Lies in her lips

3

After the barrier fell, Dominick’s minions charged.

Denise wove blades of shadow magic to carve through the front line. Alexandra vanished into thin air, her mist seeping into the minds of the vampires to turn them against each other. Aurora threw up a wall of glacial ice, anchoring a defense to buy every second she could.

At the center of it all, Glaznia poured her power into the floor, tracing glowing runes of light into the stone.

Realization flashed across Dominick’s face, horror replacing his smug smirk.

"Get Glaznia—now!" he roared.

Glaznia looked up, catching his eye with a slow grin. "Sorry. Bye."

A blinding flash swallowed the room, and in the next second, all four goddesses vanished into thin air. Dominick spat a vicious curse into the quiet restaurant, fuming as the truth settled in: Glaznia had slipped through his fingers once again.

(Glaznia P.O.V)

The flash of light dissolved, and the sudden drop in temperature hit us instantly. We collapsed onto smooth, aged stone, catching our breath as the magic cleared.

When I pushed myself up to look around, horror and relief mixed in my chest—we were standing directly on an altar deep inside Silvermoon Wolf Pack territory.

“Alexandra should have been the one to handle the teleportation," Aurora hissed, peering into the shadows. "It feels like we just dropped right into enemy territory."

I scratched the back of my neck, letting out a nervous chuckle.

"My bad sorry," I offered with a cheekish smirk.

All three of them shook their heads at me in exasperation. But before they could chew me out, a massive silver wolf leaped into the center of the altar, landing right in front of us with a low growl. We instantly drew our weapons, bracing ourselves for an attack.

The big silver wolf kept circling us, a low, warning growl vibrating in his chest.

"Does anyone here actually know how to talk to wolves?" Denise asked, a rare edge of panic in her voice.

"Drop your weapons," I instructed gently.

"How is he supposed to negotiate when we're pointing lethal magic at his face?"

"And if he tears our throats out?" Aurora hissed.

"Then I'll take you for a rabies shot in san lazaro," I replied flatly.

All three of them glared at me at once. Raising my open palms to show I was unarmed,

I turned back to the massive silver beast. If my instincts were right, this was the Alpha. He towered over the rest of the wolves currently fanning out through the perimeter, watching his every move.

My heart skipped a beat when the wolf stepped into my personal space, leaning down to sniff me.

"We don't mean any harm to your pack," I murmured, keeping my stance relaxed.

"Just let us pass. We took a wrong turn, I swear."

The wolf snapped his jaw toward the others, growling at the sight of their drawn weapons.

"Please, guys. Just trust me on this," I begged.

One by one, they disarmed. The moment their weapons lowered, the silver wolf shifted, his form reshaping into a tall, broad-shouldered man.

Beside me, Alexandra let out a low whistle. "Well, damn. Now that's a man."

Standing in front of us was a man who looked like the literal definition of physical perfection—broad-shouldered, flawlessly built, and terrifyingly handsome.

"Close your mouths, girls," he said, practically dripping with arrogance. "What are you doing on our land?"

I scowled. Great—he was drop-dead gorgeous until he actually opened his mouth.

"Cocky bastard," Aurora whispered beside me.

The man’s golden eyes flashed, shooting a deadly glare straight at her.

"We mean no harm," I cut in, drawing his attention back to me.

"We're running from Marcus's army. We didn't mean to trespass on your territory."

His entire demeanor shifted, his expression hardening into absolute seriousness.

"And why is Marcus hunting you?"

The four of us looked at each other, genuinely confused by the question.

"Because of our bloodline?" Alexandra said, sounding just as baffled as the rest of us.

Her words hung in the air, and the whole clearing plunged into total silence. I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly going dry under the weight of their staring eyes.

Slowly, one by one, the wolves surrounding us began to shift. Fur dissolved back into flesh as the pack members returned to their human forms—a clear sign they were standing down. A wave of collective relief washed over us.

The cocky smirk on the Alpha's face transformed into a genuine smile. He extended hand toward us.

"I'm Demeter, Alpha of the Silvermoon Wolf Pack.”

"I'm Glaznia Moon," I said, reaching out to take his hand.

"And these are Demonize Aleria, Alexandra Summer, and Aurora Winter. But I'm guessing you've already pieced it together—we're the last surviving members of the Goddess Clan."

Demeter’s gaze drifted past Glaznia, coming to a sudden halt on Alexandra. The atmosphere shifted in an instant. Panic spiked in my chest as his eyes turned into full gold, sharp fangs lengthening past his lips as he stared at her.

On pure instinct, I grabbed Alexandra’s arm and yanked her behind me, pulling out my hairpin and readying my light magic. Demeter bared his fangs at me, taking a slow, menacing step forward.

"Well, he's officially gone crazy," Denise whispered, stepping into a defensive stance.

"I told you, rabies shots at San Lazaro don't come cheap," Aurora added playfully, though her hands were already frosted over with barriers.

Despite the light banter, every one braced for impact, weapons drawn for a fight we hadn't seen coming.

We were about to strike when a deafening howl ripped through the clearing. A massive, pure-white wolf charged out of nowhere, slamming directly into Demeter and sending him tumbling through the air into a thick tree trunk.

We watch the beast carefully as it began to shift, the white fur dissolving to reveal a stunning woman wearing a small, intricate green tiara.

"I am so sorry for his behavior," she sighed softly.

"I am Leona, mother of this little brat, Alpha Demeter. And behind me is his father, the former Alpha Andrei."

Andrei stepped into the clearing beside her, giving us a gentle smile.

"We are honored to be blessed with your presence," Luna Leona said.

"However, due to your sudden arrival, the entire pack was thrown onto high alert."

"We're terribly sorry, Luna Leona," I replied hastily.

"Our teleportation spell went wrong. We really didn't mean to cause chaos on your land."

A warm smile crossed her face as she stepped forward and gently held my hand.

"Come, let's go to the main house. We swore an oath to the Moon Goddess to protect the surviving Goddess Clan, so please, do not worry. You are safe with us." She paused, her eyes trailing past me to Alexandra, who was busy bickering under her breath with Aurora.

"I'm sorry," I confessed, my voice tightening.

"Grandmother never mentioned any allied wolf packs before the war happened."

Luna Leona looked at me knowingly, her grip tightening on my hand.

"Your grandmother made sure to send us a prophecy before they vanished."

Fresh tears spilled over my lashes as the terrible, suffocating memories of the Great War flooded my mind.