“I’ve been talking to Viktor since we got back. Presenting my case. Arguing.” She’s still holding my hand. Her thumb traces small circles on my skin. “I told him about the video. About how you were framed. About the traitor inside Aurora who killed Samien and planted evidence to blame you.”
“He believed you?”
“Not immediately. But what you did—going back into that facility for those hybrids, risking your life—it made him reconsider everything. He put his best investigators on the case. Told them to examine every piece of evidence from scratch.”
“And?”
“The video was doctored. Professionally done but fabricated. They found digital artifacts when they analyzed it frame by frame. Timestamp manipulation. It wasn’t real footage of you.”
The information takes a moment to process. “They proved it was fake.”
“Yes. And the physical evidence—the scales, the claw marks, the fire damage at the scene—it was all manufactured. Someone with knowledge of dragon physiology planted them.”
“A dragon,” I say. “Has to be a dragon to know how to—”
“Not necessarily.” She cuts me off gently. “Anyone with access to dragon biology research could manufacture that evidence. The scales could have been collected from shed material. The claw marks and scorch patterns created with specialized tools. The Syndicate would know exactly how to do that. It doesn’t have to be a dragon who did this.”
She’s right. Someone with the right knowledge and resources could frame a dragon without being one themselves.
“So Viktor believes I’m innocent.”
“He does. And now he knows Aurora has an infiltrator. Someone dangerous enough to kill one of his closest advisors and smart enough to frame you perfectly.” She pauses. “Hewants to talk to you when you’re recovered. About what you remember. About who might have had access and motive.”
The knowledge that I’m exonerated washes through me. Not a murderer. Not facing execution. The truth came out because she fought for it.
But exhaustion is pulling at me again. The conversation is draining what little energy I have.
My dragon is happy despite the pain. Our mate is here. She fought for us. She’s safe.
The bond between us pulses steadily. Stronger than before. More solid. Something has changed while I was unconscious. The thread that was forming has solidified into something undeniable.
I wonder if she feels it the same way I do. If she knows what this means. What we’re becoming to each other.
“There’s something we need to talk about,” I start. Try to find the words. “Something between us. A connection—”
“We’ll talk,” she says gently. Stops me before I can continue. “When you’re healed. When you’re stronger. We have all the time in the world.”
All the time in the world.
The words settle something in my chest. Not avoidance. Not dismissal. Reassurance. She feels it too. She knows. And we have time to discuss what it means.
I don’t need to push for confirmation right now. Don’t need to extend the conversation when I can barely stay conscious.
“Okay,” I say quietly.
She leans down. Presses a kiss to my forehead. “Sleep now. Heal. I’ll be here when you wake up.”
Her scent surrounds me. Wolf and woman and mate. Mate. The word sits in my mind without fear or doubt. Just certainty.
My dragon settles. Content. Safe. Our mate guarding us while we heal.
I let my eyes close. Let exhaustion take me. But this isn’t the dangerous unconsciousness from before. This is natural sleep. Healing sleep.
With her hand in mine. Anchoring me. The bond between us pulsing warm and steady.
We have all the time in the world.
The thought follows me into sleep.
