บททั้งหมดของ The Mate Who Marked Me : บทที่ 31 - บทที่ 40

WREN'S POVThe morning broke clear and bright for the first time in what felt like weeks, the kind of crisp, undiluted sunlight that made even the training yard's worn dirt look almost golden, and something about the change in weather seemed to loosen a knot in my chest that had been drawn tight since the horn's warning two nights before. Kade met me there earlier than usual, a faint, easy energy in his shoulders that I hadn't seen from him since before Corvin's letter had settled its heavy warning over both of us, and when he tossed me a practice blade with a grin instead of his usual measured instruction, I felt an answering lightness rise unexpectedly in my own chest."You're in a mood," I said, catching the blade easily, testing its balance out of habit before falling into a ready stance."Good weather does that to a man." He rolled his shoulders, settling into his own stance across from me, something playful glinting in his storm gray eyes that I wasn't used to seeing directed my

WREN'S POVI woke the next morning in my own bed, though I couldn't remember the walk back from the watchtower clearly, only fragments, Kade's arm steady around my waist as we picked our way carefully through mud slick paths still slick from the storm, his low voice murmuring something reassuring against my hair when I'd stumbled once over an exposed root, the warmth of his hand refusing to let go of mine even after we'd reached the packhouse gate and the necessity of separate rooms had finally reasserted itself. I lay there a long moment before rising, staring up at the same familiar ceiling beams, and found myself smiling for no reason I could easily explain, some fragile, unfamiliar lightness settled into my chest that hadn't been there in longer than I could remember.I found him in the small courtyard near the eastern wing when I finally made my way down, the same quiet spot where he'd first caught me avoiding the packhouse days before, and something in the easy, unguarded way he

WREN'S POV"I don't expect you to make that argument blind," I said quietly, the weight of his question settling heavy in my chest. "I should have given you everything you needed days ago. I know that. I'm telling you now, everything I have. It's happened twice more since the first time in the mirror. Both times fast, both times gone within a second or two. I don't know what triggers it beyond fear, though Corvin's letter already told us that much. I don't know how to stop it, and I don't know how to promise you it won't happen again, possibly in front of the very council that's about to decide what to do with me."Kade was quiet for a long moment, his jaw working through something I couldn't fully read, and when he finally spoke, some of the sharp edge had softened into weary resignation rather than anger. "I'm not asking you to promise it won't happen. I'm asking you not to face it alone, the way you've apparently been trying to do since the very first flash. That's all I've ever as

WREN'S POVWord of the sparring match with Garrick traveled exactly as quickly as Kade had predicted, and by the following evening I found myself the recipient of an invitation I hadn't expected, delivered by Bram with the particular, understated satisfaction of a man who'd clearly had a hand in arranging it himself."Some of the younger wolves are gathering tonight, down by the old training barn," he said, finding me near the packhouse kitchens as the day's light began its slow fade toward evening. "Nothing formal. Just food, drink, a fire. Garrick's been talking up that match for two days now, and a few of them asked whether you might join, if you were willing."Something in my chest warmed unexpectedly at the invitation, a small, hopeful flutter I hadn't felt directed at me from this pack since my arrival. "You arranged this.""I mentioned it might be worth doing, given everything hanging over the council's decision right now." He shrugged, though the gesture didn't quite hide the

WREN'S POVIvy crossed the training yard slowly, deliberately, her small collection of followers trailing behind her with the particular, uneasy energy of people who'd already convinced themselves of something and were only waiting for permission to say it aloud. She stopped a careful distance away, close enough to be heard clearly but far enough, I noted with a cold, distant clarity, to look properly frightened of me if the moment called for it."I imagine you've heard by now," she said, her voice pitched to carry, the same performative sorrow from the receiving hall settling over her features like a mask she'd practiced wearing. "Two more dead. Torn apart in a way none of us have seen before, not since this territory was still contested ground.""I've heard." I kept my voice level, refusing to let the accusation I could already feel building beneath her words provoke a reaction she could use against me. "It's a tragedy. I'm sorry for their families.""Are you." Something sharp flick