The ride to the Obsidian Moon Pack territory was a blur of dark trees and my own numb terror. I sat in the back of the armored SUV, my chest still burning from the severed bond. Reid's rejection echoed in my ears. I was an Omega tribute now, handed over to a bloodthirsty monster to save the sister who had stolen my life. I expected to be dragged in chains. I expected the cold, damp stone of a dungeon the second we passed through the towering iron gates of the Lycan estate.

Instead, Beta Marcus escorted me up the wide marble steps of a breathtaking mansion. The heavy mahogany doors swung open.

I stepped blindly into the grand entrance hall, bracing myself for the stench of blood and death. But the moment my boots touched the polished floor, my lungs filled with something entirely different.

Pine needles crushed under heavy rain. Crisp, wild, and utterly intoxicating.

The scent hit me so hard my knees buckled. Deep inside my mind, my traumatized wolf—who had been curled up in a ball of whimpering agony—suddenly leaped to her paws. She scratched at my chest, her voice echoing with a fierce, desperate howl I had never heard before.

"MATE!"

I froze. My breath hitched in my throat. No. It was impossible.

Heavy footsteps echoed from the top of the sweeping, curved staircase. I looked up, and my heart stopped.

Prince Jackson. The ruthless monster of the North.

He was massive, standing well over six and a half feet tall, with broad shoulders that seemed to block out the light. Midnight-black hair fell over eyes that glowed with a dangerous, feral gold. He radiated a raw, primal power that made the air in the room feel thick and heavy. But as he descended the stairs and his golden eyes locked onto mine, the world completely tilted on its axis.

A jolt of pure, crackling electricity shot down my spine. The air between us sparked. The fated mate bond slammed into me, so overwhelming and absolute that it stole the breath directly from my lungs.

He paused on the bottom step. His chest heaved, his nostrils flaring as he took in my scent. He took one massive step toward me.

The sheer dominance rolling off his frame was terrifying. Five years of living with a cowardly Alpha had taught me that power meant pain. I cowered, my shoulders hunching instinctively as I squeezed my eyes shut. I raised my hands to shield my face, bracing for a harsh command, a blow, or the biting cruelty of a Lycan's wrath.

The attack never came.

Instead, the suffocating pressure in the room vanished. It was replaced by a warm, heavy blanket of pure comfort. I opened my eyes to find Jackson standing a few feet away, his massive hands held up in a gesture of complete surrender. He had instantly pulled back his terrifying dominant aura, releasing a gentle, soothing Lycan energy that washed over my bruised soul. It smelled of that same rain-soaked pine, calming my frantic heartbeat.

His glowing eyes were incredibly soft. Slowly, he reached into the breast pocket of his tailored shirt. He pulled out a small, frayed piece of cloth.

A faded, blood-stained bandage.

I stared at the rough cotton, my mind spinning back to a dark forest, a bleeding rogue pup, and the hem of my childhood dress that I had torn to wrap his wounds.

"You..." I whispered, my voice trembling.

"You saved me," Jackson said. His voice was a deep, rich rumble that vibrated pleasantly through my bones. "I am not the monster they say I am, Isabella. Not to you. I've been waiting for my wolf to find you again."

I wasn't thrown into a dungeon. I was escorted—treated with an absolute reverence that made my head spin—to the royal suite. The contrast was dizzying. For five years, Reid had treated me like an afterthought, a convenient pawn. Here, the most feared Lycan in the world treated me like a delicate treasure.

The suite was massive, bathed in warm firelight and draped in rich silks and furs. Jackson didn't push me. He immediately summoned the pack's top Healers. They worked quietly and efficiently, applying a cooling, silver-laced salve to my chest to mend the physical toll of my broken pack bond.

When the Healers finally bowed and left, the room fell silent. I sat up against the plush headboard, pulling the thick fur blanket to my chin. My hand instinctively drifted to my neck, my fingers lightly touching the spot where Reid's mating mark used to be. It still burned with the phantom pain of his rejection.

A shadow shifted near the door. I flinched violently, pressing myself harder against the wood.

Jackson froze instantly. His massive frame went completely rigid. I could see the muscles in his jaw ticking, his golden eyes burning with a fierce, possessive need to rush to the bed and hold me. His inner Lycan was begging to comfort his mate.

But he didn't step forward. He forced his terrifying beast down.

Slowly, the Lycan Prince pulled a heavy velvet chair into the far corner of the room, keeping a safe distance between us. He sat down, resting his elbows on his knees, his eyes locked onto me with endless patience and devotion. He became a silent, unmovable guardian, reigning in every ounce of his possessive instincts to give me the one thing I had never been given before.

A safe place to heal.

The silver cloche was lifted, revealing a rich spread of roasted venison and wild berries, but I couldn't stomach a single bite. I sat by the crackling fireplace in the royal suite, my knees pulled tightly to my chest.

Jackson sat across from me in a heavy velvet chair. He hadn't touched his food either. His glowing golden eyes were fixed on me, softening every time I flinched at the popping embers in the hearth.

