ARIA

I woke to an empty bed and cold sheets.

Panic flared through me before I remembered where I was. Kael's chambers. Safe. He'd probably just gotten up early for King duties or whatever Lycan rulers did at dawn.

Then I heard the growling.

I sat up quickly, my heart pounding. The sound was coming from Kael's bathing chamber, low, deep, not quite human.

I should stay in bed. Should call for guards. Should do anything except investigate a potentially dangerous situation while wearing only a nightgown.

Instead, I grabbed a robe and moved toward the sound.

The bathing chamber door was open. Inside, Kael stood in front of a mirror, both hands braced on the marble counter, his head bowed. Black veins crawled up his arms, spreading across his shoulders. His eyes, when he looked up, were completely gold, no trace of human left.

And he was speaking to someone who wasn't there.

"I know," he growled at empty air. "I know what you want. You can't have her."

Ice flooded my veins. The curse. I was watching the curse in action.

"Kael?" I kept my voice soft, non-threatening.

His head snapped toward me, and for a terrible moment, I didn't see any recognition in his eyes. Just predatory hunger and barely leashed violence.

Then something shifted. The gold flickered. "Aria. Get out."

"No."

"Get. Out." Each word was forced through clenched teeth. "I can't, the beast is too close. If I hurt you…"

"You won't." I moved closer despite every survival instinct screaming at me to run. "Look at me. Focus on me."

"Can't. The shadows….they're saying things. Terrible things. They want me to…" He slammed his fist into the counter. The marble cracked. "GO!"

But I'd seen this before. Not with him, but with wolves in my old pack who'd lost themselves to rage or grief. Talking didn't help. Logic didn't help.

Only the mate bond could reach him now.

I closed the distance between us and pressed my hand to his chest, right over his heart. Power flooded through me, silver light meeting his gold, pushing back against the darkness trying to consume him.

Through the bond, I felt everything he was experiencing. Whispers promising violence. Shadows showing him terrible futures where he hurt me, killed me, destroyed everything. The curse feeding on his fears and turning them into hallucinations.

"I'm real," I said firmly. "The shadows are lying. Feel my hand. Hear my heartbeat. I'm here, and I'm safe."

Slowly, painfully, the gold in his eyes began to recede. The black veins faded. His breathing evened out.

When he finally looked at me, his expression was devastated.

"You saw," he whispered.

"I saw."

"This is what I meant. The curse. It gets worse every day. Sometimes I can't tell what's real anymore." His hand covered mine on his chest. "This morning, I woke up and saw you sleeping beside me, and the shadows tried to convince me you weren't real. That you were a trick. That if I touched you, you'd disappear."

"I'm real. And I'm not going anywhere."

"You should. You should run as far from me as possible. Before I…"

I kissed him.

It was the only way I could think of to shut him up. To prove I wasn't afraid. To show him that the curse didn't scare me away.

He froze for half a second. Then he was kissing me back desperately, his hands tangling in my hair, his body pressing mine against the wall. Heat exploded through the bond, desire and need and something that felt like relief.

When we finally broke apart, both breathing hard, his eyes were human again.

"That was either very brave or very stupid," he said roughly.

"Both, probably." My hands were shaking, but I kept them on his chest. "But it worked."

"The bond helps. You help. But it's not enough to…"

A knock on the door interrupted him. Ryker's voice called out. "Kael? We have a situation."

"Of course we do," Kael muttered. He pressed his forehead to mine briefly. "We'll talk about this later. About what you saw. About…"

"Later," I agreed.

He kissed me once more, quick and hard, then went to answer the door.

I stayed in the bathing chamber, taking a moment to steady myself. My hands were still trembling, and the silver light beneath my skin hadn't fully receded. Whatever power I'd used to pull Kael back from the edge had left me feeling drained.

Through the partially open door, I heard Ryker's urgent voice.

"Someone broke into the Luna's old chambers last night. Tore the place apart. And this was left on the bed."

Silence. Then Kael's voice, cold enough to freeze blood. "Get every guard in this palace assembled. Now."

I wrapped the robe tighter and stepped out. Both men turned to look at me, Kael with concern, Ryker with something like respect.

"What happened?" I asked.

Kael held up a piece of parchment. Even from several feet away, I could see the words scrawled in red ink:

False Luna. Silver Witch. You don't belong here. Leave, or die.

My stomach dropped, but I forced my expression to remain calm. "Well. At least they're direct."

"This isn't a joke," Kael growled. "Someone got past my guards, into your chambers, and left a death threat."

"I noticed." I crossed to him and took the parchment, studying it. The handwriting was deliberately disguised, blocky letters, uneven pressure. "Did they take anything?"

"Helena is checking now," Ryker said. "But from initial assessment, they just destroyed things. Ripped dresses, broke furniture, shattered mirrors."

"So it's personal. Not political." I handed the parchment back. "Someone who feels personally threatened by me."

"That could be half the palace," Ryker muttered. "The Alpha families who wanted their daughters chosen. The council members who think you're too weak. Lady Morgana's faction who…"

"Who's Lady Morgana?" I interrupted.

Kael and Ryker exchanged a look.

"She's a powerful woman," Kael said finally. "Part of the court. She's been... vocal about her displeasure with my choice of Luna."

There was something he wasn't saying. I could feel it through the bond, guilt and old history.

"She was your lover," I said flatly.

"Years ago. Before the curse got bad. It didn't mean anything."

"Clearly it meant something to her if she's part of a faction actively working against me." I crossed my arms. "What else haven't you told me?"

Kael's jaw clenched. "Morgana thinks she should be Luna. She's been positioning herself for years, gathering supporters, making alliances. When I chose you instead…"

"She decided I was the enemy." I nodded. "Makes sense. Is she powerful enough to be a real threat?"

"Yes," Ryker said bluntly. "She's one of the strongest sorceresses in the realm. Her magic is... considerable."

Perfect. So I had a powerful, jealous sorceress who wanted me dead. Just what every a new Luna needed.

"I want to meet her," I said.

Both men stared at me like I'd grown a second head.

"Absolutely not," Kael said. "She's dangerous. I'm not letting you anywhere near her."

"I'm not asking permission." I met his eyes steadily. "If she's a threat, I need to understand what I'm dealing with. Hiding in your chambers won't make her go away."

"Aria."

"She's right," Ryker said reluctantly. "Better to confront this now than let it fester. But not alone. Morgana plays games. Dangerous ones."

Kael looked ready to argue, but I felt his resignation through the bond. He knew I was right, even if he hated it.

"Fine. But I'm there with you. And if she tries anything…"

"You'll rip her throat out. Yes, I got it." I softened my tone. "I can handle a jealous ex-lover, Kael. I've been handling worse for twelve years."

His expression shifted. "That's what worries me. You shouldn't have to handle any of this."

"But I do. Because I'm your Luna now." I straightened my shoulders. "So let's go remind everyone exactly what that means."