Chapter 17
The letter arrived at dawn, carried by a raven-black wolf with silver eyes. It bore the seal of the Duskhowl Pack — one of the oldest, most feared clans in the northern territories.
“To the one called Alpha Queen,” it read.
“Power may rise, but it must be proven. You are summoned to the Trial of the First Blood. Refuse, and be denounced as false.”
Hadley held the letter in silence, the words burning into her palms like fire.
Eric read over her shoulder. “They’re provoking you.”
“No,” Hadley murmured. “They’re testing me.”
The Trial of the First Blood was no ordinary challenge. It was an ancient rite — outlawed by most, but still honored in secret by the traditionalist packs.
The terms were brutal.
Three challenges. No help. No mate beside her. Win, and she’d be acknowledged as Alpha by blood. Fail, and she would forfeit all right to lead — or even to remain among them.
And it was public.
The news spread like wildfire.
By the time Hadley arrived at the ritual grounds — a wide circle of blackened earth beneath towering stone monoliths — wolves had gathered from across the regions. Some came out of curiosity. Others came hoping to watch her fall.
But a few… came to kneel.
Hadley wore no crown, no jewelry. Just a simple black cloak and her own strength.
Eric stood at the edge of the arena. Though he couldn’t join her, his gaze never left her.
And then the first challenger stepped forward.
Trial One: Endurance
A massive wolf from the Skargrave line — a beast nearly twice Hadley’s size. The trial was simple: remain standing after three hours of combat.
The bell rang.
He came at her like a hurricane. Claws flashed. Teeth snapped. The crowd gasped as Hadley took hit after hit — yet didn’t fall. Her bones ached. Blood trickled from her brow. But she stood. Again and again.
Until, with a final, brutal roar, she threw him to the ground — and didn’t collapse.
The time ended. The bell rang again.
She had passed.
Trial Two: Instinct
They led her into the woods, blindfolded and alone. Somewhere hidden was a wolf pup, injured and crying. But also hidden — three traps, two predators, and a phantom Alpha designed to lure her astray.
Hadley stilled her breathing. She reached into herself, not just scent and sound, but something deeper.
That was her advantage. The thing they feared.
Within forty minutes, she emerged from the forest carrying the pup, untouched by trap or foe.
The council didn’t cheer.
But they noted her.
Trial Three: Heart
This was the cruel one.
They called it a test of loyalty. They brought Eric forward — and another man. A hunter who had once saved Hadley as a child, long forgotten, now made into a pawn.
“You may only save one,” the Elder said. “Choose who lives. The other dies. No tricks. No games.”
The crowd went silent.
Eric said nothing — only watched her, trusting.
But Hadley stepped forward and said clearly:
“Neither will die. Because I command it.”
Her voice rang like thunder. Her power surged, shaking the air. The wolves felt it. Not magic. Not force.
Alpha. True Alpha.
The Elder flinched.
The traps failed.
No one died.
When she stepped back into the circle, bloodied, bruised, but undefeated, the oldest wolf among them approached.
He knelt.
Then others followed. Dozens. Hundreds.
Eric moved to her side, pride burning in his eyes.
And when Hadley looked out over the sea of wolves, she no longer felt like the outcast, the scapegoat, the girl shoved from the staircase.
She was Alpha — not because of blood, or labs, or whispers.
Because she had become it.