The pain refused to stop.
Every step Aria took away from Blackwood Pack felt like a knife twisting deeper into her chest.
Her tears blurred the forest path as the voices behind her slowly faded into silence.
Not one person had called her name.
Not one person had come after her.
“I was never one of them,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around herself.
The mate bond had shattered, leaving behind an unbearable emptiness.
Above her, the full moon disappeared behind dark clouds.
A cold wind swept through the forest, carrying the scent of rain.
Aria stumbled over a tree root and fell to her knees.
“I don’t understand,” she cried, looking toward the sky.
“What did I do to deserve this?” Only silence answered.
Then…
A strange warmth spread through the silver wolf pendant hanging around her neck.
She frowned.
“My pendant?” It had belonged to her mother—the only thing she had left after her parents disappeared when she was a baby.
The silver wolf engraving began to glow with a faint white light before fading just as quickly.
Aria blinked.
“Did I imagine that?” A distant howl echoed through the mountains.
It wasn’t the howl of an ordinary wolf.
It was deeper.
Older.
More powerful.
Without knowing why, Aria felt strangely…
safe.
— Miles away, inside the ancient castle of the Lycans, every warrior dropped to one knee.
King Kael stood before the towering windows, his golden eyes fixed on the moon.
His wolf paced restlessly inside him.
“She’s alive,” it growled.
Kael closed his eyes.
For years, he had searched for the woman destiny had promised him.
Tonight…
He had finally felt her.
Not through sight.
Not through scent.
Through pain.
Someone had hurt his mate.
His hands curled into fists.
The air around him trembled with the force of his Alpha aura.
His Beta, Rowan, stepped forward cautiously.
“Your Majesty?” Kael’s voice was low and dangerous.
“Prepare my horse.” Rowan hesitated.
“Has something happened?” Kael turned slowly.
For the first time in centuries…
The emotion in his eyes wasn’t anger.
It was determination.
“I found my mate.” The room fell silent.
Every Lycan knew what that meant.
The Moon Goddess had chosen their future queen.
Kael’s jaw tightened.
“Whoever made her cry…” A cold smile crossed his face.
“…will pray the Moon Goddess reaches them before I do.” Without another word, he strode toward the castle gates.
Behind him, hundreds of Lycan warriors prepared for the journey.
None of them knew her name.
None of them knew where she was.
But their king did not hesitate.
Because somewhere beyond the mountains…
His mate was alone.
And no one hunted the Lycan King’s mate without facing the king himself.
Far away, Aria looked up as another powerful howl echoed through the night.
This time…
It sounded much closer.