VIOLET’S POV

The sound of my own name being sold echoed louder than the music.

“Sell her to me.”

The words didn’t just ring through the hall.

They wrapped around my throat and squeezed.

I was still on the marble floor, palms slick with spilled wine and my own blood, staring up at him like prey beneath a hunter.

Merrin.

The boy who once ruled my nightmares now stood before me as Alpha, taller, broader, colder. His shadow swallowed the light around him.

Ten years ago, I thought blinding him was the worst thing I would ever do.

I was wrong.

The worst thing was surviving long enough to see him again.

The manager’s greedy voice cut through my panic.

“Of course, Alpha. She’s yours.”

Yours.

The word snapped something inside me.

“I am not property!” I shouted, pushing myself up.

Pain exploded through my ankle. The forced heels. The fall. I crumpled again, biting back a scream as laughter rippled faintly from the edges of the room.

Humiliation burned hotter than the injury.

Merrin crouched slowly in front of me.

Not to help.

To loom.

His gloved fingers lifted my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. One eye sharp as winter steel. The patch over the other… a permanent reminder of what I’d done.

“Welcome back,” he murmured softly. “We’re just getting started.”

I swallowed hard.

“You already ruined my life once,” I whispered. “Isn’t that enough?”

His expression didn’t change.

But something flickered behind that eye.

“I haven’t even begun.”

The manager hurried back with papers and a pen, hands shaking as if he were presenting tribute to a king.

“She signed earlier,” he stammered. “Full contract consent.”

My stomach dropped.

I remembered signing it. I’d been desperate for work. I hadn’t read the fine print.

I hadn’t known I was signing away my freedom.

Merrin took the pen and held it out to me again.

“Sign.”

The command wrapped around my spine like chains.

I let the pen slip deliberately from my fingers.

It clattered against marble.

A small rebellion.

A pathetic one.

“Please,” I whispered, forcing myself to look at him. “Don’t do this.”

His lips brushed my ear, breath warm and terrifyingly steady.

“You took everything from me, Violet. Now I’ll take everything from you.”

My hands curled into fists.

“I was protecting my sister,” I shot back, unable to stop myself. “You were hurting her.”

For the first time, he froze.

Just for a second.

Then his jaw hardened.

“Careful,” he said quietly. “You don’t want to bring family into this.”

A cold slid down my spine.

He straightened.

“You remember your stepmother’s house?” he continued casually, as though discussing the weather. “The one near the pack border?”

My pulse stumbled.

“I know exactly where they live.”

My blood turned to ice.

“They’re not who I want,” he added calmly. “Unless you give me a reason.”

There it was.

The real cage.

Not the contract.

Not the palace.

My family.

“You’re a monster,” I breathed.

His eyes darkened.

“Sign.”

This time his voice carried weight. Authority. Power that pressed down on my lungs.

My hand trembled as I picked up the pen.

When our fingers brushed, heat surged through me like lightning striking bone.

I gasped.

So did he.

The air thickened.

His eye flashed… not with cruelty.

With something else.

Recognition.

The mate bond.

No.

No, no, no.

Fate couldn’t be this cruel.

He felt it too. I saw it in the tension of his shoulders, the way his breath hitched before he masked it.

But instead of stepping back, he leaned closer.

“If the Moon Goddess thinks she can bind me to my enemy,” he whispered, voice low and dangerous, “I will make her regret it.”

I signed.

The moment ink touched paper, something shifted.

Invisible threads snapped tight between us.

His hand twitched.

Mine burned.

But his face remained carved from stone.

“Welcome to your cage, Violet,” he said.

And just like that, I belonged to him.

He left me on the floor.

Left me bleeding.

Left me shaking.

But he didn’t look back.

Not once.

The dancers whispered as I limped to the locker room.

“Did you see the way he looked at her?”

“She’s dead.”

“She must’ve done something terrible.”

I ignored them.

Fear was contagious. I wouldn’t let it infect me.

I packed my things with stiff fingers.

If I was walking into a cage tomorrow, I would walk in standing.

Outside, night wrapped around me like damp cloth.

I’d taken barely three steps when I heard it.

“VIOLET!”

I froze.

A familiar voice came barreling toward me.

“Zoella,” I breathed as she skidded to a stop in front of me.

She’d cut her hair again. Dyed it electric blue this time. Always rebellious. Always fearless.

“Don’t call me that,” she grinned. “It’s Zoey now.”

Before I could stop her, she threw her arms around me.

I winced as pain shot up my leg.

She pulled back instantly. “What happened?”

