📖 The Wolfless Luna
POV: Kate & Ryker
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🌘 Kate
The first thing I felt was the weight of the blankets — soft, warm, and far too heavy for someone who wasn't used to sleeping in silk.
The second thing was the silence.
Not the silence of the woods at dawn, where wind moved through leaves and the distant howl of a wolf marked territory.
This was palace silence — the kind that pressed in, too still, too perfect, as though even the air was holding its breath.
For a moment, I thought last night had been a dream. That I hadn't been claimed by the Alpha King in front of dozens of strangers, that I wasn't lying in a bed bigger than my entire room back home.
But then I sat up, and reality hit me like a blade to the chest.
A gold-framed mirror reflected my messy white hair and the pale dress I'd worn to the gathering. My bare feet sank into the thick fur rug as I slid out of bed. The chamber was beautiful — high windows spilling sunlight across marble floors, walls lined with rich tapestries depicting wolves mid-hunt, and a balcony overlooking rolling green fields.
It was the kind of room meant for someone important. Someone who belonged.
Not for me.
A knock sounded, quick and sharp. Before I could answer, the door opened and a tall woman stepped inside. She had sleek brown hair pulled into a braid, golden-brown eyes, and a kind of effortless beauty that made my stomach twist. She wore a fitted black tunic, the kind warriors wore when they wanted to look intimidating without even trying.
"Kate," she said, her voice smooth but cool. "The Alpha King asked me to escort you to breakfast."
I nodded, murmuring a thanks, but as I followed her into the corridor, her steps slowed until we walked side by side.
"You know," she said lightly, as though commenting on the weather, "most she-wolves wait their whole lives for the chance to stand where you are now. They train, they fight, they prove themselves. And yet…" She tilted her head at me. "You don't even have a wolf."
Heat burned my cheeks, but I said nothing. My fingers curled into fists.
She smiled — not kindly. "I'm Maris, Beta Caden's sister. And if you think being the Alpha King's mate will protect you from the rest of us, you're wrong. We protect our pack from weakness."
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🌒 Ryker
He heard them before he saw them.
The soft, deliberate cruelty in Maris's tone made his wolf's hackles rise.
He had given strict orders that Kate was to be treated with respect. Apparently, those orders needed to be… reinforced.
"Maris." His voice carried down the hall like a growl wrapped in silk.
She turned, her confidence faltering for just a heartbeat before she dipped her head in submission. "Alpha."
Kate stood beside her, chin slightly lowered, eyes fixed on the floor. He didn't like it. He wanted her to meet his gaze — to remember she was his, not some fragile thing to be picked apart by others.
"Walk with me, Kate," he said, ignoring Maris entirely.
As Kate moved to his side, he stepped closer to Maris, lowering his voice so only she could hear. "You will not speak to her like that again. Not in my halls. Not anywhere."
Maris's lips tightened, but she murmured, "Yes, Alpha."
Ryker watched her go, his wolf still bristling. This was exactly what he'd feared — that his mate's lack of a wolf would make her a target. And yet… there was something about Kate, something beneath the surface, that made him certain she was anything but weak.
🌘 Kate
Breakfast in the palace dining hall felt less like a meal and more like standing trial.
The long oak table stretched endlessly, lined with warriors, advisers, and ranked wolves — all watching me. Their gazes slid over my plain sundress, my white hair, my empty place where a wolf should be.
Ryker sat at the head of the table, a presence that commanded silence without a single word. The tension eased slightly with him there, but I could still feel the judgment clinging to me like smoke.
When I reached for a piece of bread, my hand trembled. Ryker noticed — I could feel his gaze even without looking.
"Eat," he said quietly, a word meant only for me, yet the whole table heard.
I obeyed, if only to keep from drawing more attention, but the food tasted like dust.
The rest of the meal passed in a blur. When it was over, Ryker stood and offered me his hand. The gesture was casual, but it silenced the whispers. I placed my hand in his, letting him lead me out of the hall.
The moment the heavy doors shut behind us, I exhaled.
"This place…" I began, then shook my head. "I don't belong here."
Ryker stopped, turning to face me. "Kate, you belong exactly where I am. And whether they accept it now or not, they will."
His eyes — that unyielding blue — held mine until I had no choice but to believe him.