The fire crackled in the moonlit grove, casting long shadows through the trees. Aria stood frozen, her breath caught in her throat as the stranger stepped from the mist. But he wasn't a stranger—not to her wolf, not to her blood.
Tall and commanding, with long silver-streaked hair and eyes so like her own, the man radiated a presence older and more powerful than any Alpha she had encountered. The murmurs of the pack hushed as he opened his mouth.
"Aria," he said, his voice a haunting melody of power and pain. "My daughter."
Time stopped.
Caleb instinctively moved closer to Aria's side, his protective stance unwavering. Elena, silent and pale, stepped forward with a tremor in her voice. "No. Our father is—Marcus."
The man's gaze darkened, shadowed by memories too heavy to speak. "Marcus Thorn is not your father. He is my brother."
Gasps rippled through the gathered wolves. Solene's face turned white. Even Caleb blinked in stunned disbelief.
