Mars

Aurora lay in my arms, one leg sprawled over my thighs, her head on my chest, sleeping. I closed my eyes and stroked her hair, letting myself get lost in her lemony scent. From a distance, I heard Ruffles meow, and I smiled.

Never had I thought that I’d have a cat in my pack house or a strong alpha mate in my bed. The Moon Goddess had blessed me, yet I didn’t think I deserved Aurora. She was one of the smartest wolves in all of Sanguine Wilds—that was what my scouts had said about her after infiltrating her surrounding packs to gather information about that stone.

Someone knocked on my bedroom door. “Ares?”

I growled at the name. If it wasn’t for Ares, maybe Aurora would’ve let me mark her tonight, or maybe she’d have wanted to mark me. But she was terrified of him, and I couldn’t blame her.

Using blood as cologne, collecting canines as trophies, leaving packs in ruins, Ares was a ruthless, savage, and feral animal who lived up to his reputation.

At least, that was what he wanted people to believe.

Whenever he took control of me, I couldn’t stop him, couldn’t talk him down, couldn’t tame him. Only Aurora had been able to so far. And maybe, one day, she would, but until then, I’d use him as a shield to protect her from the hounds and to hide us both from my past.

Liam knocked again. “Ares.”

“What?” I asked through clenched teeth.

The door opened, and he peered into the room. I pulled the blankets over Aurora’s body and tugged her closer to my chest. He glanced at her for a moment and then back at me when I growled at him for ogling my mate. 

“I have information.”

I waited for him to continue, not wanting to leave my mate and feeling Ares stir inside of me … but I didn’t want to give up control to him again. He took too much energy out of me, made me feel so weak some days. Sometimes, it wasn’t even physical, just mental.

Liam leaned against the doorframe. “The rogue doesn’t know anything. No names, just that a wolf with a scar down the side of his face had the Malavite Stone at some point,” he said.

My entire body tensed. She had told me the same thing the other day, but I’d brushed it off because I didn’t want to believe that he was back. Hell, I didn’t even know if it was him. It could be someone different.

“Do you think it’s him?” I asked.

“Him, as in the hound who rap—”

I let out a low growl. “Don’t finish that sentence.” After taking a deep breath, I nodded. “But, yes, him.”

“Thought he had two scars crossing in the middle of his face?”

“He does,” I said. I just couldn’t have him around now, especially since I had Aurora with me.

Liam pushed himself off the doorframe. “I’ll ask around, see if anyone else knows a wolf with that scar, and get back to you tomorrow.” 

He shut the door, and I stared up at the ceiling with wide eyes, nerves racing through my body.

I prayed to the Moon Goddess that it wasn’t him, but with the two hound attacks in the past few days … I didn’t think she’d answer my prayers. Something in my gut told me that the man in my nightmares was back, but this time, he was coming for my mate.