Mag-log inPOVI shoved Idris's hand off my shoulder hard enough that he nearly stumbled back into the enforcers behind him, and I hit the marble stairs like something had been unleashed.My boots came down on the stone with every step, deliberate and enough that I didn't bother holding back the pressure of my Alpha aura at all. I let it drop straight into the room the way I would on a battlefield, and the air in that ballroom turned thick and cold almost instantly. Up in the balcony, the violinists stuttered mid-bar, their bows scraping against the strings in a way that made half the hall wince, and near the punch bowl I watched a cluster of low-ranking wolves drop their heads on instinct, their knees buckling under weight they hadn't expected to feel tonight.I didn't care about court decorum in that moment, and I mean that honestly, not as some dramatic flourish. I cut through the crowd, and the lords scrambled out of my way with expressions somewhere between fear and confusion, pressing them
Kaelen's POVThe grand ballroom of the central palace was a sea of gold trim, crystal chandeliers, and fake smiles, and I hated nearly every inch of it before I'd even climbed the staircase.I stood at the very top of the marble steps in full black dress uniform, the silver cloak of the Alpha King pinned across my shoulder with the royal crest, Idris a pace behind my right side, flanked by five elite enforcers who looked more prepared for a battlefield than a party. Given what I knew was sitting in those grain barrels, maybe that was exactly the correct way to look at it.A long line of lords and ladies kept filing past the foot of the stairs, bowing low, angling for a nod I had no intention of giving a single one of them. I didn't care about their seasonal greetings or their careful, practiced smiles. My jaw was set, my eyes locked on the oak doors at the far end of the hall, waiting.My wolf was pacing back and forth behind my ribs hard enough that it genuinely felt like he was tryi
POVHe was still down on his knees in front of me, my hands caught in his, his pulse hammering through the bond like something desperate to break out of a cage it had built for itself. I didn't pull away right away, even though I probably should have. I let myself look at him properly, really look, at the fear ringing gold around the silver of his eyes, at the way his jaw kept working like he had a dozen more things he wanted to say and couldn't find the order to say them in.I leaned forward slowly, until my breath brushed against the sharp line of his jaw."What's the matter, Kaelen?" I asked, soft, mocking, drawing the words out the way I know irritates him most. "Is the mighty Alpha King actually afraid that a little party is going to hurt me? I thought your royal enforcers could handle anything you put in front of them."His grip on my fingers tightened until his knuckles went pale. His throat moved when he swallowed, and for a second he didn't look like a king at all. He looked
Kaelen's POVIdris was talking about land tax adjustments at the conference table, and I genuinely could not tell you a single word of what he'd said in the last five minutes, because I wasn't listening to any of it.I couldn't focus, and I mean that literally. Every few seconds the bond behind my ear delivered another pulse of her straight into my chest, laughter, warmth, a kind of ease she hasn't shown me once since she came back to this capital, and all of it was going to some overgrown mutt sitting on her floor instead of to me.She hasn't laughed like that with me a single time. Not once. But a stray dog shreds my favorite chair and suddenly she's down on the ground giggling like the world isn't full of knives waiting for her at every turn.My wolf was sulking so hard in the back of my mind that I could genuinely feel the room getting colder around me. I closed my eyes against another wave of her happiness rolling through the bond, my ribs aching with something so stupid I refuse
Elara's POVNobody warns you, when they explain how a mate bond works, that it doesn't switch off just because you've walked out of the room. I could still feel him, that frantic hammering pulse behind my left ear, as Rhea and I made our way down the eastern hallway together. His wolf was still pacing somewhere on his side of the bond, snarling and pawing at the inside of his own chest like something I'd locked in a cage and abandoned there on purpose.Not that I cared or anything."Your skin's completely flushed right now," Rhea said, glancing sideways at my collarbone with a smirk she wasn't bothering to hide from me. "Is the Alpha King finally starting to chip away at that ice you're always wearing? You look like you just crawled out of a fever dream, honestly.""Don't be ridiculous," I said, not slowing my pace at all."I'm only saying what I'm seeing.""He's not chipping away at anything, Rhea. He's losing his mind because he can't stand the fact that he doesn't own me the way he
Kaelen's POVI was standing on the terrace off my study with a pair of field glasses in my hand, telling myself this was a routine perimeter check, the kind I do every morning to make sure nothing rogue has slipped past the guard line overnight.That was the story I was telling myself, anyway, right up until I lowered the lenses toward the outer courtyard and found her standing there with Cassian, and the story fell apart in my hands.It's embarrassing, if I'm honest with myself, how quickly my eyes go looking for her before they look for anything else. Every window in this palace, every terrace, every gap between two buildings where a person might be standing — I scan those spaces for her the way a soldier scans for an ambush, like she's a threat my body refuses to stop tracking.Maybe that's exactly what she is to me now. A threat I can't look away from no matter how many times she makes it clear she doesn't want my eyes on her at all.She hates me. She's said it plainly enough, wit
POV: ElaraThe doors of the ceremonial hall slammed shut behind me, muting the eruption of shouting voices and shattering glass.I marched down the stone steps, the layers of my gown brushing against the gravel as I crossed the dark courtyard. The royal enforcers stationed at the gates stared at me
POV: ElaraThe grand courtyard of the Voss pack estate was completely transformed for the evening. Red banners bearing our pack symbol hung from the stone arches, and torches lined the long driveway, casting a flickering, dramatic orange glow over the gathering crowds.Because we were hosting the n
POV: ElaraBefore Rhea could even pour the steaming tea, the bedroom door flew open with an aggressive bang."Oh, Elara! You’re finally awake!"Lyra burst into the room like a sudden gust of wind, a bright, dazzling smile plastered across her face. She looked radiant, her golden hair cascading down
POV: ElaraA sudden, violent gasp tore through my throat.My chest forcefully expanded, drawing in a massive, burning lungful of air that tasted shockingly sweet, entirely clear of mold and the suffocating stench of copper and rot.I bolted upright, my heart hammering against my ribs as I threw my







