Cursed by the alpha's mark

ogue camp was destabilised, rogues searching for weapons, mothers taking their children and hiding in tents, and Torren giving last minute orders. The mark on Lia's flared, it was

ng. His betas are fast, but we've got the terrain. We can hold them off."Lia nodded, her resolve hardening. She wasn't the broken girl who'd fled Blackthorn a week ago. The rogues, rough as they were, had given her a chance to survive-for her child's sake, she'd fight. "Set traps at the ravine's mouth," she said. "Draw them in and flank them."Torren raised a brow, a flicker of respect in his green eyes. "You've got a head for this. Done." He turned, shouting to the rogues to rig snares and sharpen stakes.Mara grabbed Lia's arm, her grip firm. "The curse is worsening," she warned, glancing at the mark. "Fighting will strain

breath, and her knees buckled.Torren tackled Kael from the side, his axe swinging. "Get back, Lia!" he shouted. The rogues swarmed, overwhelming the betas, but Kael was a storm. He threw Torren off, his strength unnatural, fueled by the same dark magic that had cursed her. Lia scrambled to her feet, the vial's boost fading, her wolf retreating. She couldn't win this-not like this."Kael!" she shouted, desperation rising. "You want me? Let the others go!"His head snapped toward her, eyes narrowing. The bond flickered-a ghost of the connection he'd shattered. He looked down to her stomach, and his expression shifted, a mixture of confusion and rage. "What are you not telling me, what are you hiding?" he growled, stepped closer. He sniffed the air, he caught a scent he couldn't place.She panicked. He couldn't know about the child-not yet. Lia backed away, dagger raised, but the curse pulsed, draining her. Mara's warning echoed: The curse could harm the pup. She had to end this. Drawing on her fading magic, Lia whispered a spell her mother had taught her-a burst of light to blind and disorient. It flared, weak but enough to make Kael flinch."Run!" Lia screamed to the rogues. Torren hesitated, then nodded, rallying the others to fall back. Lia stumbled after them, her vision swimming as the curse tightened its grip. The rogues vanished into the forest, but Kael's howl followed, closer than before.Lia collapsed against a tree, gasping for air. The mark became hotter than it ever had , and a sharp pain twisted in her abdomen, taking