Page 29 of A Reign of Malice (Wolves of Lunara #3)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

SLOANE

T he bond with Julian thrums within me like a livewire. His essence is nearly all I can focus on. At least until I hear Aurora’s threat.

Not only does that have me straightening, but I can sense the shift in Julian. He’s just escaped one hell and, because I asked for this goddess’s help, he’s now in another.

Even still, he squeezes my hand, almost as if he’s reassuring me when it should be me doing that for him after all he’s been through.

Aurora’s smile is wicked enough to cut as she steps back from our small group, her presence looming, even when she’s no longer in the center of the room. “Why don’t I give the six of you some time to talk things over? While one or two of you are objecting, not all of you are as obstinate as some.”

She casts a glance at a glowering Isla, then saunters toward the back half of her house but pauses, turning to point at Julian.

“You, the lost prince,” she says, her eyes sliding to him with a dark glint of amusement, “have the most to lose. I would do your best to convince your friends here. Or you might never know what your fate always should have been.”

Julian’s jaw tightens, but he doesn’t speak. Not yet. I feel the ripple of frustration through our bond, the truth of her words settling over him like a curse.

The goddess doesn’t wait for a response. She takes a few more steps away from us, her gown of liquid gold flowing behind her as she vanishes into thin air, leaving us alone in the vast, colorless room.

For a few long moments, no one speaks. The silence is heavy, thick with unspoken fears and conflicting thoughts.

It’s Isla who breaks first, pacing a jagged line across the floor, her hands clenching and unclenching at her sides. “I’m not doing it. I don’t care if she saved each of us or that she’s an all-powerful bitch—she’s dangerous, and I don’t trust her for a second.”

I step forward, swallowing the knot of fear lodged in my throat. “Isla, none of us trust her. But what other choice do we have at this point? She’s not asking us to fight her war. All she wants is a bite and some blood. We’ve done worse for our enemies. This isn’t some massive sacrifice?—”

“It’s our mates and our bonds, Sloane!” Isla snaps, spinning to face me, her rose-gold hair practically sparking with her agitation.

“An alpha’s bite is powerful alone, but to combine that with our blood?

Do you have any idea what she can do with that?

We’re talking ancient magic, combined with divine energy, and none of us have any clue what that even means! ”

I hold her gaze, my fingers curling into fists to keep my hands from shaking.

“I know exactly what it means.” My voice softens, but I don’t back down.

“It means we get to go home, that we don’t fall victim to another god who could be much worse than Aurora.

It also means we don’t spend the rest of our lives looking over our shoulders, wondering when she’s going to yank us back here because we refused to pay our debt. ”

Estee crosses her arms, her gaze shifting between us. “I hate to say it, but Sloane’s right.”

Isla’s head whips toward her sister. “Excuse me?”

“I didn’t say I liked it,” Estee clarifies, her tone calm but firm. “But look around us, Isla. Do you see any other way out of here? We’re floating on a damned cloud in the middle of the gods’ playground. We owe her. That’s the deal.”

Isla’s nostrils flare, her wolf just under the surface. “There has to be another way.”

“Isla,” Estee’s voice softens, but the firmness remains beneath it, “sometimes there isn’t.”

The men have stayed mostly silent, but finally, Isla spins toward Asher, her hands gripping his arms. “Tell them. Tell them we can’t trust her.”

Asher exhales slowly, brushing a thumb across her jawline before speaking.

“Isla, love of my life, queen of my heart…” His voice is tender, but there’s a finality in it that makes her still.

“I know this is killing you. I know you’d love nothing more than to pluck that goddess’s eyes out, but I don’t think we have a choice here either. ”

She shakes her head, her lips parting to argue, but Asher doesn’t let her.

“My purpose in life is to protect you,” he continues, his forehead pressing briefly to hers.

“And I would be failing at my job if I allowed you to refuse. We know she’ll do exactly as she’s threatened, and like Sloane pointed out, we’re not fighting her war.

Just helping to enhance the gods on her side. Let’s just do this and go home.”

Isla’s shoulders slump, her fight slipping away, leaving only exhaustion behind. “I hate this. ”

“So do we,” Theo says quietly, placing a hand on her back. “But we need to get back to our people. They’re waiting for us.”

The group falls into reluctant agreement. The air’s still thick with unease, but I’m quietly grateful. This was never about making a choice. It’s survival.

Aurora reappears the instant the decision settles, her smile bright and victorious. “Excellent.” Her eyes shimmer with something almost feral. “Come along, my little wolves. It’s time to meet the others.”

Julian keeps me close, his hand a steady warmth amongst the chaos we’ve been thrown into.

I notice Asher and Theo do the same with their mates, their fingers curling possessively around Isla’s and Estee’s waists.

Normally, the sight of such instinctive protectiveness would clash with the independent streak I’ve carried my whole life—a refusal to be seen as anything but strong, capable, untouchable.

But not now.

