Page 38 of A Reign of Malice (Wolves of Lunara #3)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

SLOANE

C lara and I walk in silence, our boots scuffing quietly against the stone as the flickering lanterns cast long, dancing shadows on the cavern walls.

We don’t speak, but we don’t need to. The emotion hanging between us is palpable.

Thick with fear, determination, and the kind of understanding that only comes from standing on the edge of something life-altering.

War has a way of stripping everything down to its bones.

It shows you what truly matters. And for me, it’s not the title I wear or the crown on my head, it’s the people who’ve fought beside me, bled for me.

My mate. Clara. My fellow Alpha Queens. These women who were once strangers but have quickly become so much more.

Sisters by choice. Warriors bound by shared purpose.

If anything happens to any of them because I made the wrong call, I’m not sure I’ll be able to come back from that.

We reach one of the smaller caverns tucked deeper into the mountain.

The air is warmer here, infused with the scent of soot and moss, the firelight flickering softly against the worn stone.

In the center of the room sits Estee, cross-legged on a thick wool blanket.

She’s shed the remnants of her regal attire in favor of something practical—a charcoal sweater, black leggings.

Her hair’s still damp from a wash, pulled into a loose braid over her shoulder.

She doesn’t look up when we enter, but I catch the smirk tugging at her lips.

“As wolf shifters, we’re not supposed to fear death,” she says, voice low but steady.

“We’re reborn again and again. Endless lives.

Endless chances to start over.” She finally glances at me, something fierce burning behind her eyes.

“But today? That death almost became my last. And I’m so damn pissed about that. ”

My chest tightens. Not from sadness but recognition. I know that kind of fury. That bone-deep refusal to bow. Estee has been broken, burned, and reforged. And what’s before us now is something sharper. Unshakable.

She isn’t just surviving. She’s becoming.

Isla’s seated beside her, legs tucked beneath her, nodding slowly. “We didn’t claw our way back from curses and god realms just to lose everything again. Not our mates, not our people, and definitely not each other.” She reaches over and clasps her sister’s hand.

The moment is quiet but charged, like the stillness of midnight.

Clara and I move deeper into the room. My gaze sweeps over the two of them, assessing, searching. But I don’t see hesitation in either of their eyes. Only fire.

Still, the guilt gnaws at me.

“I don’t expect you to join us tonight,” I say, my voice soft. “You or your mates. You’ve already done more than anyone could’ve asked. If you want to sit this out, no one would blame you. I can go?— ”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Isla snaps, her eyes narrowing into lethal slits. “Are you seriously giving us an out? As if we haven’t earned the right to stand by your side?”

I open my mouth to argue, but she doesn’t let me get a word in.

“No. You listen to me now.” Isla pushes to her feet, moving toward me with the grace of a queen and the force of a storm.

She grips my shoulders, steadfast and unyielding.

“We were all in this the moment your kingdom started to fall. And maybe we didn’t come soon enough, but we’re here now. And we’re not going anywhere.”

Her words slam into me with the force of truth, of loyalty you can’t demand, only earn.

She holds my gaze, unwavering. “Our kingdoms were never meant to be divided. We are Lunara. And when one of us suffers, the rest of us bleed.”

Estee moves in right behind Isla, reaching for my hand. And before I know it, I’m wrapped in the arms of two women whose strength has carried kingdoms. Now, they’re lending that force to me. Not in strategy or titles, but in something far more powerful.

Sisterhood.

Yet, something’s missing.

I reach back without thinking twice, my fingers curling around Clara’s wrist and tugging her into the embrace.

Because titles don’t matter in moments like this.

Alpha Queen or not, Clara has stood at my side through every trial, every heartache, every impossible decision.

She’s fought for me, challenged me, and never once let me fall. She belongs in this circle—always.

She lets out a soft breath of surprise but doesn’t hesitate to wrap her arms around us too.

“I don’t say this enough,” I murmur, my voice rough with emotion. “But thank you. I needed this. I know what I’m fighting for, but sometimes knowing I don’t have to do it alone is the difference between breaking and bending.”

“You’ve never been alone,” Clara says gently, her voice steady and sure.

I smile, pressing my forehead briefly against her shoulder. “You’re right. But I’ve done a damn good job of pretending otherwise.”

Clara lets out a short laugh. “Please. Like I would’ve ever let you get away with that for long.”

Gods, that woman.

“So,” Estee says as we pull back, though none of us move far. Her brows lift and there’s a spark of steel in her eyes. “What now?”

I glance down at myself. The hem of my gown is torn and stained with dirt and ash. A symbol of the day’s battles. A reminder of the chaos to come.

“Now?” I straighten, meeting their gazes. “Now I find myself something more appropriate to wear and prepare to make myself a target.”

“You mean,” Clara says with a gleam in her eye, “we need warrior garb.”

