Selene's POV
I returned to the apothecary with the first light of dawn, the road still damp with dew. The air smelled of wet earth and crushed herbs, a scent that always felt like home. Birds were beginning their morning songs and the distant sound of the river flowed softly beyond the hills. Peace Abode was like a sanctuary, a brief escape from the chaos that had shadowed my life for too long. But now, as I approached the apothecary, a strange heaviness pressed against my chest, like the air itself had thickened.
Elara stood by the doorway, brushing dust from her apron. Her eyes lifted as she saw me and a smile broke through her tired expression. "You are back."
I nodded and stepped inside. "The forest feels different this morning. Almost like it is listening."
Flora was seated at the long wooden table, sorting through dried petals and roots. Her belly had grown rounder, glowing faintly under the sunlight that spilled through the open window. She looked peaceful, her hair braided with tiny sprigs of rosemary, but there was a tremor in her aura that made my heart twist. She looked at me and greeted me.
"You look troubled," Elara said quietly, walking toward me.
"I am," I admitted, setting my satchel down. "I saw something last night. In a dream, or maybe a warning. A woman named Kira Ronan. She carries hatred like a weapon and her soul burns with something I do not yet understand."
Flora's hands stilled over the petals. "Kira Ronan?"
"Yes." I met her eyes. "Lucian knew her. She was once part of the pack, but she betrayed them and it seems she is coming back."
Elara's brows furrowed. "She is coming back?"
"I fear so."
The apothecary suddenly felt too still. The air that once hummed with soft magic now trembled faintly. My wards along the window flickered, a ripple of distortion moving across the invisible barrier. I exchanged a glance with Elara. She felt it too.
"Something is coming," I whispered and the window pane shattered.
Flora screamed and scrambled from her seat, because she was sitting close to the window, her voice low and uncertain. "Maybe it is just the wind?"
But I knew better. This was no wind. This was darkness shifting.
***********
Kira's POV
I walked through the silver mist of the forest, the hem of my cloak brushing against the damp grass. The trees whispered, their voices old and secretive. The Shadow Court had given me power and with it, purpose.
The night I was banished, I swore I would return. Not for revenge alone, but for what was taken from me, my place, my future as the pack luna and my claim beside Lucian. I had loved him once, but love is a foolish thing. Now, only ambition remains, but i won't let him know.
The leader of the Shadow Court, a figure cloaked in black fire, had told me of Selene, the born moon and a true blood witch, who her kind cursed our kind and she has now captured Lucian's attention. Druid the shadow court leader said her aura is bright, untamed and irritatingly pure. It was her light that I despised most.
"She is the thread holding the prophecy together," the Shadow Court's voice had told me. "Break her and the bond between wolf and moon will shatter."
So I followed their guidance. I learned their magic. Dark, binding and cruel. The kind of power that consumes.
When I reached the edge of the village, I saw it, the apothecary. A wooden house wrapped in vines and herbs, smelling faintly of lavender and smoke. Through the window, I could see them: Selene, Elara, and another woman with a swollen belly.
A cruel smile touched my lips. "So this is where you hide, moon witch."
I whispered a spell, dark smoke curling around my fingertips. The ground trembled beneath me and from the shadows, black vines slithered toward the apothecary like serpents.
The first strike was silent. A gust of wind shattered the window panes, and the protective wards flared white before flickering violently. The air split with a hiss and I heard someone inside cry out.
Let her see what fear feels like.
Let her know that Kira Ronan has returned.
*************
Selene's POV
The wards broke with a sound like cracking glass. I turned sharply as the shelves trembled, bottles falling and shattering against the floor. The scent of herbs and smoke filled the room.
"Elara!" I shouted.
"I see it!" she cried, raising her hand as a burst of blue light shot from her palm. The vines of shadow recoiled, twisting and screeching as they hit the light. Flora stumbled backward, clutching her stomach.
"Selene!" she gasped. "Something's wrong—my stomach—"
I ran to her side, catching her just as her knees buckled. "What is it?"
Her face was pale, drenched in sweat. "My water—my water just broke!"
My heart seized. "What? Flora, it is only four moons!"
