Three

POV: Caelan Ironwood

Six Months Ago: Ironwood Pack Territory

The first time Caelan felt her again, he was drowning, not metaphorically, literally.

There had been an assassination attempt; poison in his whiskey, a rogue shifter with a silver blade, and a plunge through the ice of the frozen river behind the pack house. The water was black and endless and cold enough to stop his heart.

He should have died, but instead, he felt her.

Sera. The omega who was supposed to be his mate.

He'd felt a pulse, a heartbeat. He'd felt a golden thread connecting his chest to somewhere far, far away; Verance City, he'd learn later, and she was alive. His mate, the very one he'd rejected. The one he'd dreamed about every single night for three years. The one they'd been searching for.

Her fear hit him first; she was having a nightmare, something about blood and mud and teeth, and he felt every second of it. Her terror was somehow his terror. Her grief was his grief.

And somewhere beneath all that pain, her wolf stirred weakly, causing his to howl, it surged, and his heart restarted. His claws found purchase on the riverbed, and he dragged himself onto the ice, gasping and bleeding.

She was alive, but she was dying from the slow decay of a rejected bond. Her wolf was consuming itself, eating its own magic to keep her heart beating and she probably didn't even know. She had maybe a year, maybe less.

He'd done this, he'd broken her. And the guilt was as fresh as it had been since the ritual that evening.

Finn found him on the riverbank, half-frozen, still trying to cling on to the connection.

"Alpha?" The beta's eyebrow ring glinted in the moonlight.

"Find her," Caelan said, his voice was low and rough from the cold. "Verance City; human district. Find her."

Finn had been confused. That was a lot of information to pull from a near-death experience.

Caelan grabbed Finn's collar to drag him close.

"Get to work." He ordered sternly.

Finn was a longtime friend of his who joked too much, and right now, he was in no mood for that.

"Okay. We'll find her." Finn responded just before he lost consciousness.

~~

Present Day

Caelan watched Sera's unconscious body being loaded into the transport van. His expression revealed nothing as he stood there, letting the enforcers work.

She was smaller than he remembered, thinner. The shadows under her eyes spoke of years of poor sleep, the scar on her throat, the one he'd put there, stood out livid against her skin. He looked away. None of that mattered at the moment, she was alive, her wolf was dormant, not dead. The primal gene was still intact.

That was all that concerned him.

"Alpha." Finn appeared at his elbow, rubbing his bitten hand. "She's secured."

Caelan nodded.

Caelan turned toward the van. "Status on the extraction point?"

"Verance safe house is prepped. We'll hold her there overnight, then move to Ironwood territory before dawn." Finn replied, falling into step beside him. "The Blackmoor scouts we spotted earlier went quiet after we crossed the river. Either they lost interest or they're reporting back."

"Assume the latter." Caelan climbed into the van, taking a seat across from Sera's unconscious form. "Double the perimeter watch tonight. I don't want any surprises."

"Yes, Alpha."

The van's doors closed with a heavy thunk. Through the small window to the driver's compartment, Caelan saw Finn take the wheel, and it wasn't long before the engine rumbled to life.

Caelan looked at Sera again.

In sleep, her face was slack. The tension that had hardened her jaw when she held that baseball bat was gone. She looked almost drained.

He hated that after all this time, she was still in such a situation. He hated that after all this time, the bond he'd tried to severe was still here. But he wasn't here on mate business, he was here on alpha business, his pack needed her and her primal gene.

She was a tool now, a means to an end.

His pack was dying, the magic that sustained Ironwood territory was fading. His father had left him a crumbling kingdom and a war on two fronts. The elders demanded an heir, his wolves demanded stability. And Silas Blackmoor circled like the predator he was.

Sera carried a primal omega gene. Her bloodline, the one he'd foolishly called defective, was anything but. With her, he could produce heirs powerful enough to restore the pack's magic. Without her, Ironwood would fall within the decade.

This wasn't about love or whatever was shared between mates, this was about saving Ironwood.

The van lurched as Finn took a corner too fast. Sera's body rolled with the motion, sliding toward the edge of the bench. Caelan caught her shoulder, steadying her, then immediately withdrew his hand.

Her skin was warm. She smelled of vodka and honey, and he felt his wolf stirr again. It wanted her.

But he pushed it down, refusing to give in.

"Alpha." Finn spoke through the intercom. "We've got company. Blackmoor colors, two cars back. They're gaining."

Caelan's jaw tightened. "How many?"

"Six, maybe eight. Hard to tell in this light."

"Lose them."

"Working on it."

The van accelerated. Through the rear windows, Caelan saw headlights closing in. Black SUVs, no markings, but the way they moved gave them away. Silas's people.

Sera stirred. Her brow furrowed and her lips parted as she groaned.

The van swerved hard as Finn dodged something in the road, and Sera pitched forward. He caught her before she hit the floor, one arm across her chest, the other bracing her shoulder.

Her eyes opened, they were filled with confusion. The drugs were still clouding her thoughts and he wished she'd pass out again.

For one heartbeat, she looked at him without recognition, but then awareness flooded back, and with it, hatred.

She shoved him with all the strength she had but it did nothing.

"Get off me."

He released her immediately, raising his hands.

"You were falling."

"Don't touch me." She spat.

"I won't."

The van swerved again and she almost fell against him again but steadied herself. Through the windshield, Caelan saw the Blackmoor SUVs closing in. They'd be on them in minutes.

"Problem," Finn called. "They're not backing off. Looks like a full intercept."

Sera's eyes widened, she was clearly panicking. "Who's following us?"

"Blackmoor."

Her face went pale. "Silas Blackmoor?"

"You know him."

"Everyone knows him." She pressed herself against the van wall, putting as much distance between them as possible. "He collects omegas. Keeps them in his tower like trophies. Why is he after you?"

Caelan's expression didn't change.

"Because I declared war on him six months ago. He's been looking for leverage ever since."

"Leverage." Her laugh was hollow. "You mean me."

He didn't get the chance to respond before the van's back doors exploded inwards.