Chapter 8: The Ghost Returns
Aria crashed through her cabin door and ran toward the pack house. Her lungs burned and her legs ached, but she didn't slow down. Callan's life depends on her.
The main house loomed ahead, its windows glowing with warm light that spilled onto the dark grounds. Aria paused at the bottom of the steps. If she was caught, she would be punished. Maybe even killed.
But the forest had warned her: Callan dies at midnight.
Taking a deep breath, Aria slipped around to the back of the house. She knew from her childhood that the kitchen had a door that was often left open. To her relief, it still was.
Inside, the house was quiet. Most of the pack would be in their own homes by now. Aria crept through the kitchen and up the maids' stairs, staying in the shadows.
She reached Callan's room and paused, listening. No sound came from inside. Slowly, she turned the handle and pushed the door open.
Callan lay in his massive bed, his breaths shallow. His face was pale and hot, and his bandages were spotted with fresh blood. Whatever drug was in his system was working fast.
"Callan," Aria whispered, running to his side. "Wake up."
His eyelids moved but didn't open. Aria put her hand on his forehead. He was burning with heat.
The mark on her wrist began to glow again, pulsing with blue light. Without thinking, Aria put her marked wrist against Callan's chest, right over his heart.
A shock of energy passed between them. Callan gasped, his eyes flying open.
"Aria?" he croaked. "What are you doing here?"
"Saving your life," she said. "Again."
Her wrist burned where it touched him, but Aria didn't move. She could feel the poison in his blood, fighting against her magic.
"You need to leave," Callan said softly. "If my father finds you here—" "Your father," Aria interrupted. "Did he do this to you?"
Callan didn't answer, but the look in his eyes told her everything.
"Why would he poison his own son?" Aria asked, terrified.
"Because I lied today," Callan whispered. "When I refused the mate bond. My wolf wouldn't let me go through with the blood ritual to break it completely. Father knew."
Aria's heart skipped a beat. "You didn't mean it? The rejection?"
Before Callan could answer, footsteps sounded in the hallway outside. Many footsteps, coming closer.
"Hide," Callan hissed.
Aria looked around anxiously, then dove under the bed just as the door swung open.
From her hiding spot, Aria could see several pairs of feet enter the room. One set she recognized as Alpha Malrik's from his unusual boots.
"How are you feeling, son?" Malrik's voice was full of fake worry.
"Better," Callan answered, his voice stronger than it had been moments ago. Aria's magic was working.
"Good, good," Malrik said. "Because we have a visitor I think you'll want to meet."
A new pair of feet stepped into view—small, feminine feet in delicate shoes. "Hello, Callan," a soft, singing voice said. "I've been waiting a long time to meet you."
Aria froze. That voice. It couldn't be.
"Who are you?" Callan asked.
"This is Elira," Malrik said proudly. "She's been living with our friends, the Silverclaw Pack, for these past ten years. But now she's come home."
"Elira?" Callan sounded confused. "Aria's sister? The one who died in the river?"
"I didn't die," the musical voice answered. "I was saved. But I lost my memory for a long time. I've only recently remembered who I really am."
Aria's head spun. This couldn't be happening. Her sister was dead. She'd seen Elira fall into the river, had heard her screams as the current pulled her under. And just yesterday, she'd seen the thing wearing Elira's face, with its bright green eyes and cruel smile.
"I don't understand," Callan said. "How is this possible?"
"Does it matter?" Malrik cut in. "The important thing is that she's here now. And there's something special about her, son. Something I think you'll find very interesting."
"What's that?" Callan asked.
There was a moment of quiet, then Malrik laughed—a triumphant sound that sent chills down Aria's spine.
"Can't you feel it? The pull? Elira is your true mate, Callan. Not Aria."
"That's not possible," Callan said strongly. "I already have a mate."
"A mate you rejected," Malrik reminded him. "The moon goddess has given you a second chance. A better match."
"I feel it too," Elira said softly. "The moment I saw you, I knew. We're meant to be together, Callan."
Under the bed, Aria bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. This couldn't be real. Mates were picked by the moon goddess, and once chosen, the bond was unbreakable. There couldn't be two mates for one wolf.
Unless...
A terrible thought struck Aria. What if the thing from the forest—the thing that had taken over Elira's body—was somehow hiding its presence? Creating a fake mate bond?
"I need time," Callan said. "I'm still healing."
"Of course," Malrik agreed easily. "Rest now. You and Elira will have plenty of time to get to know each other."
The feet moved toward the door, but Elira's lingered.
"I hope you feel better soon," she said to Callan. "I have so much to tell you."
When the door closed behind them, Aria waited a full minute before crawling out from under the bed. Her legs were shaking so badly she could barely stand.
"Aria," Callan began, but she cut him off.
"That's not my sister," she said, her voice breaking. "It can't be."
"How can you be sure?"
"Because I saw her die!" Aria cried, tears filling her eyes. "And because yesterday in the forest, that thing tried to kill us both!"
Callan reached for her hand. "I don't feel any mate link with her, no matter what my father says. You're my mate, Aria. The only one."
