The Pack's Daughter (Aysel and Magnus) novel Chapter 87

**Midnight Letters by Daniel Crowe**

**Chapter 87**

In stark contrast to the tense and charged discussions still echoing through the Blackwood and Ironhowl territories, the Moonvale Pack had descended into an eerie, almost suffocating silence. The air felt thick with unspoken words and heavy emotions.

The shock had cut deep, leaving wounds that would take time to heal.

Alpha Remus and Luna Evelyn, both visibly exhausted in spirit and in their wolf forms, had retreated to their chambers, seeking solace in the quiet. The weight of their responsibilities loomed large, and they needed to gather their strength for the challenges ahead.

In the dimly lit den-hall, only the three siblings remained, their presence a stark reminder of the familial bonds that had been tested and strained.

Celestine sat beneath the flickering lantern, her complexion pale, almost ghostly in the glow. She could feel it—the sharp, instinctual awareness of a wolf—her reputation beyond the familiar borders of Moonvale had likely been shredded to pieces by now.

While the wolves of Moonvale surrounded her with a misguided sense of pity and a misplaced protective instinct, those from outside the pack viewed her through a clearer lens, their perceptions sharpened by the truth. They understood the intricacies of power and loyalty better than anyone with a personal stake in the matter.

Celestine had always lived a life that was far more privileged than that of Aysel, the trueborn daughter of the Moonvale Alpha. It was a bitter pill to swallow, knowing that even those who once doubted Aysel’s worth would now, under the overwhelming influence of Magnus Sanchez—the warborn Alpha of the Shadowbane Pack—begin to alter their perceptions of her.

In the world of wolves, public opinion was a fickle beast, always gravitating toward the strongest Alpha.

The Moonvale Pack had once prided themselves on being a close-knit family, while Aysel had been regarded as a mere orphan, discarded and overlooked. Celestine had been elevated in their eyes, a position that now felt precarious.

But now, with Aysel standing beside a male of unparalleled strength—the continent’s most formidable Alpha, whose wolf, Rafe, was steeped in ancient power—the outside world began to see the truths that had been hidden for so long.

Magnus Sanchez…

The mere thought of him sent a fresh wave of pain through Celestine’s palm, where her claws had previously broken skin. She clenched her fist, feeling the dried blood itch, a reminder of her inner turmoil.

Aysel, who should have been utterly defeated, had somehow defied the odds, rising like a phoenix from the ashes, buoyed by an impossible stroke of fortune.

For years, Celestine had meticulously plotted to claim Damon Blackwood, the Alpha of the Eastern Blackwood Pack, the most dominant figure in the region. Yet, even after she had succeeded in her pursuit, the victory felt hollow, devoid of the triumph she had envisioned.

Was it the way Aysel looked at Damon—cold and distant, as if he were nothing more than a piece of refuse?

Her carefree departure had left Celestine feeling utterly foolish.

But could it be true that Aysel really didn’t care after all those years of entanglement? Or was it simply that she had secured the favor of a far greater male, one who was beyond the reach of anyone else’s aspirations?

Celestine’s breath hitched, and a fit of coughing seized her, deep and harsh, as panic and jealousy clawed at her insides like wild beasts, threatening to erupt from her chest in a frenzy.

This rewritten fate—Celestine refused to accept it.

On any ordinary day, even the slightest discomfort she felt would have drawn immediate concern from her brothers, Fenrir and Lykos. They would have reprimanded Aysel for “triggering her condition,” just as they had done countless times before.

But tonight, the brothers were distracted, their minds restless, unable to calm their wolves.

Lykos, in particular, was fixated on his device, replaying a recording of the evening’s banquet that he had missed. Even with an excuse at hand, bitterness churned in his gut.

The closeness between Damon and Celestine had breached every boundary they had set. Damon had still been Lykos’s sister’s almost-fiancé, while Celestine was still regarded as his sister in the eyes of their pack.

Lykos turned his conflicted gaze toward Celestine.

“Sis… did you two always act like that in front of her?”

He had always assumed Aysel was merely jealous, overly sensitive, prone to emotional outbursts because she was “born wrong.”

He had never witnessed firsthand what their so-called “treatments” looked like.

Now that he had…

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