Her Four Alphas

Two Wolves

The fever came back that night—stronger than ever, a roaring inferno that turned Luna’s skin to molten lead and her blood to liquid fire.

She lay in her bed, the sheets kicked off onto the floor, drenched in sweat that dried almost as soon as it hit her skin, leaving a salty crust on her arms and neck. Her chest felt like it was being crushed by a giant’s hand, the pressure building until she could barely draw a breath. And inside her mind, the two wolves were awake.

They paced in the darkness of her consciousness, massive shapes that blotted out the light. The white wolf was first—tall, lean, its fur shimmering like fresh snow under a full moon. Its eyes were pale blue, cold and distant, like the sky in winter. The black wolf was shorter, stockier, its fur absorbing every bit of light around it, its eyes burning like embers in a dead fireplace. They circled each other, growling low in their throats, claws clicking against the floor of her mind.

*Choose,* they seemed to whisper, their voices overlapping, one light and airy, the other deep and rough. *Choose now, before we choose for you.*

But she wasn’t ready. She needed more time—time to talk to Talon, time to understand the fifth bond, time to find a way out of the choice that was tearing her apart. She needed—

The door creaked open. Rowan stepped inside, a lit candle in one hand, his face pale in the flickering light. He set the candle on the bedside table, his eyes wide with worry.

“The fever,” he said, his voice tight. “It’s getting worse. The entire pack can feel it. The bonds are flaring—Knox is awake, pacing his cabin. Asher’s out in the training yard, shifting back and forth. Talon’s nowhere to be found, but the cold in the air says he’s nearby.”

“I know.” Luna gasped as another wave of heat crashed over her, making her bones ache. “I can feel them. Both of them. They’re so strong, Rowan. I can’t hold them back much longer.”

Rowan sat beside her, pressing a cool, damp cloth to her forehead. The touch was a small mercy, easing the burn for a few seconds before the fever rose again. “The bonds are amplifying them. Every connection you make, every time you open your heart to one of us, feeds the wolves. Makes them more powerful. They’re tied to the bonds, Luna. They grow as the bonds grow.”

“Then shouldn’t I break the bonds?” Luna grabbed his hand, her grip desperate. “If I break them, the wolves lose their power. Right? I can let you all go, set you free.”

“You can’t.” Rowan’s fingers tightened around hers, his calloused palm warm against her burning skin. “Not without dying. The bonds are part of your soul now, Luna. They’ve been there since birth, woven into your DNA by the curse. If you break them, your soul tears apart. You’d be gone in seconds.”

Luna squeezed her eyes shut, tears leaking out from under her lids. Inside her mind, the white wolf lunged, snapping at the black wolf’s throat. The black wolf dodged, retaliating with a swipe of its massive paw. The impact shook Luna’s entire body, making her gasp.

*What are you?* she thought at them, her mental voice trembling.

The white wolf answered first. Its voice was light, ethereal, like wind through dry leaves in autumn. *I am salvation. I am sacrifice. I am the choice that saves everyone but you. I am the light that burns away the dark, even if it burns you first.*

Then the black wolf, its voice like grinding stones, deep and rough: *I am freedom. I am destruction. I am the choice that lets you live, even as everything else dies. I am the dark that hides you, even if it hides you from everyone you love.*

Luna’s chest tightened until she thought her ribs would c***k. “They’re talking to me,” she whispered, her voice raw.

Rowan’s grip on her hand tightened. “What are they saying?”

“That I have to choose. That there’s no other way. That if I don’t pick one, they’ll tear me apart between them.”

“There might be.” Rowan’s voice was urgent, leaning in closer. “Talon told you about the fifth bond. If we complete the Soul Pack—if you bond with him—the burden gets shared. The wolves won’t be tied to just you anymore. They’ll have five anchors instead of one. It could give you the time you need to find another way.”

“I can’t.” Luna opened her eyes, staring up at him. The candlelight cast shadows across his face, making him look older, more tired than he’d been that morning. “I can’t bond with Talon. Not yet. Not until I know what happens if I choose the black wolf. He’s already lived a thousand years of hell—I can’t be the one to end him.”

“You’re already responsible.” Rowan’s face was gentle but firm, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. “The bonds exist, Luna. Whether you complete the Soul Pack or not, you’re tied to us. Our lives are in your hands. Every day you wait, the wolves get stronger. Every day you don’t choose, we get weaker.”

“That’s not fair.” Luna turned away, staring at the wall. The white wolf howled in her mind, a sound like breaking glass. The black wolf snarled, a sound like thunder. “I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t ask to be the Soul Pack female. I didn’t ask to have four men’s lives in my hands.”

“No. You didn’t.” Rowan stood, moving to the window to stare out at the dark forest. “But neither did we. None of us asked to be tied to a curse that’s been killing us for years. We’re all victims here, Luna. The difference is, you’re the only one who can end it.”

