The Alpha's Flame

Four

Ren)

The snow didn’t care who you were.

Alpha, Omega, or something in between; it bit through skin all the same—sharp, bitter, unrelenting. The Frost Pack was named for this land, where the cold never loosened its grip.

I gritted my teeth as I scrubbed the stone floor of the training grounds, fingers raw and red from the icy water. Beside me, Mira worked in silence, her sleeves rolled high over her elbows, her breath fogging in short puffs as the wind cut across the open courtyard. Her eyes were shadowed from lack of sleep, though she didn’t complain.

“Don’t slow down,” I muttered without looking at her. “They’ll say we’re slacking.”

“I’m trying,” she whispered. “Didn’t sleep.”

None of us did, not really. Omegas rose before the moon dipped and stayed awake long after it climbed back again; that was the rule. That, and survive.

Boots crunched across the courtyard snow, steady and familiar.

“Rowan,” Mira breathed, and I looked up.

He was wrapped in a thick brown cloak, sword slung casually over one shoulder. His short blond hair was wind-tousled, and even in the harsh light his face looked annoyingly flawless—smooth skin, sharp jaw, that perpetual smile, and eyes too kind for this place.

He wasn’t noble-born or ranked, but he was respected. Twenty-two now, still training as a guard, and still somehow unmated. No one in the quarters knew why. Some whispered he was waiting; others said he still had time.

“You two look like you’re trying to dig through the floor,” he said as he crouched beside me, eyebrows raised.

“Isn’t that the dream?” I said. “To escape into the abyss?”

He chuckled softly. “And leave me behind?”

I didn’t answer, but Mira did, offering him a small smile as she rubbed her aching wrist.

“You shouldn’t be here,” I muttered. “Zara’s on patrol.”

“I know.” His voice dropped. “I figured I’d check in before the storm rolled in.”

I paused, narrowing my eyes. “Literal or metaphorical?”

He smiled again but didn’t answer. Instead, he reached into his coat and placed something in my hand. Bread. Warm, soft, real. I stared down at it like it was a sin.

“I didn’t bring extra,” he added before Mira could ask. “Next time.”

“Traitor,” I muttered, but broke it in half and gave Mira the bigger piece anyway. She needed it more.

“Rowan!” We all froze.

Zara.

Her voice rang sharp and cutting, like glass slicing through wind. She strode toward us with her usual entourage: Arnou, son of Beta Magnus, broad-shouldered and brimming with violent boredom; Derek, son of a soldier; and two noble girls I only recognized from feast duties—Leena and Sylah, wolves with sharp tongues and dull minds.

Zara was twenty now, still unmated, though no one dared whisper why unless they wanted their beds reassigned to the freezing corners of the barracks. Tall and commanding, her golden hair was pulled into a braid too neat to be practical, and her favorite coat—a deep violet lined with pale wolf fur—clung to her like armor. She wore it as if to remind everyone she was the Alpha’s daughter.

But she wasn’t his favorite. That honor went to her brother, Seth, and she knew we knew.

She stopped a few paces away, eyeing Rowan with mock interest. “Didn’t know you were scrubbing floors now.”

Rowan straightened, respectful but cautious. “Just on my break, Zara.”

“Is that so?” Her voice dripped with syrupy venom. “I thought guards had better things to do than babysit broom-wielders.”

I stood slowly, deliberately. Mira rose behind me like a shadow trying not to be seen.

Zara’s eyes flicked over me. Her smile didn’t reach them. “Still crawling around in the dirt, Auren?”

I gave her a lazy grin. “Still living in your brother’s shadow, Zara?”

The smile slipped from her face.

“I’m surprised your mouth hasn’t been sewn shut yet,” she said icily.

“Yeah, yeah,” I replied, bored. Her mouth twisted. She could have been beautiful if not for the bitterness she wore like a crown.

“Watch it, Omega.”

Arnou stepped forward, his voice a low, dangerous rumble. “You talk too much for someone who can’t shift.”

I didn’t look away. “And you talk big for someone hiding behind a princess.” Everyone knew he simped after Zara, running her errands and snarling at anyone who crossed her.

He growled, the sound vibrating in his chest. I smiled. Too easy. And to think he’d be the next Beta—shame.

Zara placed a hand on his chest, halting him with a single word. “Arnou.”

He paused, unwilling to move back. “Let me teach her some respect.”

I almost laughed. Hell would freeze over before I gave them an atom of respect.

“Later,” she said, her eyes never leaving mine. Then, sharp as a whip, she turned her focus on Rowan.

“And you,” she said, sweetening her tone. “Still playing knight for the broken girls? I’m sure your mum’s real proud.”

Rowan didn’t reply, but I did. “Better that than a bully with daddy issues.”

Her nostrils flared. “Careful, half-breed. Some of us have real teeth.”

“And some of us use them to help,” I shot back, “not bite down on the weak.”

Arnou growled again, but Zara lifted her hand, eyes gleaming—not with anger, but with amusement. That was worse. She enjoyed this. Maybe it was the only place she felt in control, when she could grind down those beneath her since she could never outshine the one above her.

Her gaze slid past me and landed on Mira. “Come here.”