Kael's POV
I shift into my wolf form and plant myself between Maya and the advancing mob. My growl rumbles through the clearing—a clear warning that anyone who touches her will die.
"Stand down, Alpha!" Vera's voice cuts through the chaos. She pushes to the front of the crowd, her silver fox fur gleaming in the moonlight. When she shifts to human form, she's smiling. "Your mate is a witch. She's brought shadow beasts to our territory. The law is clear—dark magic means execution."
"The law also says only I can judge clan threats," I snarl back. "And I say she's innocent."
"Innocent?" Vera laughs, and several clan members echo her. "The creatures appeared the moment she woke up. They're following her scent. Even now, they wait at your den entrance like obedient pets."
She's right. The shadow beasts have stopped attacking the clan. They're circling my den, their red eyes fixed on the doorway. On Maya.
But something's wrong with this picture. Shadow beasts don't wait. They don't hold back. They tear apart anything living until they're destroyed or dismissed by whoever summoned them.
Which means someone is controlling them right now. Someone who wants Maya to look guilty.
"If she controls them," I say slowly, "then why did they chase us through the forest? Why would she attack herself?"
Vera's smile doesn't falter. "Obviously to gain your protection. To make you think she's a victim instead of a threat." She addresses the crowd. "Our Alpha is compromised by the mate bond. It's clouding his judgment. We must act for the clan's safety."
Murmurs of agreement ripple through the assembled wolves.
My cousin Luca pushes through the crowd. "Kael's right. This doesn't add up. Shadow beasts don't take orders once they're summoned—they kill everything until their magic runs out."
"Unless the witch is powerful enough to control them," Vera counters smoothly.
I hear Maya's voice from inside the den: "I'm not a witch! I don't even know how magic works here!"
"The witch speaks!" Vera points at the entrance. "Hear how she lies? Alpha Kael, step aside. Let us cleanse this corruption before it spreads."
The crowd moves forward as one.
My wolf roars. Every instinct screams at me to protect my mate, to kill anyone who threatens her. But I'm one wolf against forty. If this turns into a real fight, people I've known my whole life will die.
People I've sworn to protect.
"There's another way!" Maya shouts suddenly.
Everyone freezes.
She steps out of the den, and I want to drag her back to safety. But she walks forward with her chin up, meeting Vera's eyes without flinching.
"You say I control the shadow beasts?" Maya asks.
"Obviously," Vera purrs.
"Then I should be able to dismiss them, right? If I'm really the one who summoned them?"
The crowd goes silent. Even Vera looks uncertain for a split second.
"Maya, don't—" I start, but she cuts me off.
"If I can make them leave, will you believe I'm innocent?"
Vera's smile returns. "And when you fail? When you prove you can't control them?"
"Then you can have your execution." Maya's voice is steady, but through the mate bond, I feel her terror. She's bluffing. "But if they leave when I command them, everyone here admits I'm innocent and leaves me alone."
It's a trap. Vera knows Maya can't control the beasts. But this whole situation is designed to make Maya look guilty no matter what happens.
"Deal," Vera says quickly. Too quickly.
Maya walks toward the shadow beasts. They track her movement, their rotting bodies tensing. I follow close behind, ready to shift and fight if they attack.
She stops ten feet from the nearest creature. It's huge, made from what used to be a bear, its flesh hanging in strips from its bones. Black liquid drips from its jaws.
"Go away," Maya says firmly. "Leave this territory. I command you."
Nothing happens.
The creature's red eyes bore into her. Its claws flex against the ground.
Vera laughs. "You see? She can't—"
The shadow beast's head explodes.
One second it's standing there, the next its skull shatters from the inside out, spraying black gore everywhere. The body collapses, twitching.
Then the second beast's head explodes. Then the third.
One by one, all fifteen shadow beasts collapse, their bodies dissolving into black smoke that dissipates into the night air.
The clearing falls absolutely silent.
Maya's hands are glowing golden—the same light I saw when she healed me. But this isn't healing magic. This is something else. Something that can destroy from the inside out.
She turns to face Vera, and there's cold fury in her purple eyes.
