LOGINThe celebration roared around us, but I couldn't hear any of it. Diane's name pulsed on my phone screen like a wound that wouldn't close. She'll be seeing you soon. Jace took the phone from my hand, read the message twice, and his jaw tightened until I could see the muscle jumping in his cheek."She's bluffing." His voice was quiet, controlled, the Aegis steady behind his eyes. "The Ashford network is shattered. She's on the run. This is desperation.""You don't believe that.""No. I don't." He handed the phone back. "But the draft is over. We're alive. Marcus is recovering. The Volkovs are retreating. Whatever Diane is planning, we have time to prepare."I wanted to believe him. The locker room was full of laughter and champagne and teammates clapping Jace on the back. Ava was in the corner, already filing her follow-up story. Celeste stood guard by the door, her gold eyes scanning every face. My father was somewhere in the building. For the first time in months, we'd actually won so
The draft venue glowed like a cathedral of glass and steel, every window blazing with light against the dark winter sky. We stood at the edge of the crowd, Jace's hand wrapped around mine, the roar of ten thousand voices rumbling through the walls. Somewhere inside, scouts and cameras and three Volkov agents were waiting. Somewhere inside, my father was in the front row."You ready?" I asked."No." Jace's eyes flickered gold, but steady. Controlled. "But I'm done letting fear make my decisions."We walked through the side entrance together. The hallway stretched ahead, lined with framed jerseys and championship banners. Halfway down, Celeste emerged from the shadows. "The Volkov agents are in position. Security, media, one scout. They're watching every entrance.""Let them watch." Jace's voice was calm. "I'm not their weapon anymore."Helena met us at the tunnel entrance with a clipboard and a grim expression. "Ava's story just went live. Every major outlet is picking it up. The blood
Six hours before the draft, Marcus stopped breathing.I was in the safe house hallway when the machines screamed. Doctors burst through the doors, shouting words I didn't understand, and I pressed myself against the wall as they wheeled him past—his face pale, his silver eyes closed, the binding agent's poison still burning through his veins. Jace caught my arm before my knees gave out."He's not going to die," he said, but his voice was rough, uncertain. "The Valcourt doctors know what they're doing.""He took that syringe for you.""I know.""Why would he do that? After everything he did—all the lies, all the manipulation—why would he sacrifice himself?"Jace was quiet for a moment. The same question had been eating at him since the arena. "Because he meant what he said. Everything he did, he did because he loved you. Even the betrayal. Even the lies." He met my eyes. "Love makes people do terrible things. It also makes them do brave ones."I stared at the closed doors of the medica
The first Volkov agent crashed through the glass before anyone could move. Shards exploded across the ice like frozen rain, and then they were everywhere—pouring through the shattered doors, their silver eyes cutting through the dark arena like cold fire. Twelve of them. Maybe more. I grabbed Marcus by the front of his bloodied jacket and dragged him behind the boards as a wave of pressure slammed into the spot where he'd been standing."They sent a kill squad," he gasped, pressing a hand to the gash on his forehead. "Not a recruitment team. The voided contract triggered a full termination order. They're here to eliminate everyone."Jace was already moving. His eyes flared gold, and the air around him shimmered with heat. "Celeste, protect Sophie. Helena, get Margot to the Valcourt safe house. Marcus—""I'm fighting." Marcus pushed himself upright, his silver eyes steady despite the blood streaming down his face. "I burned my life for this. Let me finish it."Jace didn't argue. He jus
Nine days before the draft, Jace's power nearly killed him.I was in the stands at dawn, watching him run drills alone on the empty ice. Helena had given the team a rest day, but Jace never rested. He skated in brutal circles, slapshots echoing through the rafters like gunfire, his breath coming in harsh white bursts. Then he stopped. His stick clattered to the ice. His body went rigid, and a sound escaped him—half growl, half scream—as gold light bled from his eyes and poured down his cheeks like liquid fire.I was on the ice before I knew I'd moved, my sneakers slipping on the frozen surface. "Jace!"He didn't answer. He couldn't. His whole body was shaking, muscles locked, the veins in his neck standing out like cords. The air pressure dropped. The lights flickered. Somewhere in the tunnel, I heard Celeste shout a warning—she'd been watching from the shadows, always watching—but I didn't stop. I grabbed his arm, and the heat of his skin burned through my gloves."Look at me. Whatev
Marcus's silver eyes reflected the warehouse lights like mirrors, and in them, I saw every moment he'd been there—every study session, every coffee, every time he'd told me Jace was dangerous and I should walk away. He wasn't protecting me. He was isolating me. The same way Gregory had isolated Jace. The same way Diane had isolated Margot. All of them, working different angles of the same terrible plan."Say something," Marcus said. His voice was calm, but his hands were shaking at his sides. "Scream at me. Tell me I'm a monster. I deserve it.""You're Volkov." The words scraped out of my throat. "The whole time. From the very beginning.""From before the beginning. I was assigned to watch the Kingston heir when I was sixteen. The Volkovs knew Gregory was trying to activate the Aegis. They wanted to see if he'd succeed before they made their move." He took a step closer, and Jace moved to block him. "I never wanted to hurt you, Sophie. That part was real. Everything I felt for you—""
"And the gold eyes? The shattered lights? The way he growled like an animal?" Marcus shook his head. "You can't explain that away, Sophie. He's not human. And the longer you stay near him, the more danger you're in.""Then let me be in danger. It's my choice.""It's the wrong choice.""Then it's mi
The girl at the edge of the rink smiled like a wound opening."You look surprised," she said, her gold eyes fixed on Jace. "Did you really think Dad only experimented on you?"I was still on my knees on the ice, Jace's hand clamped around mine so tight my fingers were going numb. His face had gone
"Sophie, dear. You should have run when you had the chance."The voice from the darkness wasn't Detective Cross anymore. It was softer now. Almost gentle. The voice of a woman who'd spent eleven years being beaten by her husband and had finally learned to hit back.I stumbled backward into the park
I didn't sleep.Not a single minute. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Gregory Kingston's face twisted with rage in that hallway. I heard his voice slurring my name. I felt my phone buzz with another message that never came but always felt one second away.By the time Thursday afternoon arrived, I







