Jaxon's POV
My wolf howled inside my chest as rogues circled our area. But it wasn't screaming at the enemy. It was screaming for her. "Focus!" Kael barked, tightening his grip on his silver sword. "They're testing our defenses." I tried to focus on the approaching threat, but Arin's scent filled my nose even though she was half a mile away in the training facility. Sweet jasmine mixed with something wild and dangerous—something that made my teeth ache. "Jaxon, did you hear me?" Rowan's quiet words cut through my thoughts. "Yeah, I heard you." I gripped my own weapon tighter. "Rogues want a fight. Let's give them one." But that was a lie. I hadn't heard anything except the thundering of my pulse every time Arin's emotions crashed through whatever link we shared. Because that was the trouble. We did share a bond. Kael was supposed to be her mate. The pack had watched their bond ceremony three days ago. I'd stood there watching my bigger brother claim the girl I'd been secretly watching for months, and I'd forced myself to smile. Now my wolf refused to accept what my brain knew was true. "Formation!" Father's Alpha order echoed across the pack grounds. "Protect the main house!" We moved like we'd trained since childhood—Kael leading, me covering the left side, Rowan taking the shadows. Perfect coordination born from twenty-one years of friendship. Except now everything felt wrong. The first rogue broke through the tree line, and I flung myself forward. My claws lengthened as I shifted mid-leap, bones cracking and reforming in seconds. The rogue's yellow eyes opened in surprise before my jaws closed around his throat. Too easy.
As I shifted back to human form, wiping blood from my chin, more rogues appeared. But they weren't attacking—they were watching. "This doesn't feel right," I called to my brothers. Kael nodded grimly. "They're stalling." "Waiting for something," Rowan added. That's when the real attack came. Not from the rogues circling our area, but from the burning pain that suddenly exploded in my chest. I slumped over, gasping, as Arin's terror flooded through me like poison. She was in danger. "Jaxon!" Kael spun around, his own face twisted in pain. "What's happening?" But I was already running. My legs moved without conscious thought, carrying me toward the training facility where Arin's scent got stronger with every step. Behind me, Kael and Rowan followed. We crashed through the building doors together, only to freeze at the impossible sight waiting inside. Arin stood in the middle of the combat ring, her small body glowing with silver light. Elder Mava knelt on the ground nearby, blood dripping from her nose.
Mother backed against the far wall, her face white with fear. And Arin's eyes... her eyes had turned completely silver. "She's not herself," Mother whispered. "The power is too much." "Arin?" Kael stepped forward slowly, like approaching a wild animal. Her silver eyes snapped to him, and I felt her recognition through our bond. But something else hid behind her familiar warmth—something ancient and hungry. "The rogues aren't here to attack," she said in a voice that echoed oddly. "They're here to collect me." "What?" I moved closer despite every instinct yelling at me to run. "Collect you for what?" "My mother's haters. They've been waiting eighteen years for my power to rise." Arin's glow increased. "Now they want to use it." Elder Mava climbed to her feet, wiping blood from her face. "She's fighting the waking, but it's too strong. Her royal blood is taking over." Royal blood? My wolf perked up with sudden interest. "That's impossible," Kael said. "Arin's family has no royal connections." "Her father lied to protect her," Elder Mava explained quickly.
"Arin is the daughter of Luna Seraphina, the most powerful royal born in generations. Her mother was killed by rival packs who feared her strength." The news hit me like a physical blow. If Arin carried royal blood, that explained why my wolf responded to her so strongly. Royal wolves could bond with multiple mates—it was rare, but not unheard of in the old bloodlines. But before I could understand this information fully, Arin suddenly screamed. The sound shattered every window in the building. Her silver glow exploded outward, and through our link, I felt her pain like knives in my chest. "The bond is tearing her apart," Rowan said quickly. "She's connected to all three of us, but her body can't handle it." "All three of us?" Kael's voice cracked. I looked at my oldest brother, seeing my own confusion mirrored in his green eyes. "You feel it too?" "The connection? Yes." Kael's face went pale.
"But that's impossible. She's my mate." "No," Rowan said quietly. "She's our mate. All of ours." The words hung in the air like a death sentence. Arin's scream cut off suddenly, and she collapsed to her knees. The silver glow flickered and died, leaving her looking small and fragile again. "I can't control it," she whispered, tears streaming down her face. "The power, the tie, all of it. It's too much." I moved before thinking, dropping beside her and pulling her into my arms. The moment our skin touched, the chaotic energy flowing between us settled into something doable. "Better?" I asked softly. She nodded against my chest, and I felt Kael's jealousy spike through our shared link. "Let go of her," Kael ordered, his Alpha power bleeding into his voice. "Why?" The question emerged before I could stop it.
"She needs all of us to stabilize the bond." "She needs me. I'm her mate." "Are you?" I stood slowly, keeping Arin steady. "Because my wolf says differently." Kael's eyes flashed gold—a sign that he was close to shifting. "Don't push me, brother." "Or what? You'll fight me for her?" I felt my own wolf rising to meet his challenge. "Maybe you should ask Arin who she wants." "Stop it!" Arin's voice cut through our disagreement. "This is exactly what they want—for us to tear each other apart." "Who wants that?" Rowan asked. "The rogues aren't working alone," Elder Mava said grimly. "Someone with real power sent them. Someone who knows about Arin's bloodline and wants to claim it for themselves." "Queen Althara," Mother whispered suddenly. "It has to be. She's been expanding her area for years, absorbing smaller packs." Elder Mava nodded. "If Althara controls Arin's power, she could rule all the northern territories."
A bone-chilling howl echoed from outside, followed by another, then another. The rogues were getting impatient. "We need to get Arin somewhere safe," I said. "Agreed," Kael answered. "The safe room beneath the main house—" "No." Arin's voice held surprising strength. "Running won't fix anything. If Queen Althara wants me, she'll keep sending rogues until she gets me." "So what do you suggest?" Rowan asked. Arin looked between the three of us, her silver eyes reflecting pain and purpose in equal measure. "We finish this. Tonight." She straightened her shoulders. "But first, we need to establish the bond between us. All of us." Kael shook his head. "That's not how mating works—" "Nothing about me is how things normally work," Arin interrupted. "Elder Mava, is there a way to bind all three of them to me properly?" The old seer studied us with cunning eyes. "There is. But it would take a blood ritual, and the risks..." "What risks?" I asked. "If the rite fails, all four of you die instantly. If it succeeds..." Elder Mava waited. "You'll be bonded so completely that you'll share not just feelings, but thoughts, memories, even physical pain. There will be no privacy, no individual personality separate from the pack bond." "And if we don't do it?" Arin asked. "The unstable connection will drive you all insane within weeks." Another howl outside, closer this time. "Choose quickly," Mother said anxiously. "They're almost through our perimeter."
Arin met my eyes, then Kael's, then Rowan's. In that moment, I felt something change in the air between us—a recognition of shared fate. "I choose the ritual," she said strongly. "Arin—" Kael started. "I choose all of you," she continued, cutting him off. "Because supposedly, that's how the Moon Goddess made us. As a set." My wolf howled with satisfaction, but before I could react, the facility door exploded inward. A huge rogue stood in the doorway, his yellow eyes fixed on Arin. "Luna Seraphina's daughter," he growled. "Queen Althara sends her thanks. " Behind him, a dozen more rogues filed into the room. And in the distance, I heard something that made my blood freeze—the sound of helicopters approaching our area. This wasn't just a rogue hit. This was war.