BETTER BLOOD THAN SILENCE
Freya
Three days have passed since the Midnight Howl, and already, I can feel the difference.
The Queen’s Wing is no longer silent. More pack members have moved here. Children’s laughter fills the halls where dust used to sleep. The air smells of soap, jasmine, honey, and something that almost feels like home.
I sit cross-legged on the carpet, a doll in each hand. Ivy giggles sleepily in my lap, clutching another in her tiny fingers. Across the room, Finn runs in circles, flying his wooden wolf through the air.
A croak startles me. Rowan’s raven—Noctra perches on the edge of my desk. Its feathers shimmer darkly in the light. Finn chases it, laughing, but the bird only hops higher, smug, and untouchable.
Then I hear footsteps. The herald’s voice follows. “Alpha Kade Thorne.”
My smile fades.
I expect Izel to be trailing behind him. Maybe the Queen’s Wing itself would cast her out—the wards on these walls are old and loyal—but when Kade steps through the doorway, he’s alone.
For a moment, he just stands there. His gaze finds Ivy first, and something in his face softens. Then he looks at Finn, who freezes mid-run.
“Papa!” Finn bursts forward.
Kade catches him easily, lifting him off the ground. A laugh escapes his throat, rough and surprised, like he hasn’t used it in years.
My chest tightens. I turn away, stroking Ivy’s hair. The sound of his laughter used to make me happy. Now it just hurts.
When Finn wriggles free and races out into the hall, Kade lets him go. The nurse follows, and the door closes behind them, leaving only Ivy sleeping in my lap.
“They’re calmer with you,” Kade says.
I look up sharply. “They’re my children.”
He nods once, jaw tightening. “I know. I just meant… they seem at peace here.”
“They’re at peace because no one’s feeding them fear.” I keep my tone even. “They laugh because she isn’t here.”
Kade exhales. “Freya—don’t start.”
“You came here,” I remind him. “So, say what you came to say.”
He takes a few steps closer, his boots clicking against the marble floor. “I wanted to see them. That’s all.”
“You’ve seen them.” I brush Ivy’s curls back from her forehead. “If you’ve come to punish me for the Midnight Howl, then do it quickly.”
His gaze flicks to mine. “I’m not here to punish you.”
“Could’ve fooled me.”
He crosses his arms. “You disobeyed me, Freya. You called the wolves to howl without the Alpha’s consent.”
“You lost that right the day you let another woman rule my house.”
His expression hardens. “Izel has no hold over me.”
“She has every hold. Even now, you defend her.”
“Because this fighting helps no one,” he snaps. “The pack is tense enough. You want division in the pack? You’ll get blood.”
I rise to my feet, careful not to wake Ivy. “Better blood than silence.”
He stares at me, and for a long second, I see not the Alpha but the man who once loved me. His voice softens. “You think I don’t know what I’ve done by betraying our marriage?”
“Then why keep doing it?”
He looks down, exhaling hard. “I don’t know.”
I almost laugh. “You’re pathetic, Kade. I hate myself for ever loving you.”
“Freya—”
“Don’t say my name like you still have the right to.”
The silence that follows is painful. Only Ivy’s breathing breaks it.
Finally, he says, quieter, “I think I should apologise for what I did to you. You were weakened, and I—I got swayed.”
I blink at him, startled by his disgusting honesty. “You think you should apologise? What makes you think you deserve my forgiveness?”
“I’m your mate. We’re bound by more than vows and actions and our children,” His voice cracks just slightly.
“Oh,” I say. “I thought you’d forgotten.” I glare at him. “So, what now? You’re afraid the pack is siding with me, so you come to fix things and cast Izel aside like how you cast me aside?”
He closes the distance between us and touches my arm.
The bond flows through, taking my breath with it.
“That night on the full moon near the stream… I felt something when Emris nuzzled Nyx,” he whispers, his gaze watching me intently.
He swallows. “He howled helplessly, and he was struggling to guide me. I haven’t—I haven’t heard him very clearly for a long time, Freya.
He was always veiled, obstructed in some way.
I knew it was wrong. That I wasn’t fully myself in my human form.
I felt like a puppet, but since that night, and especially after the midnight howl, I can see things more… clearly.”
My heart races, and I find myself leaning into him.
I wet my lips, gazing at that face—so familiar, so beautiful.
Those piercing golden eyes with flecks of onyx in them that I loved admiring.
Those thick brows I loved kissing. Now I hate it.
I hate the control the mate bond has over me.
I shrug him off and step back sharply. “You do not deserve my forgiveness, Kade. Nothing you say will change what you did to me. Nothing will take back every cruel thing you said to me. I will claim Silver Severance on the Blood Moon, and I will end our bond. That is what you deserve.”
His lips part, his brows creasing in guilt. He gulps again and looks away, no longer having the strength to meet my eyes. Ivy stirs then, mumbling in her sleep. I walk to her and kneel, pulling a blanket over her small body. The movement breaks whatever fragile thread held us.
I glance back at Kade. He’s still standing there, frozen, like he has been handed a mirror and sees himself for what he truly is for the first time.
His throat works again, but he doesn’t argue. He just leaves.