“Nothing,” I lied.

Her eyes narrowed.

“You’re limping.”

“Twisted it.”

“Who did it?”

“No one.”

She stared at me.

Then her expression changed.

“You’re lying.”

I grabbed her shoulders.

“You need to go home.”

“Not until I meet your boss and thank him for hiring my lazy sister.”

Ice filled my veins.

“There’s no need,” I said quickly.

“Why?”

“Because the manager sold me to a one-eyed Alpha monster.”

The joke died on her lips.

“Repeat that,” she said quietly.

“Forget it.”

Her jaw clenched.

“Say it again, Violet.”

I looked away.

“That Alpha bought my contract.”

Zoey’s hands curled into fists.

“I’ll kill him.”

“You’ll do nothing,” I snapped. “He’s Alpha.”

“So what?”

“So he can wipe us out without blinking!”

She hesitated.

Just for a moment.

That was enough.

“Let’s go home,” I said.

She didn’t argue this time.

She just crouched down.

“You’re not walking home on that leg. I’ll carry you.”

“Zoella… don’t you dare… I can walk.”

Too late. She crouched down and threw me over her back like a sack of potatoes.

“ZOELLA!”

She just laughed, sprinting down the dark street.

“Hang on, princess! Taxi Zoey is on duty!”

Despite everything…

I almost laughed.

***

Home was small. Old. Fading.

But it was ours.

Mother was already waiting outside.

The moment she saw me, her face drained of color.

“Violet, what are you doing back here? I told you…”

Zoella cut her off.

“Mum, can you at least let me put her down before you scold her to death?”

Mother’s voice cracked.

“You shouldn’t have come back, Violet. You know what this means.”

“I’m not running anymore,” I told her.

“Do you hate us that much?” she asked softly. “Don’t you understand? If Merrin finds you here…”

“He already did.”

Silence dropped between us like a blade.

“I work for him now,” I said quietly. “That’s the deal.”

Mother swayed slightly.

“What deal?”

“He leaves you and Zoey alone.”

Zoey stiffened behind me.

“What?” she snapped.

“It’s fine,” I insisted.

“It’s not fine!”

Before the argument could explode, my phone buzzed.

Unknown number.

My heart knew before my mind did.

I answered.

“You have fifteen minutes.”

His voice was calm.

Cold.

Commanding.

“Merrin?”

“Wolves-Heaven Palace. Now.”

My stomach dropped.

“Wolves-Heaven?” I whispered.

Even saying the name felt forbidden.

It was royal territory. No common wolf stepped foot there without invitation.

“It’s late,” I said carefully. “I can come in the morning.”

Silence.

Then….

“If you waste one more second,” he said softly, “consider your family dead.”

The line went dead.

The world tilted.

Zoey grabbed my arm. “Who was that?”

I couldn’t breathe.

Mother’s voice trembled. “Violet… what’s happening?”

I looked at them.

Really looked at them.

The only two people I had left in this world.

“I have to go,” I said.

Zoey shook her head violently. “No. Absolutely not.”

“If I don’t…”

“He won’t…”

“He will,” I snapped.

They didn’t understand.

Merrin didn’t bluff.

Ten years ago, I’d seen what he was capable of.

And now he had power.

Pack power.

Alpha power.

Mate power.

I swallowed the rising panic.

“Lock the doors,” I told them. “Don’t answer anyone. Not even if they claim to be pack guards.”

Zoey grabbed my wrist.

“I’m coming with you.”

“No.”

“You’re not walking into a death trap alone!”

I cupped her face.

“You’re the reason I survived the first time,” I whispered. “Don’t make that survival meaningless.”

Her eyes filled with fury.

And fear.

I pulled away before she could stop me.

The road to Wolves-Heaven Palace felt longer than it ever had.

Storm clouds gathered overhead.

Wind howled through the trees.

Every step sent agony through my ankle, but I didn’t slow down.

Fifteen minutes.

If I was late…

No.

I refused to imagine it.

The palace gates loomed ahead, tall, black, iron, guarded by wolves in uniform.

They opened before I could knock.

Of course they did.

He had been watching.

I crossed the courtyard alone.

Thunder cracked overhead.

The massive doors opened slowly.

Merrin stood at the top of the staircase inside.

Waiting.

He hadn’t changed clothes.

He hadn’t relaxed.

He looked exactly as he had when he bought me.

Possessive.

Controlled.

Dangerous.

“You’re late,” he said.

“I ran.”

His gaze dropped to my ankle.

For one second…

Concern flickered.

Then it vanished.

