Chapter 40. Ashen Reign

The journey from the Sunkenwood thicket to the heart of the Bloodmoon territory was short, brutal, and silent. Neriah walked with a new, unnerving economy of motion, her exhaustion gone, replaced by the profound, cold stillness of the Ashen Flame.

Caius walked beside her, his face a mask of resolute tension. He had confessed his impossible betrayal, been forgiven by circumstance, and now served a woman who was no longer just his mate, but a force of nature. He was a shadow to her new, chilling light.

“We are entering the Shadowlands,” Caius warned, his voice low. “The Bloodmoon patrols are heavy here. They will recognize me instantly.”

“They will recognize the Traitor Alpha,” Neriah corrected, her voice carrying the new, deep resonance of the integrated Flame—a sound that was smooth, hard, and utterly without doubt. “And they will recognize the Rogue Queen who came to claim his pack. We will not hide. We will be visible.”

She stepped out from the treeline and