The air inside the Crimson Circle manor was thick with silence like choking, stifling, and unnatural. Mira's steps echoed against polished stone floors as she wandered the winding halls, every corner haunted by whispers of war and ghosts that bore her name.
She didn't know where she was going. Only that she needed to breathe, to think and to get away from the cold bed where her new "husband" had slept like a sentinel, his back to her, his presence is like a wall she couldn't climb.
Ash Calder. Her Alpha heir, the murderer and monster.And now—hers.
The bond throbbed in her blood like poison. She could feel him. Not his thoughts—thank the gods—but his moods, his presence like a storm cloud just beyond her skin. Always near and watching. As if the gods had cursed her to carry the weight of him in every heartbeat.
Mira hate it, just like how she hated Ash. But gods help her—some part of her didn't.
Mira stopped before a set of tall windows overlooking the forest. Her reflection was a ghost in the glass. Her pale skin, wild dark hair clinging to her shoulders, bruised lips pressed into a frown. She looked nothing like the girl she used to be and that girl died the night her pack was slaughtered. When the Crimson Circle came with fire and steel. When Ash Calder had looked her in the eye as she bled beside her father's body, and walked away.
And now…he shared her bed. Her blood and her fate.
Suddenly, a noise behind her, heavy boots on stone. She turned just as Ash entered the corridor, shirtless, sweat gleaming on his chest from his training. His breath was slightly uneven and his muscles tense.
Her traitor heart thudded hard at the sight of him. Do not ever think about, Mira! You fool!.
Ash stopped when he saw her, jaw tightening. "You're lost."
"No," she said softly. "Just... trapped."
He looked away, and for a moment, she thought he might ignore her again. Walk past her like he had so many times before.
But he didn't. Instead, he stepped closer and his gaze is unreadable. "The forest's edge is guarded. Don't try to run."
"I wasn't running," she said, chin raised. "Not yet."
His lips curved—but it wasn't amusement. It was something darker. "You think I don't know what you're thinking, Mira? You still look at me like I'm the one who burned your world down."
"You did, Ash Calder!"
He closed the distance between them in two long strides, towering over her.
"No," he growled low, "my father did. And your Alpha, your precious father wasn't the saint you made him out to be."
Her jaw clenched. "Don't you dare speak of him—"
"He sent your brother to slit my mother's throat in her sleep."
The words hit like a blade to the gut. Mira blinked. This is the first time she heard it and she was very furious!
"You're lying!"
"I wish I was," Ash said bitterly. "You think this marriage is the worst thing that happened to me? Mira, your family started a war. I just ended it."
"By slaughtering my pack?" she spat. "By dragging me from the ruins and parading me like some trophy?"
His eyes narrowed. "You think I had a choice?"
"You had a blade, Ash Calder!"
Silence stretched between them—long, ragged and heavy.
Then softer, almost reluctant, Ash said, "I spared you."
Her voice wavered. "Why?"
Ash looked away. Something flickered in his expression—something that hurt to see. "Because I saw your eyes," he said after a moment. "And they looked like mine."
Mira couldn't breathe in what she heard. The emotion on Ash voice pained her more.
Then, Ash stepped back. "Don't mistake that for mercy. I didn't do it for you. I did it because I was tired of burying children."
Mira felt the floor tilt beneath her. She couldn't tell if it was grief or rage or something far more dangerous creeping into her chest. And before she could speak again, a horn echoed through the air. One long, low note, like so urgent. An alarm!
Ash stiffened and confused.
"What's happening?" Mira asked.
He didn't answer. He was already moving, fast and fluid, like a shadow.
She ran after him. They burst into the main hall just as warriors swarmed in—scarred men and women with blood on their weapons and mud on their boots. One knelt before Ash, breathing hard.
"Alpha Calder, we found a corpse at the ward line."
Ash's eyes sharpened. "What kind of corpse?"
The warrior swallowed. "One of hers. A scout from the Silverclaw remnants. Torn apart. But… the bite marks don't match any wolf from this territory."
Mira froze and her eyes became round. "What?"
Ash looked at her sharply. "You recognize the scent?"
She shook her head slowly. "It's not one of mine. Not anymore. But I remember this kill style, a messy and cruel. This wasn't a warning. It was a message."
Ash cursed under his breath.
"What does it mean?" she asked.
He didn't look at her when he said it.
"It means someone wants this alliance broken. Someone who would rather see us both dead than bound."
Mira's skin prickled. Her wolf stirred uneasily. "And they're getting bolder."
Ash turned to the others, barking orders. "Double the guards. Pull the scouts back and ward the inner perimeter. Mira stays within the manor walls unless I say otherwise."
Mira snapped, "I'm not a prisoner."
Ash turned back to her, eyes burning like wildfire. "You are my wife. That means I bleed for you. I die for you. And I command your protection!"
Her chest heaved. "You don't get to own me."
"I already do," he said, low and cruel, "by law, by blood, by the moon's decree."
She slapped him. The crack of skin echoed across the marble. His face turned to the side, a red mark blooming across his cheek. But he didn't retaliate. He just looked at her and said, "Good. Stay angry."
Then he left her there, breathless and shaking. Mira's palm stung. Her heart stung more.
Later that night, as she sat alone in the massive bedroom—her fingers tracing the edges of the binding mark on her wrist—she felt the bond flare again.
Ash was near.
But she didn't turn around when the door opened, nor when he stood silently behind her. The air shifted with his heat, his presence a heavy blanket she couldn't shrug off.
"I'll be gone by morning," he said quietly. "A threat that close to our land means something worse is coming."
She didn't respond.
He hesitated. Then, "Don't trust anyone while I'm gone. Not even my kin."
Her throat tightened. "Not even your own blood?"
"Especially not my blood," he said, voice like gravel. "They hate this union more than you do."
She finally looked at him. His eyes looked tired and older than he was.
"Then why protect me?" she whispered. "Why fight so hard to keep me safe?"
He didn't answer. But as he turned to leave, she saw the smallest hesitation in his step. And it wasn't until the door closed behind him that Mira realized—Ash Calder wasn't just carrying secrets. He was carrying her life. And somewhere beneath all the fire and hatred and war-borne scars…
He was bleeding for it.