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

Deputy Marshal Reed guided me through another identical street in this soulless neighborhood. The houses stood like cardboard cutouts—perfect facades hiding whatever secrets this pack was determined to keep.


"Alpha Sterling regrets he couldn't escort you personally," Reed said, his tone carefully neutral. "He had urgent pack business to attend to."


I didn't bother responding. The lie was transparent. Sterling was scrambling, regrouping after my unexpected demands. Good. Let him sweat.


Reed stopped in front of a two-story colonial with fresh white paint and blue trim. Nothing distinguished it from the dozen others we'd passed.


"This is Luna Elara's residence," he announced. "She's expecting you."


I scanned the property with narrowed eyes. The yard was immaculate—too immaculate. No personal touches. No children's toys. Not even a unique plant or garden stone to mark it as someone's territory.


Chapter 67 - The Empty Stage