Chapter One: The Boy Who Fell from the SkyThe first time Amara Vale saw the boy, he was falling from the sky.It was just after midnight in Bellwyn, a small village surrounded by mountains, thick forests, and an ancient river that villagers believed was older than the kingdom itself.Most people in Bellwyn were asleep.The village was usually quiet at night, but tonight felt different.Too quiet.There was no sound of crickets.No rustling leaves.No distant barking from the village dogs.Even the river seemed strangely silent.Amara stood alone in the garden behind her aunt’s cottage, holding a small woven basket filled with herbs.She had been warned not to leave the house after sunset.Several times.By her aunt.By the village elders.And especially by the old woman who lived three houses away and claimed that the forest became “hungry” after midnight.Amara had never believed any of them.The forest had never frightened her.She had grown up beside it.She knew which paths were safe, which trees produced edible fruit, and where the best moonflowers grew.Tonight was her nineteenth birthday, and she had promised herself she would collect a few moonflowers before going to bed.Moonflowers only opened beneath a full moon.And tonight’s moon was enormous.It hung above the mountains like a giant silver coin.Amara reached for one of the flowers.Her fingers were almost touching its petals when the sky flashed blue.She froze.A deafening crack followed.The ground shook.Birds suddenly exploded from the trees, flying wildly into the darkness.Amara dropped her basket.“What was that?”She looked up.Something was moving through the clouds.At first, she thought it was a falling star.Then she realized it was much larger.Much closer.Something was falling directly toward the forest.Amara took a step backward.The object became clearer.It was a person.A person falling from the sky.“Oh my goodness.”She barely had time to move.The stranger crashed into the ground at the edge of the garden.Leaves and dirt flew into the air.Amara screamed and covered her face.For several seconds, nothing happened.Then came a groan.Amara slowly lowered her hands.The boy was lying in the grass.He was alive.She could tell because he was moving.Very slightly.Amara stared at him from a safe distance.He was dressed strangely.His clothes were black, but not the ordinary black clothing worn by villagers during winter. The fabric looked almost like leather, decorated with thin silver markings that seemed to glow beneath the moonlight.His dark hair was messy, and there was dirt across his face.A small cut ran along his cheek.Amara looked around.Nobody else had seen him.At least, she hoped nobody had.She took a cautious step forward.“Are you alive?”The boy did not answer.Amara moved closer.“Hello?”Nothing.She crouched beside him.“Please don't be dead.”His eyes suddenly opened.Amara jumped backward.His eyes were silver.Not grey.Silver.They looked almost luminous in the moonlight.He stared at her as though she were the strangest thing he had ever seen.Then he whispered,“You can see me?”Amara frowned.“Of course I can see you.”The boy looked confused.“You shouldn't be able to.”“Well, I can.”He tried to sit up.Pain crossed his face.Amara instinctively reached out to help him.He pulled away.“Don't.”She frowned.“Fine.”He struggled to stand on his own.He made it halfway before his knees gave out.Amara caught his arm.“You're hurt.”“I know.”“You're welcome, by the way.”He looked at her.“For what?”“For stopping you from falling again.”A faint smile appeared on his face.“You're strange.”“And you fell out of the sky.”The smile disappeared.He looked toward the mountains.“Where am I?”“Bellwyn.”His face changed.“That isn't possible.”“Why?”“The gate was supposed to take me to the northern realm.”Amara stared at him.“The what?”He ignored the question.“What year is it?”She blinked.“Are you serious?”“What year?”“Three hundred and twelve of the Silver Era.”The boy went completely still.“That can't be.”Amara crossed her arms.“You've asked where you are, what year it is, and you're surprised by both answers. I'm beginning to think you hit your head.”The boy looked at her.“What is your name?”“Amara.”“Just Amara?”“Amara Vale.”The reaction was immediate.His expression hardened.“Vale?”“Yes.”“Who are your parents?”Amara's smile faded.“My parents are dead.”The boy looked away.“I'm sorry.”“You don't sound surprised.”“I am not.”Before Amara could ask what that meant, a distant horn sounded.The boy's head snapped toward the forest.Another horn answered.Then another.His face became pale.“They found me.”“Who?”“Hunters.”Amara heard movement among the trees.The boy grabbed her wrist.“You need to go.

