MARKED BY THE ROGUE MOON

CHAPTER THREE

The pack house rose from the forest like a fortress.Stone walls. Iron gates. Wolves patrolling the perimeter with weapons that gleamed in the moonlight. This wasn't just a home, it was a stronghold built for war.Zane didn't slow as we approached. The gates swung open before we reached them, guards stepping aside without a word. But I felt their eyes on me, cold, assessing and hostile.A rogue in their territory. In their Alpha's grip.They wanted me dead."Keep moving," Zane said when I hesitated.Inside, the pack house was all dark wood and stone, lit by torches that cast flickering shadows across the walls. Wolves lined the corridors, some in human form, some still shifted—and every single one of them stopped to stare as we passed.Zane ignored them all.He dragged me through a maze of hallways until we reached a heavy wooden door. He shoved it open and pulled me inside.The room was sparse. A desk. Chairs. Shelves lined with books and maps. His office, I realized.He released my arm and moved to close the door, locking it with a decisive click.My wolf stirred uneasily. Trapped."Sit," Zane ordered, gesturing to a chair."I'd rather stand.""I don't care what you'd rather do. Sit."I stayed on my feet.His eyes flashed silver, and for a second I thought he'd force me. But instead, he moved behind his desk and braced his hands on it, looking at me like I was a problem he was trying to solve."Let me make something very clear," he said. "You're alive right now because I have questions. The second I stop having questions, or the second I decide you're more trouble than you're worth, you're dead. Understand?"I lifted my chin. "Perfectly.""Good." He straightened. "Now. The scar. What is it?""I told you...""And I told you I don't believe you." He moved around the desk, closing the distance between us. "It glowed the moment the bond formed. That's not a coincidence.""Maybe it's just reacting to you.""Or maybe it's reacting to what's inside it." His gaze bore into mine. "What are you hiding, Seraphina?"The sound of my name on his lips sent a jolt through me. I hadn't told him my name."How do you...""Shadowridge put your name on the bounty two years ago. Every Alpha in the region knows it." He tilted his head. "Seraphina Vale. Accused of stealing the Moonshard artifact. Wanted dead or alive."My blood ran cold. "You knew who I was this whole time?""The second you said Shadowridge." His expression didn't change. "I've had wolves asking me for permission to hunt you in my territory for months. I always said no.""Why?""Because I don't let other packs run operations on my land. Not because I gave a damn about some rogue thief." He stepped closer. "But now you're here. And you're my problem."The bond pulsed between us, and I saw his jaw tighten. Saw the war in his eyes.He hated this. Hated me. Hated that fate had tied him to someone he should've killed on sight."The Moonshard," he continued. "What is it?""I don't know. I've never seen it.""But Shadowridge thinks you have it.""Yes.""Why?"I hesitated. This was the part I'd never told anyone. The part that sounded insane."Because my father hid something in me before he died."Zane went very still. "Explain.""I don't remember much. I was six." The words came slowly, painfully. "There was an attack. Fire. Screaming. My father...he did something to me. Some kind of ritual. I felt something burning into my ribs, and then..."I stopped. The memory was fractured, incomplete."And then?" Zane pressed."And then I woke up alone with this scar and no memory of what happened." I looked away. "When Shadowridge accused me of stealing the Moonshard, I didn't understand. But the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if...""If your father hid it inside you," Zane finished.I nodded.Silence fell between us, heavy and suffocating."Show me the scar," he said finally."No.""I'm not asking.""And I'm not one of your pack wolves you can order around." I met his gaze. "You want to see it? You'll have to make me."His eyes flashed, and suddenly he was moving. He backed me against the wall, one hand braced beside my head, the other catching my wrist when I tried to shove him away."You're testing my patience," he growled."Good. Maybe you'll finally kill me and end this.""Is that what you want? Death?""I want you to stop pretending you care what happens to me." The words came out harsher than I intended. "You hate rogues. You hate me. The bond doesn't change that."Something flickered across his face but it disappeared quickly, making it hard for me to read."You're right," he said quietly. "I do hate rogues. And if you were anyone else, you'd already be dead.""Then why am I not?"His gaze dropped to my lips, then lower, to where the scar sat hidden beneath my shirt. When he looked back up, his expression was unreadable."Because I need to know what you are."Before I could respond, the door burst open.A man stood in the doorway, scarred, muscular, with amber eyes that went wide when he saw us. Saw Zane pinning me against the wall."Alpha," he said carefully. "We have a problem."Zane didn't move. "What kind of problem, Cassian?""The kind with thirty Shadowridge wolves at our border demanding we hand over the rogue." Cassian's gaze flicked to me. "They know she's here."My heart stopped.Zane's expression went cold. "How?""They're claiming right of pursuit. Says she crossed neutral ground first before entering our territory, which means...""Which means they have legal grounds to demand her return," Zane finished. His jaw clenched. "Where are they now?""North border. Beta Marcus is leading them."The name sent ice through my veins. Marcus. The wolf who'd hunted me for two years. Who'd sworn he'd drag me back to Shadowridge in chains.Zane finally stepped back, releasing me."Gather the Gamma unit," he told Cassian. "Full arms. Meet me at the border in ten minutes.""Yes, sir." Cassian hesitated. "What about her?"Zane looked at me, and I couldn't read what I saw in his eyes."Lock her in the holding cells.""What?" I pushed off the wall. "You can't...""I can do whatever I want. You're on my land." He turned to Cassian. "Make sure she doesn't escape.""You're going to hand me over," I said, my voice hollow.Zane paused at the door. "I'm going to deal with Marcus. What happens after that depends on what he offers me."And then he was gone.Cassian moved toward me, and I saw the apology in his eyes before he spoke."Don't make this harder than it has to be."Two more wolves appeared behind him.I had nowhere to run.