A small ray of hope cut through Aria's pain. "Then why did you reject me in front of everyone?"
"To protect you," Callan said. "My father wants you dead. The rejection was the only way to keep him from trying to kill you instantly." He squeezed her hand. "I thought I could handle whatever he did to me, but this poison..."
"Is that why the forest warned me?" Aria asked. "It told me you would die at midnight."
Callan's eyes widened. "The forest speaks to you?"
"Sometimes," Aria admitted. "Since I drank Nessa's potion."
A knock at the door made them both jump. Aria dived under the bed again as Callan called, "Come in."
Beta Selene's voice filled the room. "Alpha, your father has called an emergency pack meeting. He wants you there."
"Now? It's the middle of the night," Callan objected.
"He says it can't wait. It's about the new coming... and Aria."
When Selene left, Aria crawled out again. "What do we do?" she asked.
"We go to the meeting," Callan said, trying to sit up. "We need to find out what he's planning."
"But you're still weak from the poison," Aria argued.
"I'll manage," Callan insisted. "You saved me again, remember?"
Together, they made their way to the meeting place. Aria kept to the shadows, staying just close enough to hear what was happening. The entire pack had gathered, despite the late hour. At the front of the room stood Alpha Malrik and beside him, Elira.
She looked exactly as Aria remembered her, only grown up. Blonde hair, green eyes, that same sweet smile. But there was something wrong about her eyes. They weren't glowing green like in the forest, but they were empty somehow. Like looking into a doll's eyes.
"Pack members," Malrik announced. "Tonight is a night of wonders. Ten years ago, we lost one of our own—Elira, daughter of myself and Luna Rhea. We believed her dead, drowned in the banned river."
Murmurs ran through the crowd. Many of the older pack members nodded, remembering the horror.
"But the moon goddess works in mysterious ways," Malrik added. "Elira was found downstream by members of the Silverclaw Pack. Her memories were gone, and it's taken ten years for her to remember who she really is. But now she has returned to us!"
Cheers exploded from the crowd. Aria watched in horror as pack members welcomed Elira with open arms, embracing the girl they thought had returned from the dead.
"There's more," Malrik said, raising his hand for quiet. "Upon her return, something magical happened. My son, our Alpha, felt the true mate bond with her."
Gasps of surprise filled the room. Everyone knew Callan had refused Aria as his mate just hours ago, but a new mate? That was unheard of.
"This proves what I've suspected all along," Malrik declared. "Aria was never Callan's true mate. The bond was false, created by her link to dark magic from the forbidden forest."
The crowd turned ugly, staring and muttering. Someone shouted, "Where is she now? The witch!"
"Find her!" another voice called. "Drive her out!"
Callan stepped forward then, his face pale but determined. "Enough!" he ordered, his Alpha voice making the whole room fall silent.
"Elira," he said, turning to the beautiful woman. "If you are who you claim to be, you must remember your sister. Tell us about Aria."
Elira's smile faltered slightly. "Aria? My sister?"
"Yes," Callan pressed. "What do you remember about her?"
Elira looked unsure for the first time. "I... I remember playing with her. By the river. She was... she was..."
"Yes?" Callan encouraged.
Elira's eyes suddenly hardened. "She pushed me in. She tried to kill me."
The crowd gasped and turned aggressive again. Aria couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had tried to save Elira, had nearly drowned herself trying to reach her sister.
"That's a lie!" Aria shouted, stepping out of the darkness before she could stop herself.
The room fell silent. All eyes turned to her. Elira's face registered shock, then something else—something that looked almost like fear.
"Aria," she said softly. "Is it really you?"
"You know it's me," Aria answered, walking toward her sister. "Elira, what happened to you? What's happened to your memory?"
For a moment, something flickered in Elira's eyes—recognition, confusion, a quiet plea for help. But it went so quickly Aria wasn't sure she'd seen it at all.
"I don't know you," Elira said coldly. "You're the girl who tried to kill me."
The pack growled, moving toward Aria with dread in their eyes. Callan stepped between them.
"No one touches her," he ordered. "This meeting is over. Everyone return to your homes."
"Son," Malrik began, but Callan cut him off.
"I said it's over, Father. I'm still Alpha here."
Reluctantly, the pack scattered. Malrik led Elira away, shooting an angry look at Aria over his shoulder.
When they were alone, Callan turned to Aria. "That wasn't your sister," he said quietly. "Or if it was, something's very wrong with her."
"I know," Aria whispered. "But did you see her eyes? For just a second, I think the real Elira was trying to break through."
"What do we do now?"
Before Aria could answer, a scream tore through the night—high and terrified and coming from the way Malrik and Elira had gone.
They ran toward the sound, bursting into Malrik's private rooms. What they saw made them both freeze in fear.
Malrik lay on the floor, blood pooled beneath him. Above him stood Elira, her hands covered in red, her green eyes now glowing with that strange light Aria had seen in the forest.
"You shouldn't have tried to control me," she said to Malrik, her voice no longer sweet but layered with something old and evil. She looked up at Aria and Callan, her face turning into that too-wide smile.
"Hello, sister," she purred. "Did you miss me?"