The doors slammed open so hard the hinges screamed.
I was one breath away from saying "I do." Alpha Tyler, my fiancé's fingers tightened around mine, warm and steady, way too steady for the way my heart was hammering. Then the air changed. Cold. Sharp. Like the forest right before a hunt turns bloody.
Black uniforms flooded the aisle. Imperial Pack soldiers, but not here for celebration of their Alpha wedding. Their boots hit the marble in perfect time, silver claws already drawn. The scent of it burned my throat. The fact that Imperial Pack wolves, including their Alpha and my fiancé, Tyler, had silver claws would always make me wonder. Of course, it meant they were more powerful than any other wolves in the region but I wondered how they managed not to be allergic to silver as other wolves are.
Even as they drew out the silver claws, wolves in the hall moved away from the claws but I didn't, still wondering what the hell was happening.
And then he walked through them.
Logan Collins. Beta of Imperial Pack. Tyler's beta.
I'd spent years making sure our paths never crossed too close. One look at those golden eyes and my wolf wanted to tuck tail. Not today, I told her. Not on my wedding day.
He didn't slow. Didn't speak. Just stopped in front of my father.
Dad stepped forward, shoulders squared. "Beta Logan, what is the meaning of—"
The claws came out. One clean slash. No warning.
Blood hit my white dress before the scream left my throat.
Dad dropped. Hard. Eyes wide, mouth working soundlessly until it wasn't working at all. The puddle of blood spread fast, soaking into the lace train I'd spent hours picking out.
I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.
Logan wiped his hand on his thigh like he'd swatted a fly. "I am most definitely honored," he said, voice calm, almost bored, "to have ended the life of the traitor Beta Kieran."
The hall exploded—growls, snarls, chairs scraping—but the soldiers moved faster. Silver claws flashed. Anyone who shifted got a a claw at the throat.
Logan turned to Alpha Tyler.
My fiancé hadn't let go of my hand. His whole body shook, but he put himself between me and the monster anyway.
"Tyler Voss," Logan said, tasting the name, like it is the first time he is addressing his own Alpha by his legal name. "What a pleasant day for you, is it not?"
"Have you lost your mind? How dare you address your Alpha by his name?" Tyler spat.
Logan smiled. Actually smiled. "Tempting. Tyler Voss, are you aware that you've been stripped off your title?"
Tyler frowned, I swallowed.
"What do you mean?" I summoned the courage to ask.
"It means, my dearest, your fiancé, has been found guilty of treason and conspiracy charges."
"Stop this madness, Logan! Is this about the entreaty I called off? If you want me to reinstate it, I will, but do not ruin my wedding day and disrespect my authority as your Alpha."
"You are wasting my time." Beta Logan murmured boringly.
Then, he signaled to the soldiers.
Once he did, two soldiers grabbed Tyler's arms in a flash. He twisted hard, elbowed one in the face, drew blood.
"Stop fighting, Tyler. Your power as the Alpha has been stripped off you as well. You'll get hurt if you keep trying," shouted Logan, over Tyler struggling with his own soldiers.
"You have lost your mind! You all have lost your mind! I am your Alpha, how dare you?!"
Another soldier slammed a silver cuff around his wrist. The burn made him roar. I lunged, nails turning to claws, ready to jump in to rescue.
Logan's arm like steel locked around my waist and yanked me back against his chest that I knew too well from nightmares. My body shook.
"Easy, little wolf," Logan murmured against my ear. His scent flooded me—pine, smoke, dominance so thick it choked me. "Wouldn't want you hurt on your big day."
I drove my elbow into his ribs. He didn't even flinch.
Tyler fought like a cornered animal, screaming about how he is the Alpha and how he'd kill them for daring his authority. Regardless, three of the Imperial soldiers pinned him, forced him to his knees. One shoved a gag between his teeth. His eyes found mine—panic, confusion, fury, love—all at once.
"Tyler!" I screamed his name like it would make all these stop.
They dragged him past my father's body. Past me. Out the broken doors.
The hall went quiet except for my breathing and the wet drip of blood hitting marble. I trembled, unable to fathom what just happened.
Logan finally let go. I spun, fists raised, tears already cutting tracks through the makeup I'd let my best friend paint on this morning.
"You devil," I whispered. "You will pay for this."
He tilted his head, studying me like I was a puzzle he'd already solved. "No," he said softly. "I won't."
Then he looked at the elders, at Alpha Roderick frozen behind the altar, and raised his voice so every wolf in the room heard.
"Effective immediately, by order of Imperial Pack's policy, I claim the title of the Alpha and all its rights. Including—" his gaze slid back to me, hot and possessive "—the mate bond of the previous Alpha Tyler."
My stomach dropped, my world spun. No way…
He stepped over my father's body without looking down.
"Clean this up," he told his men. "And someone find the bride a new dress. Today still remains a big day for Imperial Pack."
He paused right in front of me, close enough that his breath stirred the veil still pinned to my hair.
"See you soon, Bambi," he said, almost tender.
Then he walked out, soldiers falling in behind him like a river of black water.
I stood there in blood-soaked and shaking, staring at the empty doorway he'd left through.
Somewhere outside, the pack howled—but it wasn't mourning.
It was submission, to their new Alpha, Beta Logan now, Alpha Logan. After killing my father and arresting his Alpha, my fiancé.
And for the first time in my life, my wolf didn't fight it.
She went still.
Listening.
Waiting.
Because the new Alpha had just marked his territory.
And I was standing right in the middle of it.