Chapter 42 CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
ALORA
The sun is barely up when I hear him moving around in his room. Getting dressed for the meeting. Preparing to face three packs who want to take me away.
I'm still on the bathroom floor, my body aching from hours of fighting the heat. Every muscle feels too tight, my skin too sensitive. Even the soft cotton of my nightgown feels like sandpaper.
His footsteps approach the connecting door. "Alora."
I don't answer. Can't trust my voice right now.
"I'm leaving for the meeting. Marcus and twenty warriors are coming with me." A pause. "Sarah will be outside your door if you need anything. Don't leave this suite. Understand?"
"Yes." The word comes out hoarse.
Another pause. I can feel him wanting to say more, to push through the door and check on me himself. But he doesn't.
"I'll be back in a few hours. We'll talk then."
His footsteps retreat. I hear the main door close, then lock from the outside. He actually locked me in.
For my own protection, probably. But it still feels like a cage.
I force myself to stand, gripping the bathroom counter for support. My reflection is even worse than before, eyes fully crimson now, skin flushed and glowing, my hair wild around my face. I look feral. Desperate.
Exactly how I feel.
I stumble back to the bedroom and collapse on his bed. Big mistake. His scent is everywhere here, surrounding me, making the heat flare hotter. Pine and smoke and pure Alpha male.
My wolf whines, wanting him. Needing him.
"Stop it," I whisper to her. "He's not ours to have. Not like this."
But she doesn't care about the consequences. Doesn't care about the madness or the danger. She only knows that our mate is out there, facing threats, and we're not beside him.
I bury my face in his pillow, breathing in his scent despite knowing it makes everything worse. Maybe I want it to be worse. Maybe part of me is tired of fighting.
Time crawls. Minutes feel like hours. I try to distract myself by reading a book, taking another cold shower, pacing the room. Nothing works. The heat just keeps building, demanding release I can't give it.
A knock on the main door makes me jump.
"Alora? It's Sarah. I brought you some breakfast."
I force myself to the door, opening it just enough to see her concerned face. She takes one look at me and her eyes widen.
"Oh, honey. You're in heat, aren't you?"
Tears burn my eyes. "Is it that obvious?"
"Your scent..." She glances down the hallway nervously. "The unmated males can probably smell it through the whole pack house. Thank Goddess the Alpha put extra guards on this floor."
Great. Just what I need. More people knowing exactly what's happening to me.
"I brought some suppressants." She holds up a small bag. "They won't stop it completely, but they might take the edge off."
I take the bag gratefully. "Thank you."
"How long has it been like this?"
"Since my birthday. It just keeps getting worse." I lean against the doorframe, exhausted. "Sarah, what happens if I can't control it? If the heat becomes too much?"
Her expression turns sympathetic. "Then you'll need your mate. There's no other way to break a heat that strong."
"But I can't—we can't—" I can't even finish the sentence.
"I know about the blood-wolf thing," she says quietly. "About what completing the bond could do to him. But Alora, fighting your nature like this... It's not sustainable. Eventually, your body will shut down from the strain."
"Better that than watch him go mad."
She squeezes my hand. "Just think about it, okay? There might be another way. Maybe the old texts were wrong. Maybe—"
A commotion downstairs cuts her off. Raised voices. The sound of multiple wolves entering the pack house.
"He's back," Sarah says. "And from the sound of it, the meeting didn't go well."
My heart races. "I need to see him."
"You really don't. Not when you're like this—"
But I'm already moving past her, drawn by the bond that refuses to let me stay away. I make it halfway down the stairs before the scent hits me.
Him. But mixed with others. Strange wolves. The Northern Pack.
They brought them here? Into the pack house?
I freeze on the staircase as voices carry from the main hall.
"—completely unacceptable." That's Alex, his voice tight with barely controlled rage. "You come onto my territory with demands and expect me to negotiate?"
"We're offering fair compensation." A male voice I don't recognize. Smooth, confident. "More than fair, considering what she is."
"She's not for sale."
"Everything has a price, Alpha Stone." Another voice, this one older. "We're prepared to be very generous. Territory rights, trade agreements, political alliances—"
"Get out of my house."
"We haven't finished—"
"I said get out." The temperature in the hall drops. "Before I forget the rules of hospitality and kill you where you stand."
I should go back upstairs. Should hide before they sense me. But I can't move, frozen by the need to see him, to make sure he's okay.
"Think carefully about this," the smooth voice says. "We're not the only ones interested. Word is spreading about the blood-wolf in Silver Creek. How long before others come? How many packs can you fight off alone?"
"As many as it takes."
"Even if it destroys your pack? Even if your own wolves turn against you for choosing one female over their safety?"
A low growl vibrates through the house. "My wolves know better than to question my decisions."
"Do they? Because I hear your elders are already discussing intervention. How long before they remove you and claim her themselves?"
