My intuition stirred, brushing against the edges of his emotions like fingertips trailing water. He felt a bone-deep fear for me wrapped in the memory of loss he’d carried alone for years. I couldn’t help but wish that I’d delved deeper before now, instead of only skimming the surface of his emotions out of respect for his privacy.
My anger softened, but it didn’t vanish. “I’m sorry you suffered with that alone, but Booker isn’t the wolf who betrayed our parents.”
His breath shuddered out, something breaking open behind his eyes.
I held his gaze. “Fate wouldn’t bind me to a shifter who meant to hurt us. So while I understand your fear, it doesn’t change that I want to be with him.”
My brother finally looked away, but I still felt the full weight of the truth settling between us. He was afraid of losing me, but I was determined not to let fear decide my future.
“I’m sorry you carried this without my help for so long.” The words were soft, but they didn’t waver. “But Booker shouldn’t pay for someone else’s mistake. And neither should I.”
Caelan’s hands gripped the arms of his chair, his knuckles turning white. He looked less like my alpha and more like my brother. “I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“I know.” I stepped toward him, breathing past the ache in my chest. “But safety isn’t the same thing as isolation. I’m asking you to trust me. Give me a chance to get to know him. Supervised, on your terms.”
My brother stood slowly, as if the choice in front of him weighed down every inch of his powerful body. “This isn’t like when Isadora mated with a human a few towns over. If this ends badly…”
“It won’t,” I whispered.
He flinched at the absolute certainty in my voice. After a long stretch of silence, he finally heaved a heavy sigh and nodded. “One meeting.”
Relief surged through me so fast my knees wobbled a little.
“But I’ll be present,” he added. “And if I sense even the slightest danger, it ends immediately.”
I hated that the ghost in Caelan’s memories made him resistant to trusting me with Booker.
It wasn’t exactly what I wanted, but I had a feeling this was as close to a yes as my brother could manage right now, so I’d take it as a victory.
The meeting was more than I’d had before. And it was all I needed. I had faith that fate would handle the rest.
6
ALARA
Riven found us just as Caelan and I reached the corridor that led toward the guest room where Booker was being held. His movements were stiff in the way that meant something had thrown him off balance.
“We have visitors.”
My brother stilled. “What kind of visitors?”
“Alphas. Two of them.”
Caelan’s brows drew together, his lynx flashing in his eyes. “Impossible. No alpha would breach our borders without contacting me first.”
“They said they’re here because of Booker Redmond,” Riven explained.
I couldn’t stop the jolt of satisfaction that shot through me. My clever mate. Even while locked away, he’d made sure he wasn’t standing alone.
My lynx purred, smug and entirely unrepentant.
Caelan noticed my satisfaction, and he glared at me. “This complicates things.”
“For you, maybe,” I murmured before I could stop myself.
His nostrils flared, and he jerked his gaze back to Riven. “Rally the chain. We’ll meet in the central courtyard. Bring Booker.”
Riven nodded once and jogged off, leaving Caelan and me to descend the stone steps that opened into the courtyard carved directly into the cliffside. Lynx shifters gathered in a loose semicircle, their expressions tense and curious.
