REJECTED BY ONE ALPHA, CLAIMED BY HIS DEADLIEST RIVAL

THE PARLEY

"A parley flag," Lucien repeated, like the words tasted wrong in his mouth. "Kael Draven doesn't parley. He conquers."

"Maybe he learned something," Ariana said.

"Or maybe he wants to see the girl he threw away with his own eyes before he decides how badly he wants her back." Lucien's gaze cut to her, sharp. "Don't mistake a flag for good intentions."

"I wasn't planning to."

Grier appeared at the hall entrance, already armored, expression grim. "Alpha. Orders?"

"Assemble a guard. Ten wolves, no more." Lucien started moving, and the whole hall seemed to snap into motion around him. "I want Halvard with me. And Mira."

"And me," Ariana said.

Lucien stopped walking. "No."

"He's here because of me. I'm not hiding in a room while you two decide my future without me in the conversation."

"It's not up for debate."

"Neither is this." She squared her shoulders, refusing to let her voice shake. "If Kael Draven wants to talk about handing me over, he can say it to my face. I'm done being talked about like I'm not in the room."

Something flickered behind Lucien's eyes, frustration and something else, something closer to respect. "You have no idea what you're walking into."

"Then explain it to me on the way."

He held her gaze a long moment, jaw tight, before finally exhaling. "Fine. But you stay behind me. And you don't speak unless I say so."

"That's asking a lot."

"It's non negotiable."

"Fine," she said. "But only because I'm choosing to agree, not because you ordered it."

The corner of his mouth twitched, almost a smile, gone before it could fully form. "Understood."

The northern border was a wide clearing where Blackthorn and Silverfang land met, marked by a low stone wall worn smooth with centuries of use. By the time they arrived, torches lined both sides, and Kael's riders stood in a loose formation, banners snapping in the wind.

Kael himself stood at the front, arms crossed, expression unreadable in the firelight.

"Lucien," he said, voice carrying easily across the clearing. "You actually came."

"You asked to speak. I'm listening."

Kael's eyes moved past him, finding Ariana instantly. Something crossed his face, quick and complicated, gone before she could name it.

"You look well," he said to her.

"Don't," Ariana said, before Lucien could answer for her. "Don't act like you care how I look."

Kael's jaw tightened. "I never said I didn't care."

"You rejected me in front of your entire pack." Her voice shook, but she didn't stop. "You don't get to stand here and pretend concern now."

"I made a mistake."

The words landed heavier than she expected, and for a moment nobody spoke.

"A mistake," she repeated. "That's what you're calling it."

"Ariana—"

"No." Lucien's voice cut through, flat and final. "You don't get her name in your mouth like that. Not anymore."

Kael's eyes snapped to him, something dangerous flashing there. "This doesn't concern you, Blackthorn."

"She's standing on my land, under my protection. It concerns me plenty."

"She's Silverfang."

"She was Silverfang," Lucien said. "You made sure of that yourself, in front of your entire pack, less than a day ago."

Kael's hands curled into fists at his sides. "I want her back."

"She's not a possession you can reclaim because you changed your mind."

"This isn't about changing my mind." Kael's voice rose, frustration bleeding through the careful control. "There are laws. A rejected mate can't simply flee to enemy territory without consequence."

"Then bring your grievance to the pack elders' council," Lucien said. "Not to my border with an armed escort at midnight."

"You'd have me wait for a council ruling while my pack whispers that I let a rival Alpha steal what belongs to Silverfang?"

"She belongs to nobody," Ariana snapped, stepping half out from behind Lucien despite his earlier instructions. "That's the entire point, Kael. You made sure of it."

Silence fell across the clearing, broken only by the crackle of torches.

Kael studied her for a long moment, something raw flickering behind his eyes before he schooled his expression back into something colder.

"You've changed," he said quietly.

"You made me have to."

Halvard cleared his throat from somewhere behind Lucien, clearly uncomfortable with how personal the exchange had become in front of two armed escorts.

"Alpha Draven," he said carefully. "If there's a formal grievance, we're prepared to hear it through proper channels. Tonight was meant for parley, not spectacle."

Kael's gaze lingered on Ariana a moment longer before he finally looked away, jaw working.

"Fine," he said. "The council will hear it. Formally." His eyes cut back to Lucien. "But know this. If the council rules in Silverfang's favor, I will come collect what's mine, whether you like it or not."

"She's not yours," Lucien said, voice low and certain. "And if you try to take her by force, you'll learn exactly why every pack within a hundred miles fears the name Blackthorn."

Kael's expression darkened, but he said nothing further. He turned, signaling his riders, and within moments the Silverfang procession was retreating back across the border, torchlight fading into the darkness.

Ariana let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"That was insane," she said. "Also incredibly stupid on my part."

"Yes," Lucien agreed. "Both of those things."

"You could've stopped me from talking."

"I could have." He turned to face her fully, something warmer than before settling into his expression. "I didn't want to."

Before she could respond, Grier's voice cut through the quiet, urgent and sharp.

"Alpha. Movement in the trees. West ridge."

Lucien's head snapped toward the tree line, every trace of warmth vanishing instantly.

"That's not Silverfang territory," he said.

"No, Alpha." Grier's hand moved to his blade. "It's not anyone's territory we recognize."

A low howl rose from the darkness, answered by another, and then another, dozens of unfamiliar voices rising together in the night.

Ariana's blood ran cold.

"Whose howl is that?" she asked.

Lucien's expression had gone utterly still, the kind of stillness that came right before violence.

"I don't know," he said quietly. "And that terrifies me more than anything Kael could ever say."