I rub my temples, trying to ease the throbbing behind my eyes. The conflicting emotions are exhausting: desire, anger, hurt, confusion, all tangled together until I can barely think straight. "This is complicated."
"Complicated doesn't begin to cover it," Ivy says, her usual playfulness gone. "Sera, we need to talk about what's happening to your body. The incomplete mating triggered this heat. His shadows touched you, brought you to the edge, his Alpha pheromones flooded your system—and then nothing. No knot. No completion. Your Omega biology thinks the mating was interrupted, and now it's forcing the issue."
I sink onto the edge of my bed, suddenly feeling the truth of her words. The fever building under my skin. The constant slick. The desperate ache that won't go away. "I can handle it. I've handled worse."
"You can't handle a heat fever, Sera. No one can." Ivy flies closer, her expression more serious than I've ever seen it. "The incomplete bond is dangerous. You need to resolve this with him. Soon. Like tonight. Not tomorrow when you've calmed down. Now, before the heat breaks fully."
"He told me to leave," I say, hating how my voice wavers. "He screamed another woman's name while—" I can't finish.
"And that's terrible and you have every right to be furious," Ivy agrees gently. "But your heat doesn't care about your feelings. It's coming whether you're ready or not, whether you've forgiven him or not. And when it hits, you'll need your Alpha. Your biology won't give you a choice."
I wrap my arms around myself. "What if I can't forgive what he did?"
"Then be angry at him tomorrow," Ivy says firmly. "After he's knotted you through your heat and you're safe. After your biology has what it needs to survive. But Sera—" her voice drops, "if you're still fighting when the heat hits, if he doesn't know you need him... heat fever is no joke. You could die. Or suffer permanent damage."
The words settle over me like ice water. Die. I could actually die.
"He promised me a truth," I say finally, trying to regain some control. "One truth in exchange for three of mine. I need to know who Julia is. I need to understand before I—before we?—"
"Smart," Ivy nods approvingly. "Get your answers. Clear the air. Then let him care for you through this heat, because your body is going to need him whether your heart is ready or not." I stand, trying to summon courage.
"I'll go speak with him. Demand my truth. And then—" I pause, uncertainty flooding through me. "And then I'll figure out what comes next."
"Good plan," Ivy says. Then her expression shifts, becoming almost apologetic. "Though you should probably know... Lady Isla from the Neutral Territories arrived shortly after your dramatic exit. She's currently seeking a private audience with your Alpha husband."
The words hit me like a physical blow. "What?"
"Tall, curvy Beta, looks at Shadow Boy like he's a particularly delicious dessert?" Ivy says carefully. "She arrived with some political pretext, but her intentions were pretty obvious."
Something hot and possessive coils in my stomach, making my light magic flicker dangerously. The image of another woman touching my Alpha—because that's what he is, isn't he, regardless of how angry I am at him—makes something primal and violent rise within me.
"I see," I manage, my voice colder than I intend. "And where might they be?"
"Last I heard, she was requesting a tour of the Shadow Observatory," Ivy says, watching me carefully. "But Sera—don't let jealousy be the only thing driving you. Go there because you need answers. Go there because you need to fix this bond before your heat hits. Be possessive if you want, but be smart about it too."
I'm already moving toward the door. "I'm going to speak with him now."
"Good!" Ivy's relief is palpable. "And Sera? When you find him, maybe get the Julia answers first, but don't forget to mention the imminent heat situation. Kind of important. You know, for your survival and all."
I pause at the door. "What should I say?"
"How about 'I need answers about Julia, and also I'm going into heat in the next few hours and despite being furious with you, my biology is going to demand your knot whether I like it or not, so we should probably sort this out before I lose the ability to form coherent sentences'?" Ivy suggests. "Might be a bit wordy though."
Despite everything, I almost smile. "I'll... figure something out."
"Just don't let your pride kill you, okay?" Ivy calls after me as I stride into the corridor. "There's no shame in needing your Alpha during heat. It's biology, not weakness."
I stride through the palace with purpose, servants flattening themselves against the walls as they catch my scent—unmated Omega on the edge of heat, possessive fury, and determination all mixed together. The entire court will know by morning. Let them talk.
When I round the corner leading toward the main reception halls, I find them. Malakai escorts Lady Isla through the corridor, the Beta woman practically clinging to his arm.
She gestures animatedly at architectural details, but her attention remains fixed on him. Her scent—vanilla and amber, pleasant but wrong—makes my jaw clench.
My Omega recognizes immediately: she's Beta. No threat biologically. She can't give him what I can. But she's touching what's MINE, and that's enough of a threat.
My Alpha appears politely attentive but maintains a controlled distance. Still, there's something in his posture, a subtle amusement, that suggests he's not entirely immune to the attention.
"Lord Malakai," I call, my voice carrying down the corridor with authority I didn't know I possessed. He turns, surprise flickering across his features before settling into that familiar controlled amusement. But I catch it—the way his nostrils flare as he scents me, the way his pupils dilate. He knows. He can smell the heat building in me.
