Page 10 of The Alpha's Shattered Bonds

My heart plummeted at his words:“deaths.”

“This illness is tied to dark witchcraft,” he plowed on. “And now we find you lurking here. I always say the simplest answer is usually the right one.”

A wave of disbelief washed over me. Dark witchcraft? He thought I’d caused this and that I had slain packmates. Indignation ignited within me, fueled by the knowledge that his hatred was unfounded. My parents had been framed and were innocent of the sins attributed to them. My body hummed with righteous anger, ancient energy swirling just beneath the surface, drawing from the life pulsing through the snow and ice of our lands.

But beneath that fury lingered a tug of worry. A mysterious illness? How many were ill? My heart clenched with concern for Tyler despite the rift that had grown between us.

“Maybe I can help,” I began, forcing the words out. But Logan moved even closer, and his grip tightened painfully around my arm.

“Oh, you think I’m going to take you near people you’ve already harmed?” His growl held a menacing edge, each word laden with a fury that simmered just beneath the surface.

Defiance surged within me. “I haven’t got anything to do with this,” I denied fervently.

But Logan only gritted his teeth, maintaining his resolved scorn. Dread coiled in my gut. He wasn’t going to take me to Tyler, not willingly. My body thrummed with untapped energy, an instinctual pulse urging me forward. Channeling my magic, I felt a luminous energy envelop me, crackling at my fingertips. In a rush, I thrust Logan away, propelled by the shockwaves of power that rippled through the snow-laden landscape.

Seizing the moment, I turned and ran. My breath came in sharp gasps as I sprinted into the forest, dodging low-hanging branches and leaping over roots that thrust up like grasping fingers. The world around me shuddered, and adrenaline surged through my veins, sharpening my instincts as I heard Logan bellow behind me.

“Don’t let her get away!”

The warriors of the Silver Moon Pack roared in response—the rhythm of their paws crunched through the melting snow, forming a sinister percussion echoing behind me.

Every footfall reverberated with urgency, the remaining minutes of grace slipping away. They wouldn’t grant me a fair hearing, blinded as they were by their thirst for vengeance. Just as my parents had experienced, the pack would enforce its own brand of ruthless justice—with no mercy for the innocent.

Panic clawed at my throat as I sensed them tracking me. I longed to shift into my wolf form, to reclaim the speed and agility that had carried me most of the way here, but my magic was my best chance against six wolves. I fought the instinct to yield to my wolf’s urges, remaining firmly in human form. I couldn’t risk letting go despite the uncertainty clawing at me.

As I zigzagged through the trees, I concentrated on my center, harnessing the aura of my magic. But the panic within me churned, and my wolf growled as it begged me to shift and defend myself. Her instincts whispered dangerously that one misstep could mean my tender flesh would be torn apart. The odds were insurmountable. One against six Silver Moon wolves was not a battle my wolf could win.

Logan and his guards encircled me, their movements balletic and predatory. I pivoted to face them, backing against a wide tree, shielding myself. The magic pooled behind my eyes like a brewing storm, crackling at my fingertips.

The first warrior lunged, a flash of silver against the vibrant white of the melting snow. Grounded by fear yet rallied by instinct, I raised my hands, channeling magic into a shimmering barrier. The surge collided with the warrior, knocking him backward and leaving him breathless as he crumpled into the icy ground.

Barely allowing myself a moment of relief, the second wolf charged, jaws snapping, ready to take me down. Dread coiled within me, and I summoned another rush of power, unleashing a torrent of blinding light that shot forth like a sunbeam. It struck him square in the chest, sending him tumbling to the ground with a pained yelp.

A third wolf lunged toward me. As I grasped for strength, I felt the first signs of overexertion. My magic hummed with fatigue, warning me that I needed to draw on a source of energy. I cursed myself for not having retrieved the crystals from my bag; their power lay trapped within the depths of fabric too thick to access.

But the ancient energy from the land called to me. I sensed the shards lying beneath the ice, dormant but pulsating with vitality—a gift from the Moon goddess flowing like blood through the veins of Silver Moon territory. Focusing on their essence, I called forth the vibrations from beneath, amplifying my magic as their power harmonized with mine.

I threw my arms wide, and roots erupted from the ground, reaching out from beneath the snow like skeletal fingers, ensnaring the warrior before me. Like ink splattered on a white canvas, the roots snarled and twisted around him, pinning him to the cold earth.

Yet each spell drained my energy further, and a creeping exhaustion wrapped around my chest. My senses began to blur. The icy forest felt more like a predator now, as if it were ready to consume the last breath left in me.

The first wolf was already rising, shaking off the daze. I aimed only to stun them—I couldn’t endure the thought of my magic inflicting real harm upon them, even as they threatened me.

Logan and the fifth wolf still hadn’t attacked, and I turned to them as the air thickened with anticipation. My heart raced, and I could feel the magic coiling in response, warning me that I had depleted my reserves.

Leaning deeper into the haze, fatigue tugged at me—every spell siphoning energy I could not replenish. The crunch of snow underfoot faded beneath the roar of my heartbeat.

Suddenly, just as Logan and another warrior lunged toward me, a low, commanding voice shattered the forest. “Stop!”

Electricity surged in the air as Logan and the other warrior jerked mid-pounce, skidding to a halt as they turned to gaze upon a figure that had forced them into submission. Alpha Tyler emerged from the trees—imposing and regal, he was the embodiment of the Silver Moon Pack’s strength.

His presence, once a comfort, now radiated a fierce intensity. His eyes gleamed with protective fury, drawing my attention. Relief and hope swirled within me at the sight of him, grounding me amidst the tension.

Even in this critical moment, I found myself admiring his tall, muscular figure. He was dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt, hinting that he had raced from somewhere. His disheveled hair only added to that impression. A flash of memory struck me—how sweet it had felt to run my fingers through that hair, hearing a groan of contentment escape him. But now, knowing he was mated, that warmth twisted into a bitter ache in my chest. I swallowed hard, pushing the memory down, fighting against the butterflies swirling in my stomach, a painful reminder of what could never be.

“Leave Seraphina alone!” Tyler commanded, his powerful voice rippling through the air, settling against the fraying edges of my nerves like a caress.

Shock rippled through the warriors. Their pointed ears folded back against their heads as brittle silence coated the forest, freezing the tension in place.

---