Writer's POV*
"Move!" Maeve ducked as a Shadow Pack arrow whistled past her head. The triplets immediately formed a protective circle around her, but she pushed through them. "I said I'd come alone!"
"Like hell," Ash growled, blocking another arrow with his shifted arm.
They were barely fifty feet into Shadow Pack territory when the attack started. Hidden archers in the trees, wolves emerging from behind rocks—it was an ambush.
"This is a test," Raiden said grimly, his ice-blue eyes scanning the forest. "They want to see if we'll fight back or submit."
Maeve stepped forward, her Luna power blazing through the mate bond. "Enough!" Her voice carried supernatural authority that made every Shadow Pack wolf freeze. "I came here to talk to Kieran, not play games!"
A slow clap echoed through the trees. "Impressive, little princess."
Kieran emerged from the shadows, but he wasn't alone. Three young men flanked him—all tall, all powerful, all with the same ice-blue eyes as the Shadow Pack.
"My sons," Kieran said with a cruel smile. "Your potential mates, according to our laws."
Maeve felt the triplets tense behind her, their anger burning through the mate bond like fire.
"I already have mates," Maeve said firmly.
"Do you?" The first of Kieran's sons stepped forward. He was built like a warrior, with scars across his arms. "I'm Damon. And according to Shadow Pack law, royal blood can only mate with royal blood."
"Your Valoran boys are impressive," the second son added. He was leaner, with cruel eyes. "But they're not royalty. I'm Kai."
The third son said nothing, just stared at Maeve with an intensity that made her skin crawl.
"That's Zane," Kieran said. "He doesn't talk much. But he's very interested in meeting you."
"Where's my mother?" Maeve demanded, ignoring the three sons completely.
Kieran's smile widened. "Safe. Follow me."
---
The Shadow Pack's stronghold was hidden deep in the mountains, built into caves that seemed to go on forever. As they walked through stone corridors lit by torches, Maeve could feel the weight of the mountain above them.
But more than that, she could feel something wrong. The Shadow Pack wolves they passed looked... sick. Their eyes were dull, their movements slow. Some could barely stand.
"What's wrong with them?" she whispered to Kieran.
"That's why you're here," he said grimly.
They reached a large chamber carved from solid rock. And there, sitting in a chair by the far wall, was Maeve's mother.
"Mom!" Maeve ran toward her, but stopped short when her mother looked up.
Her mother's eyes were different. Brighter. More aware. Like she'd been asleep for years and had just woken up.
"Hello, sweetheart," her mother said softly. "I remember now. I remember everything."
"What do you mean?"
"Your father told me stories about the Shadow Pack when I was little," her mother explained. "But I thought they were just fairy tales. Until I came here. Until I saw this place." She stood up, and Maeve was shocked to see how strong she looked. "I remember my own mother's stories now. Stories she made me forget."
Kieran stepped forward. "Your grandmother wasn't the only one with memory magic, little princess. Your mother inherited the same gift. But she used it on herself, to forget her heritage."
"Why would she do that?" Maeve asked.
"Because she was afraid," her mother said quietly. "Afraid of what it meant to be royal. Afraid of the responsibility." She looked at Maeve with sad eyes. "I tried to give you a normal life. But some destinies can't be escaped."
"Speaking of destiny," Kieran interrupted. "It's time you learned the truth about why we need you."
He gestured around the chamber. Now that Maeve looked closer, she could see more Shadow Pack members in the shadows. All of them looked weak, sickly.
"We're dying," Kieran said bluntly. "All of us. It started twenty years ago, right after your grandmother ran away."
"That's not a coincidence," Zane spoke for the first time, his voice like gravel. "It's a curse."
Maeve's blood went cold. "What kind of curse?"
"The kind that can only be broken by royal blood," Damon said, stepping closer to her. "Specifically, by royal children."
Understanding hit Maeve like a punch to the stomach. "You want me to have babies."
"With Shadow Pack royalty," Kai added, his cruel eyes gleaming. "Your children would carry both bloodlines. They could break the curse."
"But only if you mate with one of us," Zane finished.
The triplets moved to stand beside Maeve, their protective instincts in overdrive.
"She's already mated," Cade said firmly. "The bonds are sealed."
"Are they?" Kieran asked with amusement. "Because according to our laws, a mate bond can be broken if it interferes with royal duty."
"You can't be serious," Ash growled.
"Deadly serious," Kieran replied. "The Shadow Pack Council is meeting tonight. They'll decide whether Maeve's current bonds are valid, or if she must choose new mates to save our people."
Maeve felt like she couldn't breathe. Save her current mates and let an entire pack die, or sacrifice her happiness to save lives.
"There has to be another way," she said desperately.
"There is," a familiar voice said from the shadows.
Maeve spun around, and her heart stopped.
Calla stepped into the torchlight, but she looked different. Stronger. More confident. And she was wearing Shadow Pack colors.
"Hello, Maeve," Calla said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Miss me?"
"Calla?" Maeve could barely speak. "What are you doing here?"
"What I should have done years ago," Calla replied. "I'm taking my rightful place."
"What are you talking about?"
Kieran chuckled. "Did you really think you were the only one with royal blood, little princess? Calla's grandmother was my sister."
The world tilted around Maeve. "That's impossible."
"Is it?" Calla asked. "Think about it, Maeve. Why do you think I was always so much stronger than other pack members? Why I was always destined to be Luna?" Her eyes glittered with malice. "Because I have just as much claim to both packs as you do."
"But you can't break the curse," Damon pointed out. "You're not direct royal line."
"No," Calla agreed. "But I can do something else." She looked directly at Maeve. "I can make sure you never leave this place."
Before anyone could react, Calla pulled something from her jacket. The ceremonial book she'd stolen from the Valoran Pack.
"Did you know this book contains more than just ceremonies?" she asked sweetly. "It contains binding spells. Ancient magic that can trap someone in a place forever."
She began reading words in a language Maeve didn't recognize. The air in the chamber started to shimmer.
"Stop her!" Ash shouted, lunging forward.
But it was too late. Light exploded from the book, wrapping around Maeve like chains made of energy.
"What did you do?" Maeve gasped, pulling at the invisible bonds.
Calla smiled triumphantly. "I made sure you can never leave Shadow Pack territory. Ever." She looked at the stunned faces around her. "Now the only way to break the curse is for Maeve to mate with Shadow Pack royalty and have their children. She literally has no other choice."
The triplets roared in fury, but when they tried to reach Maeve, the same energy chains appeared around them.
"The spell binds her mates too," Calla explained casually. "They can't leave either. Unless, of course, Maeve chooses to break the mate bonds herself."
Kieran was staring at Calla with something like respect. "Clever girl."
"I learned from the best," Calla replied. "Now, shall we discuss terms? Because I have a proposal that might interest everyone."
Maeve looked around the chamber at the sick Shadow Pack members, at her trapped mates, at her mother's sad face, at Kieran's triumphant expression.
And at Calla, who was holding all their fates in her hands.
"What kind of proposal?" Maeve asked, though she was afraid to hear the answer.
Calla's smile was pure evil. "Simple. I'll break the binding spell and let you all go free. In exchange, you give me something I've always wanted."
"What?"
Calla's eyes locked onto Ash, and Maeve's heart stopped.
"Him."