It’s Vorak.
The trap closes around me. I can’t outrun any of these large males, and I won’t give them an excuse to touch me.
Vorak doesn’t approach at first. He stands at the end of the platform, arms folded, the set of his jaw daring anyone to come closer.
The Concord men herd me down the ramp and into the corridor. It looks just like the ones in Green Reach, but the pretense of nature is less. Every edge and line is military-grade.
They march me through two more checkpoints, then up a stairwell to a command center. The door opens and I see the design. The same hexagonal room, the same orientation of consoles, but instead of feeling lived in, this place feels like a showroom.
Vorak waits at the head of the table. The three Concord men stand at attention, but their bodies angle subtly away from him, as if even they know not to turn their backs. He doesn’t acknowledge them. He studies me, eyes flicking from my face to my fingers.
“Leave us,” he says.
The Concord men hesitate. The lead looks at me, then at Vorak. “She is under the Council’s?—”
Vorak lifts his hand. The motion is elegant and final, the way a guillotine drops. “I’ll be accountable for her safety. I won’t be accountable for yours. It would be a shame if the other biome lords knew about your pacification device.”
Vorak’s warriors are all around, looking ready to fight. But truly, Vorak himself looks like he could take the three Concorddelegates on by himself. Rythar has told me that Vorak is not quite a biome ruler. But he’s also not an ordinary warrior.
The lead Concord delegate glances at his colleagues, and they leave without another word.
For a long moment, Vorak doesn’t move. I stand just inside the threshold, resisting the urge to back away. I refuse to show him fear.
His gaze is heavy and far too close. He circles slowly until he stands a meter behind me.
“You are aware,” he says, “that your value is the only reason you’re still alive.”
I don’t answer. I keep my eyes forward, tracing the monitors, the security feeds. I see no sign of Sophia, or anyone else.
“I won’t cooperate.” I say it firmly, and I mean it.
“You think,” Vorak continues, “that if you simply refuse, or resist, or threaten to harm yourself, we will let you go?” He laughs, but there’s no humor in it. “You are far too valuable for that.”
He walks closer. My scalp prickles, but I don’t move.
“You’re mine now,” he murmurs. “I don’t care what any Stone says. You belong to the one who is strong enough to take you. And keep you.”
"Where is Sophia?" I ask.
"She is resting," he growls.
"Show me," I demand.
His mouth curves. "No." His hands land on my shoulders from behind. "My bride did not cooperate." His fingers tighten. "But you will."
The mate bond snaps to Rythar. I don’t know if it’s the adrenaline or the proximity, but my hand suddenly pulses, heat radiating up my arm. I try to suppress it, but the harder I try, the more intense it gets. The connection to Rythar is no longer a thread—it’s charged with fire and its own kind of venom.
Vorak’s eyes are on me. “He’ll come for you, of course. That’s the point.”
He releases my shoulders, steps back. “But you’re not in his jungle anymore,” he says. “You’re in mine. And here, he’ll meet his end.”
CHAPTER 28
VORAK
RYTHAR – THE GREEN REACH
The Green Reachis never quiet, but it’s been hundreds of years since Reach’s End has given me this much trouble. Even with the perimeter locked down, even with every guard on double watch, the jungle presses in, louder every hour. I run patrols across the Green Reach and into Reach’s End, sword on my back and antivenom on my hip, hunting the serpent-panthers. Straying into Reach’s End should be Vorak’s job. But no one can know that I took the antivenom. I’ve used it twice already, in secret. Lied and told them the bite contained too little venom to kill them.
