Chapter 3: The Scent of a Queen

The fire had died to embers, painting Kael’s scarred chest in shifting shades of orange and shadow. Luna lay curled against his side, her breathing slow and even, her dark hair spilling across his arm like spilled ink. For the first time in three years, Kael had slept without nightmares.

But the peace shattered at 4:17 AM.

His eyes snapped open, amber bleeding into the darkness. The wind had shifted, carrying a scent that made his blood turn to ice.

*Silvermoon.*

Three of them. Maybe four. Their pack stench was unmistakable—that sickly-sweet combination of pine and arrogance that marked the territory-holders from the southern valleys. And they were close. Too close.

Kael moved with the silent grace of a predator, careful not to wake her. He pulled on his worn trousers and slipped through the cave’s narrow entrance, the cold mountain air hitting his bare chest like a slap.

There. On the ridge above the waterfall. Two males in partial shift, their eyes glowing in the pre-dawn light. A third was circling to the east, trying to cut off any escape route.

They were hunting.

And their target was sleeping in his den.

*Mine.*

The word exploded through his mind, primal and absolute. Something ancient stirred in his chest—a rage he hadn’t felt since the night he’d been cast out. His wolf surged forward, claws extending, fangs elongating. The rogue in him wanted to tear them apart. The man in him wanted to understand why.

He didn’t wait for answers.

Kael launched himself from the cave mouth, covering the distance in five massive strides. The first wolf—a beta by the look of his grey-streaked fur—didn’t even have time to growl before Kael’s fist connected with his jaw. Bone crunched. The wolf crumpled.

“Where is she?” The second wolf’s voice was rough, desperate. “The female. We tracked her scent for three days. She’s marked by the Moon Goddess—she belongs to Silvermoon.”

*Belongs.*

The word detonated something primal in Kael’s chest. His vision went red. His wolf surged forward, and for a moment, Kael wasn’t himself anymore. He was the beast that had survived three years in the wilderness. The monster that had killed twelve hunters in a single night.

He grabbed the wolf by the throat, lifting him off the ground with terrifying ease. “She belongs to no one. And if you ever come near her again, I will skin you alive and feed your hide to the crows.”

“Kael!”

Her voice cut through the rage like a blade of light. He turned, still holding the gasping wolf, and found Luna standing at the cave entrance. She was wrapped in his spare shirt, her bare legs trembling, her eyes wide with terror.

But not of him.

The third wolf had circled around, and now stood behind her, teeth bared, hackles raised. Luna was trapped between the beast and the cave wall.

Something in Kael snapped.

He threw the wolf in his grip aside like a ragdoll and moved with impossible speed. The third wolf lunged. Kael met him mid-air, his body shifting into full wolf form in a blur of black fur and silver scars. The impact sent them tumbling across the rocky ground.

The wolf was strong—an alpha’s enforcer, judging by the iron-hard muscle beneath his fur. But Kael had survived on rage and starvation for three years. He had nothing left to lose except one thing.

*Her.*

He sank his fangs into the wolf’s shoulder, tasting blood and fear. The wolf howled, trying to twist away, but Kael held on, shaking his head like a terrier with a rat. The crack of bone echoed through the mountain.

“Kael, stop!” Luna’s voice was desperate now. “You’ll kill him!”

*Good.*

The thought was cold, dark, completely unlike the man he’d been before. But the wolf inside him didn’t care. All it knew was that something had threatened its mate, and now it wanted blood.

Mate.

The realization hit Kael like a lightning strike. His body went rigid. The wolf beneath him whimpered, sensing its advantage, and scrambled away into the trees.

Kael stood there, chest heaving, blood dripping from his jaws. His golden eyes found Luna’s. She was shaking, tears streaming down her face, but she didn’t run. She walked toward him instead.

“You were going to kill him,” she whispered.

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Because you’re mine. Because the Moon Goddess marked you for me. Because I’ve been alone for three years, and the moment I saw you, I knew I’d burn the world to keep you safe.

But he couldn’t say any of that. Instead, he shifted back, his body trembling with the effort, and fell to his knees before her.

Luna knelt beside him, her small hands cupping his face. “Kael. Look at me.”

He couldn’t. Shame burned hotter than the rage.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she said softly. “Whatever you are. Whatever you’ve done. I’m not leaving.”

A howl split the air in the distance. Silvermoon’s reinforcements. They had minutes at most.

Kael forced himself to meet her eyes. “Then you need to know the truth. About what I am. About why they’ll never stop hunting you.”

Luna’s breath caught. “What are you?”

He opened his mouth to answer—

And the ground exploded.

Dirt and rock showered them as a massive grey wolf crashed through the underbrush, its amber eyes locked on Luna. Kael lunged, but the wolf was faster. It grabbed Luna by the back of his shirt and hauled her into the air, leaping for the cliff edge.

“NO!”

Kael’s roar shook the mountain. He shifted mid-leap, claws extended, and dove after them.

But the wolf had already disappeared over the waterfall’s edge, Luna’s scream echoing through the gorge below.

Kael landed at the cliff’s edge, staring into the churning white water. His heart stopped.

She was gone.

And in that moment, the rogue wolf felt something he hadn’t felt in three years.

*Fear.*