"I never meant for you to suffer, Isabella," his deep voice rumbled, breaking the heavy silence of the room. "When I first discovered you were mated to Reid... it took every ounce of my control not to march into Silverfang territory and tear his throat out."

I looked down at my trembling hands, my mind struggling to process his words. "Then why didn't you?"

Jackson leaned forward, resting his massive forearms on his knees. "Because your inner wolf was still maturing. A forced separation from a chosen mate before your wolf is fully settled could have killed you. So, I waited." He swallowed hard, a flash of deep guilt crossing his sharp, aristocratic features. "I pulled strings in the werewolf council from the shadows. I funneled resources to Silverfang, elevating Reid's pack rank. I did it all to ensure you lived comfortably, like a true queen, until I could legally challenge him for you."

My breath hitched in my throat. All those sudden council grants? The unexpected territory expansions Reid always loved to brag about? It wasn't Reid's brilliant leadership. It was Jackson.

"You built my prison," I whispered, the betrayal of my past still a fresh, open wound in my chest. "You made him powerful."

"I tried to make you safe," Jackson corrected gently, his voice laced with sorrow. "But I failed to see the rot inside his house."

I closed my eyes, a hot tear slipping down my cheek. "I want to believe you. My wolf is howling, screaming that you're our fated mate. But Jackson... my own mate discarded me like trash to save his mistress. My own pup looked me in the eye and called me weak. I don't know how to trust anyone anymore."

Jackson’s jaw tightened. He didn't push. He just nodded, his Lycan aura wrapping around me like a warm, invisible blanket. "I have eternity to prove my devotion to you."

A soft knock on the heavy mahogany door interrupted us. Beta Marcus stepped into the room, placing a fist over his heart and bowing deeply. "My Prince. Lady Isabella. Forgive the intrusion, but our scouts have returned from the Silverfang border."

Jackson’s eyes darkened instantly. "Report."

"It's chaos," Marcus said, his lip curling in utter disgust. "Marigold and Jennifer have officially taken control of the pack house. They're ruling like tyrants. They've slashed the winter rations and are forcing the Omegas to work double shifts in the freezing mud to hoard resources for the Alpha estate."

My stomach twisted into a painful knot. The poor Omegas. Marigold had always despised them, and now she had free rein to torture them without consequence.

"However," Marcus continued, a small, triumphant smirk playing on his lips, "rebellion is brewing. Elena, the elder healer, has been secretly gathering the oppressed workers in the kitchens. She saw the Lycan escort. She's spreading the whispered truth that Lady Isabella wasn't executed as a tribute, but was taken in and treated as royalty. The pack is beginning to realize what they’ve lost."

A spark of fierce vindication flared in my chest, quickly followed by a wave of bone-deep exhaustion. I dismissed Marcus with a tired nod, and Jackson finally left me to sleep, promising to stand guard right outside my door.

But sleep was not a sanctuary.

I was suddenly back in the Silverfang great hall. The air was suffocating. Reid’s golden eyes burned into my skull as his dominant aura crushed my lungs. *"I reject you, Isabella Warren!"* Invisible, burning claws ripped into my chest, tearing my heart directly from my ribcage. And then, Dustin was there. My sweet, beautiful boy. But his little face was twisted with Marigold's cruel sneer. *"You're just a weak she-wolf! Just leave!"*

"No!" I screamed, the sound tearing my throat raw.

My eyes flew open. I was thrashing in the heavy silk sheets, drenched in cold sweat. My chest heaved as I gasped for air, my hands clawing desperately at my throat. The phantom pain of the severed mate bond was burning me alive. I couldn't breathe. I was dying.

*Bang.*

The heavy oak door flew open, the wood splintering against the stone wall.

Before I could even register the movement, a massive shadow crossed the room. Jackson was on the bed. He didn't hesitate or hold back this time. He gathered me into his massive, muscular arms, pulling me flush against his broad chest.

"I'm here," he a growled, his voice vibrating deeply through my shivering bones. "You're safe, Isabella. I've got you."

He unleashed his Lycan aura completely. It didn't crush me like Reid's had. It was a thick, protective fortress of crisp pine and heavy rain, instantly suffocating the panic in my veins. My frantic wolf whimpered, pressing eagerly against his dominant, comforting energy.

I buried my face in his neck, my fingers gripping his shirt like a lifeline. The intoxicating scent of him, the absolute certainty of his fated bond, washed over the jagged edges of my broken soul. For the first time in my life, I wasn't just a convenient Luna or a disposable mother.

I was cherished. I was protected. And as I finally broke down and sobbed into the Lycan Prince's chest, I knew my shattered heart was finally home.

My wolf was no longer a whimpering, broken thing. Under the steady, patient warmth of Jackson's roof, she was stretching her legs. Healing. For days, he had given me nothing but space and unwavering devotion, treating me like a fragile treasure rather than a discarded tribute. It was time I gave him something in return.

