The Snow Wolf's Mate

A Ghost in the Trees:

[POV: Cole]

* One week ago *

I hadn’t slept properly since Aria left.

Didn’t matter where I was or what I was doing—she lingered. In every silence, in every breath, in every place she used to be. Her absence clung to the pack like mist that refused to lift.

Sometimes I saw her in the trees when I was patrolling. Just for a second. A flicker of silver-blonde hair, a shimmer of moonlight on skin. Always gone the moment I turned my head.

Sometimes I heard her voice in my sleep—soft, unsure, always trying to make herself smaller. And worst of all, sometimes I remembered that moment.

When she found out about us. Me. Dayana. Together.

The look in Aria’s eyes haunts me more than any wound ever could. It wasn’t just a shock. It wasn’t even a heartbreak.

It was betrayal. Raw. Utter. Final.

Because I’d been the last one she trusted. And I’d broken her. I wish I could blame Rau for it—for that night, for the decisions I made.

But the truth is, I let it happen.

Rau—my wolf—he always wanted Dayana. He liked her power, her fire. She matched his hunger, his cruelty. She fed something in both of us that I’d never even known was starving.

And Dayana didn’t just want me. She claimed me. Body, mind, position. She knew what she wanted, and she took it.

With Aria, it was never like that. She didn’t take. She only gave.

Quietly. Completely. She made me feel steady, like I didn’t have to be perfect to be wanted. Like I could just be.

And I gave that up—for status, for heat, for the thrill of Dayana’s approval and my father’s pride.

I made my choice. And I hate myself for it. Because ever since Aria left, I haven’t known peace.

Not even when I lie beside Dayana, her hand on my chest, her breath warm on my neck.

Not when I stand in front of my father, sword in hand, proving I’m the Alpha he wanted me to become.

Not when the pack looks at me like I’ve already won. Because in all of it—every second—Aria’s ghost walks beside me.

I told myself I’d make it right.

When I become Alpha, I’ll protect her. I’ll bring her home. I’ll shield her from the twisted games of her family. From Dayana. From the poison that rots Midnight Crest from the inside.

It’s the least I owe her. It’s all I have left.

That’s why I started going out on patrol alone.

I told the others I needed space. Time to clear my head. No one questioned it—not when Dayana whispers into ears and keeps suspicions in check.

The truth was… I kept hoping I’d find her.

That I’d catch a trace of her scent. A sign she hadn’t gone too far. That maybe she was out there, scared but safe, waiting for someone—me—to bring her back.

Today was no different.

I wandered past the northern edge of our borders, where the trees grew closer together and the light filtered through in long, golden strips. It was quiet out there. Peaceful. Like how things used to feel when Aria and I would sneak out here as kids.

I didn’t realize how far I’d gone until the air shifted.

The scents changed.

I stopped cold, every nerve going alert. This wasn’t our land anymore. I’d crossed over. Just a few steps—but enough to matter. My body tensed. I started to turn back.

And then I caught it. The wind shifted again, and it hit me so fast, so sharp, I forgot to breathe.

Pine. Snowdrops. Faint, but real.

Her.

My heart slammed against my ribs. “Aria…”

It was her. I knew it.

No perfume could mimic that. No memory could trick my wolf the way this scent gripped us both. Even Rau stilled, ears pricked, instinct rising.

She’d been here. Recently.

Every instinct screamed at me to run toward it. To follow. To find her.

But this wasn’t our territory. This wasn’t safe. Whoever owned this land wouldn’t take kindly to a Midnight Crest wolf crossing the line.

Yet my thoughts spun wildly.

She’s alive. She’s close. I could find her.