Chapter 8 THE PRICE OF THE CLAIM

The confession was raw, desperate, and utterly terrifying. It wasn't a romance; it was a pact with a monster who needed me to remain human.

"What do you want?" I asked, pushing past the terror and focusing on the only thing I had: logic. "Marcus wants the bond severed. You need it strengthened. What do I get out of this deal?"

Kael looked momentarily stunned by my practicality. His lips curled into a half-smirk, the brief flicker of the cocky high school king returning. "You're smart. I knew you would be."

"Don't flatter me, Kael. Just tell me the rules."

"The rules are simple," he stated, stepping back to give me space. "You and I have to present a united front. We have to make the Pack believe that I am in control and that the bond is manageable. If the Elders believe the Mate is a liability, they side with my father and terminate the bond - meaning they eliminate you."

"And if they believe I'm strong enough?"

"They give me time," Kael said, his amber eyes intense. "Time to stabilize the bond, time to pass the Trials, and time to claim the Alpha title. Once I'm Alpha, my claim to you is immutable, even as a human."

"So, I become your political accessory."

"You become my political shield," he countered fiercely. "And in return, I will protect you. No one - not Sierra, not my father, not the entire Pack - will touch you. Do you want peace? You get protection."

The terms were brutal. I was trading my freedom for my life.

"And what about the human world?" I challenged myself. "The step-sibling act? We can't just suddenly be dating."

"No. That stays in place," Kael confirmed. "The Pack must know, but the school cannot. In public, you are the quiet step-sister who hates me. In private, you are my Mate. It will drive Sierra insane, but it protects the Pack's secret."

The deal was insane, dangerous, and required me to live two separate, mutually destructive lives. But Marcus Thorne was a reality, and Kael's desperate need was a physical pain I couldn't ignore.

"Okay," I whispered, the word tasting like ash. "But I have conditions. First: No commands. You treat me as an ally, not a subject."

Kael looked surprised, then a slow, almost reluctant smile touched his lips. "Deal."

"Second: I need answers. I need to know everything about the Stormfang Pack, the Trials, and who your rivals are."

"I'll teach you," he promised. "Starting tonight, in the library. My father won't risk coming near you tonight - he'll expect me to be running."

"Third," I said, my voice firming up. "That bond. That pain. I need to know how to manage it. I can't function like this."

Kael's gaze softened slightly, a flicker of something tender replacing the desperate aggression. "It's a connection, Willow. It hurts because we're fighting it. If we stop fighting it, it gets easier. I'll show you."

He moved toward me, but stopped just short of touching, his hands raised in surrender. "No more growls. No more ultimatums. Just survival."

I nodded, the gravity of the pact settling over me. I was now tethered to a werewolf, a political liability in a secret war, all to stay alive.