Chapter 6 Seraphina's Rage
The shadow-wraith materialized in my private rooms covered in burns and reeking of failure. I grabbed it by what passed for its throat before it could speak.
"Where is the child?" I growled, my fingernails extending into claws.
"Gone," the thing wheezed. "The Alpha... he came. And the other one. They fought together."
I threw the weak thing across the room so hard it splattered against the stone wall like black ink. "TOGETHER?"
This was not the plan. Damon should have been here, sleeping next to me in our marriage bed, while my assassins quietly removed his little omega problem. Instead, he was playing happy family with his bastard child and the cousin who should have died years ago.
"Tell me exactly what happened," I ordered the remaining shadow-wraith.
"The child's power... unique. She made light that burned us. The two males, they shared awareness. Fought like they were one person."
My blood turned to ice. "Shared consciousness?"
"Ancient magic, lady. Soul-bond magic."
I screamed so loud the windows cracked. Soul-bonds were meant to be impossible between two alphas. But if Damon and Marcus had somehow triggered their childhood binding... Everything made sense now. Why Marcus had left the pack three years ago. Why Damon had been so concerned with finding his omega. Why my marriage to him had felt like trying to hold onto smoke.
They weren't just cousins anymore. They were magically linked, and that omega was the key that opened their power.
"Mistress," the shadow-wraith cowered in the corner. "What are your orders?"
I paced across my rooms, my mind racing. Three years I'd wasted trying to be the perfect Alpha wife. Three years of Damon looking right through me like I was nothing. Three years of feeling the pack's respect slip away as their Alpha got more distant and distracted.
All because of her. Luna Ashford and her impossible child.
"Send word to the Bloodmoon Pack," I ordered. "Tell Alpha Kane I'm ready to discuss his offer."
The wraith's form flickered with surprise. "The Bloodmoon Pack are known for their cruelty, mistress. Alliance with them would mean—"
"I know exactly what it means," I snapped. "Do it."
As the creature dissolved into shadow to take my message, I walked to the window overlooking the Silvermane territory. Below me, pack members went about their daily routines, totally unaware that their precious Alpha had abandoned them again for the same omega who'd destroyed our marriage.
But this wasn't just about Damon anymore. The shadow-wraith's report had revealed something far more dangerous. If Luna Ashford really was what I suspected - a Harmony Keeper - then she and her child were threats to everything I'd worked for.
Harmony Keepers didn't just bring peace. They revealed lies. They showed truth. They made it impossible for people like me to keep control through fear and manipulation.
My phone buzzed with a text message. "Meeting made. Midnight. Neutral lands. Come alone. - Kane" I smiled for the first time in days. Alpha Kane of the Bloodmoon Pack had been trying to expand his area for years, but the Silvermane alliance network had kept him in check. With Damon gone and the pack exposed, Kane would jump at the chance to finally make his move.
But Kane didn't know what I really wanted from this partnership.
Three hours later, I stood in the abandoned warehouse that served as neutral meeting ground between our areas. Kane emerged from the shadows with two of his beta wolves, all of them oozing the kind of casual violence that made normal werewolves nervous.
"Seraphina Nightshade," Kane's voice was like gravel. "Heard your husband ran off again."
"My husband is dealing with a threat to all supernatural packs," I said easily. "Which is why I'm here."
Kane laughed, but it wasn't a nice sound. "You mean he's going after his omega girlfriend and their kid. Yeah, I heard about that too."
I kept my face neutral, even though I wanted to rip his throat out. "What else have you heard?"
"Enough to know that Luna Ashford isn't just any omega." Kane's eyes gleamed with interest. "Word is she's got skills that could reshape pack politics entirely. Some say she's even got family magic."
So the stories were already spreading. Soon every pack leader would know about Luna's possible power, and they'd all want either to use her or destroy her.
"That's exactly the problem," I said. "Harmony Keepers don't just bring peace, Kane. They bring change. They make alphas question established power structures. They inspire omegas to think they deserve better care."
Kane nodded slowly. "And that kind of thinking spreads like wildfire."
"Exactly. Today it's Luna Ashford testing pack hierarchies. Tomorrow it's every omega in every territory wanting equal treatment. The old ways, the ways that keep us in power, they'd be finished."
"So what are you proposing?"
I took a deep breath. This was the moment that would either save my situation or destroy me entirely.
"I'm saying we eliminate the threat before it spreads. Luna Ashford, her child, and anyone who supports them."
Kane's eyebrows rose. "That includes your husband."
"If necessary."
For a long moment, Kane studied me. Then he smiled, showing teeth that were too sharp.
"I like you, Seraphina. You think like a real Alpha. But taking on Damon Silvermane and his cousin won't be easy. They're powerful, and now that they're linked..."
"I know about the soul-bond," I said. "And I know how to break it."
That got his attention. "How?"
"Dark magic. The kind that's been banned for good reason." I pulled out an ancient book I'd stolen from the pack's restricted files. "Blood binding can override soul bonds, but it requires a sacrifice."
Kane flipped through the pages, his expression getting more interested. "What kind of sacrifice?"
"The kind that involves Luna Ashford's daughter."
The warehouse went quiet except for the sound of Kane breathing. His beta wolves traded glances that I couldn't read.
"You're talking about ritual murder," Kane said finally.
"I'm talking about survival," I corrected. "If we let Luna finish whatever prophecy she's part of, we'll lose everything. Our power, our lands, our way of life."
Kane closed the book and gave it back to me. "When do we start?"
Relief flooded through me. "Tonight. I've already sent scouts to track them. But Kane," I met his eyes, "there's something else you need to know."
"What?"
I smiled, knowing this next reveal would seal our alliance forever.
"Luna Ashford isn't just a Harmony Keeper. According to the old texts, she's the last of her family. Which means her daughter isn't just powerful - she's the key to waking something that's been sleeping for thousands of years."
Kane went very still. "What kind of something?"
"The kind that could either give us ultimate power over all supernatural beings..." I paused for dramatic effect, "or destroy every living thing on earth."
Kane's phone suddenly buzzed with an important message. He read it, and his face went pale.
"What is it?" I asked.
"My scouts just reported in," Kane said, his voice tight with something that might have been fear. "Luna Ashford and the others... they're not where they're supposed to be."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean they've disappeared completely. Along with half the supernatural beings in a fifty-mile radius."
My stomach dropped. "That's impossible."
Kane showed me his phone. The message was short but terrifying: "All supernatural beings in Whisper Pines area disappeared simultaneously at 11:47 PM. No trace. No scent tracks. Like they never existed. Advise immediate retreat."
I stared at the message, my mind spinning. What kind of power could make an entire community of supernatural people just... disappear?
Then Kane's phone rang. The caller ID showed a number I didn't know, but when Kane answered, the voice that came through the speaker made my blood freeze.
"Hello, Seraphina."
It was Luna Ashford. But her voice sounded different. Older. More strong.
"I know what you're planning," Luna continued quietly. "And I know you think you understand what's happening. But you have no idea what you're really dealing with."
"Where are you?" I growled into the phone.
"Somewhere you can't reach. Somewhere you can't hurt anyone ever again."
"This isn't over," I warned.
Luna's laugh sent chills down my spine. "Oh, Seraphina. It's just starting. And you have no idea what's coming for you."
The line went dead, leaving Kane and me staring at each other in the sudden quiet.
That's when I realized the building around us was completely empty. Kane's beta dogs were gone. The shadows that usually moved in the corners were gone.
We were alone in a world that suddenly felt much more dangerous than it had five minutes ago.
"Kane," I breathed, "where did everyone go?"


























