Moonblooded

Chapter 3 A Warning

The Council’s email came through at dawn.

Subject: URGENT – BLACKFANG ROGUE BREACH

Kade read it twice before closing the laptop, jaw clenched so tightly it ached. The sender was Council Alpha Alder, a political relic with a silver tongue and a spine of steel. His message was short and sharp an envoy would arrive in three days to “assess the legitimacy” of Kade’s decision to harbor an unknown rogue female.

It was worded diplomatically. But Kade knew a veiled threat when he read one.

They want a reason to cut you down, Varric hissed. Give them one, and we bleed for it.

Kade pushed back from the desk and stood. The room was dark, sterile floor-to-ceiling windows veiled in blackout shades, the scent of paper, leather, and pinewood clinging to the air. He left without bothering to dress fully, still bare-chested, sweatpants hanging low on his hips. His aura was enough to clear any hallway.

As he stalked toward the main office , wolves stepped aside like water parting around a jagged rock. They kept their heads down, but he could feel their unease rippling across the pack link like static.

Whispers.

Speculation.

Doubt.

He shoved the double doors open with a snarl. Ronan and Darian were already there, along with three squad lieutenants and two veteran warriors. Amara stood off to the side, uninvited but ever present.

“The Council’s sending an envoy,” Kade said without preamble. “Three days.”

Darian scoffed. “Of course they are. You bring a rogue into the estate and expect them to sit quiet?”

Ronan shot Darian a glance. “The Council’s been looking for any reason to undermine us.”

“This gives them one,” Darian snapped.

Kade’s eyes flicked to him. “You questioning my judgment?”

“I’m questioning what the hell is going on with you,” Darian said, stepping forward. “You haven’t been yourself since she showed up.”

A warning growl rose from Kade’s throat.

Varric snarled beneath his skin.

Ronan stepped between them, voice level. “We need to stay focused. The envoy will test us. We double the patrols. Clean records. Silence on the rogue.”

Kade’s silence was agreement.

Behind him, Amara stirred. “And what happens when they ask why she wasn’t executed on sight?”

Kade turned slowly. “They won’t.”

Her lips twitched, but she said nothing more. The meeting ended moments later. Everyone filed out—except her.

Of course.

She lingered in the empty room, leaning casually against the wall like she belonged there. “You’ve been cold lately,” she said, voice soft.

“I’ve been busy,” he answered, flat.

“With a rogue?” she pressed, stepping closer. “Or just bored of me?”

He didn’t answer.

Her fingers reached for his chest, trailing over his bare skin. “You used to want me. What happened to be convenient.”

Kade caught her wrist before she could press further. Her pupils dilated at the dominance, her wolf surfacing in response. She leaned into the pressure with a breathless sound.

“You miss this,” she whispered.

Varric growled. She’s nothing. Send her away.

But Kade didn’t move away from her.

Amara smiled as he pushed her back, pinning her to the wall. One hand circled her throat not choking, just reminding. Her wolf purred beneath her skin. “That’s more like it,” she murmured.

Kade’s other hand slid beneath the hem of her skirt ripping her underwear to the side. Her scent rose to his nose her arousal ,expectant. But to him, it was to sweet . Wrong.

He pushed his fingers inside her anyway.

Quick. Harsh. Mechanical.

Her body bowed with pleasure, grinding on on his hand moaning his name.

Varric snarled, livid. You touch her while our mate lies alone?!

Kade didn’t respond. He watched Amara come undone, expression blank, heart untouched. He quickened his pace and tightened his hold on her throat.

She shuddered as her climax passed. “That wasn’t so hard, was it? Ready for me to return the favor?”

Kade stepped back, hand dripping with her orgasm. “ I have to prepare for the council’s arrival.”

He left her trembling, satisfied, and completely unaware of how deeply he hated her.

The infirmary lights buzzed faintly overhead.

The Rogue hadn’t moved.

But her heartbeat was stronger today. Her skin had regained a fraction of its color. Even her wolf’s aura shimmered faintly, like the glow of a dying ember refusing to snuff out.

She was healing faster than she should have. Faster than any rogue.

Kade stood at the edge of the bed, breathing in her scent. It was wildflowers and storm-soaked pine. His hands curled at his sides. Every second near her made his body ache.

His fingers brushed her forearm.

Sparks erupted under his skin tiny lightning bolts arcing up his veins. His heart stuttered. Varric pushed hard against his mind.

Mark her. Ours. Claim her now.

Kade’s claws extended.

His eyes burned gold.

But she didn’t stir. Didn’t move. Didn’t even flinch.

That was the only reason he could pull away.

“I can’t,” he whispered.

You already did. She’s in our blood.

Kade turned and left the room before he lost control completely.

He shifted the moment he hit the forest.

Bones broke and reset. Muscle tore and reformed. Midnight fur rippled down his spine as he fell forward on four legs, Varric howling with frustration the instant they were free.

The wolf took over.

They ran.

Through pine and root and shadow, paws pounding the earth. Past the river bend, through the ravine, across the southern ridge. The wind couldn’t carry her scent this far but the bond still did. It stretched from his chest like a second heartbeat, faint but insistent.

Varric snarled at nothing.