The first time my mate brought another woman into our home, I was standing in the kitchen with a knife in my hand.Not because I wanted to hurt anyone.Because I was cutting apples.It was a small, ordinary thing. The kind of thing I used to do while waiting for Alpha Darius to return from his meetings.I had spent the afternoon preparing his favorite meal. Roast meat, honeyed carrots, fresh bread. He had promised to come home early.Instead, I heard the front door open.Then a woman's laughter.My hand stopped.The knife rested against the apple.For a moment, I thought I had imagined it.Darius had never brought another woman home.Not since we were children.Not since the Moon Goddess had marked us as mates beneath the old silver oak.I wiped my hands on a cloth and walked toward the entrance.The moment I stepped into the hallway, I saw her.A woman in a cream-colored dress stood beside Darius.She was beautiful.Not the kind of beauty that made you hate someone. The kind that made you understand, immediately, why the room seemed to belong to her.Her dark hair fell over her shoulders. Her eyes were red from crying.And one hand rested protectively over her stomach.Darius stood beside her.His expression was unreadable.I looked from him to her.Then back to him."Who is she?"The woman lowered her head.Darius sighed."Luna Lyra."I hated the way he said my name.Like it was a title he had grown tired of carrying."Please don't call me that when you're upset," I said.He looked away.That was when I knew something terrible had happened.Not because he looked angry.Because he wouldn't look at me.The woman shifted closer to him."Darius," she whispered, "perhaps I should leave."He caught her hand."No."One word.A small word.But it cut deeper than it should have.I stared at their joined hands."Who is she?" I asked again.Darius finally looked at me."Her name is Selene."I waited.He said nothing else.I glanced at her stomach.Then at his hand holding hers.Something cold settled inside my chest."Why is she here?"Darius closed his eyes."Luna Lyra—""Don't."My voice came out quieter than I expected."Just tell me why she's here."The woman looked at me.There was something in her eyes.Pity, perhaps.I didn't want it.Darius released her hand."Selene is my brother's widow."I blinked.His brother, Adrian, had died six months ago during a border attack.I had attended the funeral.I had stood beside Darius while he mourned.I had watched him place a white rose on his brother's coffin.And now—"She has nowhere else to go," he continued.I looked at Selene again.She lowered her gaze."She and her pup will stay with us."The kitchen seemed to grow very far away."Her pup?"Darius's jaw tightened."Her child."I swallowed."And you're bringing her here?""Yes.""To our home?""Yes, Lyra."I stared at him."Why?"His eyes hardened."Because she's family."The word echoed through me.Family.I had been his mate for four years.I had stood beside him through pack disputes, sickness, and the long nights when he returned exhausted from Alpha duties.I had been the woman everyone called Luna.But suddenly, I was standing in my own home like a guest.Selene stepped forward."Luna, I don't want to cause problems."I looked at her."Then don't."Darius's expression darkened."Lyra.""What?" I asked. "You brought her here. You told me she's staying. What exactly do you expect me to do?""Show some compassion."I laughed.It was a terrible sound."Compassion?"Selene flinched.Darius moved toward her immediately.That hurt more than I wanted to admit.I looked at the space between us.At the way he protected her.At the way he no longer protected me."Where is she sleeping?" I asked."The east wing."I nodded slowly."And me?"His silence was answer enough.My fingers tightened around the cloth in my hand."Where am I sleeping, Darius?""Lyra—""Where?"He looked toward the staircase."The west room."The west room.The room where guests stayed.The room I had used once when my mother visited.I stared at him.Then I smiled.Not because I was happy.Because I didn't know what else to do."Of course."Selene took a breath."I can sleep somewhere else."Darius turned to her."No. You're staying in the east wing."I looked at him."You're very sure about that."His expression tightened."Don't make this harder than it already is."I wanted to ask him what exactly I had made hard.But I already knew.I had made it hard by being there.By being his mate.By standing in the way of whatever new life he wanted.So I nodded."Fine."I turned toward the kitchen."Lyra."I stopped."Don't make Selene uncomfortable."I slowly looked over my shoulder."She is in my house."Darius said nothing.I continued."She is sleeping in the room beside yours. She is eating at my t