His mother went very still. The color drained from her face, and her knees wobbled dangerously. Korran lunged forward, catching her arms to steady her.
“Don’t worry about all that right now,” he said firmly. “Let’s just get to the burial grounds, and then we can handle everything later.”
She nodded shakily, but he could see the storm brewing behind her eyes. If Tess was right—if Varix had been slowly poisoning his father for a decade while pretending to treat him—the implications would shatter everything they’d believed.
After ensuring his mother was steady, Korran pulled out his communicator and pressed Kael’s contact.
“Your Highness?” Kael’s voice crackled through the device.
“Pick up Tess at the estate and head to the lab immediately. It’s the perfect time—the facility will be empty with the clan mourning.”
“On it.”
The call ended, and Korran pocketed the device. He then guided his mother out of her chambers and out of the estate toward his SUV, trying to ignore the way her grief seemed to have carved hollows in her cheeks overnight.
The drive to the ancient burial grounds passed in heavy silence. The sacred site lay deep in the mountains, accessible only by a narrow, winding road that had been carved into the rock face centuries ago. Snow-laden pines pressed close on either side, their branches creating a natural cathedral that had sheltered the remains of his ancestors for generations.
When they arrived, his mother wasn’t crying—she seemed beyond tears now, hollowed out and fragile as spun glass. Korran helped her from the SUV and guided her through the snow toward the clearing where his father’s closed casket waited beside the grave that had been prepared.
The elders stood in a solemn circle, their weathered faces grim. Two younger shifters—members of the burial detail—waited respectfully at a distance, their shovels resting against their shoulders.
What Korran hadn’t expected was the sight of Malvek and Seraya emerging from another vehicle, their formal black attire stark against the pristine snow. His bear bristled with immediate suspicion.
What are they doing here?
Malvek approached with measured steps, his expression appropriately somber. “I came as a duty of the council,” he said, his tone carrying the weight of false sincerity. “And Seraya wanted to offer her support to her future mate.”
The presumption in those words hit Korran like a slap. He’d never agreed to any such arrangement, never given Malvek or his daughter any indication that he’d choose her yet. The fact that Malvek would make such a claim here, at his father’s burial, sent rage coursing through his veins.
But he couldn’t afford a confrontation. Not here, not now. Not when Tess and Kael needed time to analyze those vials without interruption.
So he bit back his fury and focused on the ceremony, trying to ignore Seraya’s calculating gaze as the elders spoke the ancient words of farewell. His father’s casket was lowered into the frozen earth with reverent care, and Korran felt something fundamental shift inside him—the final severing of childhood, and the weight of kingship settling onto his shoulders like a mantle of iron.
When the last shovelful of earth had been placed and the elders had departed, Malvek approached him again with that same false concern.
“I’ll escort the queen back to the estate,” he offered, his steel-grey eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “Perhaps you should take Seraya for a drive. Discuss your mating arrangements.”
Every instinct screamed at him to refuse, to tell Malvek exactly where he could shove his political machinations. But Tess needed more time. The lab needed to remain undisturbed while she worked.
“Fine,” he ground out through clenched teeth.
Malvek’s smile was razor-sharp as he guided Queen Lysia toward his vehicle. Seraya fell into step beside Korran, her movements fluid and predatory.
He didn’t help her into his SUV—the passenger seat where Tess belonged felt like sacred ground that Seraya had no right to defile. She climbed in on her own, her sharp blue eyes flashing with annoyance at his lack of courtesy.
The sight of her in Tess’s place sent his bear into a frenzy of possessive rage. He gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles went white, fighting the urge to order her out immediately.
Instead, he started the engine and drove in tense silence until they were well away from the burial grounds. Then he pulled off onto a narrow side road and cut the engine, turning to face her with barely leashed fury.
“Unfortunately, I will not be choosing you as my mate,” he said, his voice deadly calm. “I apologize if your father gave you the wrong impression, or if I did at any point over the years. But I’ve found someone else.”
Seraya’s composure cracked, revealing the calculating ambition beneath her polished exterior. “Who?” she demanded, her voice sharp with wounded pride. “No one else is more perfectly suited for you or the queen role. I can give you everything you need politically. And we can learn to love each other, satisfy each other.”
She reached toward him, her fingers brushing his arm. “I find you incredibly attractive, Korran. Maybe we could go somewhere now and have a little fun together. See how compatible we really are.”
The suggestion hit him like a punch to the gut. The idea of anyone other than Tess touching him, of betraying the bond they’d just acknowledged, made his stomach turn.
“Absolutely not,” he snarled, jerking away from her touch. “That will never happen.”
