Chapter 5 Chapter 5

Sebastian

The problem wasn’t that she was human.

The problem was that the world would never forgive her for it.

I watched Ellie disappear into Marcus’s house and only relaxed once the door closed behind her. Even then, my wolf stayed alert, coiled tight beneath my skin like it expected the trees themselves to attack.

This changed everything.

Not just for us.

For the pack.

For the balance of power that had existed for decades.

A human mate to three future Alphas wasn’t just rare.

It was a liability.

And also… a miracle.

I walked away from the house slowly, forcing my steps to remain calm, measured. Inside, my thoughts were already moving three paths ahead, mapping risks, enemies, outcomes.

First priority: information control.

If the wrong people learned about her, she wouldn’t just be in danger.

She’d be a target.

There were packs who hated us. Packs who envied our territory, our strength, our alliances. Packs who’d been waiting for any sign of weakness.

A human Luna-in-waiting?

That was blood in the water.

I went straight to Marcus.

He was in his office, standing by the window, phone in hand, his posture tense in a way it usually wasn’t.

“You felt it,” he said the second I walked in.

It wasn’t a question.

“Yes,” I replied. “Theo confirmed it. Blake denies it.”

Marcus exhaled slowly and closed his eyes.

“She’s human,” he said.

“Yes.”

“And my mate’s daughter.”

“Yes.”

That part complicated things further.

“She doesn’t know,” Marcus said. “About any of it.”

“She can’t,” I said immediately. “Not yet.”

Marcus turned to look at me. “You think we can keep this from her?”

“No,” I said honestly. “But we can control when she learns. And how.”

Marcus rubbed a hand over his face. “I never should’ve brought her here.”

“You didn’t have a choice,” I said. “She’s yours. And she was always going to come.”

Because fate has a long memory.

“Blake is going to make this harder than it needs to be,” Marcus said.

“Yes,” I agreed. “But he’ll fall in line.”

Marcus studied me. “You’re already planning.”

“I have to.”

I turned back toward the window, toward the trees, toward the invisible borders of our territory.

“We need to quietly increase patrols. No announcement. No visible shift. Just… more eyes.”

Marcus nodded. “I’ll handle it.”

“And the council,” I added. “They can’t know yet.”

“They’ll demand explanations when they notice the changes.”

“They always do,” I said. “I’ll handle them.”

Marcus looked at me for a long moment. “You care about her.”

It wasn’t an accusation.

It was an observation.

“Yes,” I said simply. “And so do you.”

Blake was a problem.

I found him later that night on the cliffs, staring out at the ocean like he wanted to throw himself into it or fight it.

“Running from her won’t change anything,” I said.

He didn’t look at me. “I’m not running.”

“You tracked her by scent,” I replied. “That’s not indifference.”

His jaw tightened.

“She’s not one of us,” he said. “She’ll never survive this world.”

“That’s not a reason to reject her,” I said calmly. “That’s a reason to protect her.”

“And when she gets hurt?” he snapped. “When someone uses her against us? When she dies because we were selfish enough to keep her?”

I stepped closer. “If that happens, it will not be because she is weak.”

It will be because the world is cruel.

Blake’s shoulders sagged just a fraction.

“Fate doesn’t care what we want,” I continued. “It only cares what is.”

Theo was easier.

He always was.

He was sitting on the back steps when I found him, staring at nothing, a faint smile on his face like he could still feel her.

“She’s safe,” I told him.

He looked up instantly. “You walked her home?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re already attached,” I noted.

His smile didn’t fade. “She’s our mate.”

That was Theo.

Simple truths. No hesitation.

“Don’t get careless,” I warned. “We don’t know who’s watching.”

His expression sobered. “You think someone already knows?”

“I think someone always knows,” I replied.

That night, I stood in my room and stared at the map on my wall.

Borders. Pack lands. Old rival territories.

And I imagined a human girl with a book in her arms, walking through a world that would happily devour her if it got the chance.

We will not let that happen.

I would move pieces before the game even realized it had started.

Because she wasn’t just our mate.

She was our future.

And the world would either accept her…

Or burn.