LOGINâNow can we talk about what made you come all this way? Thereâs no chance you followed me here without a reason. Something must have happened.â Valtor said quietly, his voice low but firm.After her conversation with Kallias, Winter finally asked the man to leave. He did so without protest, retreating from the room with a respectful bow. Only then did she turn back to her mate.Valtor had been waiting just outside the room. The moment she stepped into the corridor, she saw the worry, tangled with jealousy and a sharp edge of irritation, written all over his face. He looked like a man who had fought every instinct not to barge into the room. But when Winter met his gaze calmly and offered him a small, reassuring smile, some of that tension finally eased from his shoulders.Talking with Kallias had distracted her briefly from the unease Freya had left behind at the castle. Now that she was with Valtor again, the weight returned, but it felt lighter somehow, as if being near him steadied
Winter was shocked.'What? Their baby was gone?'âIt happened that night,â Kallias continued quietly. âAt your wedding party. Crystal and I argued, nothing serious, or so I thought. Then the incident happened.âWinter said nothing. She hadnât expected him to continue, but he did. His shoulders sagged beneath an invisible weight, desperation etched into every line of his face. The regret in his voice was unmistakable. And for the briefest moment, an unsettling thought crossed her mind.What if heâs right?What if Crystal truly was hiding here?âShe isnât only angry at me,â Kallias went on. âSheâs angry at you as well.âWinterâs gaze sharpened.âShe knows I would search for her everywhere, including here," he said. âKnowing no one would believe me. Crystal knew I would confront Valtor and that if I failed to find her it would push me toward war, a war that would endanger both our people.âSilence fell.Winter absorbed his words slowly, weighing each implication.âAnd would you?â she ask
3rd Person's POVRelief settled in Winterâs chest when she finally reached her husband and at last they could speak. Then her gaze shifted and she saw Kallias Thorn standing in the same room. The calm expression on Winterâs face vanished at once, replaced by sharp caution as her eyes narrowed. Her body stiffened, instincts rising unbidden.What was he doing here?âKallias?â she said slowly, testing the name, as if half-expecting the figure before her to dissolve into illusion.He didnât answer.Kallias only stared at her with something unsettling flickering in his gaze. And the more Winter looked at him, the more wrong everything seemed.She had never seen Kallias like this. He was thinner as if something had been steadily devouring him from the inside. The weight loss sharpened the lines of his face, hollowed his cheeks, carved shadows beneath his eyes that no amount of rest could erase. He looked like a man dragged from a nightmare and hurled into waking reality, driven here as if
VALTORLoran hadnât lied. Kallias Thorn was waiting when I arrived at the border headquarters, the outpost closest to his Packâs territory. And he was alone.âIâve been waiting here far too long,â Kallias said as soon as he saw me. âAnd I never wait this long just to meet someone.âEarlier, Iâd instructed my guards to confine him to a secured room. If he had come with hidden intentions, I wanted to be certain he wouldnât vanish before I confronted him myself. Now, we stood face-to-face, the air between us thick with restrained hostility.My gaze swept over him, assessing, measuring.Magnus would have sensed hostile intent the moment Kallias crossed our borders. But instead, what my wolf felt was something else entirely.Submission.That unsettled me far more than aggression ever could.âPerhaps you should first know who it is youâre demanding an audience with.â I took a step closer. âWhat brings you to my territory?âThe words left my mouth rough, edged with displeasure. I didnât trus
WINTERMy breath came in ragged bursts, the snarl still lingering in my chest.âOh GoddessâŚsheâs attacked meâŚâ Freya whispered, her eyes widening as she stared in disbelief at her own hand.Blood streaked her skin, a deep slash cutting from the back of her palm almost to her elbow. The wound wasnât fatal, but it bled freely, staining her hand a vivid red.âThat woman is monstrous,â Rosentine said, stepping closer to Freya, her gaze narrowing on me with an intensity that burned. âWhat are you doing? This is completely unnecessary.âAs the fury inside me ebbed, leaving a jagged calm in its wake, I looked down at my own hands. Blood clung to my fingertips. My wolf nails, which I hadnât controlled, hadnât even meant to summon, were gone as suddenly as theyâd appeared. I had hurt Freya. Yet strangely, there was no regret, only a strange, sharp relief that Khioneâs reflexes had been faster than mine, protecting me before it could have been worse.âBloodâŚâ the blind seer murmured, inhaling
WINTERI donât know how much longer I can keep avoiding this truth.I know the day will come when Iâll have to tell Valtor about the possibility that I may never give him a child. But with every passing day, the weight of it grows heavier, pressing against my chest until itâs hard to breathe. Especially when I remember the way his eyes light up whenever someone speaks of an heir. Our child. The successor to his throne.And it isnât only him. Everywhere we go, people look at me the same way, as if the future of the kingdom depends on me.What if I finally tell him, he canât accept it?I could endure his anger. I could survive his frustration. But the thought of disappointment in his eyes terrifies me more than anything.'Goddess, I donât want to hide this forever. Please help me find the strength.'I opened my eyes and stepped out of the steaming bath, water sliding down my skin. I reached for my robe, wrapped it tightly around myself, and tied it shut. Then I heard my chamber door ope







