Chapter 3

The east wing was quieter than the rest of the house.

I unpacked the few things I had brought—two dresses, a set of simple clothes, the small wooden box that held my mother’s necklace. Everything else I owned had been left behind in Silverpine. There was no point in bringing a life that no longer fit.

A soft knock came at the door just after sunset.

Rylan stood in the hallway, expression unreadable. “Dinner is served in the main dining room. Alpha Voss expects you downstairs.”

I followed him without comment. The halls felt longer at night. Lights were low. The scent of the pack—many wolves, layered and strong—pressed against my senses. My own wolf stayed close to the surface, alert and unsettled.

The dining room was large and formal. A long table. Dark wood. Only two places had been set.

Kael was already seated at the head. He did not rise when I entered. He simply looked at me, then at the chair to his right.

I sat.

Servants moved quietly, placing food on the table and leaving again. The door closed. Silence settled between us like another presence.

I picked up my fork because there was nothing else to do. The food was excellent. I barely tasted it.

Kael ate with the same controlled precision he did everything else. After several minutes he spoke without looking up.

“You will attend the pack gathering the day after tomorrow. It is customary for the Alpha’s wife to be present.”

“I understand.”

“There will be questions. You will answer only what is necessary. The official statement is that this is a formal alliance marriage. Nothing more.”

I set my fork down. “You mean you don’t want them knowing you signed a contract with the woman you publicly rejected.”

His eyes lifted then. The gray in them was colder under the dining room lights.

“I want the transition to be clean,” he said. “Drama serves no one.”

“Of course.” I gave a thin smile. “Clean is important.”

Something tightened at the corner of his mouth, but he said nothing else. We finished the meal in silence. When I stood to leave, he remained seated.

“Selene.”

I stopped.

“Your father’s care has already been arranged. A private healer will arrive in Silverpine tomorrow. The first transfer of funds cleared this afternoon. The creditors have been notified.”

I turned slightly. “Efficient as always.”

He held my gaze for a moment longer than necessary. “I keep my agreements.”

The words landed heavier than they should have. I left the room before I could examine why.

Back in the east wing, I changed into a simple sleep shirt and sat on the edge of the bed. The house was too quiet. Through the open window I could hear distant training sounds and the low murmur of wolves moving through the grounds.

Sleep did not come easily. When it finally did, it was thin and restless.

I woke sometime after midnight to the sound of movement in the hallway.

Soft footsteps stopped outside my door. They stayed there long enough that I sat up, heart beating faster than it should. My wolf pressed forward, recognizing the scent even through the wood.

Kael.

He did not knock. He did not speak. After a long moment the footsteps continued down the hall and faded.

I stayed sitting in the dark, listening to the silence he left behind.

The mate bond—muted, damaged, but never fully broken—pulled once, low and unwanted, beneath my ribs.

I pressed a hand against my chest and closed my eyes.

One day down.

Three hundred and sixty-four remaining.

And already the walls I had built felt thinner than they had that morning.