The night sits heavy over Ironvale Village. Fires have burned low, their glow flickering weakly across stone paths and wooden huts. Inside the Alpha's house, I can't sleep. My body lies still beside Rhys, but my mind races with images of the masked wolf, the chaos of the wedding, the echo of that moment when my wolf screamed mate.
I turn over again. My thoughts crash together like waves against cliff faces. Why him? Why now? What does it mean?
Rhys stirs beside me, his arm tightening around my waist. "You're trembling," he murmurs, his voice rough from sleep. "Are you alright?"
I force a small smile into the darkness, knowing he can't see it. "Just restless. I'll get some air."
"Want me to come with you?"
"No. Stay. Sleep. You have a long day tomorrow."
He kisses my temple, his lips warm against my skin. "Don't be long."
Within minutes, his breathing evens out again. He falls back asleep easily, like a man with no doubts. My pulse hammers against my ribs.
I slip from the bed, careful not to wake him again. Pull on a cloak and step into the cold. The night wind cuts through the thin fabric, biting at my skin, but it doesn't quiet my thoughts. It doesn't ground me the way I hoped.
I walk aimlessly through the village, my bare feet silent on the cold stone paths. Past the watchtowers where guards stand in pairs. Past the empty market where vendors will set up at dawn. Past the longhouse where the elders meet to decide pack law. My feet carry me forward without my noticing where I'm headed.
Then I stop.
The prison hut stands apart from the rest of the village. Nothing grand, just a reinforced wooden cabin surrounded by open ground so no one can approach unseen. One guard sits outside on a wooden stool, spear in hand, his posture alert despite the late hour. He startles when he notices me approaching from the shadows.
"Luna," he stammers. "Is everything alright? Should I fetch Alpha? Has something happened?"
"No," I say, keeping my voice calm. "I want to look the prisoner in the eyes."
He hesitates, his hand tightening on his spear. "It's not advisable for you to enter alone, Luna. The prisoner is dangerous."
"I'm aware. Please. Don't let anyone disturb us."
The guard swallows hard, clearly torn between duty and respect for my position. Finally, he nods and steps aside, unlocking the heavy wooden door with an iron key that hangs from his belt.
Inside, the air sits damp and close, thick with the smell of earth and unwashed skin. A small oil lamp burns on the floor near the entrance. The intruder sits chained to the far wall. His wrists look raw where the metal has worn through skin. His head hangs low, dark hair falling forward to hide his face. Even in restraint, his presence fills the space, pressing against my chest like a physical weight.
I stop several feet away, maintaining distance. My wolf bristles at his nearness, torn between aggression and something else entirely.
"Look at me," I snap.
He doesn't move. Doesn't speak. Doesn't acknowledge my presence at all.
My voice rises, sharper now. "You destroyed my wedding. Brought chaos to a sacred ceremony. Do you think that makes you righteous? Do you think it makes you strong?"
Nothing. Just the sound of his breathing, slow and steady.
"Answer me!"
Finally, he lifts his head with deliberate slowness. His eyes lock with mine. Golden, sharp as broken glass, full of exhaustion and contempt. "Strong?" he says quietly. "No. Just alive. That's more than your kind left me."
My jaw tightens. My hands clench at my sides. "You attacked innocent people. Guards who were just doing their duty. Families gathered to celebrate."
"Innocent?" His tone turns sharp. "Your tribe burned my village to ash. Killed every man, woman, and child who carried my name. I watched my world burn with your Alpha's crest on the banners doing it. Tell me about innocence, Luna. Tell me what that word means to you."
I flinch despite myself. "That's not true. Ironvale protects its people. We don't slaughter innocents. We maintain order and peace across all territories."
"Is that what they told you?" He leans forward as much as the chains allow, the metal scraping against stone. "Let me guess the story they fed you. Bloodfang were insurgents. Rogues. Threats to peace and stability. Dangerous elements that had to be eliminated for the greater good."
"They were." But my voice sounds weaker now, uncertain.
"We were families." His voice drops, deadly quiet, each word deliberate and precise. "Mothers nursing infants. Children learning to shift for the first time. Elders who couldn't even shift anymore. Your Alpha's father gave the order anyway. He burned us all the same."
"You're lying." I force strength back into my voice.
"Am I?" He studies my face, his gaze piercing through me like he can see beneath my skin, past my bones, into something deeper I've kept hidden even from myself.
"You ever wonder where your scar came from, Luna?"
I freeze. My breath catches in my throat.
I open my mouth to tell him he's insane, that he knows nothing about me. The words die before they form. The burn mark on my ribs throbs suddenly, a pulse of pain that feels too alive, too familiar, too deliberate to be random. Heat spreads across my skin like fire beneath flesh.
My mind rejects everything he's saying. My body doesn't.
For a long moment, we stare at each other across the dim space. My anger cracks down the middle. His bitterness softens into something quieter. The space between us hums with secrets buried so deep they've become bone.
Finally, I turn toward the door. My voice trembles despite my best efforts to steady it. "You'll stay here until the elders decide what to do with you."
He leans back against the wall. "They already decided years ago," he murmurs.
I leave without answering. My hand shakes as I close the door behind me. The guard straightens immediately, his face tight with concern.
"Everything alright, Luna?"
I nod once, sharp and controlled. "No one goes in. No one speaks to him. Those are my orders."
I walk away into the night. The cold no longer bites my skin. The fire beneath burns too real to ignore.