Ice Claimed: The Alpha’s Obsession

Mason had dispatched a tracker to sweep the lodge suite that morning, and the report came back clean—no recording crystals or hidden sensors. For now, the weight of what had transpired in the dark didn't have to crush her. Even though she was blind to who had laid the scent-trap, she could simply deny the entire night since they lacked any material proof.I watched Chloe from a distance, realizing she was now using Ethan as a climbing harness to reach the peak of our social hierarchy. Instead of being content as a gifted healer, she craved the view from the summit of Valeria's elite. She was sharp enough to know her own limits; she’d never match the legendary instincts of Professor Hough. If she stayed in the medical wards, she’d eventually hit a ceiling.Marrying the Alpha of the North changed the game entirely. Once she bore the Carter mark, she would be the most envied wolf in the Kingdom.Not long after I settled into my private study, my frequency pulsed. It was Tyler Dawson."Et

I stood firm, watching Dr. Daniel Harris survey Brandon’s shattered tactical goggles before he turned a glacial gaze toward Mike. The air in the corridor was thick with the scent of ozone and cooling adrenaline."Collins’s link is completely dead. We have no way of knowing if he’s been intercepted or worse," Daniel said, his voice tight with a healer’s concern. "I’m heading out to track his scent now. You can either return to the hall and keep the other Alphas from tearing the place apart, or you can join the hunt."Mike snarled, suppressing the urge to shift right there in the hallway. "I’m coming with you!"I stepped forward, my shadow looming over them, cutting off their path to the exit. "What happened to Collins?""Alpha Carter, we are as blind as you are right now," Daniel replied, meeting my gaze without flinching. "He sent a pulse this morning saying he’d be at the lodge by six for the feast. It’s nearly seven, and there isn't a trace of his scent within three miles.""It’s th

I felt my heart hammering against my ribs, a wild, trapped thing, as I scrambled to find a crevice in the shadows. I was just a small pup in a fortress of giants.Moments later, Patricia Bennett hurried onto the second floor, her scent heavy with anxiety as she made her way to the master chambers where Collins lay. She was terrified of the impending clash on the ice. Even though Ethan had clawed his way back from that devastating sled crash seasons ago, the healers had warned that his legs were still susceptible to the bite of old injuries if he pushed too hard. Patricia couldn't bear to see her Alpha lose his dignity or his health to a rogue’s strike, so she turned to the only person who might have the power to stop it.She pushed open the heavy door and crossed the floor to the furs. Looking down at Collins’s face, she felt a pang of guilt, but she knew his recovery could wait—the peace of the Citadel could not."Collins," she whispered, her voice trembling as she shook his shoulder

"Did you track my scent to the lodge last night, Ethan?""I was never there," Ethan replied, his pupils blowing wide with a dark, simmering heat. "Your rogue friend didn't see fit to include me in the summons.""I... I had no idea. Mike handled the logistics. I assumed since our bond was severed by the council...""Did you not review the roster of Alphas attending?" Ethan growled, his gaze boring into me with the intensity of a predator cornering prey."I didn't. I only discovered the scale of the gathering when Mike hauled me toward the hotel yesterday.""What has been consuming your focus then? You’ve been a ghost in this territory."I pulled the medical tape tight over the puncture wounds on his throat and began stowing the vials in the kit."I’ve been buried in my research. It’s just work, Ethan.""You’re weaving a false trail. If it were just the lab, you wouldn't be avoiding the Silvercrest headquarters. You’ve been projecting a frequency I can’t decode lately. What are you hidi

"Uncle Mike’s link is too slow, Layla. I’m just going to skip through the footage to see the source.""What is it, Hayden? Is it a secret play from the Silvercrest team?""No. It’s a full ritual recording of a burial. It’s a funeral, Layla. It’s dark and heavy. You really shouldn't scent this.""You’re not just trying to keep me out of the loop, are you? Is there really a wolf in a casket?""It’s a death rite. Do you truly want to witness the end of a pack member?""No way," Layla whispered, shivering as she backed away. "Who was it? Was it an Alpha?""No idea. The names are blurred," Hayden said, slamming the terminal shut. "I’m returning this to Mike’s quarters before he finishes his match.""Fine... I’ll just hide the evidence."Once Hayden vanished, Layla shoved the disc and the jargon-filled parchment back into the obsidian box. If she’d known she was hauling a record of a funeral across the ice, she wouldn't have bothered breaching the Citadel. Now, returning it was impossible w