KASE RETURNS

CHAPTER 37

"Alpha Thorne is here."

The guard's announcement changed Roman instantly. One moment, he was stealing toast from my plate. The next, his shoulders squared, his expression hardened, and every trace of the warmth he'd shown me over the past few days disappeared behind the familiar mask of the Alpha.

I stared at him.

"Wow."

He glanced at me. "What?"

"Thirty seconds ago, you were stealing my breakfast. Now you look like a statue."

"I wasn't stealing it. I was relocating it."

"Of course. And this is your professional face?"

"It is."

"It's a terrible face."

"It's effective." His gaze shifted toward the doors. "Mira, stay close. And let me handle the conversation."

"Why?"

"Because Kase Thorne never visits without a reason."

"You said he was an ally."

"I said he's allied with us." His jaw tightened. "Those aren't the same thing."

Before I could ask what he meant, the doors opened.

Kase Thorne walked in like a man who had never been told no. He had dark hair, an easy stride, and a smile that seemed to arrive before the rest of him.

He clasped Roman's forearm.

"Draven. You look well."

"Thorne. This is unexpected."

"A courtesy call. Border trade, the winter treaty. Boring things." Kase waved a hand. "I was passing through."

"Through the mountains."

"Through the mountains."

"In October."

"I enjoy the cold."

His gaze moved past Roman and settled on me. His smile warmed slightly.

"Miss Vale. You took the window seat in the library the last time I visited. Did you ever finish the book?"

I blinked, surprised he remembered.

"Almost."

"Almost. That's the trouble with good books. They make you want to stay in their worlds a little longer."

"You remember that?"

"I notice what people choose." He bowed his head slightly. "It's good to see you looking well."

"Thank you."

"Kase," Roman interrupted. "Sit. Tea?"

"You're very formal today."

"I'm always formal."

"Not with everyone."

Roman's jaw tightened.

I'd spent enough time around him lately to recognize the small changes in his expression, even when he tried to hide them.

Tea was served, and Kase settled into the chair opposite us. I took the seat beside Roman, partly because it was the most natural choice and partly because he'd positioned himself so that standing anywhere else would have required squeezing past him.

I gave him a pointed look.

He ignored it.

"How is the pack?" Kase asked.

"Stable."

"And the northern boundary?"

I felt Roman go still beside me.

"Why do you ask?"

"I heard there'd been some movement."

"There's always movement."

"Of a particular kind?"

Roman set down his cup.

"What have you heard?"

"Nothing certain." Kase stirred his tea. "Only the usual whispers. Strangers crossing boundaries. An uneasy winter. Nothing worth alarming anyone over."

"Then why bring it up?"

"Because rumors have a habit of becoming problems when nobody bothers to examine them."

His gaze shifted to me.

"Miss Vale, you've been at Blackthorn for a while now. Have you noticed anything unusual?"

"I think everyone feels unsettled in winter."

"That's diplomatic."

"She's not part of the diplomatic staff," Roman said.

"No, but she lives here." Kase smiled at me. "I'd value her perspective. You seem clear-eyed."

"Thank you."

"I mean it. You have an intelligent face."

"Thorne," Roman said mildly.

"A compliment, Draven."

"I know what it was."

I kept my expression neutral and wrapped both hands around my teacup.

Kase leaned back.

"I'll be honest. There's another reason I came."

Roman's expression didn't change.

"Go on."

"I heard a rumor that something unusual has surfaced at Blackthorn. Something involving an old bloodline."

The room seemed to grow colder.

"An old bloodline," Roman repeated.

"Rare. Significant. The sort of thing that doesn't reappear without consequences."

"What kind of rumor travels that far?" Roman asked.

"The kind that starts with someone who believes they know what they're looking at."

Kase's gaze moved to me again.

"Miss Vale, does that mean anything to you?"

My pulse quickened, but I kept my cup steady.

"I'm a surrogate, Alpha Thorne. I know very little about bloodlines."

"No family stories? No grandmother who believed in unusual things?"

"My grandmother knitted."

"Knitting. Excellent."

"She was very good at it."

"I'm sure she was." His mouth twitched. "Forgive me. I'm curious by nature."

"Then be curious about something else," Roman said. "My household isn't a subject for your rumors."

"I would never presume."

"Good."

"Though I am curious about why you answered for her."

"She's under my protection."

"As is everyone here."

"Not like her."

Silence settled over the room.

I turned toward Roman. He hadn't meant to say it so plainly. I could tell by the sudden stillness of his expression.

Across from us, Kase raised his eyebrows slightly.

Then he set down his teacup.

"Of course," he said.

But his eyes had changed.

He stayed for another fifteen minutes, discussing trade agreements and the winter treaty as though nothing unusual had happened. When he finally rose, he asked permission to stretch his legs before leaving.

Roman agreed, though his expression suggested he would rather have escorted him straight to the gates.

The moment Kase was out of earshot, Roman turned to me.

"I want you to stay away from him."

I stared at him.

"Excuse me?"

"Until I understand what he wants."

"You said he's your ally."

"Allies aren't necessarily friends."

"That isn't what this is." I folded my arms. "You answered half my questions for me in there."

"He was probing."

"I noticed. I'm not stupid."

"I never said you were."

"Then let me answer for myself."

His gaze hardened. "He was watching you."

"Looking at me."

"Closely."

