The morning of the Council summit dawned with a sky the color of ash—gray, heavy, split by thin streaks of blood-red light that bled through the clouds like wounds. The Northern Stronghold stood silent beneath it, the wolves moving through the halls with quiet purpose, their eyes sharp, their steps deliberate. The air hummed with magic, with tension, with the weight of what was coming.
We were going back.
Not as infiltrator and enforcer.
Not as challenger and signatory.
As mates.
Kaelen stood at the window of his chambers, his silhouette carved from shadow and flame, his coat pulled tight over broad shoulders. The mark on my neck throbbed faintly, a constant reminder. Mine. Claimed. Bound. The bond pulsed beneath my skin, steady, deep, real. But beneath it—
Fear.
Not of the Council.
Not of Cassian.
Of what I was about to do.
“You’re thinking again,” Kaelen said, not turning. His voice was low, rough, familiar.
“I’m remembering,” I said, stepping beside him. “The last time I walked into that Court, I was alone. I had nothing but a forged name and a hunger for vengeance.”
He turned to me then, his golden eyes blazing. “And now?”
I looked up at him—really looked at him. The man who had signed the Contract under duress. The Alpha who had saved his enforcer. The predator who had kissed me like I was the only thing worth hunting.
“Now,” I said, “I have you.”
He didn’t smile. Didn’t flinch. Just reached for my hand, our fingers intertwining, the bond humming between us. “Then you have everything.”
—
The journey to the Fae High Court was silent—no words, no warnings, no last-minute strategies. We rode in a black carriage drawn by shadow wolves, their eyes glowing silver, their breath steaming in the cold. Riven sat across from us, his dark eyes sharp, his silence heavier than any speech. Elara had insisted on coming, wrapped in a cloak lined with protective sigils, her silver hair gleaming in the dim light.
“They’ll try to break you,” she said, her voice low. “Not with force. With doubt. With lies. They’ll say the bond is cursed. That it’s not real. That you’ve been manipulated.”
“Let them,” Kaelen said, his voice a low growl. “I’ll show them what’s real.”
“Not with violence,” Elara said, her gaze sharp. “With truth. With unity. With the power of two souls choosing each other.”
I looked at Kaelen. “She’s right. We don’t need to fight them. We need to show them.”
He didn’t answer.
Just squeezed my hand.
And I knew.
We weren’t going to win with declarations.
Or threats.
We were going to win with love.
—
The Fae High Court rose from the Edinburgh skyline like a blade of black stone, its spires piercing the clouds, its windows glowing with cold fae light. The gates groaned open as we approached, the air thick with glamour, with poison, with the scent of old lies. Wolves lined the path, their eyes down, their claws retracted. Fae nobles watched from balconies, their faces masked, their eyes sharp.
And in the center—
Cassian.
He stood at the top of the grand staircase, robed in black and silver, his long hair gleaming, his smile sharp as a knife. Mira was beside him, dressed in crimson, her eyes cold, her lips curled into a faint smile. She wore a new bite mark—fresh, deep, real. A lie. A challenge. A test.
“How… touching,” Cassian said as we stepped from the carriage. “The Alpha and the challenger. Returning as mates. How poetic.”
Kaelen didn’t flinch. Didn’t speak. Just stepped in front of me, shielding me with his body. His hand gripped mine, steady, possessive.
“Save it,” I said, stepping beside him. “We’re not here for your games. We’re here for the truth.”
“The truth?” Cassian said, stepping down the stairs. “And what truth is that? That you’ve been corrupted by bond-heat? That you’ve been tricked by a cursed blood-oath? That the man who signed the Contract—the man who enslaved your mother—has now claimed you as his prize?”
“He didn’t claim me,” I said, my voice steady. “I claimed him. Willingly. Fully. As my equal.”
Mira stepped forward, her smile sweet. “And yet, Alpha, you were seen in my chambers just last night. You left at dawn. My scent is on your skin. My mark is on your neck.”
My breath caught.
Kaelen didn’t look at her. Didn’t react. Just stared at Cassian. “Lies. Glamour. You know it. They know it.”
“Do they?” Cassian said. “Or do they see a man weakened by passion? A leader distracted by desire? A bond that threatens the balance?”
The nobles murmured. Some nodded. Some scowled. But all watched. All waited.
And then—
Mira held up a tablet.
The image filled the courtyard—Kaelen, shirtless, fangs bared, his mouth at the curve of a woman’s neck. Her head thrown back, her fingers tangled in his hair. The room was dark, but I recognized it instantly.
His chambers.
And the woman—
Was me.
But it wasn’t me.
The face was wrong. The body. The hair. Everything but the setting was forged. A perfect, cruel lie.
“This was taken last night,” Mira said, voice sweet, melodic. “After the ritual. Kaelen came to me, heartbroken over the failure of the bond. He said the challenger was weak. Unworthy. And he claimed me—fully, completely—as his true mate.”
Gasps. Murmurs. The wolves growled, low and dangerous.
Kaelen didn’t flinch. Didn’t speak. Just stood, a statue carved from ice and fury.
“You lying bitch,” I said, stepping forward.
“Blair,” Kaelen warned.
But I didn’t stop. “That’s not real. That’s glamour. You’ve been trying to steal him since the moment we arrived. You can’t have him, so you forge a bond that doesn’t exist?”