"You wanted proof I have power?" Maya says softly. "There's your proof. I can heal anything. Which means I can also un-heal it. I can make hearts stop. Make brains explode. Make every cell in your body turn against itself."
She's lying. She has to be. The system only gave her basic healing skills.
But her bluff is terrifying, and no one here knows she's bluffing except me.
Vera backs up, her face pale. "You... you just proved you're dangerous—"
"I just proved I can protect myself," Maya interrupts. "And if anyone here tries to hurt me again, I'll show you exactly what my 'healing' powers can really do."
The crowd shifts nervously. Several clan members actually back away.
Through the mate bond, I feel Maya's exhaustion hit her like a wave. Whatever she just did drained her completely. But she stays standing, her expression fierce.
I should be angry that she threatened my clan. I should assert my authority.
Instead, I feel something dangerously close to pride.
This female isn't weak. Isn't breakable. She just faced down an execution mob and won through sheer nerve and clever manipulation.
Lila would have begged and cried. Maya threatened to make their brains explode.
My wolf purrs with approval, and the mate mark burns hotter on my neck.
"The matter is settled," I announce to the crowd. "Maya is under my protection. Anyone who challenges her challenges me. Dismissed."
The clan members disperse slowly, muttering among themselves. Vera shoots Maya a look of pure hatred before shifting and disappearing into the forest.
When everyone's gone except Luca, I turn to Maya. "What you just did—"
"Was a total guess," she admits quietly. "I have no idea if my healing powers actually work in reverse. I just figured if I could make cells heal, maybe I could theoretically make them un-heal? I was completely bluffing."
"You destroyed fifteen shadow beasts with a bluff?"
"I destroyed them by pushing healing magic into their dead tissue and hoping something would happen." She sways on her feet. "And now I'm going to pass out because apparently magic is exhausting."
She collapses forward. I catch her before she hits the ground, pulling her against my chest.
Through the mate bond, I feel her consciousness slipping away. She used too much power too fast. Her body is shutting down to recover.
"Is she okay?" Luca asks, concerned.
"She will be." I lift Maya into my arms. She's lighter than Lila was, or maybe that's just because Lila never let me carry her like this. "But we have bigger problems."
"The shadow beasts."
"No. Those were just the distraction." I carry Maya back into my den. "Whoever summoned them wanted to test her. To see what she's capable of."
"And now they know she's dangerous."
"Exactly." I lay Maya on my sleeping furs, noting how vulnerable she looks unconscious. "Which means the real attack is coming."
Luca follows me inside. "You think Vera's behind this?"
"Vera doesn't have the power to summon shadow beasts. She's a manipulator, not a dark mage." I stare down at Maya's sleeping face. "But she's working with someone who does."
"Then who?"
Before I can answer, Maya's eyes snap open. But they're not purple anymore.
They're glowing pure white, like the three moons overhead.
And when she speaks, it's not her voice. It's multiple voices layered together, ancient and powerful:
"THE CELESTIAL HEALING SYSTEM HAS DETECTED CORRUPTION IN THIS VESSEL. INITIATING EMERGENCY PURGE. HOST MAYA BENNETT WILL BE UNCONSCIOUS FOR 72 HOURS WHILE SYSTEM REPAIRS DAMAGE."
"What damage?" I demand. "What's wrong with her?"
The white eyes focus on me.
"THE PREVIOUS VESSEL—LILA MOONWHISPER—WAS POISONED BEFORE DEATH. THE POISON REMAINS IN THIS BODY'S BLOOD. IF NOT REMOVED, HOST MAYA WILL DIE IN 96 HOURS."
My blood runs cold.
Lila was poisoned before I killed her?
"WARNING: THE POISONER IS STILL IN YOUR CLAN. THEY WILL TRY TO FINISH THE JOB. PROTECT YOUR MATE, ALPHA KAEL STORMFANG. OR LOSE HER FOREVER."
Maya's eyes close, and she goes completely limp in my arms.
She's barely breathing.
And someone in my clan—someone close enough to poison Lila—is planning to kill Maya next.
I have seventy-two hours to find the traitor.
Or watch my mate die for the second time.