Chapter 65: The Wolf in Chains

Chapter 65: The Wolf in Chains


Fianna’s POV

The stone walls pressed in on me.

Derek’s fortress was nothing like Moonstone’s halls, with their banners and warmth, however cold Kael’s heart had been. No—this place was carved from shadow itself. The air was damp, heavy with salt from the sea crashing against the cliffs below. Each wave slammed like a heartbeat against the rock, echoing through the halls as though the fortress itself breathed.

They had given me a chamber, not a cell, but the difference was meaningless. The door was locked. Guards lingered beyond it, wolves whose eyes never blinked. Chains weren’t needed—the walls were prison enough.

Still, I refused to pace like a caged beast. I sat near the narrow window carved into stone, staring at the horizon where sky bled into ocean. The salt wind tangled my hair, and I held on to it like a lifeline. It was the only piece of freedom Derek hadn’t stolen.

My wolf prowled inside me, restless, snarling, demanding we fight. She hated the stench of this place, hated the smug curl of Derek’s voice when he visited, hated the way his presence pressed on us like a weight we could never quite shake.

But survival demanded patience. I couldn’t burn my strength in a useless rebellion. Not yet.

The bond to Kael pulsed faintly in my chest. Weak. Stretched. Sometimes it flickered like a dying ember, and each time I feared it would vanish for good. Yet even so, it lived. Proof he was alive. Proof that somewhere, out there, he still felt me.

Sometimes, late at night, I swore I could hear him. Not words, not thoughts—just a pull, a thread tugging at my heart. My wolf lifted her head each time, aching to run toward him. And each time I whispered, wait. Just wait. He’ll come.

But another voice whispered back, darker, bitter. What if he doesn’t? What if he’s the reason you’re here at all?

I pressed my hand to my chest, silencing it. I couldn’t afford to break now.

The heavy door creaked. My wolf bristled instantly. I didn’t need to turn to know who it was. His scent hit first—iron and smoke, threaded with something colder, darker.

Derek.

He stepped inside like he owned the world, his presence filling the chamber, drowning the air. His eyes found me instantly, sharp and hungry, the pale blue of ice that had no warmth, no mercy.

“You sit as though you’re a queen already,” he said, voice smooth, deliberate.

I didn’t rise. I didn’t bow. I didn’t give him the satisfaction. My gaze stayed fixed on the horizon. “Queens don’t need cages.”

He chuckled softly, low in his chest. “You call this a cage? You insult my hospitality.”

I turned then, slowly, letting my silver eyes meet his. My wolf pressed forward, her fury glowing just beneath my skin. “Hospitality doesn’t come with guards at the door.”

For a moment, his lips curved. Not amusement—approval. Like he enjoyed my defiance, like every spark of resistance fed his hunger.

“You are fire,” Derek said. “And fire belongs to those who can wield it.” He stepped closer, slow, deliberate, each movement predatory. “With me, you will not be mocked as weak. With me, you will be worshipped. You will stand at my side as Luna—no, as Queen. Together, we will burn the packs and rebuild the world.”

The weight of his words pressed down, heavy with ambition. I knew the truth in them: he meant to use me, to twist me into a weapon, to wear my power like a crown.

But I smiled, sharp and cold. “And when you’re done? When the fire has nothing left to burn? What will you do with me then?”

His eyes darkened, the hunger sharpening. “Then you will still be mine.”

My wolf snarled, loud in my chest. I rose at last, standing tall though he towered over me. “I will never be yours.”

The words landed like claws raking stone.

For a heartbeat, silence stretched between us. Then Derek’s smirk returned, slow, deliberate. He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a murmur meant only for me. “You said the same thing about Kael, once.”

The reminder was a knife. My chest tightened, the bond flickering inside me. For a moment, doubt threatened to claw through my ribs. Kael’s betrayal, his cold words, the way he had cast me aside—it all rose like a shadow.

But then I remembered something else: the bond that hadn’t broken. The faint, stubborn throb that whispered he still searched for me.

I met Derek’s gaze without flinching. “Kael was my choice. You will never be.”

His jaw tightened, a flicker of irritation breaking his mask. Then he stepped back, and the smirk slid into place again. “We’ll see.”

He left without another word, the door slamming shut behind him.

I stood in the silence that followed, chest heaving, wolf thrashing against my skin. My hands trembled, but not with fear. With fury. With resolve.

Let Derek believe he was winning. Let him believe I was his prize.

Because when the time came, when Kael’s howl split the night and his claws tore down these walls, Derek would learn the truth.

I was no one’s pawn.

I was Fianna.

And I would burn this fortress to the ground before I let it break me.