Page 69 of Once You Go Pack
“Mila!” She crashed into her with enough force to make them both stumble backward, her arms wrapping around Mila in a bone-crushing hug. “Thank the Moon goddess you’re alive. When I heard Zarik had taken you?—“
“I’m fine,” Mila assured her, though her voice came out shakier than she intended. “Cade found me just in time. He eliminated the threat to his mate once and for all.”
Lyra pulled back to study her face with those piercing green eyes so similar to her brother’s. “That bastard will never hurt anyone again,” she said with fierce satisfaction. “Good riddance.”
“Where have you been?” Cade asked, his arm sliding protectively around Mila’s waist. “Martin said you disappeared right after I spoke with you.”
Lyra’s expression shifted, excitement suddenly blazing across her features. “I couldn’t just sit here doing nothing. So I went to the archives.” She grabbed Mila’s free hand. “And you’re never going to believe what I found.”
She led them through the castle’s familiar corridors to the archives, where ancient books and scrolls were scattered across a low table. But it was the leather-bound diary sitting open in the center that caused Mila to let out a soft gasp.
“Is that—?” she started.
“Celeste Aylward’s personal diary,” Lyra finished triumphantly. “Hidden in the oldest section of the archives. I almost missed it completely.”
Mila sank onto the plush sofa, her legs suddenly weak. Cade settled beside her, his solid presence grounding her as she stared at the faded pages covered in elegant handwriting.
“This is impossible,” Mila whispered. “How is her diary here?”
“She lived here for over thirty years,” Lyra explained, settling cross-legged on the floor with characteristic informality. “According to what I’ve read so far, she came to Nova Aurora through similar circumstances—drawn by a connection she couldn’t explain, guided by instincts she didn’t fully understand.”
Mila’s hands trembled as she held the diary. The pages seemed to pulse with warmth beneath her fingertips.
“Day 847 since my arrival,”she read aloud from an entry near the middle.“The Moonfire Trial approaches, and I find myself both terrified and exhilarated. Marcus assures me that our bond is true, that the ancient magic will recognize what we both feel in our hearts. Yet the council remains skeptical of my human nature, whispering that I lack the strength to stand beside a wolf.”
“Marcus?” Cade leaned closer, his breath warm against her ear.
“Her mate,” Lyra supplied. “Not royal blood, but a respected pack warrior. Keep reading.”
Mila turned several pages, her eyes scanning the familiar struggles and doubts until she found what she was looking for.
“The Trial was unlike anything I could have imagined. The ancient magic seemed to see straight through to my soul, testing every fear and insecurity I possessed. For a terrifying moment, I thought we would fail—that my human limitations would prove insufficient. But then I remembered my grandmother’s words: ‘We are not shifters, child, but we are their guardians. It is in our blood to understand them, tobridge the gap between our worlds.’ The magic responded not to spells or tricks, but to truth. To love. To the recognition that some bonds transcend species.”
Tears blurred Mila’s vision as the words sank in. “She faced the same accusations,” she breathed. “The same doubts.”
“And look what she accomplished,” Lyra said softly, gesturing to another section of the diary. “She spent decades working with the wolf packs, strengthening the alliances between humans and shifters. She was exactly what this world needed.”
Cade’s arm tightened around Mila’s shoulders. “Just like you are exactly what we need now.”
Mila looked at him, seeing nothing but absolute conviction in his green eyes. No more doubt. No more hesitation. Just pure, unwavering faith in their bond.
“The council will have to accept this evidence,” Mila said, her voice growing stronger. “Celeste proves that what happened in our trial was real. That I didn’t cheat or cast spells—I just trusted in what my bloodline has always known. That true love transcends logic and species.”
“Let them try to argue with a firsthand account,” Lyra said with satisfaction. “Zarik’s accusations just became worthless.”
Suddenly, the ancient diary slipped from Mila’s fingers as Cade’s powerful frame shifted beside her. In one fluid motion, he dropped to one knee on the stone floor, his green eyes blazing with an intensity that caused her heart to race.
Oh my god,she thought.He’s actually?—
“Mila,” his deep voice rumbled through the archives like distant thunder, commanding every ounce of her attention. “I had this all perfectly planned out for this morning. Before Zarik twisted everything with his lies.”
Lyra scrambled backward on the floor, her hands flying to cover her mouth as tears already began gathering in her green eyes.
But he only had eyes for Mila, his alpha presence filling the space between them until the rest of the world seemed to fade away. “I was going to take you to the aurora gardens,” he continued, his large hands reaching for hers. “Make some grand romantic gesture worthy of a future queen.”
The way he saidfuture queensent heat through her core, possessive and protective and absolutely certain.
“But I can’t wait another moment,” he said, his voice thickening with emotion. “Not after almost losing you today. Not after watching you face down that psychopath with more courage than most warriors I’ve known.”
