Nyxara's POV

After Velara left, I went back into my room. I slumped onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. My head was still buzzing with her words.

I turned onto my side, hugging my pillow. That was when I felt something stiff beneath it. Frowning, I pulled it out and froze.

A letter.

"Who put this here?" I whispered, glancing around my empty room. "How did this even get here?"

My first thought was Velara.

She had just been here, maybe she slid it under my pillow before leaving but why would she be so sneaky about it? My stomach twisted as I slowly unfolded the paper, my eyes scanning the handwriting.

Lucian.

I almost dropped it. My hands trembled as I clutched the paper tighter and began to read.

Meet me tonight by the river at sundown, I have something to tell you. I'll be waiting.

That was all it said, signed with his name at the bottom.

I sat there for a long while, the words burning into my head.

He wanted to see me, he wanted me to meet him, and it wasn't just anywhere-he chose my favorite spot. The river was where I used to hide when I couldn't handle the whispers anymore. People didn't usually come to the river often so it was quiet there... Like my sanctuary.

My heart raced fast and best so loud I could almost hear it. I pressed my palm against my chest as an attempt to calm it down.

"Why... Why does he want to see me?" I muttered but deep down, I think I already knew.

The rest of the day was torture. I couldn't sit still. I paced my room, chewed my nails until they were almost gone and checked the letter again like it might disappear if I looked away too long.

I felt like the sun was setting too slow.

Velara came by in the afternoon, but I couldn't bring myself to tell her. She would've asked a hundred questions, and this felt... too private. Too important.

But she delivered the letter, what if she doesn't know the content?

Different thoughts reeled through my mind.

She noticed I was distracted.

"What's wrong with you?" she asked, squinting at me while we sat outside my door.

"Nothing," I said quickly. "Just tired."

She frowned. "You're lying."

I shrugged, pretending to yawn. "Then let me sleep."

She rolled her eyes and let it go, thankfully. The moment she left, I pulled the letter out again, tracing Lucian's name with my thumb.

By evening, I couldn't take it anymore. I changed my clothes three times before finally settling on a simple dress that wasn't too flashy but wasn't plain either.

My hands wouldn't stop fidgeting.

When my father came home, he noticed immediately.

"Why are you dressed like that?" he asked, raising a brow as he dropped his cloak on the chair.

Heat rushed to my face.

"Hmmm, I-I'm going to see Lucian," I muttered.

He froze. "Lucian? At this hour?"

"Yes. He asked me to come. I wouldn't go otherwise," I replied.

His face softened a little, but I saw the worry in his eyes. He had always been protective of me, maybe too protective.

"You be careful, Nyx," he said firmly. "Don't stay out too late and if anything feels wrong, you come home immediately, you hear me?"

"Yes, Dad," I said, smiling to reassure him. "I'll be fine."

I hurried out before he could ask more questions, my heart leaping with each step. The night was cool, the moon hanging high above as I made my way to the river.

Every crunch of leaves under my shoes made me more anxious.

When I finally reached the river, he was already there. Lucian leaned against the tree, his arms crossed, his eyes stared at the moonlight.

He looked like something out of a dream-tall, sharp-jawed, with that confident way he always carried himself.

"You came," he said, smiling as he walked toward me.

"Of course," I whispered, clutching my hands together. "You sent me a letter."

"I wasn't sure if you'd actually show," he teased lightly, his voice low.

"I almost didn't," I lied, trying to hide the way my cheeks burned.

"Good thing you did." He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small box. My eyes widened as he flipped it open. Inside was a silver ring.

I gasped.

"What... what is this?" I asked.

He took my hand gently, sliding the ring onto my finger.

"It's a promise," he said. "Nyxara, I don't care what anyone says about you. I don't care that people think you're weak or wolfless. You've always been the one for me."

"Lucian..." I mumbled my eyes teary.

He squeezed my hand, looking into my eyes so seriously I almost couldn't breathe.

"The mating ceremony is coming and even if fate doesn't tie us together, I'll still choose you. I'll marry you, Nyxara. You have my word," he promised.

I covered my mouth, tears dripping down before I could stop them. "You mean that?"

"Yes." His voice was firm, steady. "I mean it with everything I am. You're mine and I'm yours."

I threw my arms around him, holding on tightly like if I let go, my world would fall apart.

"I thought... I thought maybe life would never give me anything good. But this-this is everything, Lucian.. you are everything."

He kissed the top of my head.

"Then stop doubting. You don't need to listen to them anymore.They don't matter. Only us do."

I looked at the ring on my finger, the way it shined faintly under the moonlight, and I felt something I hadn't felt in years.

Hope.

Maybe my life wasn't as cruel as I thought.