“Come here, Slave.”

It wasn’t a request.

It was a command.

I climbed the steps anyway.

Each step felt heavier than the last.

With every inch closer, the bond between us pulled tighter, sharp, burning, impossible to ignore.

I stopped in front of him.

He didn’t move at first. He just watched me.

Then he leaned down slightly, his voice low enough that only I could hear.

“You should have stayed gone ten years ago.”

The words sliced clean.

I lifted my chin. “You should have stayed away from my sister.”

His jaw tightened.

Lightning tore across the sky, flooding the room with white light for a split second. Thunder followed, loud, violent.

The doors behind me slammed shut.

The sound echoed.

Sealing me in.

Alone.

With him.

The air changed. Heavy. Dangerous.

This wasn’t an argument.

This was war.

And I had just walked straight onto enemy territory.

Alone.

He took one slow step toward me.

Then another.

“You have no idea what you’ve done, Violet…”

MERRIN’S POV

The storm outside matched the chaos inside me.

Rain struck the palace windows in relentless silver streaks while thunder rolled across the dark sky like a warning from forgotten gods.

I was pacing again.

Like a caged wolf.

Like a king who had lost control of his own throne.

“Damn it…”

Her name burned in my chest.

Violet.

I slammed my fist into the marble wall.

The pain was satisfying for a moment.

Then the restlessness returned.

Ten years.

Ten years I had waited to crush her.

To watch fear break the defiance in those storm-colored eyes.

So why the hell did I feel like something inside me was being pulled toward her instead of away?

I grabbed the contract on my desk.

Her signature stared back at me.

Small.

Hasty.

Desperate.

Stupid.

And beneath it — her phone number.

I picked up my phone.

Dialed.

Two rings.

Then her voice.

“Hello?”

It was softer than I remembered.

More fragile.

Yet stubbornly alive.

“You have fifteen minutes to reach Wolves-Heaven Palace,” I said.

Silence.

Then a breath that sounded too controlled to be real.

“It’s late,” she said carefully. “The palace is far. I can come in the morning.”

I leaned back in my chair.

“My patience is not scheduled.”

Another silence.

“I need at least thirty minutes…”

“You have fifteen.” My voice hardened. “If you waste one second, consider your family dead.”

I ended the call.

The phone felt heavier in my hand afterward.

I hated the tightening sensation in my chest.

I hated it.

—

Nolan burst into my chamber minutes later.

“Alpha!”

His boots echoed against marble.

“What now?” I asked coldly.

“Spies from the Cave-Ocean pack were spotted near the eastern border.”

I didn’t turn.

“Deal with them.”

“You are not listening to me.”

I exhaled slowly.

Slowly.

Then turned.

“What part of ‘deal with them’ is unclear?”

He hesitated.

“Is this about Violet?”

The name detonated inside my head.

“Do not speak her name,” I said quietly.

My Alpha voice was calm.

Deadly calm.

Nolan bowed.

But I saw the confusion in his eyes.

Good.

Let them be confused.

“Prepare the warriors. If the Cave-Ocean pack tests us tonight, I want them to remember that Wolves-Heaven does not forgive trespass.”

I paused briefly.

“I already called Violet. She will be here in fifteen minutes. We are not going into this battle alone.”

Nolan paused.

“Alpha… you called a woman to join us in battle?”

“I don’t care,” I said, turning away, my voice hard and unyielding. “She will come. Or her family will die.”

“The Luna-Light pack is far away… she can’t possibly make it in time.”

I smiled faintly.

“Then let her fly.”

He opened his mouth to speak again, but I silenced him with a sharp glare.

“Ready the warriors. I will not repeat myself.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

He turned to leave.

Then I spoke once more.

“Tell the guards to open the gate when she arrives.”

Thirteen minutes later.

Chaos sounded outside the palace.

Shouting.

Metal clashing.

Guard commands.

And then…

Her scent.

Wild roses after rain.

My body reacted before my mind did.

I walked out.

Red hair.

Soaked clothing clinging to slender shoulders.

Swollen ankle.

Breathless chest.

But those eyes…

Storm. Fire. Defiance.

“I’m here,” she said, voice trembling only slightly. “Please… don’t hurt my family.”

Something inside my chest tightened painfully.

I ignored it.

“You talk too much,” I said.

She blinked.

The doors behind us suddenly slammed shut. The sound echoed through the empty hall, sealing her inside with me.

I could hear her heart beating fast.

“You should have stayed gone ten years ago,” I said quietly.

“You should have stayed away from my sister.”

