The Bear's Redemption

Chapter 4

Kuma

The air in Dorgan’s office is unusually light, buzzing with a rare, tentative kind of hope. We’ve pulled off a string of successful raids lately, each one chipping away at the NNA. Each one tightening the noose a little more around the General’s neck. For the first time in a long time, the long-term plan doesn’t just feel like a desperate dream; it feels real. Achievable.

I’m leaning back in my chair, arms crossed but relaxed, watching as Jax cracks some dry joke that actually gets a snort out of Dael. Tivani is smiling her usual gig smile. Makini, of course, is all business on the surface, but I’ve worked with her long enough to catch the way her shoulders aren’t quite so rigid. Yeah, we’re feeling good, for once.

Dorgan, though? He’s not even trying to pretend he’s focused. He’s half melted in his chair, openly staring at Sasha like she strung the stars together just for him. The bond between them has only grown stronger since mating. And stars if she isn’t glowing. It’s not just the fated mate thing, though, yeah, that’s got something to do with it. It’s the strength in her now, the peace that’s creeping back in.

True to Nana Sena’s word, two more couples across the three reserves have recognized and claimed their fated mates. The shift in the pack energy is noticeable. Like we’ve been running on fumes for years and finally got a taste of something real, something sacred.

“We might just make it,” I murmur under my breath.

Makini catches it and gives me a small nod, serious but with a flicker of fire in her eyes.

Yeah. We’re not just surviving anymore. We’re starting to believe.

We are gathered in the main briefing room, tension still thick from everything that’s happened. Everyone’s tired, but there’s no time to rest when there’s always another threat waiting in the wings.

I clear my throat. “Dorgan… I know this isn’t high on your priority list right now, but we need to talk about the Midnight Wolves.”

The words hang in the air for a second.

From across the table, Dael perks up. Dorgan groans audibly, dragging a hand down his face. “Stars help me.”

“Would it be selfish of me,” he mutters, tone dry as the desert, “to ask you to look into this, Dael?”

Dael snorts, eyes glinting with mischief. “Consider it my mating gift to you, Alpha.”

Sasha bursts out laughing beside him, clearly enjoying the moment far too much.

I c***k a small smile. For a fleeting moment, it feels almost normal, like before everything started unraveling.

But the Midnight Wolves are no joke. Rogue, vicious, and dangerous even to other shifters. And Dael? He’s the best bet we’ve got for tracking them down and figuring out what in the Ancients they’re after.

“We need eyes on them. If they’re planning something, it might hit sooner than we think. I don’t trust that lull,” I add, regaining the room’s attention.

Dael nods, already slipping into planning mode. “I’ll get a team together. Move fast, quietly. I want to know what they’re eating for breakfast before they do.”

“Appreciated,” Dorgan says with a sigh.

During all of this, my eyes keep drifting towards her before I can stop them. Like a compass gone rogue, they find her, Makini. Sitting straight-backed and focused, all sharp lines and discipline like always. But I see the tiny flickers. The twitch in her jaw when she feels my gaze. The way her fingers tap a little faster on the table. And every once in a while, she slips, just for a second, and looks right back at me.

Then bam, she catches herself, turns away, flustered like I just hit her with a stun grenade. Cute little Master Sergeant.

We keep having these moments, drawn to each other by a deep force. I’m not sure what it is; it’s almost like a mate bond, but she is human, so that is not possible. She dodges me most of the time. And hey, I get it. She’s all rules and order and sharp corners, and I’m, well, me. Big, blunt, and bear-shaped.

But every time I see that flicker in her eyes, the one that says she feels it too, I grin. And every time she scowls at my grin like she’s not thinking the same thing, I grin harder.

Take all the time you need, Mak.

But me and my bear? We’ve already made up our minds. You’re ours.

Dael clears his throat and takes charge, clearly noticing Dorgan is still stuck in that dreamy mate-staring mode. Can’t blame him, Sasha’s practically glowing, and the man looks like he’s trying to memorize her smile.

“Alpha, may we have another minute of your time if you can manage?” He adds mockingly. Sasha gives him a s**t-eating grin.

Dorgan gives him a long-suffering look. “Don’t encourage her.”

“Too late,” Sasha grins. “You mated me into this chaos. Accept your fate.”

The whole group laughs at this.

“So, Omari,” Dael says, voice firm but easy, still smiling, “the next op set then?”

Makini nods without missing a beat. “Yup. Bellamy sourced the guard rotations as well as the daily backup times for the main power station, feeding Base 2 and 3. We go in quietly, set the charge, and we’re out before anyone notices.”

Finally, Dorgan blinks out of his love trance. “Omari, you’ve been running ops nonstop for weeks. It’s okay if we wait this one out a bit.”

Makini shakes her head. “No, Alpha. We have all the intel. Taking out the power is a major blow; it’ll mess with half their ops. In and out. Clean. Then we can talk about that break.”

I snort out loud, can’t help myself. “Whatever, Omari. You’re just getting started.”

“He’s not wrong,” Jax smirks from beside me, grinning.

Makini shoots me a fake glare, but I catch the spark in her eyes. She’s got that fire again. We all do. It’s been a hell of a climb, but for once, it feels like the summit’s getting close.

And damn if it doesn’t feel good.