Page 108 of A Reign of Malice
And there they are. Mom and Dad, walking toward us, their steps sure, their faces soft and weather-worn but lit with love.
I burst into tears again, full-blown sobbing this time.
Gah. MaybeI’malready pregnant because I can’t seem to get a handle on my emotions.
It’s a joke, but even still, Theo is watching me closely, a look of wonder in his darkening gaze.
“I’m going to put a baby in you,”he says through our bond.
“And I’m going to let you. Right after my family leaves.”
“Am I allowed to kick them out?”
My outburst of laughter has everyone else looking at us, but I don’t care. We’re here, we’re together, and the future is brighter than it’s ever been.
EPILOGUE: PART ONE
SLOANE
One Year Later…
It’s amazing how much a world can change when everyone is finally pulling in the same direction—when the shared goal isn’t power or vengeance, but peace, simplicity, and connection.
Even if those goals are as small as wanting a quicker way to visit the people you love.
At least that’s what I think as I hurry through the freshly polished halls of our castle, double-checking every detail, smoothing wrinkles in tablecloths that don’t need smoothing, and adjusting flowers that are already perfectly placed. I know no one else will notice, but I will. Because today matters.
It’s the first time Isla, Asher, Estee, and Theo will be visiting since the final touches were put on the new and improved Alcaris. And I want everything to be perfect.
The castle gleams under the afternoon sun, its whitewashed stone and forest-green shutters freshly paintedand proudly trimmed with ivy. The Alcaris flags snap high above the turrets, a symbol not just of sovereignty but of survival and rebirth.
We didn’t just repair a home. We resurrected a legacy.
But more than our refurbished castle, the town itself has evolved and grown. The bridge connecting our island to the mainland—the old Venaris—has been widened and reinforced, strong enough now to carry not only foot traffic and single carriages, but multiples of them filled with heavy carts for trade goods and supplies. It’s become a lifeline and a symbol of how far we’ve come.
We moved the marketplace closer to the bridge too, creating a vibrant, central hub where all shifters gather—Polaris, Selaris, and Alcaris alike. The names don’t seem to matter anymore. Not the way they used to.
Because now, we no longer act as separate kingdoms.
We’re one community.
People come and go between our lands with ease and laughter. There are no borders to fear. No guards giving suspicious glances. Just wolves living their lives freely.
It started with a cell phone. A device that was, unsurprisingly, rejected by many of our people. Then came the ships with bigger motors for quicker travel, but mostly, it was the arrival of more portals.
With the packs united, we’ve become a realm that welcomes not only all wolves but even friends of the shifters. Which is how we found ourselves uniting with a coven of witches. Ones who were thrilled to help us update a few things with magic in exchange for some royal, god-like blood.
Sure, Theo wasn’t pleased at first, but at the time, Estee was beyond pregnant, miserable, and prepared to kill anyone who looked in her direction. When she demanded for hersister and me to be able to come see her and the baby whenever we wanted, she got her way. Quickly.
Now, every island has two portals that only travel within Lunara. One within the royal castles and another for the rest of the packs to use.
But even with the ease of movement, I still didn’t allow Isla or Estee to come here until I was absolutely ready to show off the new Alcaris.
A place I’m proud to still call home.
Even better, we’ve had no uprising. No threats of another war. No issues with the gods.
Everything is just as it should be.
