Prologue
Dharna moaned as his gaze travelled over her bare skin. He wasn't her mate; she was certain. Her wolf remained silent, the bond absent.
And yet, his scent was an addiction, and his touch ignited a fever. It was as if she’d touched a live wire, the electricity racing through her marrow. She clung to him, their bodies fusing in the heat.
He nipped her earlobe, his breath hot against her neck, before his teeth sank into the sensitive skin there.
"You will never forget this night," he whispered against her ear.
Then, he thrust home, shattering every barrier left between them.
Chapter - 1
"Didi… am I going to die?"
The words slipped from Ritika’s lips like a fragile whisper, trembling in the sterile air of the hospital room. Her frail body seemed swallowed by the oversized gown, the fabric hanging loose on her thin shoulders. Sixteen years old, yet her face carried the softness of a twelve-year-old child, untouched by the years she should have lived.
Dharna froze mid pour, the stream of water halting as her hand trembled. The glass caught the light, scattering it across the white walls, but her vision blurred with tears. She drew in a sharp breath, steadying herself before turning to face her sister.
"What are you saying, Riti? Who told you that?" Her voice was gentle, but beneath it lay a storm. She pressed the glass into Ritika’s hands, brushing back her short hair with fingers that lingered too long, as if afraid to let go. A tear clung stubbornly to Ritika’s lashes, and Dharna caught it with her thumb before it could fall.
"I heard the nurses talk," Ritika whispered, her voice breaking. "They said if I don’t get treatment soon… I might not survive till next year."
The words shattered Dharna’s heart. She pulled Ritika into her arms, holding her as though her embrace alone could shield her from fate. “Nothing will happen to you. I’m here. I won’t let anything happen.” Her voice cracked, but she forced a tight-lipped smile when she pulled back, unwilling to let her sister see the fear gnawing at her soul.
She fed Ritika spoonfuls of light food, coaxing her with patience, then guided her through the bitter medicines. When Ritika’s eyes finally fluttered shut, surrendering to sleep, Dharna lingered for a moment, watching her chest rise and fall. Each breath felt like a fragile promise.
Outside, the night air was cold against her skin as she walked to the bus stand. The city lights blurred past her as the bus rattled forward, but her mind wandered elsewhere—back to Canada, back to forests where her family once ran free as lone wolves. Not rogues, never rogues. Her parents had chosen solitude, not exile.
She remembered her first shift at eighteen, the wild rush of power, the golden eyes of Leela staring back at her from within. Ritika had been there, laughing, clapping her hands in delight at meeting her sister’s wolf. Back then, Ritika had been healthy, her laughter ringing through the woods like sunlight.
Now, even Leela grieved. Dharna could feel her wolf’s sorrow deep inside, a constant ache that mirrored her own.
Her parents’ deaths had left holes too wide to mend. The accident had felt wrong, too sudden, too clean. Dharna had searched for answers, but grief had drowned her in responsibility. At twenty-one, she had become both sister and guardian, sacrificing her studies, her dreams, her youth. Scholarships had carried her through school, but money was always slipping away, vanishing like sand through her fingers.
So, she worked—tuitions in the evening, restaurant shifts at night. Every coin saved was a shield against Ritika’s illness, but never enough.
On the bus, Dharna pressed her forehead against the glass, watching the city blur into streaks of neon. Her reflection stared back at her—brown eyes shadowed with exhaustion, the faint black spot beneath her eye marking her face like a reminder of battles fought too young.
"I won’t let her die," she whispered to herself, though no one could hear. Not the humans, not the nurses, not even the wolves hidden in the shadows of the city. Only Leela stirred within, her golden gaze burning in the depths of Dharna’s soul, a silent vow echoing her own.