They ran until their limbs ached, until breath burned, until only exhaustion dulled the need.

Kade collapsed at the edge of the northern cliffs, chest heaving, golden eyes locked on the moon overhead.

She haunts us even in silence, Varric whispered.

Kade said nothing.

But he saw the same thing his wolf did.

Silver eyes in the dark.

Watching.

Waiting.

Calling him home.

Kade woke with dirt on his tongue and frost clinging to his lashes.

The sun was barely a whisper over the northern cliffs, its pale light streaking the sky in bruised lavender and gray. His body ached not from battle, but from running too long, too far. A wolf trying to outrun his own instincts.

He shifted back slowly, fur retreating into flesh, bones twisting into place with the grinding groan of forced humanity. When it was done, he lay in the chilled grass, naked and panting, eyes skyward.

Varric was silent.

Not subdued just waiting.

The image still pulsed in Kade’s mind. Silver eyes, half-lidded and glowing, watching him from the black between trees. She had not woken, yet somehow she lingered in every corner of his thoughts. The mate bond pulsed stronger now, a drumbeat under his skin. It no longer whispered.

It screamed.

Kade pushed to his feet, scraped the dirt from his skin, and dressed in the spare clothes hidden in the hollow of a pine.

He returned to the estate just as the first rays of light broke across the rooftop. The manor rose from the woods like a modern fortress stone, glass, steel, and blood. Built by war. Reinforced by fear.

He was met at the front door by the guards on rotation. Both bowed their heads as he passed. Not a word spoken. But their wolves flinched beneath the press of his aura. He wasn’t hiding it anymore.

Let them fear it.

He moved through the halls like a storm held barely in check. Everything felt tight. Too bright. Too loud. The closer he got to the heart of the estate, the heavier the weight in his chest became.

And Kade hadn’t decided yet if he would drown in it or rip it out with his own claws.

In the east wing courtyard, training had already begun. Warriors moved in sync, sparring on the stone floor, sweat slick on their brows, the scent of aggression in the air.

Ronan stood at the edge, arms crossed, barking corrections when needed. He caught Kade’s approach and nodded once.

“Kade,” he greeted. No ‘Alpha.’ They didn’t need titles between them.

“Any more movement from Hollowfang?” Kade asked, stepping into place beside him.

“Not yet. Scouts saw a pair of their wolves lingering near the gorge yesterday, but they didn’t cross the line.”

Kade grunted. “They’re watching to see what the Council does.”

Ronan glanced sideways. “You look like shit.”

“Feel like it too.”

Ronan didn’t press. He rarely did.

Kade observed the warriors as they paired off, fists flying, claws raking in controlled strikes. It should have soothed him watching strength take shape through discipline.

It didn’t.

He felt hollow. Like something sacred inside him was being carved away inch by inch. Denying the bond had consequences. And now, his wolf wasn’t the only one paying the price.

From across the field, Amara watched him.

She stood near the shade of the stone arch, clad in black leggings and a crimson silk blouse far too fine for a training yard. Her arms were folded, head tilted, lips painted and smiling like she knew something he didn’t.

She thinks you’re hers, Varric growled out in disgust, still angry at Kade for touching her.

She wasn’t smiling out of affection. It was possession. She thought what happened in the war room meant she had a claim. She thought she’d won.

Kade turned his back on her.

He didn’t speak. Didn’t look. Just walked off the field without a word, his fists tight at his sides.

The infirmary was quiet when he entered.

Sterile lights buzzed overhead, soft and low, casting long shadows across the tiled floor. The nurse on duty bowed her head and vanished through the door behind him. She knew better than to stay.

She still lay where he’d left her.

Cuffed. Unmoving. Breathing steady.

But her wolf was stronger today. He felt it the moment he stepped inside. The air shimmered faintly, like the pressure before a lightning strike. Her aura pulsed—faint but undeniable.

Lira.

The name whispered through him, unbidden. He didn’t know how he knew it. But he did.

His steps slowed as he approached the bed. His breath caught in his throat.

She was beautiful. Even battered. Even silent. Silver hair tangled around her shoulders like a fallen crown, lashes dark against bruised skin. Her presence pulled at him like gravity.

He reached out without thinking.

Fingers brushed her wrist right above the silver cuff and sparks exploded across his hand.

Mate.

It was no longer a whisper.

It was law.

Varric surged forward, gold slamming through his vision, claws pressing beneath skin.

Mark her. End this torment.

His body responded on instinct. Fangs elongated. Pulse thundered. His hand slid to her shoulder, to the curve of her throat—

And he stopped.

Just inches from her skin, his own fingers trembling.

“No,” he breathed, voice hoarse.

Coward, Varric spat. You’re killing us both.

“I won’t claim someone who can’t choose,” Kade growled.

He wrenched his hand back like he’d touched fire.

Staggered away.

Turned his back and fled.

In the hall, his breathing came ragged. His aura crackled down the corridor like a live wire. Wolves in nearby rooms flinched nurses ducking away, pack members going silent over the link.

He didn’t care.

He slammed into his office, locked the door, and buried his face in his hands.

He was losing.

And the worst part wasn’t the pain. It was the truth.

He didn’t want to resist anymore.