<h4>Chapter 16: Chapter 16: Secrets of Blood and Moon</h4>


    The cabin shook again as another wave of darkness swept through the forest.


    "We need to move," Kael ordered, grabbing weapons Tobias had stored in the cabin. "Now!"


    Ronan pulled ra to her feet while Darian gathered supplies. "Where can we go? She’ll track us anywhere."


    Tobias slid open a trapdoor hidden under a rug. "Underground tunnel. It’ll take us to the old temple ruins."


    They descended quickly as the roof began to crack above them. The passage was narrow and dark, forcing them to run hunched over. ra’s heart hammered against her ribs as the sound of destruction faded behind them.


    After what felt like hours, they emerged into a circr stone chamber. Moonlight filtered through a hole in the ceiling, illuminating ancient symbols carved into the walls.


    "We’re safe for now," Tobias said. "The queen cannot enter this sacred ground easily."


    "What is this ce?" ra whispered, touching symbols that seemed to glow faintly under her fingers.


    "A temple built by the first silver-eyed Lunas," Tobias exined. "Your ancestors."


    Darian examined the walls. "I’ve seen drawings of this ce in the queen’s books. She fears it."


    "We need a n," Kael interrupted, pacing the chamber. "Without the full moon pendant—"


    A deep howl cut through the night, different from the queen’s terrible cry. This was a wolf’s call—powerful,manding.


    "Alpha Marcus," Ronan growled. "How did he find us?"


    "He didn’t," a voice answered as a figure stepped through another tunnel entrance.


    Alpha Marcus ckwood stood before them, alone and unarmed. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of Darian.


    "So it’s true," he said. "All three of my sons, bound to the same mate." He looked at ra with intense curiosity. "An omega who isn’t really an omega at all."


    Kael stepped protectively in front of ra. "What do you want, Father?"


    "To help you," Marcus replied simply. "The skin-walker queen has taken over my pack through my Luna. I want her gone as much as you do."


    "Why should we trust you?" Ronan snarled. "You let her infiltrate our pack!"


    "I didn’t know," Marcus admitted, looking genuinely pained. "Not until recently." He turned to ra. "When I saw your silver eyes, I began to suspect the truth."


    ra felt uneasy under his gaze. "What truth?"


    "That you’re Selene’s daughter," Marcus said quietly. "I knew your mother once. We were allies before the Moonstone Pack fell."


    The revtion stunned everyone into silence. Even Tobias looked surprised.


    "Tell me," Marcus continued, his eyes never leaving ra’s face. "Did your mother have visions? Could she see through the eyes of others?"


    ra tensed. "How did you know about my visions?"


    A victorious gleam shed in Marcus’s eyes. "Because Selene had the same gift. The mark of a true Luna."


    Darian moved closer to ra, his presence calming. "What exactly do you want from us, Father?"


    "I want what’s rightfully mine," Marcus replied. "My pack freed from that creature. And I want the power that was promised to the ckwood line generations ago."


    "What power?" Kael demanded.


    Marcus smiled thinly. "The power of the silver fire. The reason the triplet bond exists at all."


    Tobias stepped forward. "Enough, Marcus. You’re revealing too much too soon."


    "Am I?" Marcus challenged. "Or are you keeping secrets from her that she deserves to know?"


    "What secrets?" ra asked, looking between the two men.


    Marcus circled the chamber slowly. "Did Tobias tell you why the triplet mate bond happened? Why my three sons all carry the mark for you?"


    "It’s part of the prophecy," ra answered uncertainly.


    "Yes, but why?" Marcus pressed. "Ask him about the ancient pact between the ckwood and Moonstone Packs. Ask him what your mother promised me."


    Tobias’s expression darkened. "This isn’t the time—"


    "My pack is being destroyed as we speak," Marcus snapped. "This is exactly the time." He turned back to ra. "Your mother made a deal with me. The firstborn daughter of the Moonstone Luna would bond with the next Alpha of the ckwood Pack, uniting our bloodlines."


    "That would be me," Kael said, frowning. "Not all three of us."


    "That was the original agreement," Marcus nodded. "But something changed when Selene gave birth to you," he told ra. "She saw something in her visions—a future where one mate wouldn’t be enough to control the power you would inherit."


    ra felt anger rising inside her. "Control me? Is that what this is about?"


    "No," Darian spoke up, his voice gentle but firm. "It’s about bnce. The silver fire is too strong for any single wolf to channel. It needs to be distributed."


    "How do you know that?" Ronan asked, staring at his brother.


    "Because the queen made me study the ancient texts," Darian exined. "She wanted to understand how to steal your power, ra."


    Alpha Marcus smiled at his youngest son. "Always the clever one."


    "What about Celeste?" ra asked, remembering her vision. "She’s being controlled by the queen."


    "A sacrifice I’m willing to make," Marcus said coldly. "The Beta’s daughter was useful, but she’s nothingpared to what you represent."


    His callousness shocked ra. "You’d just let her die?"


    "I’d let anyone die to destroy the skin-walkers," Marcus replied. "They massacred half my pack twenty years ago, including my brothers. I’ve waited decades for revenge."


    Kael’s eyes narrowed. "What are you suggesting, Father?"


    "An alliance," Marcus answered. "I know where the queen keeps the full moon pendant. Together, we can retrieve it."


    "And then?" ra asked.


    "Then you fulfill your destiny," Marcus said. "You destroy the queen, free my Luna, and restore bnce to both our packs."


    Something in his tone made ra uneasy. There was too much hunger in his eyes when he looked at her.


    "What happens after that?" she pressed. "If we seed?"


    Marcus smiled. "Then you’ll take your rightful ce as Luna of the united packs. With my sons by your side."


    "And you remain Alpha," Tobias observed.


    "Of course," Marcus nodded. "It’s my birthright."


    ra exchanged nces with the triplets. None of them seemed entirely convinced.


    "We need time to discuss this," Kael said firmly.


    "Time is something we don’t have," Marcus replied, moving toward the tunnel. "The queen has gathered her forces. By dawn, she’ll be strong enough to breach even this sacred ce."


    He paused at the entrance. "I’ll return before midnight with weapons and reinforcements—wolves still loyal to me, not my possessed Luna. Be ready with your answer."


    After he left, a heavy silence filled the chamber.


    "Can we trust him?" ra finally asked.


    "No," all three brothers answered simultaneously.


    "But we might need him," Tobias said reluctantly. "He wasn’t lying about the pendant’s location."


    ra touched her crescent moon ne. "There’s something he’s not telling us. Something about this power he wants so badly."


    Darian nodded. "The queen often spoke of the silver fire with both fear and desire. She said it could do more than just destroy skin-walkers."


    "Like what?" Ronan asked.


    "Like reshape the very nature of wolves," Darian whispered. "Change who can be Alpha, who can challenge for leadership."


    Kael’s eyes widened. "Father has always been obsessed with power and control."


    "He wants to use me," ra realized. "But for what exactly?"


    Before anyone could answer, the ground trembled beneath them. Dust fell from the ceiling as a distant howl echoed through the tunnels.


    ra’s vision blurred again. She saw the queen moving through the forest, darkness flowing from her hands, killing everything in her path. But now she wasn’t heading toward the cabin anymore.


    She wasing straight for the temple.


    And leading her directly to them was Celeste—with Alpha Marcus walking willingly by her side.