“Prove it’s fake,” Mira said, smiling. “Go ahead. Use your truth magic. But be careful—what if the Council sees something else? What if they see you in his bed? What if they see the bond isn’t just political, but personal?”
My blood turned to ice.
She wasn’t just attacking Kaelen.
She was attacking us.
And she was winning.
Cassian stepped forward. “Alpha Vire. The pack demands clarity. Was this image taken in your chambers? Did you bite Mira? Did you claim her as your mate?”
All eyes turned to Kaelen.
He didn’t look at them.
He looked at me.
And in that moment, I saw it—the truth.
He wasn’t going to deny it.
Because denial wouldn’t be enough.
He needed to erase the lie.
So he turned to me, his voice low, rough, final.
“You want proof?” he said. “You want truth?”
And before I could react—
He kissed me.
Not soft. Not gentle.
Violent.
His hand fisted in my hair, yanking my head back. His mouth crashed onto mine, hot, demanding, possessive. A growl rumbled in his chest, vibrating through my bones. My body arched into him, traitorous, hungry. The bond between us burned, a pulse of heat, of magic, of something deeper.
And then—
He bit me.
Not hard enough to mark. Not enough to claim.
But enough to hurt.
A sharp, stinging pain at the base of my throat, where my pulse hammered. I gasped, my fingers clutching his arms, my body pressing into his.
And the courtyard—
It went silent.
When he pulled back, his lips were wet with my blood. His eyes glowed gold. His chest rose and falls fast.
“There,” he said, voice raw. “That’s what a real claim feels like. That’s what my bite does. And if you think for one second I’d ever give that to you—”
He turned to Mira, his gaze like a blade. “—you’re more deluded than I thought.”
She stared at him—her face pale, her hands trembling. Then, without a word, she turned and fled.
The courtyard erupted.
Whispers. Gasps. The wolves roared—approval, triumph, loyalty.
Cassian’s smile was gone. His eyes were cold, calculating.
And I—
I stood there, my lips swollen, my throat stinging, my body trembling with something I couldn’t name.
Because that kiss—
It hadn’t been for show.
It hadn’t been just to silence the lie.
It had been real.
And I had kissed him back.
And I wasn’t sorry.
—
The Council Chamber was a vast stone hall, lit by torches that flickered like dying stars. The delegation stood at the far end—Cassian in the center, Mira at his side, her crimson gown a slash of color against the gray stone. Behind them, a dozen fae nobles, their eyes cold, their expressions unreadable.
Kaelen and I stood together, hand in hand, the bond humming between us. The wolves of the pack lined the walls, silent, watchful, their loyalty a quiet promise in the air.
“Alpha Vire,” Cassian said, his voice smooth as poisoned honey. “You summoned us. Speak.”
Kaelen didn’t flinch. “The Contract is broken. Rewritten. The bond between Blair and me is legitimate. Recognize it, or leave.”
Gasps. Murmurs. The nobles exchanged glances.
“The Contract cannot be broken,” Cassian said. “It is eternal. Sacred. And you—” He turned to me. “—a half-breed witch, a rogue, a challenger—dare to claim the Alpha as your mate?”
“She doesn’t claim me,” Kaelen said, stepping forward. “I claim her. Willingly. Fully. As my equal.”
“Then prove it,” Cassian said, his voice sharp. “Show us the truth. Not with violence. Not with magic. With words.”
I stepped forward, my voice steady. “The truth is this: the Contract was never meant to enslave. It was meant to protect. My mother bound Kaelen to me not to punish him, but to save him. And she bound me to him not to destroy him, but to love him.”
“Lies,” Cassian spat. “You twist the past to suit your desire.”
“No,” I said. “I reveal it. And if you doubt me—” I reached into my coat and pulled out the vial Elara had given me. “—then see for yourself.”
I uncorked it, poured a single drop onto my palm. The air crackled. The runes on the walls flared. And then—
Memory.
Not mine.
Theirs.
The Fae High Court. The same marble, the same chandeliers. But colder. Older. And in the center—
Kaelen.
Younger. Bound. Bleeding. His golden eyes blazing with fury. Cassian stood over him, a dagger at his throat, his voice smooth, final.
“Sign,” he said. “Or your pack dies.”
Kaelen didn’t flinch. “You kill them, I’ll burn your court to ash.”
“And in doing so, you’ll break the truce,” he said. “Start a war. And your wolves will die screaming.” He pressed the dagger harder. “Sign. Or watch them burn.”
Kaelen looked at the Contract. The quill. The blood.
And then—
He signed.
Not because he wanted to.
Not because he believed in it.
Because he had no choice.
The vision faded.
The chamber was silent.
And then—
Cassian laughed.
“A trick,” he said. “Glamour. You’ve fabricated this to gain sympathy.”
“No fabrication,” Elara said, stepping forward. “That memory is real. I recorded it the night it happened. I hid it. For her.”
The nobles murmured. Some looked afraid. Some looked furious. But none stepped forward.
Because they knew.
The truth had been revealed.
Kaelen turned to me, his golden eyes blazing. “Now you know. Now they know. And if they still deny it—”
He stepped forward, his voice dropping to a growl. “—I’ll burn their court to ash myself.”
Cassian’s smile was gone. His eyes were cold, calculating.
And I—
I stood beside Kaelen, my hand in his, the bond pulsing between us.
Because the Contract was broken.
But our bond?
That was just beginning.