There was no time for this conversation. How convenient. And probably for the best, because I was angry with him. You didn’t tell a woman she was your mate, but that you didn’t want her because she couldn’t have your children.It was rude!I wanted to throat punch him, but I was too busy running to catch the train.
Valkaryn slammed against my back with each step, and I was suddenly angry at her, too.‘You didn’t tell me he was your son,’Ichided her.
‘You didn’t ask.’Her response was cheeky, and I wasn’t having it.
‘It was his story to tell,’she said finally.‘His pain to share.’
That dusted off my anger. It did soundpainful to have your crown stolen from you and your parents killed. Siblings. Your mother’s soul bound in a centuries-old sword. It was awful.
We cleared the opening in the gate, and I boarded the train in silence, Valkaryn slung across my back like a second spine. The train car felt cold and empty as the door hissed shut behind me.
The next trial was about to begin, and my life was a mess.
Chapter Twenty-Two
It felt strange to be on the train with only Kirk Vexalor and his wolf-bonded. The car rattled steadily along the tracks, lantern swaying overhead, casting shifting shadows over the empty seats. There were no other candidates left, no background chatter or clink of armor, just us and an uneasy quiet that pressed against my skin like a storm front, an eerie stillness for the journey into the final trial.
I had no idea what the trial would be, but if my last week of grueling training with Cassian was any sign, it would involve a lot of sword work and even more pain. My fingers itched for Valkaryn’s hilt; the familiar weight of her was a reminder that I wasn’t defenseless.
“I’m hungry,” Kaelric said, his voice low and rough, already turning toward the food car.
I trailed after him, heat still burning in my chestfrom the way he’d spoken to me. You didnottell a woman she was your mate and then call it a mistake. My feet felt heavier with every step, resentment coiling tighter in my stomach.
The scent of roasted meat and fresh bread hit me as we stepped into the food car. Kaelric loaded two plates with easy efficiency, his movements calm. He slid into a booth, the leather seats squeaking under his weight, and set a plate in front of himself and then me. I took the spot across from him, the table between us feeling both too small and like a chasm I couldn’t cross.
His eyes met mine, steady and unreadable. I didn’t touch the plate in front of me. The truth was, I wasn’t hungry. My entire community had just burned to the ground, ashes settling into my bones no matter how many times I breathed. And if I was honest, some stubborn, foolish part of me wanted him to see the truth that I was his mate, no matter what he tried to claim.
“Dig in,” I told him, my voice harsher than I intended. His gaze sharpened, yellow bleeding into his eyes.
“After you,” he growled, the sound low, almost feral.
I crossed my arms. “Not hungry.”
His yellow deepened into molten gold, hot enough to burn.
He leaned forward, closing the space between usjust enough for his scent of wood smoke and something wild to tease the air. “You skipped breakfast. Surely you want a bite?”
I shrugged, feigning disinterest. “You go ahead.”
His chest rose and fell, slow but deliberate, his jaw flexing as if the effort to hold back was costing him. Fur rippled briefly down the strong column of his neck, and still I didn’t move.
“Brynn. Eat something.” His voice dropped into a command, fists clenching against the table.
“No!” I shot forward so my face was only inches from his. My pulse pounded so hard I could feel it in my temples. “I won’t eat. So you’ll starve until you see that the reason you can’t eat in my presence is because I’m your true mate.Nota mistake.”
Pain flickered in his face. His eyes shifted from yellow to green, back to yellow, finally settling into green again.
“I never should have called you that,” he said, and there was a weight in his voice I’d never heard before.
I nodded, pushing myself up from the booth and stepping back. “And I’m too good to chase after a man who doesn’t want me. Enjoy your meal,Alpha.”
The word dripped from my tongue like venom, but my heart was already splintering. I turned on my heel, forcing my feet to carry me away, leaving himwith his untouched plate while my heart shredded into a hundred pieces.
I never imagined I would be heading into the third and final trial with a broken heart.
The next train car was empty, but it didn’t feel far enough from him. I pushed into another, then another, each one colder than the last. When I reached the third car away from him, Valkaryn pulsed at my hip. The vibration was sharp, urgent.
‘What is it?’I barely had time to think the words when I heard the lock click behind me.
