Alpha Of Ashes

The Second Burial

Victor Kane held his daughter by the hair with a knife to her throat and held my blood in his other hand and said, choose.

I was half shifted. Half woman, half wolf made of ash and fire. My scar glowed orange then white, my bones cracked not breaking but remaking, first time in three years since I was buried alive on my wedding day, since Zane put a dagger in my hand and whispered die as my Luna so you can live as my revenge. My wolf Ember, silent for three years, was howling so loud my skull shook.

Zane stood between us, between Victor and me, between Selene and me, between past and future. Alpha of Winter Fang, guilt-ridden, exhausted, thinking he is a monster, who visits my empty grave every night, who thinks he killed me, who married Selene Kane to get close to Victor to kill him for me.

Victor said, "Choose now, Zane Crowe, your Luna who you buried alive and who came back, or your pack who will die tonight if Blood Stone takes Winter Fang. One of us must die. Who will it be?"

That was ARC FIVE. Victor discovers Kira is alive, forces Zane to kill her again publicly to prove loyalty, Zane must choose.

The war bell was ringing. Blood Stone had breached the outer wall. Victor planned it. He locked doors earlier to trap us, now he opened gates to let his own army in to destroy Winter Fang next, same as Ash. That is why I came back as Mira, mute Omega maid, to warn Zane and get revenge.

Selene, white dress torn, vials of wolfsbane and Phoenix ash poison shattered around her, bleeding from Victor's knife, laughed. Cold. Not sweet. "Father, you always pick the wrong daughter to kill."

Victor pressed knife deeper. "Selene is not my daughter. She is Yara's granddaughter. Female Alpha who rejected my father and ruined my family? That was her grandmother. Yara hid a daughter. Selene is half Frost, half Kane. She bleeds white too, sometimes. She wants to be only female Alpha in North."

I knew. She told me in her chambers, welcome home Kira Storm, I have been waiting three years for you to come back and try to kill my father. I need you alive for wedding night. She offered to help me kill her father and I help her get Zane back. She wants North.

Zane looked at me, half wolf ash fire, at Selene knife to throat, at Victor holding bloody rags with Phoenix white blood, at war bell ringing, at laundry room door locked behind us.

He made a choice. Not what Victor expected.

He shifted. Fast, brutal, Winter Fang white wolf, huge, scarred, dead wolf howling again because mute maid Mira arrived and he did not understand why, now he understood, now his wolf howled for mine.

He didn't attack Victor. He attacked the wall. He broke through stone with his wolf head, opening a hole to the outside, to the night, to full moon, to escape.

"Kira, run," he barked, not human, wolf, to me, to Phoenix wolf made of ash and fire.

I didn't run. I am Kira Storm, only female Alpha in North, at first cold dead inside pretending to be mute and weak, later ruthless brilliant strategist only Alpha who leads without needing to shift. I don't run.

I lunged at Victor, not as woman, as wolf, ash fire wolf, first shift in three years, and I bit his wrist, the one holding knife to Selene's throat.

White blood, his blood, red, mixed with my white. He screamed. Not because bite hurt, because Phoenix fire burns erasers. Victor wants to erase female Alpha gene forever, wants to make ground sterile for generations so no daughter ever lead again. Phoenix fire makes ground fertile again.

Selene dropped, free, grabbed a shard of vial, wolfsbane and Phoenix ash poison lined in her own wedding dress, and stabbed Victor's leg with it. Her father. Her mother was Frost.

Victor howled, dropped both bloody rags, fell back, leg smoking white, mouth smoking white, same as later when he drinks Phoenix milk that remembers.

"Go," Selene shouted at me, at Zane, at both. "He has more wolves outside. He planned m******e of Winter Fang tonight same as Ash. Outer wall breached, inner wall next. If you stay, you die. If you go, you live as my revenge. Same words he gave you, Kira."

Zane shifted back, human, naked, bleeding from stone, grabbed my arm, half wolf half woman, and pulled me through hole into forest, into Black Forest where he buried me alive three years ago.

We ran. Bare feet, ash fire paws, white paws, through trees, while war bell rang, while Winter Fang burned behind us, while Victor Kane screamed my name, Kira Storm, thought dead three years, back as nameless wolfless Omega maid, now ash fire wolf.

We stopped at the grave. My grave. Empty grave on hill behind Winter Fang. The one Zane visits every night.

It was open. Dug up. Empty, as always, but now with fresh flowers. White roses. Surrender roses. From Selene.

Zane fell to knees at empty grave, breathing hard, human again, naked, cold, guilt-ridden boy who thinks he is monster.

