“You’re sure about this?”
His voice was low, pitched for her ears alone. His hand found hers, fingers intertwining with a gentleness that still surprised her, even after two weeks of waking up in his arms.
“No.” She squeezed his hand, drawing strength from the contact. “But I’m doing it anyway.”
A ghost of a smile crossed his face—there and gone, quick as a breath. “That’s my mate.”
The market square was already bustling when they arrived, merchants hawking their wares and villagers bartering overprices. The smell of fresh bread mingled with the sharper scent of livestock, and somewhere nearby, a child was laughing.
Then someone spotted them.
The whispers started like ripples in still water, spreading outward from the first startled gasp. Heads turned. Conversations faltered and died. Within moments, the entire square had fallen silent, every eye fixed on the human woman walking hand in hand with a Vultor.
She lifted her chin and kept walking.
The weight of their stares pressed against her skin. There were familiar faces amongst the crowd—the baker who’d always slipped Dani an extra roll, the blacksmith’s wife who’d commissioned a tapestry for her daughter’s wedding, the elderly widow who bought thread from her every month—but they looked at her now as if seeing her for the first time.
Let them look,she thought.Let them see that I’m not afraid.
The stories had been spreading, just as Korrin had promised. Tales of a human woman who hadn’t been abducted but had chosen to leave and live willingly in the mountains with her Vultor mate. Some believed them. Others didn’t. But the truth was walking through their midst now, undeniable and unashamed.
Tarek’s presence beside her was a steady warmth, solid and grounding. He’d reluctantly offered to wait outside the village, to let her face this moment alone if that’s what she needed, but she’d refused. They were together now and she had no intention of hiding it.
“Jessa Allenby.”
The voice cut through the silence like a blade, and her stomach clenched.
Gerhard emerged from the crowd, his face mottled with fury. He looked older than she remembered, the lines around his mouth deeper, his eyes harder. The mask of respectability he usually wore had slipped, revealing the ugliness beneath.
“How dare you.” He stopped a few paces away, close enough for her to see the vein pulsing at his temple. “How dare you show your face here after what you’ve done.”
“After what I’ve done?” She kept her voice steady, though her heart was hammering against her ribs. “And what exactly have I done, Uncle?”
“You broke a contract. You stole my property. You—” His gaze swept over Tarek, and his lip curled with disgust. “You’ve been whoring yourself to an animal.”
A low growl rumbled from Tarek’s chest, and she felt the tension in his body shift, his muscles coiling for violence. She tightened her grip on his hand, a silent plea for restraint.
“I broke nothing,” she said, her voice carrying across the silent square. “The contract you made was never valid. You had no right to sell my work without my consent, no right to use my sister’s illness as leverage, and no right to keep the medicine you bought with my labor.”
Gerhard’s face flushed an ugly shade of red. “You ungrateful little?—”
“I’m here to trade.” She raised her voice, pitching it to reach the gathered crowd. “Fairly and honestly, the way trade shouldbe conducted. Anyone who wishes to do business with me is welcome.”
“No one will touch your tainted goods.” Gerhard stepped forward, his hand shooting out to grab her arm. “You’ll come with me right now, and we’ll discuss?—”
He never finished the sentence.
Tarek moved faster than her eyes could follow. One moment he was standing beside her; the next, he had Gerhard pinned against a market stall, his claws extended and pressing against the soft flesh of her uncle’s throat.
“Touch her again,” he said, his voice a low rasp that barely sounded human, “and I will open you from throat to groin.”
Gerhard’s eyes bulged, all the color draining from his face. His mouth worked soundlessly, no words emerging.
“Tarek.” She touched his arm gently, feeling the corded muscles trembling beneath her palm. “Not yet.”
For a long moment, she wasn’t sure he would listen. His eyes were glowing bright green fire in the morning light, and his beast was so close to the surface that she could almost see it looking out at her. But then he exhaled—a slow, controlled breath—and his claws retracted.
He released Gerhard with a slight shove that sent the older man stumbling backward.