"Roman." I tilted my head. "Are you jealous?"

"No."

"You're jealous."

"I'm cautious."

"You're jealous and cautious."

"Mira"

"He remembered the window seat in the library. That's all."

"That's not all."

"What else?"

His mouth opened, then closed again.

"What?" I pressed.

"Nothing I can prove."

I let out a disbelieving breath.

"That's a lot of nothing you keep not proving."

His jaw worked.

"I don't trust him."

"Fine. Then trust me."

"I do."

"Then stop answering for me." I placed my hand against his chest. "You told me to stand beside you. Beside you, Roman. Not behind you."

He closed his eyes briefly.

When he opened them, some of the tension had left his face.

"You're right."

"I know."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. Just don't do it again."

"I'll try."

"Badly?"

"Terribly."

A reluctant smile tugged at my mouth, but it faded when I remembered Kase's questions.

"Why would he be interested in an old bloodline?"

Roman's expression became guarded again.

"That's what I intend to find out."

I studied him, but he offered nothing more.

An hour later, I found Kase on the terrace, standing alone with his hands braced against the stone railing.

He didn't turn when I approached.

"Miss Vale."

"Alpha Thorne."

"Walk with me?"

"I'd rather stay here."

"Fair enough."

He glanced toward the windows.

"He's watching, isn't he?"

"Probably."

"I'd be disappointed if he weren't." A dry smile crossed his face. "I won't keep you long."

"What do you want?"

"To say something I couldn't say in front of him."

"That sounds like a bad idea."

"It probably is."

He turned fully toward me. The easy charm had slipped, revealing something quieter and more serious.

"Your family. Do you know anything unusual about your ancestry?"

"I already answered your questions."

"You answered the questions I asked in front of Draven."

"And now you're asking them again."

"Because I need to know how much you've been told."

"Why?"

His eyes searched my face.

"Because I know what the word Moonborn means."

My stomach dropped.

For a moment, I couldn't hear anything beyond the pounding of my own heart.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Perhaps not." His voice softened. "But someone at Blackthorn does."

"Who?"

"I don't know."

"Then how do you know about Moonborn?"

"I've heard the term before. I know enough to understand that it isn't something people should discuss carelessly."

"Where did you hear it?"

He hesitated.

That hesitation told me more than his answer might have.

"I can't explain everything here," he said.

"Can't or won't?"

"Both, for now."

I took a step back.

"You expect me to trust you when you won't tell me how you know about my bloodline?"

"No. I expect you to question me." His expression remained serious. "You should question anyone who approaches you with information they refuse to explain."

That answer unsettled me more than his earlier charm.

"Then why are you here?"

"Because the people who hear the word Moonborn first don't always have good intentions."

"And you do?"

"I haven't asked you for anything. I haven't threatened you, and I haven't tried to force you to leave Blackthorn."

"You did offer me somewhere else to go."

"An option. Not an order."

"I don't need your protection."

"Perhaps not." He glanced toward the windows again. "But someone else may decide you need to be controlled, studied, or kept where they can reach you."

My skin prickled.

"Who?"

"I can't name anyone without evidence."

"Or you won't."

"Believe what you like." His gaze returned to mine. "But if the situation changes, and you need somewhere else to be, my door is open. No contracts. No demands. No questions you aren't ready to answer."

"I don't need your door."

"Not yet."

"Why would you help me?"

For the first time, Kase's expression lost all trace of amusement.

"Because I'd rather be wrong about being needed than right about being too late."

He bowed his head once, then walked past me and returned to the house.

I remained on the terrace, staring at the place where he'd stood.

He knew the word Moonborn.

He knew enough to recognize its significance.

And he had deliberately waited until Roman wasn't beside me to say it.

I couldn't decide which part frightened me more.

Roman found me in the hall twenty minutes later.

He took one look at my face and stopped.

"What happened?"

"Kase spoke to me."

His expression hardened.

"What did he say?"

"He asked about my family. He wanted to know whether I knew anything unusual about my ancestry."

"He's fishing."

"Roman."

"What else?"

"He said the word Moonborn."

Roman went absolutely still.

"He used that word," I continued. "He said it as though he knew exactly what it meant."

"Did he explain how he knew?"

"No. He said he'd heard it before."

"Did he say where?"

"No."

"Did he tell you who else might know?"

"He said other people might come looking, and they wouldn't necessarily be polite." I swallowed. "He offered me somewhere else to go."

"Did you accept?"

"Of course not."

"Good."

His voice was flat. Too flat.

"Roman."

"I'll deal with it."

"You're not surprised."

His gaze snapped to mine.

"I'm surprised."

"No, you're not." I stepped closer. "You didn't ask me how he knew about Moonborn. You asked what he said, what he offered, and whether I accepted."

He said nothing.

"You're reacting as though this is something you've already considered."

"Mira"

"What aren't you telling me?"

His jaw tightened.

For several seconds, he looked as though he might give me an answer.

Then his gaze shifted toward the council chamber at the end of the corridor.

When he looked back at me, the familiar mask was in place.

"Not here."

My stomach sank.

"Then where?"

He took my hand, but there was no warmth in the gesture this time. Only urgency.

"My study. Now."

And as he led me away, I realized that Kase's visit might not have been the first time someone had come to Blackthorn asking questions about my bloodline.

It might simply have been the first time someone had been willing to say the word aloud.