THE ALPHA’S FORSAKEN SHADOW

Fractured Truth

The aftershocks of our shared climax still pulsed through my body as I lay beneath Kael, his knot locking us together in the most intimate, possessive way possible. His heavy weight pressed me into the mattress, our sweat-slicked skin glued together, his breath hot against my neck where he’d left a fresh claiming mark.

I hated how good it felt. How right.

But the vision from moments ago refused to fade. My parents’ faces, smiling, then screaming, burned behind my eyes. Their deaths weren’t random rogue attacks like the pack had claimed.

Kael lifted his head, amber eyes softer than I’d ever seen them. “Selene… I meant it. Rejecting you that night… it killed me.”

I pushed against his chest, shadows flaring. “Then why?” My voice cracked. “Why humiliate me in front of everyone?”

He sighed, rolling us so I was on top, still intimately connected. His hands gripped my hips, thumbs stroking my skin almost tenderly. “The Council of Alphas. They discovered your parents carried the Shadow Bloodline. They threatened to wipe out the entire Blackthorn Pack unless I rejected you publicly and weakened the bloodline. I thought… I thought if I broke the bond, they’d leave you alone. That I could protect you by pushing you away.”

Lies? Truth? The shadows inside me twisted, tasting his words. They believed him mostly.

I leaned down, biting his bottom lip hard. “You should have told me. We could have fought them together.”

His c**k twitched inside me, the knot still swollen. A fresh wave of heat made me clench around him. He groaned, hips bucking up. “You were wolfless. Fragile. I thought I was doing the right thing.”

“Fragile?” I laughed darkly and rolled my hips, riding him slowly despite the knot. Revenge and desire mixed into something intoxicating. “Look at me now.”

Kael’s eyes darkened with renewed hunger. He sat up, one arm wrapping around my waist as he thrust up to meet me. “I see you, Selene. f**k… I see all of you.” His mouth captured my breast again, sucking greedily while I rode him harder.

The pleasure built fast and brutal. Shadows wrapped around us both like silken chains, heightening every thrust, every touch. I came again with a broken cry, dragging him over the edge with me. His knot pulsed, filling me even more as he growled my name like a prayer and a curse.

We collapsed together, the knot finally beginning to ease.

But peace didn’t last.

A sharp knock hammered the door. “Alpha Voss! The Council just arrived. They sensed the Shadow awakening. They’re demanding the girl.”

Kael tensed beneath me. “Stay here,” he ordered, gently sliding out of me and pulling on his torn pants.

“No.” I stood, shadows clothing my naked body in a seductive dark mist that barely covered anything. “This is my fight too.”

We stepped out together as a united front, even if fragile.

In the hotel lobby, five Council elders waited, radiating ancient power. At their center stood an older Alpha with cold gray eyes. His gaze locked on me like a predator.

“Selene Vale. The forbidden bloodline must be contained. Hand her over, Kael, or lose everything you’ve built.”

Kael stepped forward, growling. But before he could speak, another vision slammed into me clearer, more devastating.

My mother’s voice echoed in my mind: The Council killed us. Kael’s father helped them.

I staggered.

Kael reached for me, concern flashing across his face. But my shadows exploded outward uncontrollably, shattering the lobby windows as the truth fully awakened. Kael wasn’t just my rejected mate.

He was the son of one of my parents’ murderers.