At that precise moment, the heavy double doors of the suite swung open with a thunderous bang. The wolves who strode in bore no resemblance to Kael's pack of gentle storytellers. These were Varg's elite—the clan of the North. Each one was a biological war machine, their faces etched with scars they carried like medals. Even the Omegas trailing behind them radiated a lethal discipline.
One of them, a female Alpha with shoulders as broad as a doorway, stepped forward and spat on the marble floor. "Is this the prophecy, Varg?" she barked, her voice full of gall. "This shivering birdling looks like she'd snap if the wind blew too hard. She smells of human weakness and cheap tea."
Varg snatched the copper chalice from the bedside and turned toward them. His presence was a cold front that froze the room.
"What did you expect, Vespera?" he snarled, his voice weaving into the harshness of his warriors. "Did you think we were like those pathetic scout-wolves who pat children on the head? Don't mistake us for those domesticated dogs who sit by the fireplace singing songs! We are the Darkness of Wolves. We are the ones who take what we want with our teeth."
He leaned over me, his face inches from mine, his scent of gunpowder and ancient pine overwhelming. "In this house, you either drink this blood and stand, or you drown in your own weakness. The weakest link in a pack is nothing but a target for the crows. Do you want to be a meal for the crows, girl? Because right now, you look delicious to them."
I tried to shrink away, but his shadow was a cage. "I am not a wolf," I choked out.
"You are whatever I say you are." Varg hissed, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. "And right now, you are a nuisance."
He slammed the blood-filled chalice onto the nightstand, the metal clanging with a finality that made me flinch. He exited with his army of shadows. When the door groaned shut, the only things left were the scent of raw blood and my own infinite, icy solitude.
A young Omega girl appeared in the doorway later, her gaze fixed on the floor. "My Lady," she whispered. "I must prepare you. The wedding ceremony begins at sunset. The Blood Moon demands it."
"Wedding?" I whispered. "Varg... he can't just decide."
"Varg doesn't decide." a voice boomed from the hallway. Varg was back, his wet shirt clinging to his frame, the ripple of his muscles leaking a constant threat. "Varg ordains. And you obey."
He took a step toward the bed, his shadow swallowing me whole. He caught my chin in a bruising grip. "Don't even think about running. My sentries are hungry, and they don't care if you're a prophecy or a snack. They will tear those pretty legs off before you hit the first treeline."
"You're a monster!" I spat.
"I am the monster you were born to serve." he whispered, his voice gritty, like a blade against a whetstone. "Prepare her. And if she screams, gag her. I don't want the moon to be offended by her human noise."
He released me and walked out. The girl led me to the marble bath. I scrubbed my skin until it was raw, trying to wash away his scent, but it was useless. When I locked the bathroom door, I collapsed. My phone—my last link to Chloe—was in my hand.
"Chloe..." I whispered into the voice memo. "I'm in hell. He tried to make me drink raw blood. He's going to marry me at sunset. I miss your stupid jokes. I miss a world that makes sense."
Suddenly, the bathroom door burst open. Varg stood there, a god of ruin.
"Get out!" I screamed. "Have you no shame?"
"Shame?" Varg laughed, a sound of pure ice. He snatched the phone from my hand and crushed it against the marble wall without even looking at it. "Shame is for those who can't afford to be brutal. Your human toy is dead. Just like your human life."
"I hate you!" I shrieked. "What about the Luna you're supposed to have? The one you actually want?"
Varg descended upon me like a nightmare. He grabbed my jaw so hard I felt my bone groan.
"I have no Luna, Vespera," he hissed, his eyes glowing with a feral, agonizing light. "Because of your glorious, ancient clan, I have no Luna! They slaughtered her. They ripped five of my pups from her womb while she was still breathing. Your 'noble' family didn't just kill my mate ,they erased my future!"
The heat of the room felt suddenly like ice. "No... my family... they were healers."
"Healers?" Varg's voice was a jagged blade. "They 'healed' the world by purging it of my bloodline. They watched her beg for mercy and they carved her open like a piece of livestock. Did they forget to tell you that story, little omega? Did they forget to tell you about the night the North screamed in agony while your kin laughed in their ivory towers?"
He shook me, stealing the very air from my lungs. "You ask why I am doing this? You are not a bride. You are a debt. A blood-debt that will be paid in full. You stole six lives from me. In return, I am stealing your soul. Every breath you take in this house is a breath you owe to my dead sons. Every tear you shed is a drop of water for their parched ghosts."
He leaned in until our foreheads touched, his breath hot against my lips. "Put on that silver dress. It was made for a queen but it will be worn by a slave today. The moon is rising and I am going to take back everything your family stole. Starting with you."