A Dream of Her
Ryan drifted in a heavy, enchanted sleep.
Darkness wrapped him like velvet, warm and suffocating. Through it, Isabella appeared — luminous, fragile, reaching for him with trembling hands.
Ryan…
Her voice echoed like moonlight breaking. He staggered toward her, but the world warped, dragging her away into smoke.
Forgive me…
Her whisper cracked.And he fell deeper, swallowed by sleep he could not escape.
Isabella's Storm
Isabella stood outside the chamber door long after dawn, one hand pressed against the cold stone to steady herself. The scent of blood — his blood — still clung to her skin like a crime.
She had fed on him.
Jumped onto him like a starving creature.Sunk her fangs into his neck.Felt his pleasure shudder through the bond, felt him melt into her hold — until he weakened beneath her.
When her mind snapped back, she had nearly screamed.
She made him sleep with a whispered command.
Ryan, the Alpha King.Asleep because she forced it.Weakened because of her hunger.
A tremor went through her. She pressed a palm to her lips as if she could erase what she'd done.
She couldn't face him.Not yet.Not when she didn't trust herself.
So she stepped away from the door as if it burned her, issued strict orders to the guards—
"No one enters. No one wakes him. By my command as Queen."
—and walked toward the throne hall with her heart pounding like a hunted thing.
The Moon's Convergence was one day away.
And she was walking into the court alone.
The Court of Wolves
The grand hall was overflowing — nobles, generals, pack leaders, scholars. A low, restless growl pulsed through the room like thunder waiting to crack.
The moment Isabella stepped inside, silence snapped through the air.
Every gaze landed on her.
She did not flinch.Her gown was shadow-dark, her hair pinned with silver spikes, her expression carved from moonlit steel.
But inside, her stomach twisted.
Kael, stepped forward immediately — a storm barely held behind his eyes.
"Princess Isabella," he said, voice tight. "The kingdom expected the Alpha."
"He is resting," she replied evenly.
A flicker of alarm crossed Kael's face. Not relief — fear.
"Resting on the eve of Convergence?" he pressed. "He hasn't missed one since he took the crown."
Behind him, the rest of his brothers stirred.
Lucien, sharp and clever, narrowed his eyes. Thane, always half-amused, wasn't smiling today. Irik and Daren, the twins, watched with wide-eyed unease. Allen, the quiet scholar among them, stared at her like she was holding a blade to their brother's throat.
"Is he injured?" Lucien asked, folding his arms.
"No."Too swift.Too sharp.
Thane straightened from the pillar he leaned on."That wasn't convincing, Princess."
Heat crawled up Isabella's neck.
Damon's voice lowered. "Where is he?"
"In our chamber."Too direct.Too revealing.
The court shifted — a hundred wolves exchanging glances like lightning striking dry grass.
Irik whispered, "Why isn't he here?"
Daren added in a hushed, horrified tone, "Did something happen to him?"
Allen stepped forward, eyes blazing."Princess… did someone harm him?"
The room vibrated with tension — breaths held, claws subtly lengthening.
Isabella forced her voice steady."No. Your king is safe."
Kael's gaze sharpened."But weakened."
Her silence told them everything.
The brothers froze.
Even their breathing stopped.
Lucien's lips parted."Something did happen."
Thane muttered, voice low and dangerous,"Isabella… what did you do?"
Her heart hammered.She held her ground.
"The king will stand when he is ready."
"That isn't an answer," Kael snapped — the first time he had ever raised his voice to her.
The hall erupted into murmurs, sharp and panicked.
Isabella lifted her hand — and a ripple of cold, ancient vampire power spilled out, silencing the room instantly.
When she spoke, her voice was soft, but blade-sharp:
"Your king is safe. That is all you need to know."
Lucien stared at her, eyes narrowing like he was peeling back her skin to see the truth beneath."You won't meet our eyes."
Thane's expression darkened."She's hiding something."
Kael stepped closer, his breath harsh."Princess… tell us where Ryan truly stands."
Her voice cracked just slightly.
"He will return before Convergence."
The brothers' faces changed at once.
Fear.Anger.Distrust.
A ripple of raw panic moved through the hall.
Convergence — the night bonds strengthened, the night the kingdom renewed its power — was tomorrow.
And their king was missing.
Weak.
Silent.
And the only person who knew why…was the vampire queen standing before them.
The Crack in the Crown
As Isabella held the weight of a hundred suspicious gazes, she felt it:
The first crack.The first fracture in the fragile trust she had built.
Kael bowed his head slightly — but his voice was cold as winter steel.
"Very well, Princess. Until the Alpha wakes…the court stands on edge."
The brothers exchanged looks — not of mockery, not of teasing — but genuine, unfiltered fear for their king.
A fear directed squarely at her.
Isabella kept her chin high.
But inside, guilt gnawed her hollow.
Because she knew the truth—
If Ryan didn't wake by the Convergence…she wouldn't just lose their trust.
She might lose the kingdom.
And him.
Forever.