Something crashes. Glass shattering. "You have ten seconds to leave my territory. Nine. Eight—"
"We're going." Footsteps moving toward the door. "But this isn't over, Stone. She's too valuable to leave with one possessive Alpha. We'll be back. And next time, we won't ask nicely."
The front door slams. Silence falls, heavy and dangerous.
I start to retreat up the stairs, but it's too late. His head snaps up, those silver eyes locking onto mine.
"Alora." My name comes out somewhere between a command and a plea. "What are you doing out of the suite?"
"I heard voices. I wanted to make sure you were okay."
He's up the stairs in seconds, moving too fast to track. His hands grip my shoulders, and the contact sends fire racing through me. I gasp, my knees buckling.
"You're worse." His voice is rough as he steadies me. "The heat's gotten worse while I was gone."
"I'm fine—"
"Stop lying." He scoops me up like I weigh nothing, carrying me back up the stairs. "Why didn't you take the suppressants Sarah brought?"
"I did. They didn't help."
He curses under his breath, shouldering open the door to his suite. But instead of putting me down, he carries me to his bed, settling me against the pillows before stepping back quickly.
"What did they offer?" I ask, needing to focus on anything other than how much I want him closer. "The Northern Pack?"
His jaw clenches. "Territory. Trade rights. Political alliances with five other packs." He moves to the window, putting distance between us. "They offered to make Silver Creek the most powerful territory in the region."
"That's... that's a lot."
"It's nothing." He doesn't turn around. "They also threatened to come back with force. To take you whether I agree or not."
Ice floods through me despite the heat. "How many packs would they bring?"
"Six, maybe seven. More if they spread the word about what you are." His hands clench into fists. "They made it very clear that keeping you will mean war."
"Then let me go." The words hurt to say. "Give them what they want and save your pack."
He spins around, his eyes blazing. "Don't."
"Alex, you can't go to war over me—"
"Watch me." He stalks closer, stopping just out of reach. "I told them I'd burn every pack in five territories before I let anyone take you. I meant it."
"That's the bond talking—"
"I don't care if it's the bond." His voice is fierce. "I don't care if I'm going mad. I don't care about anything except keeping you safe."
Another wave of heat crashes through me, stronger than before. I curl into myself, biting back a whimper.
"How long can you keep fighting this?" His voice softens. "Hours? Days? What happens when your body can't take anymore?"
"I don't know." Tears stream down my face. "But I can't—Alex, I can't be the reason you destroy yourself."
"You're not destroying me." He moves closer, sitting on the edge of the bed. "You're the only thing keeping me sane right now. The only thing that matters."
"That's not—" I can't finish as another wave hits. This time, my control slips completely. My eyes flash full crimson, and I feel my canines lengthening.
"Alora." His hand reaches for me, then pulls back. "Tell me what you need. Tell me how to help."
"You can't." My voice comes out dual-toned, my wolf pushing forward. "The only thing that will help is—" I can't say it. Can't admit what my body is screaming for.
"Me." He says it for me. "The only thing that will break your heat is completing the bond."
I nod, pressing my face into his pillow to hide the tears.
"Then we do it." His voice is steady. Certain. "We complete the bond and damn the consequences."
"No." I force the word out even though every cell in my body is screaming yes. "I won't let you sacrifice yourself for me."
"It's not a sacrifice if it's what I want." His hand finally touches me, cupping my face. "Alora, look at me."
I meet his burning gaze, seeing my own desperation reflected there.
"I'm going to go mad whether we complete the bond or not," he says quietly. "The difference is, if we don't complete it, we both suffer for nothing. At least this way, we have a chance."
"A chance at what? You becoming violent and paranoid and—"
"A chance at being together." His thumb brushes my tears away. "A chance at finding a different ending than all the others before us."
"There is no different ending." My voice breaks. "History is clear—"
"Then we make new history." He leans closer, his forehead resting against mine. "We try something none of the others did. We fight it together. And maybe, just maybe, we survive."
I want to believe him. Want to have that kind of hope.
But as another wave of heat tears through me, as my wolf howls for her mate, as the bond pulls us together with a force I can't resist anymore...
I realize he might be right about one thing.
Fighting this is destroying us both.
Maybe it's time to stop fighting.
Even if it means facing the very fate I've feared since the night I first shifted.
"I need to think," I whisper. "Please. Just give me time to think."
He studies my face for a long moment, then nods. "You have until tomorrow night. But Alora?" His hand tightens on my face. "I'm not letting those packs take you. No matter what you decide about us. That's not negotiable."
He leaves through the connecting door, and I hear the lock click from his side.
Giving me space. Giving me time.
But we both know what I'm going to decide.
Because the heat isn't stopping. The bond isn't fading. And eventually, I'll have to choose.
Complete the bond and risk destroying him.
Or keep fighting and destroy us both anyway.
Either way, someone gets hurt.
I just have to figure out which pain I can live with.
And which one will kill me faster.