Lenaleia

For six years, I was Hazel, girlfriend to the future Alpha, Julian. I thought we had forever, a cherished place in our werewolf pack, even as a human. Then Mate Hunt night ripped it all away. I woke up lost in the forest, only to find Julian with her – his true fated mate. His words hit harder than the forest floor: I was just a 'placeholder.' Six years together, and he tossed me aside, his fingers bruising my throat as he growled that I meant nothing. My world, my heart – shattered.

Left for dead, freezing and injured, a different kind of predator found me. A colossal black wolf, eyes glowing gold, big enough to swallow me whole. But instead of tearing me apart, he curled around me, a warm, terrifying shield against the biting cold. For a moment, I felt safe.

That safety vanished when my pack, my family, found us. The Alpha who raised me, Maxen, didn't see a survivor. He saw a disappointment. Turns out, he’d only taken me in hoping I’d magically become a werewolf like my mother – the fated mate who’d rejected him. When I couldn't shift, he cast me out, branding me an omega, the pack’s punching bag.

Now, I'm less than nothing, surviving on scraps and enduring their cruelty. What they don't know, what I don't know, is that my monstrous protector is no ordinary rogue. He's Lykos, the wolf of Kael, the Lycan King. And Lykos has decided I am his fated mate – a human. Kael is furious, but his wolf has a will of its own, dragging the King himself towards my abusive pack.

My old life is over. My only ally is a creature of legend. And the most feared Lycan in existence is on his way. Is he coming to save me, or is the King's arrival just another nightmare waiting to begin?

A King’s Curse, A Wolf’s Claim

The scent of her lingered everywhere. Haunted me. Drove me to the edge of madness.


My fingers curled around the small pillow, the only object still carrying Hazel's fading essence. I pressed it against my face, inhaling deeply. It wasn't enough. Nothing was enough without her here.


"Lykos, calm yourself," I growled internally, feeling my wolf pacing frantically beneath my skin.


*She's gone because of YOU,* my wolf snarled back. *Our mate is gone because YOU drove her away.*


The accusation burned like acid in my veins. My control was slipping by the hour, the bond between my human consciousness and my wolf growing more strained with every moment she remained missing.


A timid knock at the door snapped my attention. "Enter," I barked.


The door creaked open to reveal Silas, the warlock I'd practically dragged from Alpha Donovan's territory. He was slim, pale, with dark circles under nervous eyes that darted around the room like a cornered animal.


Chapter 40 - An Alpha's Desperate Measures