Let them question.
He would show them what the bond had already made crystal clear to him. That Winslet didn’t diminish his leadership—she amplified it. That together, they were more formidable, more balanced, and more dangerous than he’d ever been alone.
Winslet stirred against him, a soft sound escaping her lips as she shifted closer to his warmth. Her hand splayed across his chest, directly over his heart, and the simple touch sent a pulse of possessive satisfaction through him.
“Morning,” she murmured.
“Good morning, my beautiful mate,” he replied softly.
She lifted her head, her green eyes still soft with sleep but alert enough to catch the change in him. “You look different.”
“Different how?”
A slow smile curved her lips. “Like you finally stopped fighting something.”
He grabbed her hand, pressing it more firmly against his chest. “I did.”
The bond thrummed between them, warm and certain, and Korrak knew with absolute clarity that this was only the beginning.
The sharp rap against his front door sliced through his contentment like a blade through silk. Three deliberate knocks—not the tentative tap of a visitor, but the authoritative summons of duty refusing to wait. Whatever this was, it couldn’t be good news arriving at this hour.
So much for a quiet morning with my mate.
He slipped from the bed with reluctance, not wanting to leave his mate’s warmth against him. But duty called, and an Alpha’s responsibilities didn’t pause for personal happiness—no matter how intoxicating.
Korrak pulled on his jeans and a thermal shirt, his movements efficient and controlled. “Stay in bed,” he said softly, glancing at Winslet’s naked form wrapped in his sheets. “I’ll handle whatever this is.”
He didn’t wait for her protest. He left the bedroom and padded to the front door, his bare feet silent against the wooden floor. Through the frosted glass, he could make out Kol’s familiar silhouette.
Korrak opened the door, the Arctic air rushing in like an unwelcome guest. Kol stepped inside without invitation, his gray eyes immediately cataloging the subtle changes in his Alpha. The completed bond scent was unmistakable—rich, layered, permanent. It clung to Korrak’s skin and saturated the cabin’s air like a territorial marker.
“Patrols are reporting unusual bear movements near the southern border,” Kol said without preamble, his voice pitched low but carrying an edge of urgency that made Korrak’s spine stiffen. “Not threatening yet, but this could escalate quickly. Seems like someone is testing our defenses and response times.”
The words hit Korrak like ice water. He nodded grimly, his mind already shifting into tactical mode. Every instinct screamed that this wasn’t coincidence—not after Viktor’s capture, and not after Bracken’s threatening text to Winslet lastnight. The timing reeked of manipulation, of an enemy probing for weaknesses.
Bracken.
Korrak moved to the window, his gaze sweeping across the frozen horizon where jagged peaks of ice cut against the pale morning sky. The air that came in through the front door carried faint traces of unfamiliar scent—bear, but wrong somehow. Calculated. Purposeful. The smell of predators who didn’t belong but wanted him to know they were there.
His polar bear pressed closer to the surface, demanding immediate action.
Eliminate the threat before it can touch what is ours.
The completed mate bond amplified the protective rage, turning rational thought into white-hot fury. But Korrak had learned long ago that fury without strategy was just another word for failure.
This is a lure,he realized, his jaw clenching as the pieces clicked into place.Bracken wants me to charge out there blind with rage. Wants me to leave Winslet vulnerable while I chase shadows.
The soft pad of bare feet on wood announced Winslet’s approach before he saw her. She emerged from the bedroom wearing one of his t-shirts and a pair of his boxers, the oversized clothes making her look smaller and more delicate than he knew her to be. Her hair was mussed from sleep, but her green eyes were alert and watchful.
Kol’s attention shifted to her, taking in the obvious intimacy of her clothing choice and the fresh mate mark adorning her throat. His expression didn’t change, but something flickered in his gray eyes—approval mixed with concern.
“Looks like the mate bond is complete,” Kol said casually, though the weight behind his words was anything but casual.“I’m actually happy for you whether you believe it or not... but it comes at a terrible time.”
Korrak felt Winslet’s confusion through the bond, her uncertainty about Kol’s words.
“Bracken will sense it,” Kol continued, his voice dropping to a more serious register. “Viktor’s final words were that Bracken is more than he seems. Bracken will know she’s claimed now. And he will hate it.”
The truth of it hit Korrak square in the chest, sharp and undeniable. The completed mate bond—the source of his newfound strength and clarity—also painted the largest possible target on both their backs. Bracken’s obsession with possessing Winslet would be magnified by the knowledge that another Alpha had claimed her. That she’d chosen someone else.
