Tess pressed herself against the wall, peering around the corner. Varix stood near the queen, a syringe gleaming in his pale hands. The liquid inside was clear, but Tess’s scientific training told her it was anything but harmless.
“What was your game plan?” Lysia demanded, her blue eyes blazing with defiance even as fear flickered beneath the surface.
Malvek’s laugh was bitter and triumphant. “It was years in the making, my dear queen. When Korran came of age, I started with simple vitamins— supplements that Varix convinced Voran to take for his ‘aging concerns.’ When those began showing the desired effects, we escalated to the immunity boosters.”
Tess’s stomach churned as the pieces fell into place. The systematic poisoning, and the careful manipulation of an entire clan’s beliefs about human-shifter bonds.
“I knew from the time Korran was a child that he resented his half-human nature,” Malvek continued, his voice filled with cold satisfaction. “All it took was the right pressure, the right narrative. Convince him that human bonds were weakness, that his father’s decline proved it. Isolate him, manipulate him, and eventually he’d choose my daughter. I’d have control of the clan and the royal bloodline.”
“The plan was working perfectly,” Varix added, his clinical voice devoid of remorse. “Until you brought in that Earth scientist.”
“You can still fix this,” Lysia said desperately. “Don’t kill me. There has to be another way?—“
“Too late,” Malvek cut her off. “You should have stayed away decades ago when I first tried to push you out. But no, Voran had to get sentimental, had to choose his fated mate over duty. Well, now I’m taking matters into my own hands. Time to purify the royal bloodline once and for all.”
Tess saw Varix raise the syringe, and panic shot through her. It was now or never.
She grabbed a heavy iron pot from a nearby shelf and began slamming it against the cabin walls, creating a thunderous racket that echoed through the small space.
“What the hell—“ Malvek spun toward the sound just as the front door exploded inward.
Korran’s massive bear form filled the doorway like an avenging god, Orric close behind. Tess darted toward the queen as chaos erupted around them. Varix and Malvek reacted with inhuman speed, their human forms blurring as they shifted. Bones cracked and reformed, muscles expanding as dark fur sprouted across their skin. Within seconds, two enemy bears faced off against the royal forces, but even Tess’s untrained eye could see they were outmatched.
The queen’s eyes were wide but determined, her composure intact even with thick ropes binding her wrists to the wooden chair.
“Hold still,” Tess gasped, her fingers working frantically at the knots. Behind her, the sounds of battle erupted—roars that shook the cabin walls, the crash of bear bodies slamming into furniture, and claws scraping against wood.
Through the mate bond, she could feel Korran’s primal satisfaction as he engaged Malvek’s black bear. The councilor was cunning but no match for royal bloodline power. Korran’s massive jaws clamped down on Malvek’s shoulder, eliciting a howl of pain that made Tess’s blood sing with vindication.
That’s for poisoning his father, you bastard.
“Almost got it,” she muttered, her nails breaking as she worked at the stubborn knots. Queen Lysia’s breathing was steady despite the chaos, her blue eyes tracking the battles raging around them.
Orric’s bear moved like a tactical weapon, using his size and agility to his advantage against Varix’s lean bear form. The corrupt healer’s bear was methodical even in combat, trying to use strategy over brute force. But Orric had decades of military training, and it showed in every calculated strike.
The final knot gave way just as Korran’s roar echoed through the cabin. Tess looked up to see Malvek’s bear form go limp beneath Korran’s massive jaws, dark blood staining the wooden floor. The sight should have horrified her, but instead she felt fierce satisfaction.
“This way,” Tess urged, helping Queen Lysia to her feet. The older woman was steadier than expected, her royal training evident even in crisis.
They pressed themselves into the far corner just as Orric delivered the killing blow to Varix’s bear. The healer’s pale blue eyes went vacant, his lean form crumpling to the floor beside his co-conspirator.
The sudden silence was deafening.
Both victorious bears stood panting, their fur matted with blood—some their own, some from their enemies. Tess could see several deep scratches along Korran’s massive flanks and a gash on Orric’s shoulder, but nothing life-threatening.
The transformation back to human form was mesmerizing in reverse—fur receding, bones reshaping, until Korran stood before them in all his naked, blood-streaked glory. His dark eyes immediately found Tess, scanning her for injuries with a burning intensity that made her skin flush despite everything they’d just witnessed.
“Are you hurt?” His voice was rough, still carrying traces of his bear’s growl.
Before she could answer, he crossed the cabin in three powerful strides and pulled both women into his embrace. His naked chest was warm and solid against Tess’s cheek, his heart beating rapidly beneath her ear. The mate bond hummed with his relief, his protective satisfaction, and his desperate need to touch and confirm their safety.
Queen Lysia pulled back first, her composure cracking as tears gathered in her blue eyes.
“Thank you,” she whispered, her voice trembling with emotion. “Both of you. This corruption would never have been exposed, and I would’ve died today if it wasn’t for you both—and the power of your mate bond.”
“A decade of lies and manipulation finally ended today,” Korran said, his alpha authority reasserting itself as he surveyed the bodies of their enemies.
Orric, now also shifted, nodded grimly. “I’ll handle the cleanup here. You two get the queen back to safety.”
