I was standing at the edge of a forest. The trees loomed above, their twisted branches casting strange, jagged shadows in the moonlight. And Miranda was standing at the tree line, her face as pale as the moon. Her lips were moving fast, too fast for me to catch the words.

My chest tightened as I watched her, a pit forming in my stomach. Something was wrong. She kept looking over her shoulder, her eyes wide, darting nervously between the shadows.

And then, out of the darkness, they came—the rival clan. Wolves cloaked in shadows, their eyes glowing like embers, slinking toward her with a predator's grace. I could feel their hunger, their malice, swirling in the air like poison.

Miranda didn’t flinch. She extended her hand, and I could almost hear the soft, sinisterclickas the pact was sealed.

"No!" I wanted to scream, but my voice caught in my throat. I could only watch, helpless, as she locked her fate—and ours—into place. The betrayal sliced through me, sharp and cold, a dagger straight to the heart.

It wasn’t just her. It wasn’t just a betrayal. It was Orion’s future—ourfuture—dangling by a thread. If this pact was made, everything would crumble. It would destroy us all.

The darkness in the vision swirled, closing in, suffocating me.

I woke with a jolt, my breath catching in my throat, my heart hammering so hard I thought it might burst from my chest. Sweat clung to my skin, and I shot upright, gasping for air.

"Luna?" Orion’s voice was low and steady, but I could hear the concern laced in it. His hand was already on my arm, gently grounding me as my mind struggled to shake off the nightmare. "What is it? What did you see?"

I stared at him, my eyes wide, still trying to process the vision. My skin was burning, my pulse wild. "It’s … its Miranda," I breathed, barely able to form the words. "She’s … she’s going to betray us."

“What!” Orion’s grip tightened on my arm.

Chapter 10

Orion

Igrabbed her arm, my hand tightening involuntarily, as Luna’s words hung in the air.

“What do you mean? Betray us how? You’re talking about my daughter … your best friend.” My voice was harsher than I intended, but I couldn't help it. This was Miranda. My flesh and blood. The one person I had raised to stand beside me. To one day take over everything.

Luna’s face was pale, her eyes wide with the lingering terror from her vision. She swallowed hard, her voice trembling when she spoke.

“She was making a pact with the rival clan.” She looked up at me, pleading for me to understand. “In the vision, I saw her. She was standing with them, sealing some kind of deal. If it happens …”she faltered, struggling to keep her composure. "If it happens, it will destroy everything. Us. The pack. You.”

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. Betrayal. From my own daughter? It didn’t make sense. Miranda was loyal. She loved me. She loved the pack. How could she?

I shook my head, trying to push away the thought.

“Miranda? That doesn’t make sense,” I said, my voice sounding foreign even to my own ears. “She’s my daughter, Luna. She wouldn’t—”

“She will!” Luna’s voice cut through the air like a blade, sharper than I had ever heard it before. She grasped my arm, her grip almost painful, as she forced me to meet her gaze.

“That’s enough, Luna! How can you accuse my daughter of such betrayal? It’s my only daughter we are talking about here. My flesh and blood. You have no right to say such things about my daughter! Believe me, if it was someone else that said this, I would have their head on a platter.”

“What? I felt it, Orion. I felt her betrayal. It was like a knife in my chest. She’s going to make that pact, and it will tear everything apart.”

“Not another word against my daughter. I swear Luna or else.”

“Or else what … you’d behead me?”

“Don’t push it Luna …”

“I know that you are in denial, and everything seems-”

“I said don’t push it!”

I wanted to argue, to deny everything she was saying. My mind reeled as I tried to make sense of it, but the vision Luna had described, the certainty in her voice, gnawed at me. My jaw clenched, the war inside me growing fiercer with every second.

But Luna’s eyes. I couldn’t ignore the look in her eyes. She believed it. She had seen it.