Now, I lean into Julian’s warmth, the solid weight of his arm a comfort rather than a cage.

I let myself press closer, taking in his scent, the steady rise and fall of his chest, the way his fingers spread wide against my lower back as though reassuring himself I’m still here too.

Because for the first time in my long, complicated life I understand something I never truly let myself believe: being strong doesn’t have to mean being alone.

This man, this broken prince forged in darkness and chains, is my mate.

My equal. My balance. He isn’t here to tame me or silence my voice, he’s here to amplify all parts of me.

To fight beside me, to lift me up when I stumble, and to hold me together when I fracture under the pressure of everything I carry.

Mates were always something I admired from a distance. I understood their importance, envied the connection I saw in others, but I never let myself want it. Not really. Not when wanting meant admitting how much I longed for someone to truly see me.

But standing here, with Julian’s touch anchoring me and his gaze sweeping over me like I’m the only thing keeping him breathing, I finally understand the gravity of what it means to be bound to someone by more than choice or circumstance.

I may not know everything about him yet. I might not yet be in love with the man he is today, but I would die for him without hesitation. And I know, with bone-deep certainty, that he would do the same for me.

That’s the magic of being a wolf shifter.

We don’t weave spells like witches or bend shadows like vampires, but we have something far rarer.

We have our bonds. That unbreakable thread tying one soul to another, strong enough to weather centuries of separation, torture, even death itself.

And standing here, I know I wouldn’t trade that magic for anything across all the realms.

Especially when he glances down at me, the corner of his mouth lifting in the faintest smile—soft and a little amazed, like he can’t believe I’m real either. My heart stutters painfully, skipping against my ribs, and the world around us fades just for a moment.

This. This is where I was always meant to end up.

Finally.

The momentary peace is broken when Aurora pulls us from existence without warning, the world disappearing for a brief second before we reappear in another part of the god realm.

This one is nothing like the clouded expanse we arrived at.

The landscape shifts with each step, the ground firm beneath our feet but ever-changing in texture and color.

Sometimes grass, sometimes smooth crystal, and other times soft sand.

The sky above is endless, not blue but a deep indigo threaded with silver veins that pulse like a heartbeat.

Floating islands hover in the distance, each one linked by shimmering bridges made of pure light.

On those islands, figures wait.

The gods.

They’re not what I expect. Some have eyes that flicker like flames and skin that shimmers beneath the brightness of their world.

Others appear more human-like, except they’re draped in fabrics that seem woven from the stars themselves, their stares too colorful, their features too perfect to belong to anything mortal.

Aurora leads us to a central platform, where a towering god with sleek opal hair and skin like polished obsidian waits. His presence hums in the air, powerful enough that my wolf instinctively bows her head within me.

“This is Damaris,” Aurora purrs, placing a hand on his shoulder. “One of you will bite him first.”

The god’s silver eyes flick toward Julian, his gaze heavy with curiosity and something darker. “This is the lost prince?”

Julian doesn’t flinch under his scrutiny, his jaw tight. “I am.”

Damaris steps closer, offering his arm. “I choose you and your mate.”

Julian’s nostrils flare, but he doesn’t argue, and I breathe easier knowing we don’t have to be so intimate with them, biting their necks as Aurora seemed to have Asher do when he was here last time.

“And I’ll draw your blood,” Aurora says coolly. “I can take all of it now, or a little at a time. I’ll leave that up to you.”

My laughter is dark and rough. “ Now we get a choice? ”

“Technically, you had one before.” The goddess pulls a silver blade from thin air, inspecting my arm.

“Die or obey,” I remind her, watching closely as she cuts my wrist. “I understand we owe you, and I appreciate that you freed Julian when I couldn’t, but you don’t have to taunt Isla like you do or be so crude.”

Aurora’s violet eyes level on me, her smirk firmly in place. “No, I don’t have to, but it sure keeps things more interesting, don’t you think?”

This conversation is pointless, so I fix my attention on Julian just as his teeth cut through Damaris’s forearm.

The god trembles, closing his eyes, and his skin begins to shimmer.

When he looks at Julian again, his gaze is golden with fine lines of silver bleeding through, his expression otherworldly.

“Such interesting power,” Damaris murmurs as Julian straightens again.

Before I can ask what happens next, Aurora places a cloth over my wrist and steps away from me, a bowl of my blood in her hand. “Drink. One sip is all you need.”

The god doesn’t hesitate; he laps at the crimson, and Aurora is forced to yank the bowl from his hands. “Careful, Damaris.”

As he drags a finger over his parted lips, his teeth lengthen then claws slide from his fingertips. His entire form seems to ripple, something more primal waking inside him. Almost as if he’s preparing to shift, but the transformation is halted, keeping him more man than beast.

“Magnificent,” Damaris purrs, flexing his fingers. “The mate bond is truly unlike anything we could have predicted.”

Aurora’s smile is all sharp edges. “I told you.” Then she glances at the others, further away and still perched on their islands. “Who’s next?”