He left then, the door clicking shut behind him. Luna lay alone, the fever raging, the wolves circling.

*How do I choose?* she thought, her mental voice small.

The white wolf answered, its voice soft, almost kind: *You don’t. You surrender. You let go of yourself, become a vessel for light. You give up your name, your memories, your love for Knox and Rowan and Asher and Talon. And in doing so, you save everyone you love. You save the pack. You save the world.*

The black wolf’s voice was harsher, but there was a strange pity in it: *You fight. You hold on to who you are, even as the world burns. You keep your name, your memories, your love. You stay *Luna*. And in doing so, you kill everyone you love. But you live. You survive. You’re free.*

Neither option was good. Both meant loss, pain, sacrifice. Both meant giving up something she couldn’t imagine living without.

But Talon’s words echoed in her mind: *The white wolf takes everything. You become a vessel—no memories, no personality, no soul.*

Was that really better than destruction?

---

The next morning, Luna dragged herself out of bed, her legs shaking so badly she had to hold onto the wall to stay upright. The fever had broken slightly, leaving her weak and hollow, but the wolves were still there, pacing in the back of her mind, quieter now but no less dangerous.

She went to the training yard, knowing Asher would be there. He was always there at dawn, practicing forms, training the young wolves, trying to keep the pack strong even as the curse drained him.

He was in the center of the yard, a wooden sword in his hand, moving through a series of fluid, graceful forms. His dark hair was tied back, his golden eyes focused, his muscles shifting under his shirt. But there was a heaviness to his movements that hadn’t been there before—his wolf was sluggish, the bond drained from Luna’s use of the white wolf to save Knox.

He saw her approach and dismissed the group of young wolves he’d been training, sheathing his sword and coming to meet her with a cautious smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” His voice was rough, like he hadn’t slept in days.

“Like I’m being torn apart from the inside.” Luna crossed her arms, shivering even though the sun was warm. “But that’s not new.”

Asher’s smile faded. He stepped closer, his hand hovering over her arm, not quite touching. “The fever?”

“Getting worse. The wolves are waking. They’re talking to me now, Asher. Telling me to choose.”

He was quiet for a moment, his golden eyes searching hers. Then: “What do they look like? The wolves.”

Luna blinked, surprised. “What?”

“The wolves. Inside you. What do they look like? My mother used to tell me stories about the Soul Pack—she was an elder, remember? She knew things the others didn’t.”

Luna thought about it, closing her eyes to picture them. “The white one is… pure. Blinding. Like staring into the sun, but cold. It doesn’t feel like it has a soul—just a purpose. And the black one is darkness—not just absence of light, but something deeper. Something that swallows everything around it. It feels… lonely.”

Asher nodded slowly, his expression softening. “My mother said the white wolf was a gift from the gods—a way to save the world when it needed saving most. It’s supposed to be selfless, a sacrifice of the self for the greater good. But the black wolf…”

“What?” Luna leaned in, hanging on his words.

“She said it was a mistake. Something that shouldn’t exist. A corruption that crept into the bloodline when the first Soul Pack female was betrayed by her Alphas, twisted the gift into a curse.” Asher’s voice was soft, barely above a whisper. “But she also said something else. Something the elders don’t like to talk about.”

“What?” Luna’s heart raced.

“That the black wolf isn’t evil. It’s just… alone.” Asher’s golden eyes met hers, warm and sad. “The white wolf has the bonds—it connects to everyone, shares the burden with the pack, with the Alphas. It’s never alone. But the black wolf is solitary. It carries the weight of destruction by itself, with no one to help, no one to understand. It destroys because it doesn’t know how to do anything else. It’s never been loved, Luna. Never been given a chance.”

Luna’s chest tightened. She thought about the black wolf, pacing alone in the dark of her mind, its ember eyes burning with loneliness. She thought about herself—the girl who’d been passed from pack to pack, never belonging, never being loved for who she was. The girl who’d always been an outsider, just like the black wolf.

*Like me,* she realized. *It’s like me.*

“I need to go,” she said suddenly, stepping back.

“Luna—” Asher reached for her, but she dodged his hand.

“I need to think. About the black wolf. About the choice.”

She walked away, leaving Asher alone in the training yard. But his words stayed with her, echoing through her mind, mixing with the growls of the two wolves pacing in her consciousness.

*The black wolf isn't evil. It's just alone.*

And for the first time, Luna felt something other than fear when she thought about the darkness inside her.

She felt sympathy.

She felt a connection to the creature that had been demonized for a thousand years, simply because it had never been given a chance.

A crow landed on the fence post nearby, its feathers glossy black, its silver eyes fixed on her. It tilted its head, let out a rough caw, then took flight, disappearing into the bright morning sky.

Luna watched it go, her hand pressed to her chest, where the black wolf paced, no longer growling.

For the first time, it wasn’t a monster.

It was just a creature that needed someone to understand it.

And that scared her more than anything.