A Ruthless Return

Kaelia

I dragged my boots through the thick mud. Every step sent a fresh wave of agony radiating from the iron arrow buried in my right shoulder and the deep gash sliced across my thigh. The metallic taste of my own blood coated the back of my throat. My vision swam with dark spots, threatening to pull my consciousness under, but I forced my legs to keep moving forward. I could not stop. My breaths came fast and shallow, ripping through my chest like broken glass. I pushed through the suffocating haze of my own exhaustion.

I did it.

I really did it.

I escaped certain death on the battlefield.

Even though I was bleeding out, my body battered to the point of collapse, I was still hanging onto the mortal realm by a thin thread. I was filled with an overwhelming sense of relief that bordered on hysteria. I knew exactly what I needed. I just needed to secure medical treatment. If I could just get to the pack healers, if they could stitch these severe wounds and stop the hemorrhaging, I could make it. I could heal. I could live. The very thought of surviving tomorrow made a faint, broken smile tug at the cracked corners of my lips.

*Nyla*, I called out inwardly, my mental voice a whisper in the vast emptiness of my mind. *We did it. We are almost home.*

Nyla did not answer. My inner wolf remained dormant within me, just as she had since the chaotic battle began. She was a pure white wolf, historically recorded as one of the strongest entities in existence, yet when the bloodshed commenced, she vanished. I wasn't angry. As I staggered toward the distant tree line, I inwardly acknowledged the truth. Even though she was silent, her lingering strength was the sole reason I was still drawing breath. Any normal werewolf would have bled out miles ago. I clung to the belief that once I healed my wounds, Nyla would awaken and return to me.

I pushed through the final row of ancient pines, and I looked up. Looming before me were the towering iron gates of the castle. My home. The Moonflare Pack borders. It was guarded by familiar men standing tall in their polished armor. The sight of those thick stone walls and the heavy iron bars sent a flood of relief so powerful it nearly dropped me to my knees right there in the dirt.

My body swayed as I approached the main road leading to the entrance. I clutched my torn side, blood seeping through the gaps in my fingers and dripping onto the dirt.

Up in the watchtower, one of the stationed guards leaned forward, narrowing his eyes at the tree line.

"Huh? Something is approaching from the woods!" he shouted, his voice echoing in the quiet afternoon air. "Raise your bows!"

The clatter of wooden bows being drawn and iron-tipped arrows being notched filled the air. "Who are you?! State your business!" another guard barked from the ground level.

I threw up a trembling, blood-soaked hand, trying to signal them. My voice was nothing but a hoarse croak. "Hold your fire! Do not shoot. It is me. I am your Luna. It is Kaelia."

The men froze in their tracks, blinking down at me in shock. I honestly couldn't blame them for the hesitation. I must have looked nothing like myself. I was covered in thick layers of dried mud and fresh gore, staggering out of the trees like a feral beggar at death's door rather than the dignified Luna they were accustomed to serving.

I braced my hands on my knees, gasping for air, trying to pull oxygen into my burning lungs. I forced my spine to straighten, demanding my body to stand upright. My eyes locked onto the men standing behind the iron bars. "What are you waiting for?" I demanded, pushing authority into my tired voice. "Open the gates. Tell Caius I am back. Bring the healers now."

The stationed guards did not rush to my aid. They did not scramble to unlock the heavy iron doors to assist their injured Luna. Instead, they stood still. They exchanged dark looks with one another. Then, slowly, they raised their drawn bows and aimed the sharp steel directly at my chest.

I blinked, my brain struggling to process the visual. My heart stumbled in my chest. "What... what are you doing?"

I stared at the men, my body swaying on my feet, my chest burning with every ragged breath. One of the guards, a man I recognized, stepped forward. His face was a mask of cold stone. He sneered down at me, barking a harsh command.

"Get on your knees. We have received strict orders to take you into custody."

My eyes widened in disbelief. "What do you mean, taken into custody? What are you doing? Drop those weapons! Can't you see I am injured?" My voice cracked under the weight of my desperation. "I will die if I am not treated right now. Call Caius this instant! If Caius knew what you were doing, he would never tolerate this disrespect!"

The guard scoffed, his lips curling into a cruel smile. "Yeah, right. On your knees, Kaelia Ashwood."

The harsh sound of my full maiden name hit me like a physical slap across the face. *Kaelia Ashwood.* They deliberately stripped away my sacred Luna title. No one in the entire pack dared to address the Luna by her full name without title. It was the highest form of treasonous insult. I frowned, confused and desperate. This was all wrong. They knew exactly who I was. And yet, they dared to point lethal weapons at me while I was bleeding out?

I opened my mouth to beg them again, to demand they summon Caius, my Alpha and bonded mate, the very reason I had fought in this devastating war in the first place. But before the words could leave my tongue, a loud grinding noise interrupted me.

The heavy iron gates creaked open.

I turned my head, and a brief wash of relief flooded my chest as I saw Caius stepping out from the castle courtyard. He looked as breathtaking and regal as always. His long black hair was tied back neatly, his pristine red robes flowing effortlessly around his tall frame, and his heavy golden crown glinting atop his head in the dull light. My Alpha. My bonded mate.

I let out a shaky exhale. He was here to fix this.

"Caius," I breathed out, a broken smile touching my lips. "Thank the Goddess you are here. These guards... they are talking nonsense. They will not let me in. They say I am to be taken into custody. I know it must be a terrible mistake." I clutched at my bleeding side, swaying again. "But I do not mind, Caius. I am just so tired. I need medical treatment. Please, just order them to—"

I stopped talking. My words died in my throat as my eyes shifted to the space right next to him.

