The Child of Three Bloodlines

Chapter Seven: The Pull

Amoura’s POV:

I sat cross-legged on my bedroom floor, surrounded by dresses, shoes, jewellery, and enough discarded clothing to make it look as though a tornado had passed through.

A tornado with terrible fashion sense.

Daliha sat on the edge of my bed, holding up another dress between her fingers.

“This one.”

I looked at it.

“No.”

“You haven’t even tried it on.”

“I don’t need to.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know myself.”

Daliha rolled her eyes.

“You’re impossible.”

“And yet you’re still here.”

“Because graduation is in three days, and apparently I’m the only person who cares about what we wear.”

I laughed.

“I care.”

“You said no to every dress I’ve shown you.”

“That’s because I care deeply about not looking like a decorative curtain.”

Daliha glanced down at the dress.

“It does not look like a curtain.”

“It has the emotional energy of one.”

She threw it onto my bed.

“Fine. What about this one?”

I glanced at it.

“Maybe.”

Her mouth dropped open.

“Maybe?”

“That is basically a yes from me.”

Daliha smiled triumphantly.

“I knew it.”

She turned toward my wardrobe and began pulling out more clothes.

I watched her for a moment, smiling.

There was something comforting about this.

Being here.

With her.

Daliha was one of the few people I allowed close enough to see every side of me. I wasn’t warm with everyone, and I had no interest in pretending otherwise. Most people received politeness from me if they were lucky.

Daliha received my loyalty, my affection, my worst jokes, and the privilege of watching me reject perfectly good dresses for reasons I couldn’t explain.

She had been beside me through practically every important moment of my life.

From scraped knees and childish arguments to our first training injuries and our first punishments from Alpha Hassan.

Daliha had always been there.

She knew almost everything about me.

Almost.

There were some things I couldn’t explain.

Like Esmerelda.

Or Anastasia.

And now Valentina.

I still hadn’t told Daliha about her.

I wasn’t even sure how I could.

Hey, Daliha. Remember how I told you I was different? Well, apparently I’m a tri-breed with a vampire spirit living inside me.

I could already imagine her expression.

Then the screaming.

Then the questions.

Then probably her asking whether Valentina had opinions about dresses.

Yeah.

That conversation wasn’t happening anytime soon.

I looked down at my hands.

For the past few days, everything had felt different.

My senses had become sharper.

My hearing was almost painfully sensitive.

I could hear conversations from rooms away.

I could smell the blood beneath someone’s skin.

And sometimes, when I became angry, I could feel Valentina stirring beneath my consciousness.

She wasn’t frightening me anymore.

Not exactly.

She was simply there.

Waiting.

Watching.

Learning.

Valentina: You are avoiding the subject.

I’m busy.

Valentina: You are choosing a dress.

Exactly.

Valentina: You are avoiding the subject while choosing a dress.

I sighed.

You talk too much.

Valentina: And yet you listen.

Unfortunately.

Valentina: You are fond of me.

Don’t become emotional. It will ruin your terrifying reputation.

Before I could answer, Daliha threw a pillow at me.

“Hello?”

I caught it.

“What?”

“You disappeared again.”

“I was thinking.”

“About?”

I smiled.

“Nothing important.”

Daliha narrowed her eyes.

“You’ve been doing that a lot lately.”

“Doing what?”

“Going quiet.”

I shrugged.

“I’m fine.”

She studied me for a few seconds.

Daliha knew me well enough to recognize when I was lying, but she also knew when to leave something alone. That was one of the reasons I loved her.

Finally, she sighed.

“Fine. But I’m watching you.”

I laughed.

“Terrifying.”

“You should be terrified.”

She threw another pillow.

I caught that one too.

“You’re getting predictable.”

“I’m getting better.”

“At throwing pillows?”

“At everything.”

“That’s adorable.”

She reached for another pillow, and I raised my hands.

“Truce.”

“You’re surrendering?”

“I’m showing mercy.”

“You’re afraid.”

“I’m protecting the furniture.”

She laughed, and for a moment, everything felt normal.

Then suddenly—

I froze.

The smile disappeared from my face.

Something had changed.

I could feel it.

A presence.

Powerful.

Familiar.

But impossible to place.

My heart began beating faster.

Esmerelda immediately stirred.

Esmerelda: Mate.

My breath caught.

What?

Her presence became stronger.

Esmerelda: Our mate.

Anastasia appeared almost instantly.

Anastasia: I feel it.

Valentina was silent.

For once, she wasn’t teasing.

She was completely still.

Then—

Valentina: He has arrived.

I stood abruptly.

Daliha jumped.

“What?”

I didn’t answer.

I couldn’t.

The sensation was overwhelming.

It wasn’t like anything I had ever felt before.

Something had entered the pack.

Something connected to me.

Someone.

