Forged in fire. Bound by blood. Armed for vengeance.

Chapter 20

The courtyard of the Wisdom Wolves Pack stood quiet under the pale glow of the evening moon. What had been a day of celebration now carried an uneasy stillness, as if the forest itself sensed that the events unfolding were not a beginning—but the start of something darker.

At the entrance of the pack territory, Benedict Fang, Katherine, and Tyson stood beside the black vehicle prepared to take them home.

Zephyr and Tia stood opposite them.

“Your journey will be long,” Benedict said calmly. “Travel carefully.”

His sharp eyes lingered on Zephyr a moment longer than necessary, as though searching for something beneath the Alpha’s calm exterior.

Katherine stepped forward and embraced Tia briefly.

“Take care ,” she said softly.

Tia smiled politely, the picture of a newly crowned Luna.

But inside, chaos churned.Her mind was already ten steps ahead of everyone around her.And Tyson was on the top of her list.As the farewells ended, Benedict handed Zephyr a small iron key.“One more thing,” he said.

“The cottage that once belonged to Yalin… consider it our wedding gift.”Zephyr accepted it silently.Tia’s smile widened.

Yalin’s cottage.

How fitting.

The very place that once sheltered her rival would now belong to her.Or so everyone believed.

The car carrying Benedict, Katherine, and Tyson soon disappeared down the forest road.

Inside the moving vehicle, Tyson leaned against the seat with his eyes closed, exhausted from the tension of the day.

Benedict drove while Katherine watched the road ahead carefully.

The forest grew darker as they traveled deeper into the night.

Suddenly—

Headlights flashed behind them.Then another vehicle surged forward from the trees.“Ambush,” Benedict muttered.Gunfire cracked through the air.The car jerked violently as bullets struck the metal frame.

“Get down!” Katherine shouted.

Masked figures rushed out from the shadows.Tia’s mercenaries.They surrounded the vehicle quickly, attempting to force it off the road.

But they had underestimated their targets.Benedict slammed the brakes and spun the steering wheel sharply. The car skidded sideways, throwing the attackers off balance.

Katherine burst out of the passenger side with frightening speed.She moved like a seasoned warrior.One attacker fell immediately.Another lunged forward but was disarmed in seconds.

Benedict joined the fight moments later, his movements precise and deadly.The ambush quickly turned into a battlefield.Within minutes the mercenaries realized they had miscalculated.

One tried to flee.

Another fell unconscious after Katherine struck him hard against the ground.Only one remained alive.They dragged him beside the car.

“Who sent you?” Benedict demanded.

The man glared at them but said nothing.

Katherine grabbed his collar.“You’re not rogue,” she said sharply. “Mercenary.”Before he could answer, the man suddenly smiled.Then blood spilled from his lips.

Katherine stepped back.“Silver wine,” Benedict said grimly.The poison worked instantly.The mercenary collapsed lifeless at their feet.Silence returned to the forest road.Katherine crossed her arms slowly.

“Someone wanted Tyson dead.”

Benedict looked toward the unconscious figure slumped in the back seat.Tyson had been knocked out during the attack.“Who?” Katherine asked.Benedict’s expression darkened.“Someone with resources.”“And someone who wanted no survivors.”

They exchanged a look.

The night suddenly felt heavier.

Back in the Wisdom Wolves Pack, the celebration had finally ended.

The pack retreated into quiet murmurs as the newly mated Alpha and Luna retired for the night.

But the tension that lingered after Yalin’s exile still hung in the air.Inside his chamber, Zephyr stood alone.The room was dimly lit by moonlight pouring through the tall windows.

Inside his mind, a battle raged.

Zio.

His wolf.

“You’ve betrayed everything,” Zio’s voice growled within him.

Zephyr clenched his fists.

“This was necessary.”

“Necessary?” Zio snarled.

“You cast away the strongest Luna this pack has ever had.”

“You bowed to manipulation.”

“You betrayed your instincts.”

Zephyr tried to push the voice away.

But Zio refused.

The wolf’s fury grew stronger with every passing moment.

Finally the struggle reached its breaking point.

“I will not stay inside a coward,” Zio growled.

Then—

Silence.

The connection snapped.

Zephyr staggered backward as if struck.The presence that had lived within him since birth vanished completely.

Zio was gone.

For the first time in his life…

Zephyr stood without a wolf.

The emptiness inside him felt terrifying.Without his wolf’s presence, his emotions dulled. The warmth of instinct disappeared, leaving only cold logic behind.

A hollow calm settled in its place.Moments later the door opened.Tia entered quietly.She studied him carefully.Something had changed.She could feel it immediately.

“Your wolf…” she said slowly.

“Gone,” Zephyr replied flatly.

Tia’s eyes widened for a moment before she masked her reaction.This wasn’t part of her plan.But she quickly adjusted.

Without another word, the distance between them closed. Their union that night was quiet and wordless, driven more by duty than affection.

Yet when it ended, something remained incomplete.

There was no mark.

No true bonding.

Tia’s anger burned beneath her calm expression.But she said nothing.Now was not the time to reveal displeasure.Not when the game had only begun.

Days passed.

And the consequences became impossible to hide.Without Zio, Zephyr’s strength faded quickly.The Alpha struggled to maintain emotional balance.

Rage came suddenly.

Exhaustion followed.

Every few days a healer had to calm the storm building inside him.The elders noticed first.Then the warriors.Soon the whispers spread across the pack.

“The Alpha is weak.”

“He lost his wolf.”

“How can he lead?”

In quiet corners of the territory, pack members spoke in hushed voices.Concern turned into fear.Meanwhile Tia watched everything carefully.Chaos was growing exactly where she needed it.And somewhere far beyond the territory…

A girl now called Yara Smith was learning to survive in a world that had once tried to destroy her.

The balance of power was shifting.

And for the Wisdom Wolves Pack, dark times were beginning.