Chapter 1
Rain battered the glass walls of Moonfang University's journalism building, turning the sprawling campus into a blur of silver and charcoal. Students hurried across the stone walkways beneath umbrellas, laughter and chatter carried away by the cold autumn wind.
Octavia Hale watched them from the third-floor newsroom.
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard, but the blinking cursor on her laptop refused to move.
"You've been staring at that paragraph for fifteen minutes."
Octavia looked up.
Maya Bennett, her best friend and editor of the campus newspaper, dropped a paper coffee cup beside her laptop before collapsing into the chair opposite.
"You know caffeine can't solve everything," Octavia muttered.
"No."
Maya smiled knowingly.
"But it can solve sleep deprivation."
Octavia wrapped both hands around the warm cup without drinking it.
"I wasn't sleeping."
"I figured."
Silence settled between them.
Outside, thunder rolled across the gray sky.
Maya leaned forward.
"He's not worth it."
Octavia laughed bitterly.
"I know."
"Then stop looking like someone stole your soul."
"It feels like they did."
Maya's expression softened.
"It has been four months."
"One hundred and twenty-three days."
"You counted?"
"I tried not to."
Another painful silence followed.
Everyone knew the story.
Everyone.
Damien Cross had made sure of that.
The future Alpha of the Crimson Moon Pack.
Captain of the Crimson Titans.
Campus heartthrob.
Her boyfriend for nearly three years.
He hadn't simply broken up with her.
He had done it during Moonfang University's annual Alpha Gala.
In front of professors.
Students.
Pack leaders.
Reporters.
Television cameras.
He smiled while telling everyone she'd only dated him because she wanted status.
That she'd begged him for attention.
That she wasn't worthy of becoming Luna beside an Alpha.
By sunrise, every gossip page in Frosthaven had branded Octavia a desperate social climber.
She hadn't cried that night.
She hadn't given Damien the satisfaction.
Instead, she'd walked away with her head held high.
Then cried alone until sunrise.
"You've got another interview today."
Maya interrupted her thoughts.
"The hockey team."
Octavia groaned immediately.
"No."
"You don't have a choice."
"I'll interview literally anyone else."
"The dean assigned you."
"I'll quit journalism."
"You won't."
"I might."
"You definitely won't."
Octavia buried her face in her hands.
"I hate hockey."
"No."
Maya corrected.
"You hate hockey players."
"Same thing."
Maya burst into laughter.
Before Octavia could answer, every television mounted around the newsroom suddenly changed channels.
Breaking News.
Students immediately gathered around the screens.
The headline stretched across the bottom.
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP OPENER TODAY
The camera switched to highlights from previous seasons.
Bone-rattling body checks.
Fights.
Goals.
Roaring crowds.
Then…
One player dominated the screen.
Number Nine.
Nearly six-foot-five.
Broad shoulders.
Jet-black hair.
Cold silver eyes.
His expression never changed, even while sending another Alpha crashing into the glass barrier.
"That's him."
A freshman whispered.
"The Devil himself."
"The Black Wolf."
"The Enforcer."
"Kael Draven."
Even hearing his name made conversations stop.
Commentators replayed another devastating collision.
The opposing player spun through the air before slamming onto the ice.
The crowd exploded.
The commentator's voice thundered through the speakers.
"And once again, Kael Draven proves why no forward wants to cross his path! The future Alpha of Blackclaw Pack remains the most feared enforcer in collegiate hockey!"
Maya glanced toward Octavia.
"You're interviewing him."
"I'd rather interview a serial killer."
"They're probably less intimidating."
"He looks like he eats journalists."
Maya laughed again.
"You'll survive."
"I sincerely doubt that."
Her phone vibrated.
One message.
Dean Harper.
Media credentials approved. Report to Moonfang Arena by 5 p.m. sharp.
She sighed dramatically.
"This is punishment."
"For what?"
"I don't know."
"You'll thank me later."
"I absolutely won't."
...
By late afternoon, Moonfang Arena towered over the campus like a fortress.
Thousands of fans poured through its entrances wearing black and silver jerseys.
Music thundered through giant speakers.
Food vendors shouted over one another.
Pack banners waved above the crowds.
Octavia adjusted the press badge hanging around her neck.
"I still have time to fake food poisoning."
Maya nudged her shoulder.
"You already tried."
"You remembered?"
"I was there."
They joined dozens of reporters entering through the media gate.
The moment they stepped inside, Octavia understood why hockey consumed the university.
The arena was breathtaking.
Bright white ice stretched beneath dazzling lights.
Massive screens circled the ceiling.
Thousands of seats climbed toward the roof.
Every section overflowed with screaming fans.
"Worth seeing?"
Maya asked.
Octavia looked around despite herself.
"...Maybe."
A loud whistle echoed.
Both teams emerged.
The Crimson Titans entered first.
Red uniforms.
Confident smiles.
Damien skated at the front.
His blond hair was slicked back beneath his helmet.
He raised one hand.
Half the stadium erupted.
He looked exactly as he always had.
Perfect.
Confident.
Untouchable.
For one dangerous second...
Their eyes met.
His smile disappeared.
Octavia immediately looked away.
Her stomach tightened.
"I hate him."
Maya squeezed her hand.
"I know."
Then...
The lights went dark.
Every spotlight vanished.
Only one remained.
A deep voice echoed through the arena.
"Please welcome your Moonfang Wolves..."
The building shook.
Smoke burst from the entrance tunnel.
One by one, players emerged.
Then...
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The final spotlight settled on a lone figure standing at the tunnel entrance.
Number Nine.
Kael Draven.
Unlike everyone else, he didn't wave.
Didn't smile.
Didn't acknowledge the roaring crowd.
He simply stood there.
Tall.
Motionless.
His sharp silver eyes slowly scanned the arena.
The air itself seemed to grow colder.
Even from across the rink, Octavia felt the weight of his stare.
Then his gaze drifted past thousands of cheering fans...
And landed directly on Damien.
Not a word.
Not a gesture.
Just a look.
Damien's jaw clenched.
Kael stepped onto the ice.
The roar that followed nearly lifted the roof off the arena.
Maya whispered beside her,
"I think someone is about to die."
Octavia swallowed.
For reasons she couldn't explain...
She believed her.
