Aria’s POV

    For one suspended heartbeat, I thought the air had stopped moving.

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    Lucien’s words-“Does that mean I need to take responsibility for you?“-still rang in my ears like the aftershock of a strike. My chest tightened, my pulse skipping as though my wolf itself had stumbled. His golden eyes held mine, storm–bright and unyielding, as if daring me to deny the bond threading invisible between us.

    My lips parted, but no sound came out. I could feel the heat rising in my face, betraying me, and I hated myself for it.

    I dragged in a breath, sharp and burning, and forced steel into my voice. “I don’t need you to take responsibility for me, Lucien. You are not my mate. Not now. Not ever.”

    His jaw tightened, but I pressed on, each word sharpened into a de to cut apart the dangerous warmth blooming in my chest. “I am a White Wolf warrior. My loyalty belongs to my Pack and my Alpha. Saving you doesn’t change that. I only kept you alive because I don’t want you dying too soon. After all…” My throat bobbed as I forced the lie out. “…one day we’ll meet on the battlefield, and when that dayes, I’ll be the one to tear you down.”

    Lucien’s gaze burned hotter, not with anger but with knowing. He saw through me, I could feel it–through everyyer of armor I tried to wrap around myself. His lips parted, like he meant to speak, to unravel the truth I refused to acknowledge.

    But then-

    BANG.

    The door crashed open, the sound splitting the air like thunder.

    I jerked around, blood freezing in my veins.

    Aedric.

    He filled the doorway like a storm, broad shoulders nearly brushing the frame, eyes lit with an Alpha’s fury. His scent rolled into the room–sharp,manding,ced with dominance. My wolf shrank back against my ribs, a primal reaction to his unchecked rage.

    How had I not sensed him?

    Then I realized the truth. He hadn’t left at all. He had cloaked his aura, hidden his presence,

    9:09 Fri, Sep 12

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    waiting. And I–fool that I was–had been too consumed by Lucien to notice.

    I bit down hard on my tongue, self–loathing churning hot in my chest.

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    Lucien moved instinctively, cing himself half a step forward, protective, even wounded. But it was useless. Aedric had already seen enough. His nostrils red, eyes narrowing on Lucien like a predator locking on prey.

    “You dare,” he snarled, voice thick with betrayal, “hide him beneath my nose?”

    Hismand aura snapped out, mming into the room like a wall of fire. I staggered but forced my shoulders back, locking my knees against the instinct to bow.

    Guards flooded the threshold at his back, weapons half–drawn, waiting for his word.

    “Aedric “I started, but he cut me off, his voice cracking like a whip.

    “Silence! You’ve defied me, Aria. You’ve dishonored your Pack, your bloodline, me!” His eyes red darker, Alpha power coiling like chains. “Guards–seize him!”

    The air shifted as the soldiers moved.

    “Wait!” I snapped, throwing myself between them and Lucien. My wolf roared, white fire bristling along my skin. For a moment the guards hesitated, but Aedric’s rage pressed harder.

    “What excuse could you possibly give?” His gaze skewered me, unforgiving. “Why protect an Eastern wolf? Why endanger us all for him?”

    Every word was a de, cutting deeper because they were questions I had no right answer for.

    But I couldn’t–wouldn’t–let them take Lucien like this.

    I lifted my chin, forcing calm into my voice, even as my heart thrashed. “I did not keep him to betray you. I kept him because I will not let him die like a dog in the dirt. He belongs on the battlefield, Aedric. He belongs to me, as my opponent. I want to meet him de to de, w ito /iw, when the timees. Not watch him waste away in shadows.”

    The truth in my voice was half a lie, half the only way I could live with myself.

    Aedric’s re didn’t soften. Suspicion still burned in his eyes, his wolf prowling close beneath his skin. “And if I doubt your word? If I doubt your loyalty still?”

    The words came out before I could stop them, raw and desperate. “Then bind me to you. If my loyalty is still in question–let us pair.”

    9:09 Fri, Sep 12

    The silence that followed was absolute. Even the guards froze.

    Aedric blinked, as if he hadn’t heard correctly. “What?”

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    I forced my voice steady, though my hands trembled at my sides. “Two nights from now. At the full moon. Let us pair, and I will stand as your Luna. Then you’ll have no reason to question me again.”

    Shock rippled through the room. I could feel Lucien’s gaze boring into me, golden eyes zing.

    “No,” he ground out, voice low and furious. “Don’t. Aria, I know you don’t want this. I know you don’t want him.”

    My throat closed. My heart screamed. But I didn’t look at him. If I did, I’d shatter.

    I kept my eyes locked on Aedric’s, even as my hands trembled so hard my ws nearly pushed through skin.

    For a long breath, Aedric only stared, weighing my words, my soul. Then, slowly, a smile spread across his face, savage and triumphant.

    “Atst,” he murmured. “Atst you see sense.” His gaze flicked to Lucien, venomous. “Guards. Take him to the dungeons.”

    “Wait.” My voice cracked, but I forced it steady. “On the full moon–release him. Send him back to the East. He belongs to me, and I will have him on the battlefield when his wolf is strongest. Only then will it be worthy.”

    Aedric considered, then nodded sharply, still glowing with joy from my vow. “So be it. Two nights from now, Lucien returns to the East. And you-” His eyes gleamed as he looked at me. “You will be mineb./b”

    He turned, signaling his men. “I will begin preparations for our bonding ceremony. Our Pack will finally rise.”

    The guards dragged Lucien toward the door.

    “Aria!” Lucien’s voice cracked like a whip, fury and hurt mingling, but I couldn’t meet his eyes. Couldn’t let him see the tears burning mine.

    My wolf howled inside me, torn between duty and the truth wing at my chest. My hands trembled uncontrobly, but I kept them at my sides, forcing my spine straight.

    This was the only way. The only way to protect us both.

    9:09 Fri, Sep 12

    The only way not to lose everything.