She’s fatigued but functional. Blood spatter on her coat—not hers, given the lack of visible wounds. She’s been in the fight. Probably the one who pulled me out of the wreckage.
My dragonfire tries again. This time not aggressive heat—something else entirely. Something that recognizes her on a level that stirs my dragon.
Wrong.
Everything about this is wrong.
The cold presses deeper. My breath mists in the air.
She watches me assess her the same way she’s assessing me. Sizing each other up, calculating angles and weaknesses.
Except she’s armed and free, and I’m restrained and losing core temperature by the minute.
“You’re an Aurora operative.” I make it a statement.
“Was.”
Past tense. Interesting.
“Defected?”
“Walked away.” She tilts her head slightly. “You’d know about that.”
The observation lands without malice. Just fact.
I would know. Did know. Two days ago, when I contacted Viktor Parlance and offered intelligence in exchange for sanctuary. When I burned every bridge the Syndicate built.
Except I didn’t make it to Aurora.
And now I’m here. With her.
The wind picks up. Snow begins falling more heavily, sticking to her hair, her shoulders. She doesn’t brush it away. Doesn’t move. Just stands there watching me like she’s waiting for me to give her a reason.
Storm coming.
She knows it too. I can see the calculation.
I speak carefully. No pleading. No apology. Just logistics. “Syndicate scouts will come. They’ll follow the wreckage, and when they find it, they’ll spread out looking for survivors.”
“Let them.”
“Exposure will kill us both before they do.”
“I’m not afraid of the cold.”
“You’re wolf,” I say, and her eyes narrow. “That makes you stronger, but not immortal. With these cuffs on, my fire can’t warm me. I know storm patterns in this range. We have maybe two hours before visibility drops to nothing.”
She doesn’t respond.
I push. “You kept me alive for a reason. If that reason matters more than proving a point, we need to move now.”
The wind moans through the pines. Somewhere distant, metal groans as wreckage settles.
She moves.
Reaches down and grabs my jacket, hauls me upright with strength that shouldn’t surprise me but does. The world spins. My vision grays before sharpening again.
Her face is close now. I catch her fragrance again, stronger this time, cutting through the cold.