I walked down the grand hallway toward his study. The heavy oak door was cracked open. He was at his desk, bathed in the golden light of a small lamp, pouring over territory maps. He looked up instantly, his golden eyes locking onto me, sensing my shift in mood.

"Isabella?" he rumbled, already half out of his chair, his massive frame tense with concern.

I didn't let him keep his distance this time. I crossed the room, my heart pounding a frantic but steady rhythm. I stopped right in front of him. He was so imposing, a true apex predator, yet he looked at me like I was his entire world. I reached up, threading my trembling fingers into his thick, midnight-black hair, and pulled his lips down to mine.

It was a soft, tender kiss, but the spark that ignited between us felt like a lightning strike. Jackson gasped against my mouth. His massive hands hovered over my waist, terrified to break me, until I pressed myself flush against his solid chest. Then, his arms wrapped around me tight, anchoring me to him.

"I'm ready," I whispered against his lips, breathing in his intoxicating scent of pine and rain. "I want to fully accept you, Jackson. I want to be yours."

A raw, guttural sound of pure ecstasy tore from his throat. He buried his face in my neck, inhaling my scent like a starving man. "Marcus!" he roared, his powerful voice shaking the very walls of the study.

The Beta appeared in the doorway seconds later, breathless and wide-eyed.

"Prepare the sacred clearing," Jackson commanded, his golden eyes blazing with a joy so fierce it stole my breath. "Under the full moon tomorrow night, I am marking my mate."

The following night, the silver light of the full moon bathed the ancient Lycan clearing in an ethereal glow. Elite warriors lined the perimeter, their heads bowed in absolute reverence. I stood in the center of the sacred circle, wearing a flowing white gown that caught the midnight breeze.

Jackson approached me. He had stripped off his shirt, his heavily muscled chest glowing beneath the moonlight. The sheer, primal power radiating from him was intoxicating.

"Are you sure?" he murmured, his thumb gently tracing the faded, scarred skin on my neck where Reid's rejection had burned me.

"Mark me," I breathed, tilting my head back to expose my throat. "Erase him."

Jackson’s eyes flashed a brilliant, feral gold. His fangs elongated. With a deep, rumbling growl of pure possession, he dipped his head and sank his teeth into my neck.

I gasped, but there was no pain. Only a rush of liquid fire that poured directly into my soul. The bond snapped perfectly into place, sealing us together for eternity. The lingering coldness of my past, the agonizing trauma of my rejection, completely evaporated. In its place, a dormant, ancient strength exploded within my veins.

My inner wolf threw back her head and howled. Jackson’s Lycan aura surged, and to my shock, my own aura rose to meet it. It wasn't the suppressed, quiet energy of a Silverfang Luna. It was heavy, commanding, and absolute. The surrounding warriors dropped to their knees, submitting to the combined weight of the Lycan Prince and his new Princess. I opened my eyes, feeling entirely invincible.

Several weeks of pure bliss melted by. I was finally living the life I had always been denied. Jackson worshipped the ground I walked on, and my inner wolf thrived in the heart of the Obsidian Moon Pack.

But during a crisp morning pack run through the northern pines, something shifted.

We were racing through the snow-dusted woods when a sudden, violent wave of dizziness hit me. The towering trees blurred together. My legs buckled beneath me.

"Isabella!" Jackson's terrified roar echoed through the forest.

I didn't hit the ground. Massive arms caught me, pulling me against a frantically heaving chest as the world went black.

When I opened my eyes, I was back in our royal suite. Jackson was pacing like a caged beast, his jaw clenched so tight I thought his teeth might shatter, while the elderly royal physician packed away his silver instruments.

"Well?" Jackson snapped, his voice trembling with barely contained panic. "What's wrong with her?"

The physician turned, a wide, reverent smile wrinkling his face. "Nothing is wrong, my Prince. The Princess fainted because her body is adapting to a massive surge of energy. She is pregnant. With a very powerful Lycan pup."

The room went dead silent.

Jackson froze mid-step. He slowly turned to me, his golden eyes wide with a raw vulnerability I had never seen before. Tears welled in the corners of his eyes. He crossed the room in two strides and dropped heavily to his knees beside the bed.

His massive, trembling hands reached out, gently resting on my flat stomach. He pressed his forehead against my abdomen, his broad shoulders shaking.

"A pup," he choked out, the fearsome monster of the North weeping tears of pure joy. "Our pup."

He turned his face, pressing a fierce, lingering kiss to my skin. When he looked up at me, his eyes burned with a lethal, terrifying devotion.

"I swear to you, Isabella," he vowed, his Lycan aura wrapping around me and our unborn child like an impenetrable fortress. "I will destroy anything and anyone in this world that dares to threaten our family."

I rested my hand on his thick hair, a fierce, maternal fire igniting in my chest. Let the Silverfang pack rot. Let Reid and Marigold tremble. I was a Lycan Princess now, carrying royal blood, and with my fated mate by my side, I was finally ready to face the ghosts of my past.