Maybe, just maybe, everything was finally going to be okay.

Draven's POV

I jolted awake, my chest rising and falling fast, sweat dripping down my body. My throat felt dry like I just swallowed smoke.

 For a second, I didn't know where I was. Then my brain slowly remembered the family curtains, the familiar texture of the bed and then I knew where I was.

I had a nightmare.... Again.

Every night for the past ten years, I thought I'd grown used to it but it never left me. Each night getting worse than the last.

The fire, the screams, and her voice. Her voice above all else.

"Draven!" she had cried out, her hand reaching for me as my stepbrother dragged her away.

Her nails scraped the rock as she tried to use it as leverage, her eyes wild with terror.

I tried to move, to fight through the flames and the guards restraining me, but I couldn't... I couldn't save her.

His laughter followed, sharp and cruel, echoing over the roar of burning wood.

I sat up, running my hands over my face, pressing my palms against my eyes as if I could block out the images.

I had only been asleep for an hour. One hour and the nightmare still came for me.

Ten years. Ten years since the coup. Ten years since she was taken from me. Ten years since I failed her. Ten years since I slept comfortably.

I pushed the blankets off and swung my legs to the floor. My body ached, heavy from too many nights of poor rest.

I could barely remember the last time I slept through an entire night without waking up choking on the past.

Her death anniversary was only days away and that always only made it worse.

I stood, poured water from the jug by the bedside and drank it slowly, it did little to ease the tightness in my chest.

The room was too quiet, of course it was.. even the palace maids weren't awake by this time.

I paced around the room but it didn't help. I was restless, my wolf stirred uneasily inside me, feeding on my tension.

I needed distraction. Work. Responsibility. Something to get my mind off these thoughts.

By then it was dawn. I had already dressed and left my chambers. The halls of the packhouse were quiet and empty but I found Alaric, my beta in the council room, bent over maps and reports. He straightened when I entered.

"You're up early," he said, his face etched with concern.

He didn't ask if I'd slept, he already knew the answer.

"There's too much to do," I replied, moving to the table. "How are the patrols along the northern border?"

"Stronger this week. We doubled the rotation like you ordered," he said. He pushed a sheet toward me. "But there's been talk, some rogues are gathering near the river."

I scanned the report. Numbers, sightings, tracks. Nothing conclusive but enough to watch.

"We'll increase the guards again," I said. "Tell the warriors to stay sharp, I don't want surprises."

Alaric nodded. "And the trade routes? The merchants are restless, they're asking for safer passage."

"We'll assign escorts for the larger goods, at least until the rogues move on."

We continued like that for a while, going over patrols, training schedules, supply lines.... The usual responsibilities of running a pack. It should have taken my mind off of it but even as I spoke, my mind kept drifting.

Every decision I made, every strategy I set, it all came back to that night. The betrayal.

The fire, the sound of her scream and his face....Always his face.

Alaric must have noticed the way I clenched my jaw. He leaned back in his chair and studied me.

"It's getting closer, isn't it?" he asked quietly.

I didn't answer right away. Instead, I pressed my hands flat on the table, staring down at the maps without really seeing what was drawn on it.

"Yes," I finally said. My voice came out lower than I intended. "I can feel it, the nightmares are getting worse."

"You can't keep carrying this alone, it's been ten years," he muttered.

"Ten years doesn't erase what happened," I snapped, sharper than I meant to.

He didn't flinch. Alaric had been with me through it all. He was the only one who could look me in the eye when I was like this.

"You're still blaming yourself," he said. "You couldn't have stopped it, none of us could have. He had it planned."

"He took her from me," I muttered. "And he laughed while he did it."

Alaric's expression hardened. "He's gone. Exiled. He'll never set foot here again."

I wanted to believe that. I wanted to lock those words inside me and ease my mind but doubt had a way of digging in and lately, the unease felt stronger.

I shook my head and straightened, forcing myself to focus.

"Enough of this, I sighed Lucian as the crown prince. Please engage him in some of the activities so he knows how a pack runs. And also continue to strengthen the borders. Keep the warriors ready. No one slips past us."

"As you command," Alaric said.

We finished the meeting and left the council room together, though the conversation sat heavy between us. Alaric walked away to handle the patrols while I returned to my chamber.

The corridor was quiet, but something on the floor caught my attention.

A letter.

I frowned and bent to pick it up. The envelope was folded neatly, sealed with no insignia.

Strange.

I turned it over in my hand, feeling the weight of it, the silence of the hall pressing around me.

Carefully, I broke the seal and unfolded the parchment.

The handwriting was sharp and deliberate, overall it was quite beautiful.

My eyes scanned the words then my breath caught in my throat.

"He's alive, and he's coming back."