Chapter 118 Hundred and twenty two
“You’re marching tonight?” Renna asked, her voice low as she stepped beside Zane, her cloak snapping sharply in the wind. “You think the people are ready for this?”
“They’re starving for it,” Zane replied without looking at her. “They’ve been waiting for someone to say what they’re all thinking, that Sienna isn’t a queen, she’s a storm waiting to drown us.”
“Good,” Renna murmured. “Let them drown her first.”
Zane didn’t react, but she saw the tension in his jaw. He didn’t like her tone. He didn’t like much these days, not even his own reflection. Power had thickened around him like a second skin, making him heavier, sharper, less human. The dark rituals he’d stolen were working, they gave him strength, but they ate pieces of him with every breath.
“Are the battalions positioned?” he asked.
“All but one,” Renna said. “The western pack refuses to move without another sign from you.”
Zane gave a harsh laugh. “A sign? What do they want, a miracle?”
“You’re giving them one.” Renna stepped closer, brushing a hand along his arm. “You’re the first leader they’ve had in years who isn’t afraid to dirty his hands. They’ll follow you to the gates of the Citadel if that’s what you command.”
“They’ll follow me if I promise them blood,” Zane corrected. “That’s all wolves ever want. Blood and vengeance.”
Renna smiled faintly. “And you’ll give them both.”
He finally looked at her, studying her face with unreadable eyes. “Tell me you’re not having doubts.”
“Doubts?” She leaned in, expression smooth as glass. “You think I stayed through the worst of this because I’m unsure?”
His eyes flicked to the ritual markings burned into her wrist, the ones she refused to hide. “Those sigils are dangerous, Renna. The power you’re playing with, ”
“Is the same power you’re using,” she snapped. “Don’t pretend you’re noble.”
Zane looked away, jaw tight. “We should move before the moon rises. I want the front ranks ready before she realizes we’re at her gates.”
“She won’t be asleep,” Renna muttered. “Sienna doesn’t sleep anymore. Queens don’t have that luxury.”
“Neither do I.” Zane started walking, boots crunching over frost-hardened ground. “Gather the men. Tonight, we end her reign.”
Renna followed him, her voice low. “And what about Ryder?”
That stopped him.
The air stilled as Zane slowly turned his head. “Ryder is no concern of mine.”
“That’s a lie,” Renna said, stepping around him to block his path. “You’re afraid of him.”
Zane’s expression darkened. “I’m not afraid of any man.”
“He’s not a man anymore,” Renna whispered. “He’s more. Whatever Lunaris cursed him with, it’s powerful. And it’s tied to Sienna. If he comes for her tonight, ”
“He won’t,” Zane cut in. “He’s broken.”
“You don’t know that.”
Zane seized her wrist. “I know exactly how far he can go. He’s nothing but shadows and teeth held together by grief. And he isn’t brave enough to face her again. Not after the words she said.”
Renna’s eyes glinted. “You’re wrong. That was the moment he became dangerous.”
Zane released her with a frustrated sound. “Enough about him. He’s not the threat. She is.”
“You’re wrong again,” Renna murmured. “The real danger is what they become when they’re near each other.”
Zane shook his head. “That bond is severed.”
“Is it?” Renna asked softly. “Or is it just buried under pain?”
Zane said nothing.
She stepped closer, lowering her voice. “You need to understand something. If Ryder shows up on that battlefield, your men will run. They still remember him. They still think he’s a legend. A ghost. A king.”
Zane’s expression twisted with fury. “I am king.”
“You’re trying to be,” she corrected, smooth as silk. “He already was.”
His hands balled into fists. “You think I’ll back down? You think I’ll step aside because of him? I took this throne by force and I’ll keep it by fire.”
“I’m not asking you to step aside,” Renna whispered, brushing a thumb along his cheek. “I’m asking you to be smart. Be ready.”
“For what?” he hissed.
“For the moment she calls him,” Renna said. “Because she will. And when she does, everything you’ve built will be on the edge of ruin.”
He grabbed her forearm. “Are you warning me or threatening me?”
She smiled slowly. “Neither. I’m reminding you that power changes fast. And tonight, the balance shifts again.”
Zane released her and turned away sharply. “Prepare the army.”
Renna watched him walk toward the half-ruined council hall, the moonlight turning the ritual sigils on his back a dark, pulsing red. He strode inside without looking back. The heavy doors thudded shut.
She exhaled, then whispered into the cold air, “You’re not ready, Zane. Not for him. Not for her. But I am.”
She stepped away from the hall, heading toward the torchlit encampment, her cloak whispering over the grass. Soldiers moved aside as she passed, heads bowed. She knew they feared her, but fear was good. Fear made them loyal.
She stopped before a group of younger wolves, all wearing the mark she designed, the Eye of Renewal, the symbol of her new order.
Their leader approached nervously. “Luna Renna. The recruits are ready.”
“Are they?” she murmured. “Or are they just eager to spill blood?”
The leader swallowed. “Both, I suppose.”
She smiled. “Good. Hunger makes soldiers useful.”
He bowed his head and stepped back.
Renna walked through them, inspecting faces, some hardened by loss, some hungry for revenge, others merely drawn to the thrill of rebellion. She stopped before a girl with trembling hands.
“What’s your name?”
“L-Leah, Luna.”
“You look frightened.”
The girl flushed. “I, I am. But I’m here. I’ll fight for our kingdom.”
Renna touched her chin, lifting it. “That’s why you’ll survive.”
She lowered her hand, voice cold. “But don’t mistake mercy for strength. Sienna rules with mercy. And look where that brought us.”
The soldiers murmured.
Renna straightened. “Sienna tried to save a realm dying under its own lies. But we will break the realm and build a new one. Zane will rise as king. And I, ” she paused, letting silence stretch “, will ensure he never falters.”
The recruits cheered.
But Renna didn’t smile.
Her attention lifted toward the horizon, where a faint glow pulsed. Not fire. Not torches. Something colder.
“Sienna feels it,” she whispered. “The ground shifting. The crown trembling.”
The young leader stepped beside her. “Do we attack at dawn?”
“No,” Renna said. “We attack when Zane commands. And he will command soon. He wants the Citadel by sunrise.”
She turned, cloak flowing behind her like spilled ink. “Ready the front lines. And send word to the witches. Their preparations must be finished tonight.”
“Right away, Luna.”
The leader hurried away.
Renna paused only once more, at the shadowed edge of the trees, where something cold slid along her senses. A presence. Watching. Measuring.
She whispered, “If you’re out there, Ryder… stay hidden. Tonight isn’t yours. Not yet.”
A faint shift in the darkness made her heart skip, but she didn’t let fear show. She lifted her chin, smirked, and walked away.
Deep in the treeline, unseen eyes followed her.
A breath, ragged and furious, trembled through the cold air.
The Ghost Alpha was listening.
And his patience was running thin.