Julian arrives next and freezes when he sees Caspian. I watch Caspian's entire body go rigid.
"What is Professor Harmon doing here?" Caspian asks, voice gone quiet and very dangerous.
"He's here because I asked him to be."
"Why?"
"You'll understand in a minute." I look at Julian. "Just wait. Please."
He nods and positions himself on the opposite side of the chapel from Caspian. The tension between them is thick enough to cut.
Knox appears from the shadows near the back wall. I didn't even hear him enter. Caspian tenses further but doesn't comment.
All three of them present. All three watching me with varying levels of confusion, suspicion, and wariness.
I stand in the center and take a breath.
"I know what I am now," I say. "Silverpelt. Rare bloodline that was supposed to be extinct. Silverpelt wolves can bond with multiple mates - not just two, but up to four complete mate bonds."
Caspian's eyes narrow. "Four."
"Yes." I look at each of them in turn. "Knox, Caspian..." I pause. "And Julian."
The temperature in the chapel drops about twenty degrees.
Caspian's head snaps toward Julian. "Julian. Professor Harmon." His voice is deadly soft. "You're one of the four bonds."
Julian meets his gaze steadily. "Yes."
"You claimed her." Not a question. Statement. "You're her mate."
"I am."
Caspian moves so fast I barely track it. One second he's leaning against the pew, the next he's across the chapel with Julian pressed against the wall, forearm against his throat.
"Caspian, no!" I run toward them but Knox intercepts me, holding me back.
"Let them work it out," Knox says quietly.
"You're my professor," Caspian snarls in Julian's face. "You have authority over me in the classroom. And you claimed my mate?"
"She's not just yours." Julian doesn't struggle, doesn't fight back. Just keeps his voice calm. "She's mine too. The bond formed weeks before you ever touched her."
"Weeks?" Caspian's arm presses harder. "How long?"
"Does it matter?"
"Yes, it fucking matters!"
"Stop!" I wrench free from Knox and move to them. "Caspian, let him go. Now."
"He doesn't get to have you." Caspian doesn't look at me, keeps his eyes locked on Julian. "Not like this. Not when he has power over both of us."
"He's my mate," I say firmly. "Just like you are. Just like Knox and Nico. This isn't a competition."
"The hell it isn't."
"Then you don't understand what being part of a pack means." I grab his arm. "Let. Him. Go."
