VOWS TO THE DEVIL

The amber eyes did not move.

Lyra's scream died in her throat. She pressed herself against the headboard, clutching the black silk sheets, her heart slamming against her ribs. The eyes watched from the corner, large and luminous, belonging to something massive. A hulking shadow that drank the darkness.

"Do not scream again."

The voice was in her head. Deep. Resonant. Intimate.

The shadow stepped into the moonlight. It was a wolf-but too big, too aware. Fur black as void. Muscles like coiled steel. Eyes burning with ancient intelligence.

She had seen this wolf before. In her dreams. In the darkness of her mind.

"You are safe," the wolf said. "The screams you heard... dealt with."

Lyra's throat constricted. "Dealt with?"

"Assassins. They came for you. They are dead."

Someone had sent killers to murder her on her first night.

"Who?" she managed. "Who sent them?"

The wolf's eyes flickered. "Your husband is investigating. He is... efficient."

"Why are you here?" she whispered. "What do you want?"

The wolf stepped closer. Stopped at the edge of her bed. Its warmth radiated against her skin.

"I am here because you summoned me. Every time you dreamed of me, you called. Every time you felt that pressure in your chest, you reached out."

Lyra shook her head. "I don't understand."

"Your wolf. The one you believe you lack. It is not gone. It has been sealed. Bound. Buried so deep you forgot it existed."

"Sealed? By who?"

"By those who fear what you will become."

The wolf tilted its head. Its amber eyes bore into hers.

"You carry the Heart of the Devil Wolf. The last fragment of the most powerful wolf to ever exist. The Moon Goddess herself sealed your power to prevent the prophecy from coming true."

Lyra's blood ran cold. "I don't have any power. I can't even shift. I'm nobody."

"You are the most dangerous wolf in existence. And they have made you believe you are worthless to keep you weak."

It leaned closer. Breath ghosted across her face. Pine and smoke and ancient magic.

"They are coming for you again. The assassins were only the beginning. The man who sent them will try again. And again. Until you are dead or he controls the power you carry."

"Who? Who sent them?"

The wolf turned toward the door. Ears pricked. Body tensed.

"Someone is coming. Be careful who you trust. The ones who smile at you are often the ones holding the blade."

"Wait-I don't even know who you are. What are you?"

The wolf turned back. Its amber eyes softened.

"I am what you will become. I am the part of you that was stolen. I am your wolf. And I will not abandon you."

The door burst open.

Lyra spun. Kael Draven stood in the doorway, silhouetted against torchlight. Black tunic stained dark at the collar. Hair disheveled. Jaw tight. A man fresh from battle.

His eyes swept the room. "Where is it?"

"Where is what?"

"The wolf. I felt it. Something was in here with you."

Lyra looked to the corner. Empty. The shadow was gone. Only the scent of pine and smoke remained.

"There was nothing. I was alone."

Kael's eyes narrowed. "I heard you scream. The guards heard you scream. And I felt-" He stopped. Jaw tightened. "Never mind. Are you injured?"

She shook her head. "I'm fine. The screams I heard-what happened?"

Silence stretched. His eyes met hers. Recognition flickered. Then gone.

"Assassins. They were heading for your chambers."

"Did you catch them?"

"They are dead. All of them."

"Did you question them? Find out who sent them?"

He stared at her. Something shifted in his posture. Tension. Tightening around his eyes.

"They were hired. Anonymous contract. The trail ends with the dead."

Lyra's pulse quickened. The wolf had warned her. The ones who smile at you are often the ones holding the blade.

"The servants-"

"Are being questioned. Every person in the palace will be interrogated. You will not be harmed again."

Something in his voice shifted. Protectiveness. Involuntary. As if the words escaped before he could stop them.

"Why did you come?" she asked softly. "You said I was nothing to you. A wife by law and nothing more."

His expression hardened. "Because I do not allow my possessions to be stolen or destroyed. If someone wants you dead, they answer to me."

His possessions. The words hit like a slap. He hadn't come to protect her. He had come to protect his property.

She looked away. "I see."

Kael stood there longer. She felt his eyes on her, weighing. Measuring. Then he turned.

"I'm posting guards outside your chambers. You will not leave without an escort. Do you understand?"

She nodded without looking at him.

"And Lyra." His voice softened. "The wolf you saw... if you remember anything, tell me."

She looked up. "How do you know I saw a wolf?"

He paused at the threshold. Glanced back. His amber eyes met hers.

"Because," he said quietly, "I saw it too."

The door closed. Lyra was alone.

The wolf's words echoed. The ones who smile at you are often the ones holding the blade.

Kael Draven didn't smile. He was cold, distant, dismissive. But he had come when she screamed. He had killed the assassins himself. He had felt the wolf's presence.

What did that mean?

And more importantly-who had sent the killers?

She pressed her hand to her chest. Beneath her palm, she felt it again. The pressure. The caged thing. The wolf sealed by the Moon Goddess herself.

I am what you will become. I will not abandon you.

Lyra stared into the darkness. Her life had changed forever.

The question was whether she would survive it.

*****

Morning arrived with a summons.

Lyra had not slept. Every shadow alive. Every creak a threat. She had spent the night sitting upright against the headboard, eyes fixed on the corner where the black wolf had appeared.

A servant entered, trembling. "His Majesty requests your presence in the throne room. He wishes to introduce you to the court."

Lyra looked at the food on the tray. She wasn't hungry.

"Tell my husband I will be there shortly."

The servant fled.

Lyra dressed in black silk and silver embroidery-the colors of Black Hollow. She looked at her reflection. The gown was beautiful. The girl wearing it looked like a ghost.

But beneath that ghost, something stirred. Something ancient. Powerful. Waking.

***

The throne room was more intimidating in daylight.

Courtiers lined the walls, eyes sharp, expressions cold. Wolves who smelled weakness. She would not give them any.

Kael sat on his throne of black stone and bone. Formal black armor. Hair pulled back. He looked like a god of death.

But when his eyes met hers, recognition flickered. And something else. Worry.

She curtsied. Whispers swelled.

"She can't shift."

"Why would the Alpha choose a Moon-Cursed?"

"She won't last."

Kael rose,walked towards her. Stopped inches away. His warmth pressed against her.

"The court welcomes its new Luna," he announced. "My wife, Lyra Draven."

The name hit like a blow. Lyra Draven. Bound to him. Married to a man who said she was nothing.

But why did his eyes say something different?

The court applauded. Hollow sound against stone. Lyra forced a smile. Forced herself to stand tall.

Then she felt it. A presence. Cold. Calculating. Watching.

She turned.

A man stood in the shadows near the throne. Grey-haired. A face that might have been kind once. He smiled at her-a warm, fatherly smile.

The wolf inside her stirred. It growled.

Be careful, the wolf's voice whispered in her mind. The ones who smile at you are often the ones holding the blade.

Lyra looked at the smiling man. A chill ran down her spine.

She didn't know his name. But the wolf knew.

And the wolf was afraid.

****

That night, Lyra stood at her window and stared into the darkness. Guards posted outside. Windows locked. The room was as secure as Kael could make it.

But the black wolf hadn't returned.

She had felt it, though. Stirring in her chest. Pressing against the seal. Growing stronger.

And she had felt something else. A presence in the shadows. Watching. Waiting.

Below in the courtyard, a figure stood. Grey hair. Warm smile. Looking up at her window.

He raised his hand. He waved.

Lyra stepped back. Heart pounding. The wolf in her chest screamed a warning.

She didn't know his name.

But she knew, with absolute certainty, he was the one who had sent the assassins.

And he was coming for her.