Chapter 25: The Breaking Point

Seraphine's POV

Vespera's smile didn't waver. If anything, it widened.

She turned toward Kaelen, her body angling into his like they were alone. Like Cordelia and I weren't even there.

"Did you hear that?" Her voice dropped to something throaty, intimate. "The Moon Goddess chose her. How... romantic."

Her fingers traced up his arm—slow, deliberate—following the line of muscle beneath his shirt. When she reached his shoulder, she didn't stop. Her hand slid along his collarbone, up the side of his neck.

I watched her fingertips brush the edge of his jaw. Watched them trail along the sharp line of bone, mapping the contours of his face like she had every right to touch him.

Stop looking. Turn away. This doesn't matter.

But I couldn't.

Through the bond, I felt something flicker in Kaelen's chest. A ripple of awareness. Heat.

He didn't push her away.

Vespera rose onto her toes, bringing her mouth close to his ear. Her lips nearly brushed his skin as she whispered something I couldn't hear.

Whatever she said made her laugh—that bright, silvery sound that set my teeth on edge.

Kaelen's expression didn't change. Still that blank, controlled mask. But through the bond, I felt the response in him. Interest. Curiosity.

Physical attraction.

My wolf snarled.

Vespera's eyes cut toward me while her mouth was still at his ear. Blue meeting gold across the clearing.

Challenge. Pure and simple.

This is mine. He's mine. And you're nobody.

Something in me snapped.

The rage I'd been choking down exploded outward. My wolf surged up with a roar that filled my skull, drowning out every rational thought.

"Seraphine—" Cordelia's grip tightened on my wrist.

I jerked free.

My feet moved before I could think. Three steps. Five. Closing the distance between us with speed that should have been impossible in human form.

Vespera barely had time to turn.

I slammed both hands into her shoulders, shoving her away from Kaelen with enough force to send her stumbling backward.

"Get your filthy fucking hands off him, you bitch!"

The words tore out of me—raw, vicious. My voice didn't sound human. Too much wolf bleeding through, distorting the consonants into something closer to a growl.

Vespera caught herself, regaining her balance. Her eyes flashed gold. Claws extended from her fingertips with a soft snick of bone and keratin.

I felt my own claws push through. Felt the shift starting—bones realigning, muscles coiling with predatory strength.

Good. Let her try. I'll rip her fucking throat out—

My hand came up, ready to strike.

Movement in my peripheral vision.

Kaelen's hand closed around my wrist like an iron shackle, stopping my swing mid-motion. His grip was crushing—strong enough that I felt bones grinding together, tendons screaming in protest.

"Enough."

One word. Flat. Cold.

Final.

I jerked my head around, meeting those black eyes with their unnatural double pupils.

He was looking at me like I was the problem. Like I was the one who'd crossed a line.

Not the woman who'd been draped all over him. Not the woman who'd deliberately provoked me.

Me.

Through the bond, I felt it clearly. His displeasure. His disapproval.

His protection of her.

"Let. Go." Each word came out separately, scraped raw from my throat.

"You need to calm down." His voice was absolutely level. No emotion. No warmth. "Unprovoked attacks on pack members are unacceptable in Shadowmere."

I looked at his hand on my wrist. At Vespera standing behind him, safe under his protection. At the complete lack of understanding in his expression.

Something broke in my chest. Sharp and jagged, like glass shattering.

He doesn't care. About any of it. About what I saw. About what she was doing.

About me.

I forced myself to take a breath. Then another. Forced my claws to retract even though every instinct screamed to fight.

Control. You still have control.

When I spoke again, my voice was flat. Empty.

"You're right. My mistake."

I pulled my wrist from his grip—he let me go this time—and took a deliberate step back.

Remember why you came here. Remember what actually matters.

"I came to ask about Lyralei." The words tasted like ash. "About our deal. The one where you promised to help me find my sister."

I forced myself to meet his eyes. To ignore Vespera hovering at his shoulder like she belonged there.

"So tell me, Kaelen. Is this how you help? Standing around in the woods fucking flirting while my sister could be dying somewhere?"

His expression didn't change. Still that infuriating calm.

"A search team was dispatched at dawn," he said. Voice measured. Professional. "They're currently negotiating with the human settlement nearest to where you were found. The process takes time."

"Time." I laughed—a harsh, ugly sound. "Right. Because diplomatic channels are so much more important than a seventeen-year-old girl who's been missing for days."

"There are treaties—"

"Fuck your treaties!" The words exploded out of me. "She's alone out there! She's terrified! And you're—" I gestured violently at him, at Vespera, at the whole fucking situation. "—you're playing Alpha politics!"

Something flickered across his face. Too fast to read.

"You know nothing about the responsibilities of—"

"I know you promised." My voice cracked. "You looked me in the eye and swore you'd help. Was that just bullshit? Just something to say to get me to—"

To what? Accept the bond? Stop fighting?

I bit down on the words before they could escape.

Vespera chose that moment to speak, her voice dripping false sympathy.

"Maybe if you'd been more cooperative from the start, Alpha would have prioritized your request." She examined her nails. "But throwing tantrums and attacking pack members tends to work against you."

Breathe. Don't give her the satisfaction.

I turned back to Kaelen, ignoring her completely.

"I don't care about pack politics. I don't care about your territories or your treaties or your fucking responsibilities." Each word came out harder. Sharper. "I care about finding my sister. And if you're not going to help—"

"I am helping." His voice held an edge now. The first crack in that perfect control. "But I won't compromise the safety of my entire pack for—"

"For what?" I cut him off. "For one person? Is that what you were going to say?"

The silence stretched between us.

Through the bond, I felt something cold settling over his emotions. Distance. Withdrawal.

There it is. The truth.

"That's all she is to you, isn't she?" My voice dropped to barely above a whisper. "Just some random kid. Not worth the risk. Not worth the effort."

"That's not—"

"Save it." I was done. Completely fucking done with all of it. "You know what? Forget the deal. Forget all of this."

I turned, ready to walk away.

"Where do you think you're going?"