Kieran left the archives with one thought consuming his mind—Damien had to die.
There was no other way.
Selene would never truly be free while that bond still tethered her to a monster. He knew she feared what breaking it would cost, but Kieran wasn't afraid of blood. Not when it came to her.
The city streets were quiet as he walked, his mind running through every possible strategy. Killing Damien wouldn't be easy. The bastard wasn't just any supernatural—he was one of the strongest alphas in existence, with dark magic that gave him an edge most others didn't have.
But Kieran wasn't just anyone either.
He had spent years training with the Warrior Clans, mastering techniques that only a handful of fighters knew. If anyone could kill Damien, it was him.
The problem was when.
Kieran couldn't risk moving too soon. Not when Damien would see him coming.
I need more time.
And time was something he wasn't sure Selene had.
Selene didn't sleep.
She sat on the edge of her bed, staring at the city lights beyond her window, her mind tangled in a web of impossible choices.
The taste of Kieran's kiss still lingered on her lips, but it was the storm in his eyes that haunted her the most.
He was going to do something reckless.
She could feel it.
And that terrified her more than anything.
She had spent years surviving, keeping her head down, enduring the bond that chained her to Damien because she believed there was no way out.
But Kieran… Kieran was different. He had never been the type to accept fate. He fought against it. He carved his own path, no matter how impossible it seemed.
Selene knew, deep down, that he wouldn't rest until she was free.
The problem was—freedom had a cost.
And she wasn't willing to let Kieran pay it with his life.
A knock at her door made her heart stop.
She stood, her body tense as she slowly moved toward it. Every instinct screamed danger, but she ignored the warning, unlocking the door with shaky fingers.
It wasn't Kieran.
It was Damien.
Kieran felt it before he heard the news.
A sharp, searing pain in his chest—like something had been ripped from him.
Then his phone rang.
He didn't recognize the number, but when he answered, a cold, familiar voice spoke on the other end.
"If you want her alive, come get her yourself."
The line went dead.
Kieran's blood turned to ice.
Damien had Selene.
And now?
Now, there was no holding back.
It was time for war.