The Deadline of Hearts

The Deadline of Hearts


Chapter 172: The Deadline of Hearts

The messenger raised his head.

“On the matter of your mate.”

The words slammed into the clearing like a blade.

Brooke stiffened.

Max cursed under his breath.

Yuri went pale.

Alicia felt Flo freeze inside her mind.

“What… decision?” Alicia asked.

The messenger stepped forward, holding a sealed decree.

His voice was cold.

“The Council has declared… that only one mate will be permitted.”

“And you must choose, by the next full moon.”

The decree glowed.

Alicia’s lips parted in horror.

“No… not like this…”

The messenger continued,

“And Queen Alicia, if you do not choose…”

He paused.

“…the Council will choose for you.”

The clearing went still.

The air froze.

Max barked, “Over our dead bodies!”

Brooke growled, “They can’t make that call..!”

Yuri stepped forward, voice trembling.

“Alicia… what do we do?”

Alicia stared at the decree, hands shaking, heart pounding, conflicting love tearing her apart.

The messenger waited.

The decree pulsed.

Brooke. Max. Yuri.

All staring at her.

Flo whispered:

“Choose, my Queen… or everything falls apart.”

Alicia inhaled, and the world held its breath.



The decree in the messenger’s hand glowed like a living wound.

Alicia stared at it, unable to breathe. The forest felt too quiet. Too still. Even the wind seemed afraid to move around them.

Brooke’s voice broke the silence first, low, wounded, dangerous.

“Alicia… this can’t be real.”

Max stepped forward and snatched the decree from the messenger’s grip.

“The Council has no right to dictate a Queen’s heart.”

He turned it over, eyes narrowing as he read the sigil.

“This seal is… from all Twelve Elders.”

Yuri sucked in a sharp breath.

“They’ve united on this? All of them?”

The messenger nodded once.

“This matter concerns the kingdom’s stability. Too many claimants. Too much tension.”

His gaze slid to Brooke, then Max, then Yuri.

“A divided Queen is a vulnerable kingdom.”

Alicia’s jaw tightened.

“I am not divided.”

The messenger simply bowed.

“The Council disagrees.”

The words punched the air out of her chest.

Max stepped between the messenger and Alicia like a storm given form.

“Say that again. I dare you.”

But Alicia put a hand on Max’s arm.

“Max. Don’t.”

He froze, because she wasn’t angry.

She was shaking.

Brooke approached, softer, eyes searching hers.

“Alicia… talk to us. Tell us what you’re feeling.”

For a moment, she couldn’t speak.

Then, “I feel trapped.”

Yuri exhaled shakily.

“By us?”

Alicia shook her head fiercely.

“No. Never by you. By them. By expectations. By a system that wants me to be a symbol more than a woman.”

Flo’s voice echoed inside her, tight and protective.

“Finally spoken aloud.”

The messenger shifted.

“Queen Alicia. The deadline is...”

Max cut him off with a snarl.

“Say ‘deadline’ again and I will tear your throat out.”

Brooke grabbed Max by the shoulder.

“Max. Let him finish. We need to know what we’re dealing with.”

Yuri folded his arms.

“Speak. But choose your words carefully.”

The messenger swallowed.

“The next full moon is eleven days from now.”

Alicia’s stomach dropped.

Eleven days.

Brooke whispered,

“That’s nothing.”

Max muttered, almost to himself,

“Eleven days to figure out a lifetime?”

Yuri was silent, expression unreadable.

The messenger cleared his throat.

“There will be new tests tomorrow. Harder ones. Designed to push beyond loyalty, fear and devotion. To reveal the one whose heart resonates most purely with the Queen.”

Alicia stared.

“Resonates?”

“The Wolf-Mate Trials,” he said. “Awakened for the first time in centuries.”

Brooke stiffened.

“Those trials are brutal.”

Max laughed once, humorless.

“Perfect. Just what we needed.”

Yuri’s voice dropped to a whisper.

“Someone could die.”

Alicia stepped forward, fury trembling through her bones.

“No. I won’t allow the Council to risk your lives.”

The messenger bowed again.

“The Council has already decided. The three candidates must face the trials or lose eligibility.”

Alicia’s breath caught.

“Eligibility? They’re not competitors. They’re my...”

Her voice cracked.

She didn’t finish the sentence.

Brooke stepped closer, brushing a hand gently down her arm.

“We know what we are to you, Alicia. And none of us need a Council to tell us.”

Max cupped her cheek, eyes burning.

“Their tests won’t scare me away.”

Yuri stood on her other side, softer, pained.

“If it means proving myself to you, even against my will, I’ll face whatever comes.”

Alicia trembled.

Flo murmured, “They would die for you… but can they live for you?”

The messenger bowed deeply.

“The trials begin at dawn. Prepare yourselves.”

And with a flare of energy, he vanished from the clearing.



Silence. Heavy. Unbearable.

Brooke finally spoke.

“Alicia… why didn’t you choose one of us? You could have ended all this.”

Max frowned.

“Brooke, don’t push her now...”

“No,” Alicia whispered. “He’s right.”

Her voice shook.

“I didn’t choose because...because choosing one of you feels like losing the other two.”

Yuri stared at her, stunned.

“Alicia…”

She turned away, hugging herself tightly.

“You all matter to me. Deeply. Each in different ways.”

She exhaled.

“And I’m terrified of destroying any of you.”

Brooke stepped behind her and gently touched her back.

“Alicia. Loving someone always risks hurting others. That’s life. That’s love.”

Max added, voice rough,

“And we’re all grown wolves. We can fight. We can survive heartbreak.”

His eyes softened.

“But we can’t survive losing you.”

Yuri whispered,

“You’re not responsible for our feelings, Alicia. Only your truth.”

Alicia whispered back,

“My truth is… I want all of you in my life.”

The confession settled into the clearing like a warm, painful light.

Brooke inhaled shakily.

Max looked away, blinking hard.

Yuri swore under his breath.

Max Junior finally stepped in.

“Mom. The Council won’t accept that.”

Alicia closed her eyes.

“I know.”

“And you can’t delay your decision.”

“I know.”

“So,” Max Junior said softly, “you have eleven days to figure out if you choose one… or change the system.”

Alicia turned sharply.

“Change the system?”

Yuri blinked.

“You mean, change the mate laws?”

Brooke frowned.

“That hasn’t happened in...”

Max finished for him.

“...ever.”

Alicia’s heartbeat quickened.

“But maybe it’s time.”

Flo purred in her mind,

“Rewriting destiny. I like it.”

Brooke stared at her.

“Alicia… if you want an alliance of equals, if you want the chance to love more than one mate, say it.”

Alicia shook her head.

“I don’t know yet. I just… I want space to decide freely.”