“Hell yes, we do.” Isla grins, turning toward the hall. “Where do we even find something like that around here?”

“I don’t know,” Clara calls, already halfway out the door, “but I’m going to find out.”

I shake my head with a huff of laughter. “You don’t have to do everything, Clara?—”

“Sloane. Don’t.” Her smile is as sweet as fresh-picked fruit on a sweltering day. “This is what I do. And serving you? It’s been one of the greatest honors of my life. Don’t ever take that from me. ”

My throat tightens, and I manage a small, choked laugh as I nod. “As you wish.”

She disappears into the corridor, her light footsteps fading down the stone hall, and I wonder, not for the first time, how I ever would have gotten by without her by my side.

“You’re lucky to have her,” Estee says quietly, and there’s a wistful softness in her voice.

“Leaving Isla when I went to Selaris…it nearly broke me. But she found her person to lean on, and I found mine. It doesn’t take away from the love we have for each other, but it sure helps keep the world from feeling so heavy. ”

“There’s nothing like the bond between women who truly see each other,” Isla agrees, brushing a lock of pinkish hair behind her ear. “We’ve faced gods, curses, and war to have these lives. But having each other? That’s what kept me sane.”

“Especially when we all get together and drink too much wine,” I add with a smirk.

Estee points at me with a wicked grin. “Now that’s something we’re definitely repeating once this mess is over.”

A genuine laugh rises in my throat for the first time all day. That’s something to look forward to. Right after I finally claim my mate.

A dull ache blooms in my chest as I think of Julian.

No matter how grateful I am that Clara came to get me earlier, I haven’t had more than a moment alone with him.

And now, that longing is impossible to ignore.

It hums beneath my skin like a second pulse, louder, needier, growing with each passing second.

I glance toward the door, fighting the very real urge to abandon everything and run to him.

“Look at her,” Isla teases, laughter coating her words like honey. “She’s already gone for him. ”

“As if she had a choice,” Estee mutters, feigning exasperation before fanning her face dramatically. “Did you see the way he looked at her when they first locked eyes? If I wasn’t happily mated, I’d be a little jealous.”

“Same,” Isla chimes in with a grin. “You’re lucky we’re both taken, Sloane. Otherwise, you’d have some serious competition for that man.”

Their teasing is light, playful—meant in good fun—but my wolf doesn’t understand jokes. The possessive part of me surges forward, a guttural growl rising from my throat before I can stop it. “Mine.”

Isla and Estee both take a step back, wide-eyed but grinning all the same.

“Easy, girl,” Estee says with a smirk. “We were only teasing.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t joke about that until they’ve completed the bond,” Isla adds, her hands still up in mock surrender.

“I think that would be wise,” I mutter, my voice rougher than I intend, my wolf still pacing inside me.

“Sloane?” Julian calls from the corridor.

Estee snickers behind me. “Looks like she’s not the only one struggling with control.”

I ignore her—lovingly—and stride to the doorway, pulling back the blanket just as Julian reaches it from the other side.

His eyes are wide, searching my face with such intensity that I forget how to breathe for a second. “Are you okay? Did someone…?”

He cuts himself off as he notices Isla and Estee behind me.

“I’m fine,” I say, placing both palms against his chest. “We were just talking. ”

Julian wraps his arms around me, drawing me close. His scent calms the restlessness in my chest. I could stay here forever.

“Okay,” he murmurs. “I’ll leave you to it then.”

“You’re not the only one who can’t stay away,” Asher calls as he stops behind Julian, followed closely by Theo.

The room fills quickly as the men enter to find their mates, arms wrapping around shoulders and gazes full of understanding. Suddenly, the space feels smaller, cozier, charged with something I can’t quite name. Unity, maybe. Or simply the calm before the storm.

“You better not be plotting without us,” Theo says, pulling Estee into his side.

“Always,” she answers with a sly smile then glances around the room. “We should probably make the rounds. Figure out who’s standing with us tonight.”

I nod, having already been thinking about that earlier. “I’ll start with my pack.”

“We’ll speak with the ones from Venaris,” Isla says, her voice softer now. “Let them know that no matter what they choose, they’ll have a home, whether in one of our kingdoms or yours.”

“And no matter what role they choose to play,” Julian adds, surprising even me, “we make it clear that every choice has value. The ones who stay behind will be just as critical. Protecting the vulnerable is just as noble as fighting on the front lines.”

I glance up at him, pride blooming in my chest. He might not yet believe himself to be a king, but crown or not, he already is. It doesn’t matter if he’s spent the last two centuries locked away. His heart is exactly what these people need, and I’m going to make sure he never forgets that.

And as something powerful and unfamiliar settles deep in my bones—hope, maybe, or a steady kind of determination—I realize we’re standing on the edge of everything.

One final battle.

One last chance.

But this time, we won’t face it in fear.

We’ll face it together.