Chapter 2 The King Of Ashes

I woke up to the scent of damp earth and burning wood.

My eyes snapped open, my body jerking upright as instinct took over. I expected to be back in the packhouse dungeon, or worse, torn apart by the beast in the forest.

Instead, I was lying on a makeshift bed of thick furs inside a massive, dark tent. A fire crackled in a brazier nearby, casting long, dancing shadows against the canvas walls.

I reached for my throat. The skin where the beast had bitten me was completely healed, not even a scar remained. But underneath my palm, I felt it-a steady, possessive hum of magic. The mate bond.

No.

I shook my head, panic rising. The memory of the rejection hit me like a physical blow. The agonizing snap of my bond with Damien. The cruel laughter of the pack. The freezing mud of the forest.

And then, him. The red-eyed monster who had shifted into a man.

I looked down. My ragged, mud-soaked dress was gone. I was wearing a simple, clean black tunic that swallowed my frame. And my mother's locket-the only thing I had left of her-was gone.

"Good. You're awake."

The voice was a low, rumbling vibration that seemed to shake the very air in the tent.

I whipped my head toward the entrance.

He stepped out of the shadows. Kael.

He was dressed now in dark, tailored leathers that did nothing to hide the raw, lethal power of his build. In the firelight, he looked even more terrifying than he had in the dark. His sharp features were carved from ice, his jaw dusted with dark stubble, and his crimson eyes pinned me to the spot like a predator sizing up prey.

"Where am I?" I demanded. My voice was hoarse, but I forced it to be steady. I refused to cower.

"You are in my territory," Kael said, stepping closer. His boots made no sound on the furs. "A day's march from the border of your former pack."

My former pack. The words stung.

"You bit me," I said, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. "You forced a bond on me while I was unconscious."

Kael stopped at the edge of the furs. He looked down at me, his expression unreadable.

"I did not force a bond, little mate," he said, his voice dropping an octave. "I saved your life. The venom of a Lycan is the only thing powerful enough to counteract the poison of a shattered mate bond. If I hadn't marked you, your heart would have stopped within the hour."

I swallowed hard. I wanted to argue, to hate him for taking a choice away from me. But deep down, I knew he was right. I had felt my life slipping away in the mud.

"Why?" I asked, my voice barely a whisper. "Why would the Lycan King save a rejected Omega?"

Kael's eyes flashed. He reached out, his large, calloused hand catching my chin and tilting my face up to his. His touch was firm, almost bruising.

"Because you are not an Omega," he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous murmur. "The locket you wore-the one that shattered when I marked you-was a seal. It was created by the Moon Goddess herself to hide your true power."

I froze. "My mother... she said it was a family heirloom."

"It was a cage," Kael corrected. "I felt the magic the moment I touched it. You are a Moon Blessed, Selene. The first born in a thousand years."

I pulled my chin from his grip, shaking my head. "You're lying. I've never felt any power. I couldn't even shift into my wolf."

"Because the seal suppressed it," Kael said, his eyes narrowing. "It kept you weak. It kept you safe from those who would hunt you. But now, the seal is broken. The power is yours."

He stepped back, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Stand up," he commanded.

"I-"

"Stand up," he repeated, his voice hardening. "If you are going to be my Queen, you will not cower on the floor."

Queen. The word hit me like a slap.

I was a servant. An Omega. I had spent my entire life being beaten down by people like Damien and Seraphina. I was not a Queen.

"Stand," Kael barked.

A sudden, violent surge of heat erupted in my chest. It wasn't just anger. It was raw, untamed power.

I pushed myself to my feet, my legs trembling, but I didn't fall. I looked Kael dead in the eye.

"Don't," I said, my voice low, "give me orders."

Kael raised an eyebrow. A slow, dark, and undeniably satisfied smile spread across his lips.

"There it is," he murmured. "The fire of a Goddess."

He turned his back to me-a fatal mistake for any other wolf-and walked toward the tent entrance.

"Your former Alpha has made a grave error," Kael said, pulling back the canvas flap. The pale morning light spilled in. "He has weakened his pack. And he has insulted my mate."

My heart stuttered in my chest. "What are you going to do?"

Kael looked over his shoulder. The morning light caught his crimson eyes, making them glow like fresh blood.

"Tomorrow, we march on the Blackwood Pack," he said. "I will tear down his walls, take his territory, and make him kneel at your feet."

I stared at him, my breath catching in my throat. This was it. This was the revenge I had dreamed of, but never believed possible. But I also saw the darkness in Kael's eyes. He wasn't doing this out of kindness. He was doing this because he wanted to claim a weapon, and the Blackwood Pack had damaged his property.

"And if I don't want to be a weapon?" I asked, my voice tight. "If I refuse to go with you?"

Kael let the tent flap fall shut. He took three slow steps toward me, closing the distance until I had to crane my neck to look at him.

He leaned down, his breath warm against my ear, his voice a dark, seductive threat.

"You can refuse," he whispered. "But you are marked by the Lycan King now. You are mine. The Moon Goddess herself tied our souls together. If you run, I will hunt you. If you hide, I will find you."

He pulled back, his eyes burning into mine.

"But I am not your enemy, Selene," he said, his tone softening just a fraction. "Damien is. And tomorrow, I will hand you the knife to gut him. The only question is... will you have the strength to use it?"

I looked at him, the rage and the power swirling inside me. I thought of Damien's cold eyes. I thought of Seraphina's cruel smile. I thought of the mud and the freezing cold and the loneliness.

I didn't want to be a victim anymore.

"I'll need a new dress," I said, my voice steady. "Preferably one that doesn't hide the blood."

Kael's smile widened, revealing a flash of sharp white teeth.

"Good girl," he murmured.

Before I could react to the condescending praise, he turned away.

"Rest today," he ordered. "Eat. Regain your strength. Because tomorrow, the real war begins."

He pushed out of the tent, leaving me alone with the crackling fire and the heavy, terrifying weight of my new destiny.

I looked down at my hands. I could still feel the phantom pain of the rejection, but beneath it, there was something else.

Something ancient. Something hungry.

And for the first time in my life, I wasn't afraid of the dark. I was ready to embrace it.