A strange laugh escaped my lips.

“You have no idea what you’ve done, Violet…”

I turned away and walked out quickly, like a wounded lion trying to hide its pain.

She followed me outside. “Wait…”

“Dress her for war,” I told Nolan as I walked past him, my voice low and cold. “She will stand there and dance. Nothing more.”

My lips curved faintly.

“She is here to entertain me.”

“What?” Violet said sharply behind me.

“You heard me,” I replied without slowing down.

“You’re taking me to war?”

“Consider it part of your employment.”

Her face lost color.

“Merrin… please. If this is revenge, just kill me. Taking me to war is madness.”

I stopped then stepped closer.

I lowered my voice.

“I don’t want you dead.” Her lashes trembled. “Death is mercy.”

I smiled slowly.

“I want you alive. And suffering.”

Her fingers curled slightly at her sides.

“You will never have that satisfaction,” she whispered.

“We’ll see.”

I turned.

“Make sure she carries no weapon.”

The warriors nodded.

Violet’s voice rose behind me.

“How am I supposed to defend myself in a battlefield without a weapon?”

I didn’t look back.

“Figure it out.”

***

The battlefield waited like a breathing beast.

Cave-Ocean pack warriors stood scattered and unprepared.

Pathetic.

Their Alpha knelt within minutes.

“Please!” he shouted. “Those at your border were travelers, not spies!”

I tilted my head.

“You know I am the ruthless one-eyed Alpha and I dislike weaklings.”

Steel slid slowly from its sheath.

“Fight me,” I said softly. “Let us see if travelers bleed differently.”

Thunder answered.

The war began.

My soldiers moved like shadows of death.

And among them…

Violet.

Pale silk clung softly to her body. A gold war helm rested above her storm-colored hair.

She danced.

Not like a warrior.

But like something tragic and beautiful that did not belong to this world.

Her eyes were closed.

No weapon.

No defense.

The wind carried her movements.

Arrows screamed past her.

Steel clashed loudly.

Blood fell on the ground.

Yet she did not stop.

She kept dancing.

The only music was the clash of swords, the screams of dying men, and the roar of thunder above us.

“What are you making her do?” Nolan whispered beside me. “I think you’re going too far, Alpha.”

I did not answer.

Because I did not understand it myself.

Everyone thought I was going too far.

But my body kept moving every time danger came close to her.

Protecting the same woman I claimed to hate.

A Cave-Ocean warrior broke through our line.

He charged straight toward Violet.

I didn’t think.

My body moved before my mind could stop it.

I killed their Alpha in a single slash.

Then ran.

Steel met flesh behind her.

Blood splashed across her face.

My hand was on her waist.

For a moment, the world disappeared.

Heartbeat against heartbeat.

“Get your hands off me,” she whispered.

I pushed her away.

“Don’t take it personally. Next time, I may let them kill you.”

I did not believe my own words.

Neither did she.

Four more times.

Four more enemies tried to reach her.

Four more times I moved first.

Nolan watched silently.

Fear and realization mixing in his eyes.

Finally the battlefield ended in red silence.

Victory.

But victory tasted like ash.

Back at the palace infirmary, Nolan dragged Violet toward me.

“She needs treatment.”

“No.”

“But Alpha…”

“I said no.”

My voice shook the courtyard.

Then I faced her.

“You think I saved you because I care?”

“I don’t need your pity.”

“Good.” I stepped closer. “It wasn’t pity.”

Her lips trembled.

“I saved you so you remember who owns your life.”

Her eyes burned.

“You can own my life,” she said quietly, “but not my heart.”

I laughed.

“You already belong to me, Violet.”

“I would rather die.”

I stepped closer.

Close enough that her breath warmed my throat.

“You'd rather die?” I murmured. “You still think this is revenge?”

Her hands trembled.

But she did not move.

“I erased your family’s power in a single year,” I continued softly. “Your name means nothing now.”

Her jaw locked.

I leaned to her ear.

“And yet… I kept them alive.”

Silence fell across the courtyard.

Even Nolan froze.

My voice lowered.

“You took my eye ten years ago.”

Her breath hitched.

“And today, the Moon Goddess makes her second mistake.”

Lightning split the sky.

“You want death?” I whispered. “Death is mercy.”

I stepped back.

“Tomorrow… before the entire kingdom…”

My wolf flickered in my gaze.

“I will announce you as my wife. A graced slave. Nothing more.”

Her face drained of color.

I tilted my head.

“How does it feel,” I asked quietly, “to live under the same roof as the man who killed your father?...”