The air was thick with unseen tensions between them.
Selene kept the knife, her ribcage thundering with an anxious drum of a heartbeat. She expected Killian to snap, to shout at her for having attacked his men.
Instead, he shifted, one deliberate step forward.
The guards bolted, one clutching a broken wrist. They did not need his services. Killian was not one for weakness.
You're fighting well for one who lacks a memory," he murmured.
Selene's grip on her sword hand tightened. "I did what I had to do."
Killian nodded, his gold gaze stripping her bare, weighing. "And yet you don't. You stall."
Selene did not flinch. "You think I should have murdered them?"
His lips curved up into a cruel smile. "I think you wished to.".
Her stomach knotted. She didn't want to hear him, but the way her body had responded—the way her instincts had controlled her—it made her uneasy.
Killian came into the cell, closing in. She would not back down, even when the air around them grew thick.
"You have two choices, little wolf." His voice was low, but it was strong with command. "Submit… or suffer."
Selene steeled herself and breathed in. "And if I refuse either?"
He grinned wider. "Then you're a fool."
His hand shot out—too fast for her to react. Fingers closed about her wrist, yanking the dagger from her grip. It clattered onto the floor.
She panted, but he did not release her.
Instead, he tugged her toward him, until she could see the amber spots in his gold eyes.
"Make no mistake," he breathed. "You are mine."
A thrill ran down her spine. Not from fear.
From something worse. The tension in the throne room grew blacker, strain twisting like a snake preparing to strike. Killian's roar thundered down the hall, delivering a sharp warning. But the Council envoys held firm.
Selene's panting was jagged. "You're telling me I was supposed to be killed? Why?
The woman envoy stepped forward, eyes dark with some uninterpretable thing. "Because you are an abomination."
Killian lost his temper. He was a blur of motion, grabbing the envoy around the neck and lifting her off the ground. "Be cautious how you address me."
She struggled but did not beg. She croaked instead, "You think you will be able to protect her? You don't know what she is."
Killian's hands wrapped around her arm before he slammed her back. "Then tell me."
The male envoy rose to his feet. "The prophecy spoke of a Luna who was born with the gift that would save or destroy the werewolf race. With her first breath, the scales were shifted."
Selene's fingers trembled. "You think I'm that Luna?"
The woman coughed but still smiled. "We do not think. We know."
Killian's eyes flared gold. "Then why did you not kill her sooner?"
The male envoy exhaled a breath. "Because we could not find her. She was concealed by someone. and you, Alpha King, were never destined to be her mate."
The words sliced like a knife to the heart.
Killian stood stock-still. Selene's pulse pounded.
She gasped, "Then who was?
The ambassador smiled, a glint of ice in his eyes. "The Rogue King." The chill silence that fell in the room was palpable. The words hung in the air, thick and heavy.
Selene shook her head. "That's not possible."
Killian's fists bunched. His wolf lashed at his control, howling for blood. "Lies."
The smile of the male envoy grew wider. "Is it? Think of this, Alpha King—why has your bond with her continued not to shatter? The Moon Goddess does not make mistakes, but you defied fate when you rejected her."
Selene's stomach twisted into a knot. The unbroken bond, the flickers of memories, the way that her own soul protested Killian's rejection—all pointed to something unnatural.
The female envoy moved forward again, speaking softly now. "You were taken for someone else, Selene. The Rogue King was meant to have you. But someone intervened."
Killian's eyes went black with fury. "Who?"
There was a pause. And then the female said a word that made Selene shudder.
"Your father."
Selene's breathing caught. Flashbacks flooded through her mind—dark silhouettes, warned whispers, the familiar voice to run.
Killian's jaw tightened. "Impossible. Her father died years ago."
The envoy man laughed. "Did he? Or did he simply disappear, taking his greatest secret with him?"
Selene staggered. Is her father. alive? Had he concealed her from the fate the Moon Goddess had ordained for her?
Killian stepped nearer to her, his warmth steadying her. "Regardless of what they say, you're mine." His words were a hard, threatening promise.
The woman envoy tilted her head. "Are you so sure, Alpha King?"
Selene's heart pounded. Something was coming—something that would change everything.
The room fell silent, electric tension hanging in the air. Selene's heart pounded in her ears.
Her father. Alive.
It didn't make sense. But some part of her deep inside her told her the Council wasn't lying to her.
Killian stood before the envoys, his voice slicing. "If you think I'll let some old prophecy decide her fate, you're mistaken."
The male envoy sneered. "You don't have a choice."
Selene's fists were clenched at her hips. "And if I don't?"
The woman envoy's eyes chilled. "Then you die."
Killian's growl rumbled through the room, his wolf straining just below the surface. "You will not harm her."
The male envoy shrugged. "That is not for us to decide. The Council decides."
A heavy silence fell between them.
Selene looked at Killian. The fire in his eyes meant one thing—he would never let them take her.
But as the doors creaked open, revealing the waiting High Council beyond, she knew that nothing they desired mattered.
The choice was already made. Selene's breath froze as the doors of the chamber groaned open. The High Council stood at attention, their ranks intimidating. At the center, a silver-streaked hair elder watched her with unfeeling eyes.
Killian went rigid beside her, his hand hovering over his sword. "Speak your mind," he growled.
The elder stepped forward. "Selene, daughter of the late Alpha King, your presence disrupts the balance of this kingdom. The prophecy binds you to a fate you cannot escape."
Selene lifted her chin. "And if I don't?"
The elder's mouth curled into something between humor and sympathy. "Then war is inevitable."
The words resonated through the room, determining her destiny.
Killian's claws dug into his palms. "Then war it is."
A knowing look passed between the members of the Council. The female envoy smiled. "Be careful what you wish for, Alpha King."
Guards moved forward, metal glinting in their hands.
Killian took Selene's wrist, his hand firm. "We go. Now."
The elder did not try to stop them. Instead, he spoke after them, his voice a whisper in the air.
"The past will catch up with you, Selene. And when it does… not even he can pro
tect you."
Selene's heart pounding as she gazed into Killian's eyes.
She wasn't afraid of the past.
But something cautioned her—she should be.