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

I jumped at the sound of a loud bark, my heart nearly exploding from my chest.


"Jesus Christ!" I slapped my hand over my racing heart, watching as a large German Shepherd trotted along the edge of our campsite. Just a neighbor's dog, not a threat.


Kael appeared beside me, his imposing frame blocking most of the window.


"I need to make a supply run," he announced, his deep voice revealing no emotion. "We're dangerously low on everything."


My anxiety spiked immediately. "You're leaving? Now?"


"We have no choice. The children need food and water."


He was right, but that didn't make the prospect of him leaving any less terrifying.


"What about—" I hesitated, lowering my voice. "What about whoever might be watching us?"


Kael's jaw tightened. "Lock the door when I leave. Don't open it for anyone but me." His eyes met mine, steely and serious. "Lykos will stay."


Chapter 114 - Probably Safe Isn't Certainty