On the screen, Emma reached the altar. Elijah placed her hand in Theo's, the gesture both formal and deeply personal. The camera captured the exchange of looks between the Alpha and the King—warning, promise, acceptance, all conveyed in the silence between one heartbeat and the next.
"I tried to warn you all," Minister Bennett said softly, his eyes fixed on the screen with analytical detachment. "Force was never going to work. Not with her. The Queen has a spine of steel beneath that diplomatic exterior."
"The Queen," mocked Alpha Barker. "A jumped-up pack Gamma with ideas above her station."
The ceremony progressed, the ancient words of blessing filling the prison's viewing room with cruel irony. When the time came for vows, the camera zoomed in on Theo and Emma's faces as they spoke w