My chest tightened.

My senses expanded beyond anything I had experienced before.

I could hear engines in the distance.

Doors opening.

Footsteps.

Voices.

The beating hearts of unfamiliar wolves.

And one heartbeat above all others.

Strong.

Steady.

Powerful.

I pressed my hand against my chest.

“Who is that?”

Daliha frowned.

“Who?”

“I don’t know.”

Esmerelda was practically pacing inside me.

Esmerelda: He is here.

Anastasia’s voice was quieter.

Anastasia: The bond is reacting.

I swallowed.

“What bond?”

Neither spirit answered immediately.

Then Valentina whispered—

Valentina: The mate bond.

My eyes widened.

“No.”

Daliha stared at me.

“Amoura?”

I looked toward the bedroom window.

Beyond the glass, the lights of the Snowflake Pack were visible between the trees.

The main entrance was several buildings away, but I could somehow sense movement near it.

A convoy.

Multiple vehicles.

A large number of wolves.

And one presence that seemed to pull at something deep inside me.

“Someone has entered the pack.”

Daliha stood.

“Who?”

“I don’t know.”

She walked toward the window.

“Is it the patrol?”

“No.”

“How do you know?”

I stared toward the northern road.

“I can feel them.”

Daliha looked at me strangely.

“Feel who?”

I didn’t answer.

Because I didn’t know.

I had never felt anything like this.

My wolf wanted to run.

My magic wanted to awaken.

And Valentina…

Valentina wanted to hunt.

I gripped the edge of my desk.

Control yourself.

Valentina: I am controlled.

Then why can I hear his heartbeat?

Silence.

Then—

Valentina: Because he is ours.

My breath caught.

Esmerelda growled softly.

Esmerelda: Mate.

Anastasia whispered—

Anastasia: Three spirits. One bond.

I shook my head.

“No.”

Daliha turned toward me.

“What?”

“I said no one told me there was a royal visit.”

Her eyebrows rose.

“A royal visit?”

I nodded slowly.

“There are too many vehicles.”

Daliha walked back toward the window and looked outside.

“Maybe Alpha Hassan knows.”

“Maybe.”

She looked at me.

“Why do you look terrified?”

“I don’t know.”

And that was the truth.

I wasn’t afraid of whoever had arrived.

Not exactly.

I was afraid of how my body was reacting to him.

I didn’t know his name.

I didn’t know what he looked like.

I didn’t know why every part of me suddenly felt awake.

Yet somehow…

I knew he was important.

Very important.

A sudden wave of warmth travelled through my chest.

My knees almost buckled.

Daliha rushed forward and caught my arm.

“Amoura!”

“I’m fine.”

“You definitely aren’t fine.”

“I’m standing, aren’t I?”

“Barely.”

“I’m choosing to call it dramatic balance.”

Daliha gave me an unimpressed look, but her grip tightened around my arm.

Beneath the sarcasm, I could hear the worry in her voice.

That mattered to me.

Daliha mattered to me.

I placed my free hand over hers.

“I’m okay,” I said more gently. “Really.”

She searched my face.

“You’re sure?”

I nodded.

“I promise.”

She didn’t look convinced, but she accepted the answer.

That was Daliha’s way of showing love. She didn’t force me to speak before I was ready. She simply stayed close enough to catch me if I fell.

The sensation slowly faded.

But the connection remained.

Somewhere within the Snowflake Pack, he was here.

My mate.

And I didn’t even know who he was.

⸻

Outside the estate, the royal convoy came to a stop.

Samir stepped from the black SUV.

The moment his boots touched Snowflake territory, Enzo surged violently beneath his skin.

Enzo: Mate.

Samir looked toward the lights of the pack.

He could feel her.

Somewhere.

Close.

Very close.

Reeda stepped beside him.

“You felt it again.”

Samir nodded.

Ace stirred within Reeda.

Ace: Something is different.

Reeda’s eyes narrowed.

“Did you feel that?”

Anas stepped from the vehicle behind them.

Rocky lifted his head.

Rocky: Mate.

Anas froze.

“What?”

Rocky growled.

Rocky: Not ours.

Anas looked toward Samir.

The prince was already staring into the distance.

Something had changed in the air.

Something ancient.

Powerful.

And strangely familiar.

None of them knew why.

None of them understood what they were sensing.

And none of them knew that, only a short distance away, a young woman stood frozen in her bedroom with three supernatural spirits awakening inside her.

Three spirits.

Three bloodlines.

One mate bond.

And for the first time in sixteen years, the paths of the Southern Kingdom and the Snowflake Pack had crossed in a way that would change both kingdoms forever.

But I still didn’t know his name.

I didn’t know his face.

I didn’t know that the man whose presence had awakened every part of me was standing just beyond my window.

All I knew was one thing.

My mate had arrived.