The scream that woke everyone up in the house at dawn wasn't from a person.It was wolf anger at its most raw and terrifying. Every window on the third floor shattered from Thorne's howl.The servants dropped their breakfast trays and fled. Alpha Roderick bolted upright from his desk when he heard the sound."She's gone!" Thorne roared as he burst into the main hall, his gray eyes blazing with fury."Isla's gone!"Caspian stumbled up the stairs, his hair disheveled and sleep still clouding his face. "What do you mean gone?""Her bed wasn't slept in. Her balcony door is wide open. And this—" Thorne held up a torn piece of blue fabric, the same color as Isla's dress from yesterday.Dorian materialized from the shadows like a ghost, his green eyes already sparkling with that strange light that came when his powers stirred. "I felt her fear last night," he whispered. "Around midnight. I thought it was just a nightmare.""Why didn't you check on her?" Caspian snapped."I tried! But something blocked me. Like a wall in my mind."Alpha Roderick stormed in, still wearing his nightclothes. "What's this commotion about?""Someone took Isla," Thorne said through gritted teeth. "And I'm going to tear them apart."The Alpha's face went deadly calm. "Are you certain she didn't just run away? Young wolves sometimes get scared—""No." All three brothers spoke at once, the sound making the air itself tremble."She wouldn't leave," Dorian added softly. "Not without telling us. And definitely not without her silver necklace." He pointed to a small chain glinting on her bedroom floor.Caspian was already pulling on his jacket. "I'm checking the town. Someone had to see something.""Wait." Thorne grabbed his brother's arm. "We do this together. No splitting up.""Since when do you want us together?" Caspian yanked free.
"Since someone took our mate!" Thorne's voice cracked on the last word.The declaration hung in the air between them—*our mate*, not *my mate*. For the first time in years, the three brothers looked at each other without anger or competition. Just shared fear.Alpha Roderick watched this exchange with calculating eyes. "If she was taken, it was planned. Professional. That means—""Darkwood Pack," Dorian finished, his hands trembling. "They want her silver blood.""Or someone closer to home," Thorne said grimly. He held up the torn cloth again. "This was ripped intentionally. Left as a message. Someone wanted us to know she was taken."Caspian sniffed the air. "I can smell her trail, but it's faint. Mixed with something else. Something that makes my nose burn.""Magic," Dorian said. "Someone used a masking spell."Alpha Roderick began pacing. "I'll send scouts to the borders. If Darkwood Pack crossed into our territory—""No." Thorne stepped forward. "This is our responsibility. She's our mate.""You're not thinking clearly—""I'm thinking perfectly clearly!" Thorne's fist slammed into the wall, leaving a crater in the stone. "While we were sleeping safely in our beds, someone took her. Someone hurt her. And now they're going to pay."Caspian nodded grimly. "I know people in town. People who hear things. If strangers came through last night, my contacts will know.""And I can track her essence," Dorian added. "Even through the magical interference. It'll hurt, but I can do it."Alpha Roderick looked at his sons—truly looked at them. They stood closer together than they had since childhood. Their rivalry had dissolved, replaced by one shared purpose."Fine," he said finally. "But take backup. And stay in contact. If this is Darkwood Pack, they'll be expecting you."
The brothers dispersed across their territory like a storm. Thorne headed to the training grounds, his tactical mind working through possibilities. Isla's kidnapper would need transportation, a safe house, and most importantly—a motive.He questioned every guard, every servant, mapping out exactly who had access to the house."Sir?" A young guard approached nervously. "I saw something strange last night. Around midnight."Thorne spun around. "Tell me.""A servant left through the kitchen door. But she was walking oddly. Like she was carrying something heavy.""Which servant?"The guard squirmed. "I couldn't see her face clearly. She wore a hood. But she had blonde hair showing."Thorne's blood turned to ice. *Alina.*Meanwhile, Caspian tore through town on his motorcycle, stopping at every tavern and street corner. His charm usually made people talk, but today his desperation did the job even better.At the old mill, he found what he was looking for."Three horses came through before dawn," an old man told him. "Heading east toward the Darkwood borders. One rider looked like she was carrying a bundle.""A bundle?""About the size of a person, wrapped in blankets."Caspian's hands clenched on his handlebars. East meant Darkwood territory. But it also meant something else—the old abandoned mine where he and his brothers used to play as children. The perfect place to hide someone.Back at the house, Dorian sat in Isla's room, surrounded by her belongings. He pressed his palms to his temples and reached out with his mind, searching for any trace of her essence.Pain shot through his skull like lightning. The masking spell was powerful, but not perfect. Through the magical interference, he caught fragments:
Darkness. The smell of damp stone. Water dripping nearby. And voices—angry voices arguing about money and territory.*But strongest of all, he felt Isla's fear. She was alive, but terrified and growing weaker. Whatever they'd used to subdue her was still affecting her.His eyes snapped open. "The old mine," he whispered.---The three brothers met at the castle gates just as the sun reached its zenith. Each had found a piece of the puzzle."Alina took her," Thorne reported grimly."Three riders headed east," Caspian added. "Toward Darkwood borders.""She's underground somewhere. Stone walls, water nearby. And she's growing weaker," Dorian finished.They looked at each other, and for the first time in years, they were truly united."The abandoned mine," they said in unison.As they prepared to leave, Alpha Roderick appeared with disturbing news. "Scouts report Darkwood forces massing at our eastern border. If you go after her, you'll be walking into a trap."Thorne's jaw clenched. "Then it's a trap we'll spring.""Together," Caspian added, checking his weapons."For Isla," Dorian said softly.They mounted their horses and rode hard toward the eastern borders, unaware that they were already too late.In the depths of the old mine, Alina stood over Isla's unconscious form, a silver blade gleaming in her hand."Sleep well, little omega," she whispered. "When you wake up, everything will be different. The Silver Wolf dies tonight, and I claim my rightful place as Luna."
But as the blade descended, Isla's silver mark began to glow—and her eyes suddenly opened, blazing with power no one had ever seen before.