"I buried you here," he whispered. "I put dagger in your hand, pointed at heart, whispered die as my Luna so you can live as revenge. Prophecy says Ash bloodline must die before it can awaken. If you lived that night as Alpha, Victor would have executed you publicly and taken power. By burying you alive, I broke mate bond temporarily and hid bloodline. Your wolf didn't die, went dormant to survive. You are not Omega, you are Phoenix wolf that must die to become stronger and you are waking up. I thought you died in dirt. I thought I killed you. I visited empty grave every night because I thought I was monster."

I shifted back, human too, naked, scar glowing orange then white then fading, first shift complete. I stood over my own empty grave, over my husband who killed me, who saved me, who buried me alive.

Meaningful core struggle: I came to get revenge, to find out why he killed me. Now I know why. He killed me to save me. Does that make it okay? Does breaking bond temporarily to hide bloodline justify burying alive? Does love justify grave?

I slapped him again, as bible says Kira slaps him and says you do not get to decide if I live or die. "You do not get to decide if I live or die," I said, voice raw, Alpha voice, not mute maid. "You decided to bury me. You decided to marry Selene to get close to Victor. You decided to visit empty grave. You never asked me."

He looked up, silver eyes wet. "Then ask you now. What do you want, Kira?"

"I want Winter Fang to not burn like Ash," I said. "I want Victor dead. I want female Alpha gene not erased. I want my pack back. I want you to stop deciding alone."

He nodded, stood, took my hand, scar to scar. His scar, his wolf dead, my scar, Phoenix waking.

"We decide together," he said. Promise from hunter cabin that hasn't happened yet but will. Even if we die together.

Behind us, Winter Fang main house exploded. Not fire. Frost. Blue frost. Selene's doing. She had Frost blood, half Frost, Yara's granddaughter. She froze Blood Stone army breaching inner wall. She bought us time.

But Victor's voice came through night, not shouting, through pack link he shouldn't have to me, because he had my white blood rags, because Phoenix blood connects.

"Kira Storm, Alpha of Ash Pack, only female Alpha in North, thought dead, back as mute maid Mira, now ash fire wolf, you and Zane ran to empty grave where he buried you alive. Cute. But you forgot one thing. I have your mother."

My mother, Kara Frost, was supposed to be dead in m******e. Rogue healer Mara said pack burned, mother died. But Victor said he has my mother.

Zane's eyes widened. "Kara? Kara Frost alive? She was supposed to die in bunker warded against wolfsbane while giving birth to miracles Lyra and Lorn after doctor said no more, in bunker warded while pack burned above and you were being buried alive."

Victor laughed through link, through my white blood. "Kara Frost alive, in bunker warded against wolfsbane against fire against erasing only female Alpha blood can open it. She has been alive three years, giving birth to twins Lyra and Lorn, miracles after doctor said no more, while you trained as human doctor in human world. She is in bunker under Ash hall, under altar where you were supposed to marry Zane. And I am digging. And if you do not come back now, alone, as Kira, not Mira, as Alpha, not maid, I will open bunker with your white blood and erase female Alpha gene forever, starting with your mother and your new twin siblings who never took first breath."

That was the twist. My mother alive. Twins alive. In bunker only female Alpha blood can open. Victor has my white blood rags to open it.

Zane grabbed my arm. "Don't. It's trap. Second death. ARC FIVE, Victor forces Zane to kill her again publicly to prove loyalty, Zane must choose. This is it."

I looked at empty grave, at Winter Fang burning blue frost, at Zane who buried me alive to save me, at Selene who froze army, at Victor who has my mother I thought dead.

And my wolf Ember, fully awake now after first shift in three years, whispered inside skull, *One of us must die. Mother, or twins, or you. Choose. As wolf whispered season ends with feeling baby kick and wolf whispering one of us must die.*

I chose.

I shifted back to ash fire wolf, grabbed Zane's dagger from his belt, same dagger he put in my hand on wedding day, and I ran, not away from Winter Fang, toward Ash hall, toward altar where I was supposed to marry Zane at twenty one, toward bunker warded against wolfsbane, toward mother alive and twins Lyra and Lorn who haven't taken first breath, toward Victor who wants to erase female Alpha gene forever.

Zane howled behind me, Winter Fang white wolf howling for ash fire wolf, dead bond snapping back for second time, louder than first, howling *Kira* across forest where he buried me alive.

And behind us, at empty grave, Selene stood in torn white dress, holding white roses, holding my second bloody rag that Victor thought he had but she stole back, and she whispered to empty grave, to me, to future,

"Welcome home, Alpha of Ashes. Now go save your mother, so I can kill her later and become only female Alpha in North."

The ground under empty grave cracked, white root and black root, North and South, first female Alpha buried alive for saying North should be one and first male Alpha buried alive for saying only sons should lead, both reaching up, both wanting my white blood, both whispering, *Die as our Luna, so you can live as our revenge.*