I had barely caught my breath from Kael and Darius's clash when the council summoned us again. Their decision was swift, their voices sharp with authority.
"It is time," the elder said. "She has walked with Kael. Now she will walk with Darius."
The words made Kael bristle like a storm about to strike, his hand tightening into a fist at his side. His fiery eyes cut to me, possessive and burning. "You think I'll let him drag her into his cold den?"
The elder's cane slammed against the stone. "You will let it happen, or you will answer to me."
Kael's growl echoed through the hall, low and lethal, but he said nothing more.
My chest ached as I followed Darius out of Kael's territory. Every step felt like I was being pulled in two directions—my body screaming with the fire bond, my soul trembling with the icy one.
I didn't look back. If I had, I wasn't sure I'd be able to keep walking.
Darius's territory lay north, across thick forests and rivers that glittered like silver beneath the sun. His wolves moved with him in silence, their steps even, their eyes sharp.
Where Kael's pack had been wild, loud, and filled with the scent of fire and blood, Darius's was different.
Order. That was the first word that came to me.
Their homes were built in harmony with the land, wood and stone blending into the forest. Wolves patrolled the borders with quiet precision, not growls. Children played in open fields under the watchful eyes of mothers, laughter echoing without fear.
The air itself felt calmer here, sharper but cleaner, as if the forest breathed with them.
Still, when they saw me, whispers rose.
That's her.
The cursed mate.
Two bonds… how can the Goddess allow it?
My throat tightened, but I kept walking.
Darius led me to the largest lodge at the center of the territory. His wolves bowed their heads as he passed, their respect quiet but absolute. Not fear. Respect.
Inside, the lodge was warm with firelight, furs draped over stone walls, the air thick with cedar and pine. It felt… alive, in a way Kael's hall had not.
Darius turned to me, his icy eyes steady. "You'll stay here. With me."
The words were the same as Kael's had been, but they didn't feel the same. His voice wasn't fire. It was iron—firm, steady, unshakable.
I crossed my arms, my chest tight. "What if I don't want to?"
Something flickered in his gaze, but his tone didn't change. "Then you'll leave at dawn. But you'll still come back tomorrow. The bond won't let you stay away."
I hated that he was right.
The first night was strange.
Darius gave me space. He didn't hover the way Kael did. Instead, he moved like a guardian, always near but never pressing close. When I sat by the fire, he sharpened blades quietly across the room. When I paced, he pretended to study maps spread across his table.
But I felt him. Always. The bond hummed between us, tugging, aching. My wolf inside me wanted to close the distance, wanted to curl against him and breathe his scent. I fought it, clenching my fists until my nails dug into my palms.
At last, I couldn't take the silence.
"You don't say much," I muttered.
His gaze lifted, cool but not unkind. "Words are easy. Actions matter."
"And what do your actions say?" I challenged.
He leaned back in his chair, his eyes never leaving mine. "That I won't chain you. That I won't force you to choose me. When you choose, it'll be because you wanted to."
The words stunned me. They were the opposite of Kael's fire, his possessive certainty. Darius wasn't demanding. He was waiting.
And somehow, that scared me more.
Days passed, and I learned more of his pack.
They respected him, but not out of fear. He fought beside them, ate with them, trained with them. When a young wolf stumbled during drills, Darius didn't snarl—he corrected patiently, then demonstrated until the boy got it right.
I watched him, unseen, from the edge of the field. And each time, my heart ached a little more.
One evening, I found him sparring with his Beta. The clash of claws on wood rang through the training ground, his movements sharp, precise, almost beautiful. He wasn't fire. He was ice—measured, lethal, unshakable.
When the match ended, sweat dripping from his brow, his eyes caught mine. The bond surged, wild and hungry. My body tensed, my pulse racing so hard it hurt.
I turned away, pretending to leave. But his voice stopped me.
"Does it hurt?"
I froze. "What?"
"The bond," he said quietly, stepping closer. "Being pulled in two directions at once."
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. "Every second."
He nodded once, as if he understood more than I could say. Then his hand lifted, slow, deliberate. He didn't touch me—he hovered just inches away, his warmth brushing my skin without contact.
"It hurts me too," he said softly. "Every time you walk back to Kael, it feels like ice cracking inside me. But I'd rather shatter than chain you."
His words pierced deeper than claws. I couldn't breathe. Couldn't speak. My wolf whined inside me, desperate to close the space between us.
And yet… I stepped back.
Because I knew if I let myself fall into him, I might never pull away again.
That night, sleep didn't come easily. I lay awake on the furs, the moonlight spilling across the room, my chest aching with the war inside me.
Then I heard it—howls.
Not playful, not steady. Angry.
I sat up, my heart racing.
The door burst open, one of Darius's warriors rushing inside. "Alpha! Kael's wolves—on the border!"
Darius was already on his feet, his eyes flashing with ice.
Kael.
My chest squeezed tight, the bond to him burning hot and desperate. He had come for me.
Darius's gaze swung to mine, sharp and unreadable. "Stay here."
But even as he said it, I knew I couldn't. The bonds pulled at me like chains, dragging me toward the storm outside.
Kael and Darius were about to collide again.
And this time, it would happen in Darius's territory.