All Chapters of My Husband’s Brother Is My Mate?!: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

"I need to tell you something."Cain looked up from his desk. The study was gray with afternoon light. He had not changed his clothes since the gate. Dark smudges sat under his eyes, and his sleeves were creased."You need to tell me many things," he said. "I suspect most of them I already know.""Then let me say it plainly." My heart pounded. "Rhys and I...""Stop."It was a quiet word. But it cut me off like a closed door.I stared at him."Do not say it," Cain said. He rose and walked slowly to the window. "If you say it aloud, I must act. I am Alpha. There are laws about such things. The council would demand it, and I would have no choice.""I am not asking you to act. I am asking you to hear me.""I have heard enough." He did not turn around. "I saw your face at the gate. I saw his. I am not a fool, Selene.""Then why did you let us pass?""Because your father was dying." His shoulders tightened. "And because I would rather be a fool than a tyrant."My eyes burned. "I did not wan

The great hall had been transformed.Hundreds of lanterns hung from the rafters, each one holding a tiny blue flame. They cast a pale, watery glow over the stone. The long tables had been cleared away. In their place stood rows and rows of silent wolves, packed shoulder to shoulder. The air smelled of beeswax and pine.No moon rose outside. The windows were black. The whole world had gone dark and quiet.I walked down the center aisle alone.I had changed into a white gown Mara had once embroidered with silver thread. My hair fell loose. The half-burned ledger was hidden in my room. My knees felt like water.At the far end stood the dais. Mother Maren waited there, small and straight in a pale blue robe, her silver eyes gleaming. Beside her stood Cain in black, his face expressionless.He held out his hand.I took it.His fingers were cold. He did not look at me, but his grip tightened, just slightly. A silent thank you.On the front row, Mara sat with Bryn. She mouthed, you can do th

Silence.It was the loudest silence I had ever heard.Hundreds of wolves stood motionless in the wreck of the great hall. Blue flames flickered. Dust drifted through the air. No one breathed.Slowly, one by one, every face turned toward Cain.He stood at the center of the broken dais, tall and straight, his shoulder bleeding. His chin was lifted. His storm-gray eyes were fixed on Varek.He did not shift.I watched the realization move through the crowd. It spread like ink in water. Whispers began. Low. Shocked. He has not shifted in years. I thought it was pride. Is it true? Can it be?Beside me, Rhys, back in his human form and wrapped in a torn cloak, took a half-step forward. I caught his arm.Wait, I said through the link.He needs...I know. But this is his to do.Cain's gaze swept slowly around the hall. Over the elders. Over the warriors. Over his own pack, who stared at him with horror and confusion.Then he did something I did not expect.He sheathed his sword.The soft scrap

"Lie down," Mother Maren said.The tower room was dark except for a ring of black candles set on the floor. Their flames burned low and steady. The air smelled of myrrh and old smoke. Outside the narrow window, the sky was starless.Rhys lay on a pallet of blankets at the center of the circle, his hands clenched at his sides. He had stripped to his shirt. His chest rose and fell too fast.I knelt at his head. Cain stood in the shadows by the door, his arms crossed so tightly his knuckles were white. He had refused to leave."Selene," Maren said. "You will hold the link. Whatever happens, you must not let go. You are his anchor. If he drifts too far, you pull him back.""I understand.""Do you?" Her silver eyes held mine. "You will see everything he sees. Feel everything he feels. It will not be gentle.""I am ready."I was not. But I took Rhys's hand.He turned his head and looked at me. His eyes were gold and steady and terrified.I am here, I said through the link.I know. A faint s

The ring was a circle of packed earth in the center of the great courtyard, marked by a chain of white stones.Hundreds of wolves stood around it in silence. Cold gray light crept across the sky. Frost glittered on the cobbles. A thin wind carried a smell I did not like. Smoke.Cain stood at the edge of the circle in black, bareheaded, his arm still bandaged. Across from him, Roderick Hale waited in the open, stripped to the waist, his lean body scarred and corded with muscle. His pale eyes gleamed."Alpha Cain," Hale said. "I give you one last chance. Yield now, and you may live in exile.""I do not yield.""Then you will die in front of your pack."Cain drew his sword. He took one step into the ring.And Rhys stepped in front of him."What are you doing?" Cain hissed."Standing as your champion." Rhys did not look back. "Under the law. As your blood.""I forbid it.""You cannot." Rhys's voice was steady. "It is my right. And my choice."Mother Maren stepped forward, her staff tappin