My blood ran ice cold.

Walking intimately alongside Caius was Giselle. My own twin sister. The one person who had always stood by my side, who had supported me through the isolation, who I thought loved me no matter what. She was walking right behind him, followed by an entourage of royal guards.

But that was not the horrifying detail that shattered my reality.

Giselle was adorned in a heavy, golden, embroidered robe. The intricate crescent moon patterns woven into the silk glowed in the daylight. It was the Luna robe. The sacred ancestral garment that strictly belonged to the Luna of the pack. My robe.

The world tilted beneath my boots. Swaying from the blood loss, I felt the air get sucked out of my lungs.

"What... what is this?" I whispered, my voice a broken demand. I forced my horrified gaze to shift away from my twin and back to Caius, searching his face for reassurance, for an explanation. "Why is my sister wearing my sacred garment? Why is she wearing the Luna robes?"

Caius was unfazed. He stood towering over me, his hands clasped behind his back, exhibiting not a single flinch or ounce of concern at his mate's dying state. He merely stared down at me with unreadable green eyes.

He ignored my question. Instead, he demanded, "How did you manage to survive?"

I blinked, my breath catching in my raw throat. "What?"

"I asked you a question, Kaelia. How did you survive the slaughter?" Caius interrogated, his tone devoid of any affection. "And where are the troops that were sent with you? Tell me exactly what happened out there."

My mouth went bone dry. I swallowed hard, tasting grit and copper. My body swayed on my feet, the edges of my vision blackening. I did not know what to say. My thoughts were muddled, spinning with exhaustion and the rapid loss of blood. I couldn't form a coherent answer through my hazy pain before another voice cut in.

Giselle's malicious laugh sliced through the tense air.

"Sister, the Alpha asked you a direct question," Giselle chimed in, stepping closer to Caius and resting her hand on his arm. She feigned a theatrical shock, bringing her free hand up to cover her mouth. "Why are you so quiet? Do you not have an answer for him?" She tapped her chin, her lips curving into a wicked sneer as she addressed the gathering crowd of guards. "Or... could it be that you used your own loyal soldiers as a meat shield distraction so you could escape by yourself?"

My eyes widened in horror. I stared at my twin sister in disbelief. "What are you saying, Giselle? A distraction? I would never do that."

One of the armed guards sneered, spitting at the dirt near my boots. "What? You mean she abandoned them? She used her own soldiers to cover her retreat? Coward."

I shook my head, ignoring the blinding pain in my neck. "No! I said that is not true! I did not use anybody to escape!"

"Then how did you escape?" Caius pressed. "Why would that cold-hearted viper Zaric let you live?"

I wanted to scream at him. I wanted to scream that I was dying right in front of him, that he could at least let me get bandaged before forcing me to answer these insane questions. But I bit the words back, forcing the truth through my trembling lips. "I... I do not know," I whispered weakly. "He just let me go. Everyone else is dead, but he didn't kill me."

Giselle let out another mocking chuckle. It was a vile sound that didn't sound like my sister at all.

"But why would he let you go, sister? From what we have all heard, Alpha Zaric does not spare anyone. He kills everyone who stands in his way. Oh, unless..." She gasped again, her eyes widening in feigned realization. "Unless you surrendered your body to him? Is that why he let you go? Did you let him and his men fuck you? Did you open your legs and let them shove their cocks inside you to buy your life?"

The sheer vile nature of her accusation caused my blood to boil over. Pushed to my absolute limit, I tapped into the deepest core of my soul.

"Enough!" I roared out.

The word exploded from my chest, charged with my resonant Luna command. It was a thundering force that slammed into the space between us. The impact staggered Giselle backward, wiping the smug smile right off her face. Even in my dying state, I still wielded the pack's highest authority.

"Do not make such disgusting assumptions!" I declared, my chest heaving as fresh blood poured down my thigh. "I would rather die than let those monsters touch me!"

Desperate for validation, I turned my pleading eyes back to Caius. I needed my mate to believe me. "You have to believe the truth, Caius," I begged him, my voice cracking. "That is exactly what happened. Zaric spared me while he slaughtered everyone else on the field. I don't know why, but he did."

Caius stared back at me. I searched his deep green eyes for anything—a flicker of the mate bond, a shred of empathy, a spark of warmth. But his eyes were devoid of any warmth or remorse.

He delivered a chilling response. "It doesn't matter."

My breath hitched. The world stopped turning. "What?"

"It doesn't matter what happened out there," Caius stated smoothly, spilling his calculated logic for everyone to hear. "What truly matters is that you were never supposed to make it out of that battle alive, Kaelia."

The ground dropped out from beneath me. "What are you saying...?"

"I thought I was sparing you," he confessed with calmness, stating his betrayal without a single ounce of guilt. "I sent you to your death in that war. I orchestrated it. I thought it would be kinder to let you die a martyr in battle than to reject you before the entire pack and bury you in shame. It was a kindness, a merciful way to spare you the public humiliation of being replaced as Luna by Giselle."

He paused, his eyes narrowing in cold irritation. "But you didn't die in battle. Because you managed to survive the impossible odds, you have left me with no other choice."

Standing before the massive iron gates, surrounded by the loyal guards who had turned their backs on me, Caius stood tall. He looked down at my bleeding form, and formally announced the words that severed my soul.

"I, Caius Ironcross, Alpha of the Moonflare Pack, reject you, Kaelia Ashwood, as my mate."