The night didn't rest after Lucien marked her.
It shifted.
As if the city itself had felt the change in the air.
Sera lay tangled in the sheets, her body still tingling where his teeth had pierced her skin. The mark burned—not painfully, but like a flame that refused to go out. She touched it gently, her fingers trembling.
It wasn't a dream.
Lucien was by the window, shirtless, his sculpted back bathed in the gray light of early dawn. He hadn't said a word since he marked her. He just stood there—watching the city like a predator about to go to war.
"Lucien…" she whispered.
He turned to her slowly. His eyes, once amber-gold, were darker now. Sharper. He was no longer just the man she'd fallen for. He was the Alpha.
And something was coming.
"They know," he said quietly, jaw tight. "They felt the mark."
Sera sat up, pulling the sheet to her chest. "Who?"
"My enemies. And… my pack."
Her throat dried. "You said they wouldn't—"
"I said they wouldn't touch you." His voice was like ice. "But that doesn't mean they won't try."
He moved toward her, crouched beside the bed, and brushed his fingers across her cheek.
"You're mine now, Sera. That mark… it's a challenge to every rival pack in this city. They'll see it as a threat. An invitation. A war cry."
Her pulse thundered. "Why?"
"Because I marked a human. Because I marked you before claiming my official title. Because I'm supposed to be hiding. Lying low." He smirked bitterly. "Instead, I chose you."
"You said it was just to protect me."
His expression shifted, raw and honest. "It started that way."
Silence hung heavy between them.
Then, a deep, distant howl split the morning air. Long. Echoing. Answered by another. Then another.
Lucien rose to his full height, fury crackling beneath his skin.
"They're close," he growled. "Too close."
Sera wrapped the sheet around her and stepped toward him, barefoot, vulnerable, and yet fiercer than ever.
"I want to fight with you," she said softly.
He turned to her, startled.
"No," he said. "You don't understand what's coming. This isn't just a fight. This is blood. Vengeance. Power struggles buried for years. You're not ready."
"I never said I was." Her voice shook, but her eyes didn't. "But I'm still yours. And I won't run."
His gaze locked with hers, and for a moment, the Alpha's mask slipped. Just a man—afraid of losing the one thing he didn't know he needed.
"You're not like them, Sera. You're… more. And they'll smell it on you. Your heart. Your fire. They'll try to rip it from me."
"Let them try," she said, lifting her chin. "You think I'm scared of wolves? I'm more afraid of losing you."
A growl rumbled in his chest—deep, possessive, torn between desire and rage. He grabbed her by the waist and kissed her with a hunger that could've burned the world down.
Then—
Glass shattered
A figure crashed through the window, landing in a crouch. Muscles rippled beneath pale skin. Eyes glowing red.
Lucien stepped in front of her instantly, voice a snarl.
"Reed."
"Alpha," the intruder said mockingly. "You've broken the truce."
"This has nothing to do with you."
"Oh, but it does. You chose her over your bloodline. Over your throne. You chose weakness."
"I chose love," Lucien said, shifting. His bones cracked. Fur rippled over his skin. "And I'll kill for it."
In a blink, Lucien launched at him. Teeth, claws, fury.
The room exploded in violence.
Sera scrambled back, breath caught in her throat. She watched the man she loved become something else entirely—an apex predator in motion. And still… beautiful.
But for every blow Lucien gave, Reed returned one.
More shadows gathered outside the broken window. More wolves.
The war had begun.
Sera grabbed the silver knife Lucien kept under the bed.
And she ran into the night—barefoot, half-naked, heart blazing.
If this was war, she refused to be a bystander.