Blood Marked: The Bone Moon Alphas

Chapter 3 The Library Incident

Lira set me up. Of course she did.

“Headmaster wants all liaison notes in the Bone Archive,” she said sweetly. “Top floor. Midnight. Don't be late or you'll embarrass Father.”

The Bone Archive was forbidden to non-Alphas. Everyone knew that. But Lira knew I couldn't say no.

At midnight, I climbed the obsidian stairs. The Archive was a circular room with no doors, only floating books. The moonlight from the volcano mouth poured in, white.

They were already there. All four.

Drinking. Laughing. No shirts, in sweatpants, after training. Kieran saw me first.

“You have to be kidding,” he said, voice low. “The wolfless in the Archive.”

“I was told to -”

Jax was up in a second, in my face. “You followed us? You think because my spark didn't fry you, you're special?”

“I didn't follow -”

Silas appeared behind me, silent. He touched my temple with two fingers. His eyes glowed silver. “Let me see how empty you really are.”

He pushed his power in. Mind reading. It felt like ice water in my brain.

He gasped.

“Silas?” Rhys said, standing now.

“She's not empty,” Silas whispered. “There's a door. There's a giant, locked door and something behind it is banging-”

That was when Kieran grabbed my other arm. Shadows wrapping my ankles. “Enough games.”

Rhys, trying to be the peacemaker, touched my shoulder. “Let her go, you're scaring-”

Four Alphas touched me at once.

Shadow, Storm, Mind, Blood.

The door in my mind exploded.

Heat ripped down my spine, not burning, but breaking. Like a bone resetting. My back arched. My mouth opened and a sound came out that no human could make.

A HOWL. A howl that cracked the floating books in half. A howl that made the volcano shudder.

Light poured from my eyes. My nails turned to claws. Silver fur rippled under my skin and then receded.

Inside my head, a voice, sleepy and ancient and furious, said: “FINALLY. You took your sweet time, Kaia.”

In the room, the four Alphas were on their knees. On their actual knees, heads bowed, hands on the floor, trembling.

Kieran Blackthorn, who made lights dim, was kneeling to me.

Jax was breathing hard, staring at me like he'd seen a ghost.

Silas was bleeding from his nose, smiling like a madman. “You were locked.”

Rhys crawled closer, his hand shaking as he reached for mine. His blood power surged to heal me, but my skin healed itself.

I looked down at my hands. My eyes reflected in the black window. They were silver. Pure, glowing silver.

“What am I?” I whispered.

The voice in my head laughed, deep and female and terrifying.

“You, little bone, are the Fifth.”