Chapter 31: A Brother’s Claim

A sharp knock at the door tore through the quiet.

Dax tensed behind me, his body going rigid, the warmth of his skin turning cold.

Another knock—louder, more insistent.

Dax was up in an instant, his movements smooth and controlled, like a predator preparing for a fight. I threw on a robe and followed him to the door, my own unease rising.

When Dax swung the door open, Jack stood on the other side. His face was grim, his usual composed demeanor replaced with something that looked dangerously close to fear.

“What is it?” Dax asked immediately, his voice edged with a sharpness I rarely heard.

Jack hesitated for half a second before speaking. “You need to come to the main hall. Now.”

Dax’s frown deepened. “What’s going on?”

Jack exhaled slowly, then met his son’s gaze. “It’s about your brother.”

A long silence filled the space between us.

I felt Dax’s entire body go still beside me, as if time itself had stopped. My pulse hammered in my ears, but I forced myself to stay calm.

“What?” Dax’s voice was hoarse, disbelieving.

Jack’s expression darkened. “He’s alive.”

The words barely registered before Dax shoved past his father, moving swiftly down the hallway. I hurried after him, my mind spinning.

Dax has a brother?

The main hall was already crowded when we arrived. Warriors stood on edge, their hands resting on their weapons. Pack elders whispered among themselves, their faces pale. The tension in the room was suffocating.

Then I saw him.

A man stood in the center of the hall, flanked by two unfamiliar wolves dressed in dark, foreign leathers. He looked almost identical to Dax—tall, powerful, with the same strong jawline and piercing amber eyes.

But where Dax’s gaze held warmth, this man’s eyes were cold, calculating.

Dax came to a sharp halt in front of him, his fists clenched at his sides.

The stranger smirked. “Hello, brother.”

A growl rumbled in Dax’s chest, low and deadly. “You’re supposed to be dead.”

The man chuckled, tilting his head. “And yet, here I stand.”

Jack stepped forward. “How is this possible? Come sit, I think we all have a lot of questions for each other. I can’t believe you’re actually standing in front of me, son…” Before Jack could finish, the man interrupted him.

“I’m not here to make up for lost time. I’ve come for what was stolen from me,” he said smoothly. “My place. My pack.”

The stranger’s gaze flicked to him, then to me. When his eyes landed on me, something dark flickered in them. My stomach turned to ice.

“And my mate.”

His eyes locked onto mine.

A heavy silence fell over the hall.

Dax moved before I could even process what had been said. In a flash, he had his twin by the throat, slamming him back against one of the thick wooden pillars. The impact rattled through the room, but the stranger—Dax’s brother—didn’t flinch.

The warriors tensed, ready for an order, but Jack raised a hand, keeping them still.

Dax’s growl was low, vibrating with barely contained fury. “Say that again.”

His twin smirked, the pressure of Dax’s grip around his throat seeming to amuse him rather than threaten him. “I said, I’ve come for what’s mine.” His eyes flickered toward me again. “Including her.”

I swallowed hard, standing my ground even though my entire body felt like it had turned to stone.

Dax’s grip tightened, and for the first time, his brother winced. “She’s not yours,” Dax snarled. “She’s mine. My mate. My wife.” His voice turned guttural, raw with possession. “Mention her again, and I’ll rip your throat out.”

His twin chuckled darkly, even as Dax’s fingers dug into his flesh. “So quick to rage.” His voice dropped to something quieter, something venomous. “But I wonder, brother… do you really know who she was meant to belong to?”

Dax pulled back just slightly, his eyes narrowing.

The man took the moment of hesitation to shove Dax off him, the two of them stepping back from each other like two predators squaring up for battle.

Jack’s voice cut through the tension. “Enough.”

Dax’s chest was rising and falling rapidly, but he didn’t move.

Jack’s gaze flickered toward the stranger. “You have a name?”

The man dusted off the front of his dark shirt, straightening as if he hadn’t just been moments away from having his throat crushed. “Kael.” He met his father’s gaze without a hint of fear. “I believe you used to call me Lucian.”

A collective gasp moved through the room.

Jack paled. “That name is dead.”

Kael—Lucian—tilted his head slightly. “And yet, here I stand.”

I watched Jack closely, seeing the turmoil in his eyes, the pain buried beneath layers of duty and control. He had believed his son was dead. Had mourned him. Had carried that grief for years.

Now, that grief had returned as something else entirely.

Something dangerous.

Jack’s voice was cold, measured. “Why come back now?”

Kael’s smirk faded. “Because it’s time to reclaim what was stolen from me.”

His gaze moved to Dax, then to me.

I refused to look away.

I wouldn’t let some stranger, some ghost from the past, intimidate me.

“I was the firstborn,” Kael said. “The rightful heir.”

Dax let out a bitter laugh. “The rightful heir?” His voice dripped with disbelief. “You died. Or so we thought. You were gone.”

Kael’s jaw clenched, and for the first time, I saw something flicker behind his cold eyes. Something like resentment.

“I wasn’t dead,” he said darkly. “I was taken. Stolen in the night like a secret you were never meant to keep.”

Jack stiffened.

Dax’s entire body tensed.

Kael’s voice was calm, but his words cut through the air like a blade. “The Ironfang pack took me. Raised me. Shaped me. While you lived as the golden son, I was forged into something stronger.” His lips curled. “And now, I’m taking back what’s mine.”

Dax took a step closer, his fists clenching at his sides. “You’re not the heir. I am.” His voice was steady, but there was a dangerous edge to it.

Kael smirked. “Then fight me for it.”

The hall fell into silence again.

The challenge had been made.

And I knew there was no way Dax would walk away from it.