In the Crescent Pack’s ceremonial grounds, lanterns flickered in the trees, and wolves from both Silverstone and Crescent filled the space with quiet whispers and curious glances. It should have been a night of celebration, of unity. But the air felt too still. Like it was holding its breath.
Eva stood inside the council chamber earlier that day, arms folded tightly across her chest as the Crescent Council delivered their proposal. The elders, dressed in formal robes, spoke with firm voices but watchful eyes.
“To solidify the alliance between Silverstone and Crescent,” one of them said, “we propose a sacred mating ceremony between Alpha Maximus and Alpha Queen Evalina.”
Silence followed their words.
Max stood beside her, his expression unreadable. Eva stared at the table in front of her, her heartbeat loud in her ears. She already knew what her answer needed to be. Not for herself. Not for Max. But for the packs.
“For protection?” she asked, lifting her head slowly. “This union guarantees that my people won’t be abandoned again?”
The eldest councilman nodded. “It binds our packs in blood and law. A shared future. A shared war.”
Eva’s throat tightened. She wasn’t a girl who dreamed of weddings or white dresses. Her reality was war, loss, and prophecy. Still, she turned to Max and said clearly, “I agree.”
But then she added, softer, like a quiet storm, “This isn’t love. This is survival.”
Max’s jaw clenched. He looked her in the eye, and there was no kindness in his gaze, only fierce emotion. “Say that again,” he said in a low, steady voice, “and I’ll stop trying to love you gently.”
The words hit harder than a blow. Eva blinked. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
Later, preparations began. Tiana brushed Eva’s hair in silence, her fingers trembling just slightly. A white ceremonial cloak was draped over Eva’s shoulders. Silver embroidery along the edges shimmered like moonlight.
“You don’t have to do this if your heart says no,” Tiana whispered.
Eva stared at her reflection in the mirror. She barely recognized the woman staring back—haunted eyes, a tight-lipped mouth, and a swell at her stomach that only she knew was the center of everything.
“My heart hasn’t had a say in a long time,” Eva replied softly.
As night fell, the grounds were filled with wolves in ceremonial dress. Max stood at the altar in black, trimmed with the Crescent silver. His gaze searched the space, but Eva hadn’t emerged yet.
Behind the trees, Eva stood alone, her hands on her stomach, her breath short and uneven. Her heart pounded as she looked toward the lights and the figures gathering. Each step she’d taken toward this moment felt like stepping into a cage.
She loved Max. Maybe not with ease. Maybe not with calm. But in the quiet moments when he looked at her like she was more than a prophecy, more than a queen—she loved him.
But she also knew what grew inside her. What the healer had warned. What the enemy wanted. A ticking bomb. Two heartbeats, two destinies, and one future that could collapse everything she touched.
“I can’t do this,” she whispered.
She turned.
She ran.
Through the trees, past the lights, ignoring the gasps and confusion that erupted behind her. Her cloak snagged on a branch, ripping free and falling to the forest floor. She didn’t stop. Her lungs burned, her chest ached, and her legs moved with one thought:
I can’t tie him to this. I can’t trap him in a future that might kill us all.
She didn’t stop until she reached the lake at the edge of the grounds. The moonlight danced on the surface, and she sank to her knees, gripping her stomach as tears streamed down her face.
Footsteps crunched behind her. Max.
He said nothing at first. Just stood there, breathing hard, chest rising and falling with something between rage and heartbreak.
“Eva,” he said finally, his voice barely above a whisper. “You ran.”
She didn’t turn. “I’m sorry.”
He stepped closer. “Do you think I wanted this just for politics?”
“I know you didn’t,” she said, choking on her words. “And that’s why I had to run. You still believe there’s hope. You still believe in love and futures and peace. And I… I carry something inside me that could destroy all of that.”
Max knelt beside her, his voice sharp but trembling. “Don’t you dare take away my choice. I chose you. I chose to fight beside you. I chose to love all of you—even the parts that scare you.”
Eva looked at him then, her eyes full of fear and something else—resignation. “You shouldn’t have to carry this with me.”
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
Summary & Review: Comrade
