“A diversion,” Korrak confirmed. “Bracken assumed I’d choose territory over mate, that I’d rush off to defend the borders while leaving you vulnerable.” His lips curved in something that wasn’t quite a smile. “He assumed wrong.”
The mate bond thrummed, carrying his controlled fury and his absolute determination. Winslet felt some of her panic ease, replaced by grim resolve.
“We have to move fast,” she said. “Every second we waste?—“
The explosion of glass and splintering wood erupted from the living room like a bomb detonating. Crystal fragments scattered across hardwood floors while window frames cracked and buckled under the force of whatever had just breached their sanctuary.
Heavy footsteps thundered across the cabin floor. Two sets. Deliberate. Confident.
Korrak moved before Winslet’s mind could fully process what was happening, flowing from the bedroom with a predatory grace that spoke of countless battles fought and won.
The scent hit her a heartbeat later—wild musk layered with aggression and something fundamentally wrong that made her skin prickle. It was the smell of violence barely contained, of predators who’d abandoned any pretense of civilization.
Rogue bear shifters.
Her stomach plummeted as the truth crystallized with sickening clarity. They weren’t here to kill her. Death would be too simple, too clean for Bracken’s purposes. These men had come to drag her back to him, to strip away everything she’d wanted to build here.
“Stay behind me,” Korrak commanded.
But Winslet was already moving, following him toward the chaos despite every survival instinct screaming at her to run in the opposite direction. She’d spent too many years cowering, too many months letting others fight her battles. Not anymore.
The first shifter lunged forward as they entered the living room—a massive brute with scarred knuckles and predatory eyes that locked onto her with hungry anticipation. The second flanked him, moving with calculated precision that spoke of military training.
Winslet barely registered Korrak’s shift beginning before reality warped around them.
Bones cracked and expanded with sounds like gunshots. Muscles swelled beyond human limits while white fur with golden undertones erupted across skin that stretched and reformed itself. The cabin groaned under the sudden pressure as twelve hundred pounds of apex predator materialized where her mate had stood moments before.
A polar bear filled the room. Enormous beyond comprehension. Terrifying in its raw power. Beautiful in its deadly perfection.
Hers.
This wasn’t the controlled man who’d made love to her with devastating tenderness last night. This was the ruler of the Arctic, the predator that made other predators flee in terror. Ice-blue eyes blazed with protective fury as his massive head swung toward the intruders, lips pulling back to reveal ivory fangs that could crush bone like matchsticks.
The rogue shifters shifted in response—their human forms dissolving into grizzly bears that were smaller than Korrak but still dangerous enough to kill her without breaking stride. Dark brown fur bristled with aggression as they spread out, trying to flank the polar bear and reach their target.
The fight erupted with volcanic violence.
Wood shattered as bodies slammed into furniture. Blood sprayed hot against ice-cold air streaming through the destroyed windows. Korrak’s bear moved with devastating precision, intercepting every attempt to reach her with fluid grace that belied his massive size.
Winslet scrambled backward, her heart hammering as she watched him fight for her life. She couldn’t battle bears—human fists were useless against claws and fangs—but her mind remained crystal clear, cataloging exits and improvised weapons while tracking the brutal choreography unfolding before her.
One grizzly lunged for Korrak’s throat. Massive jaws clamped down on empty air as the polar bear pivoted with impossible speed, his own fangs finding purchase in his attacker’s shoulder. The crack of breaking bones echoed through the cabin.
The second grizzly tried to circle behind him, seeking the opening that would let him reach Winslet. Korrak’s roar shook the walls as he spun, his massive paws batting the smaller bear aside like a toy. Claws raked across brown fur, leaving crimson trails that steamed in the frigid air.
Blood pooled beneath struggling bodies as the fight reached its violent crescendo. Korrak’s bear dominated through sheer power and territorial fury, protecting his mate with single-minded devotion that took her breath away.
Silence crashed down just as violently as the attack had begun.
Korrak shifted back to human form, his chest heaving as steam rose from his bloodied skin. Cuts scored his shoulders and arms where claws had found their mark, but he remained unbroken—a golden-haired warrior who’d just proven exactly why he ruled this frozen wasteland.
His eyes found hers immediately, his hands reaching for her face with desperate urgency. “Are you hurt?” His voice was rough, strained with the aftermath of violence and terror at almost losing her.
Winslet touched his face with shaking fingers, feeling the warmth of his skin and the rapid pulse beneath his jaw. Now she understood. The truth of what it meant to be his mate. To have someone willing to die before letting harm touch her.
“I’m fine,” she whispered, then focused on the blood seeping from his wounds. “But you’re not. I need to treat these.”
“We don’t have time.” His jaw clenched with barely controlled pain. “Your family?—“