She nodded weakly, pain etched across her face. "I know, but it is happening now"
Elara was chanting rapidly, her voice trembling but strong. The air shimmered as she pushed another barrier around the apothecary, though cracks already spidered through the light.
"Flora, breathe. Chant the protection spell we taught you," I said quickly, pressing my palm against her back. "Do not stop, no matter what."
She nodded, tears filling her eyes as she whispered the words, her hands glowing faintly with golden light. I could feel her trying, fighting, but the darkness outside was relentless. The vines slammed against the barrier again, making the entire room shake.
I gathered my magic, pulling from the moonstone around my neck, letting it pulse through me. A soft blue light spread across the floor, weaving sigils into the wood. The shadows hissed as the light grew brighter.
And then, silence.
The vines stopped. The air cleared. Only the echo of Flora's gasping breaths filled the room.
Elara dropped to her knees, panting. "It stopped….. for now."
I knelt beside Flora. "We must deliver her child now, before the darkness returns."
As I helped her lie down, I could still feel that lingering pulse of shadow outside, watching us, waiting. It was not over. Kira was still there, hiding beyond the trees, her hatred clinging to the air like smoke.
************
Kira's POV
The witch's defenses were stronger than I expected. I felt the backlash of her spell ripple through the ground and forced myself to retreat into the shadows. The energy burned against my palms, but I smiled through the pain.
"Impressive," I murmured. "You are strong, Selene, but not strong enough."
My spies had already told me what I needed to know, she hasn't gotten her full witch power yet. But now that i know, where she lived, who lived with her and where Lucian's patrols rarely reached. Now I knew her weaknesses too. The pregnant girl, she mattered to Selene. That would be useful later.
But for now, I needed to complete the second part of my plan.
The Shadow Court had promised that if I gained Lucian's trust again, they would help me bind his soul to mine. And when the Alpha falls, the witch will crumble.
By dusk, I reached Moonfang territory. Two guards spotted me at the border, their hackles raised.
"I seek an audience with our Alpha," I said, bowing my head with feigned humility. "Tell him Kira Ronan has returned, not as an enemy, but as one who has repented."
They hesitated, unsure. But my voice carried an edge of pretense of humility, that anyone will obey to. Soon, they escorted me to the packhouse.
The scent of cedar and smoke filled the hall. And there he was…..Lucian, standing behind his desk, his golden eyes narrowing the moment they landed on me. Darius stood by his side, his expression unreadable.
"Lucian," I said softly, with cuteness, also lowering my gaze. "I have come to make peace and also have repented."
************
Lucian's POV
The moment I saw her, every muscle in my body tensed. Kira Ronan, alive. The woman I had banished for treachery now stood in front of me, wearing a mask of humility.
Darius shifted beside me, his jaw clenched. "Is Alpha to you traitor?"
Kira lifted her chin. "I— I — am sorry, Alpha. I have wandered for years, Luci— Alpha i mean. I have paid for my sins. I come not to cause trouble, but to live among my kind again."
Her voice was smooth, her eyes downcast, but I knew manipulation when I heard it. Still, I said nothing, only studied her carefully. Something about her aura felt off, tainted, darker than I remembered.
"You expect me to believe that?" I asked finally.
"I want you to see that I am no longer an enemy," she said softly. "I only wish to serve the pack again.
Darius stepped forward, his tone sharp. "The last time you served this pack, you sold its secrets to our enemies.
Kira met his glare calmly. "And I have lived with that shame every day. All I ask is a chance to prove that I am not the same woman again."
Her words were carefully chosen, her posture submissive, but her eyes flickered once toward me and I saw it, the glint of dangerous and dark ambition.
I exhaled slowly. "You will stay in the lower quarters. Under watch. If I sense even the slightest hint of deceit, I will not hesitate to end what should have been ended years ago."
Her lips curved faintly. "Of course, Alpha."
As she was escorted out, Darius leaned closer. "You do not trust her, do you?"
"No," I said quietly. "And I intend to find out why she has truly returned."
But even as I spoke, the back of my neck tingled, a familiar sensation of warning. My mind wandered to somewhere far from the packhouse, in the apothecary where the woman i could not stop thinking about lived.