Back Where 250


    Zephyrine


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    The sun rose in the cast, and I gazed at it on the horizon. Somehow, I knew today would unravel a part of me I had never touched before.


    I couldn’t sleep, and I could bet no one else in this pack had slept much either.


    From my window, I watched groups of men and women, both great and small, all making their way toward the Wolf Fortress.


    It was today. At longst, Ash Pack would be heard, and our name, once dragged through the mud, would finally be lifted back into the light.


    All thanks to Varyn. But I knew the truth. Varyn would not even be alive if not for Lycannar Blood, who had saved him. I had only done the little I could.


    “Mydy?” Blue’s voice came from behind, but I did not answer. My eyes followed the carriages rolling past, the riders on horses, and those on foot, all in one direction. The Wolf Fortress.


    I lowered my gaze to the spot where Ka had knelt, but she was no longer there. In the darkest hours of the night, a carriage had arrived to take her away, and I had seen my brother watching her leave with his arms folded across his chest.


    I hadn’t seen Dessyn either, and I couldn’t tell what she had gone throughst night.


    My throat tightened as I turned from the window, ready to prepare for the fortress journey. But before I could step away, I saw Luna Tahlia in the distance, raising her hand to me. I lifted mine in response, offering her a small smile, then returned inside to wash and dress.


    Today, we would have justice. Today, it would all be set right.


    Blue led me into the bathing chamber and was just about to undress me when the door opened quietly. The surge of power that swept in made me go cold. Varyn.


    I froze where I stood, and Blue turned sharply to see him. At once, she bowed her head. He did not so much as nce at her.


    “Leave us,” he ordered. She obeyed immediately, almost as if afraid.


    The door shut, and silence fell. I lowered my gaze with a sigh, trying to ease the tension, but then his fingers brushed my back. He slid down the strap of my gown.


    52


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    “Lycans should live in their own kingdom, little sister. Don’t you think?” His voice was calm, steady.


    I slowly turned to face him, swallowing hard, just as he slipped down the second strap and let my nightdress pool at my feet, leaving my breasts bare before him.


    Our eyes locked. His fingers lifted to my chin, stroking lightly, then lowered to trace across my breast. He studied me closely, intently, almost clinically.


    “You are not a virgin anymore, are you?” he asked.


    I swallowed again, unable to form words. When I gave no answer, he raised his gaze back to mine.


    “Yes?<b>” </b>


    “I fell in love… Varyn,” I whispered.


    Tension tightened the air between us instantly. For a long moment, he said nothing. Then he nodded once, dropped his hand from my breast, and leaned close to press a kiss to my temple.


    “Maybe it wasn’t love, little sister. Maybe it isn’t.”


    With that, he turned and left me standing cold, and somehow… broken.


    ***


    When my carriage rolled to a stop inside the Wolf Fortress, my blood chilled at the sight before me. Thousands of people had gathered, and still the fortress held them all.


    Each pack had its ce, each group in order. Some sat, some stood, while the Alphas were gathered inside the great hall. Yet even from the courtyard, the pack members could see everything.


    I had ridden alone in my carriage. My brother made sure of it. He had also ensured that Dessyn and I had no chance to speak, which only sharpened my suspicions.


    Blue had not been allowed to ride with me either; she had been forced to walk with the other maids. My heart ached at that, but I had whispered for her to find me once she arrived.


    “Zephyr!”


    The loud call tore my thoughts apart. I looked up, and there was Moon. My gods. I ran into his arms, hugging him tightly.


    “Zephyr,” he breathed.


    O:


    410 Free im


    It had been only a few days, but it felt like years. I pulled back to look at his broader shoulders, and froze at his new buzz–cut hair. My gods. He looked so manly now. <fnff12> The source of th?s content is FindN0vel</fnff12>


    “The training at Moonveil Fortress is hard, isn’t it?” I blurted, already knowing the answer.


    He grinned, and my heart skipped. Beautiful, as always.


    “I came as soon as I heard Lord Varyn had woken,” he said, loud enough for me to hear. Then he held my hand, his eyes locking on mine with intent. “Zephyr…. the name Ashmere is on everyone’s lips now. They are ready to obey yourmand.”


    “Zephyr!”


    The voice of Varyn cut through the air, from the entrance of the hall. I swallowed hard. Moon pulled me forward toward my brother.


    Varyn’s eyes held mine for a heartbeat that seemed to stop time. Then he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and pulled me closer.


    “Let’s go,” he said.


    I obeyed.


    With him behind me like a solid wall, I walked into the Wolf Fortress hall. This time, all the guards who had once looked at me like a criminal bowed and bowed and bowed.


    Respect swelled like a tide.


    The massive sacred doors opened. Inside, the Alphas sat in silence, and the moment we entered, the entire fortress went still.


    The coldness that descended was absolute.


    Nyroth. He sat among them, his gaze averted from me as though he already knew the weight of his guilt. The three Council members were there as well, seated in their rightful ces.


    Ran, the butcher of Ashmere warriors at the camp, the one whose hand I had chopped, stood aside.


    And at the center of it all… Ka. She stood tall, as though ready to confess.


    Perhaps they all were. And judging by the crowds they had summoned, I knew whatever truth they were about to reveal would not only shake the Wolf Fortress. It would shake the very


    bones of the empire.