Page 118 of The Werewolf’s Wrong Mate

Cassie spoke again. “Can I ask a question before anyone votes on my mercy murder?”

Ronan looked toward the study. “Ask.”

“Who benefits if everyone agrees I’m not bonded to him?”

No one answered quickly enough.

The silence pleased me.

Cassie continued, voice thinner now but steady. “Because if I’m dying from a false mark, killing me sounds compassionate. If the bond is real, killing me sounds like murdering Ian’s mate in front of him and hoping he handles it politely.”

Something moved through the room. A truth no one wanted standing upright.

The bond warmed between us. Mine. Hers. I couldn’t tell but I didn’t care.

Ronan looked at Malrec. “Answer her.”

Malrec’s face had gone flat. “The question is emotional.”

Cassie gave a small smile. “That means you don’t like it.”

The wolf liked her teeth. So did I.

Evelyn stepped forward. “Then let him prove it.”

Every head turned to her.

Ronan’s eyes narrowed. “Explain.”

“If Ian claims this is a true bond, let him stand by the old ways.”

“No,” I said.

The word left me before she finished.

Evelyn’s gaze stayed on my face. “If his wolf truly knows her, if her body truly answers him, if this impossible human claim is more than fever and instinct, then let the hunt decide.”

The mark went cold, and Cassie felt it. Her hand moved to her shoulder. Sava bent closer at once, but Cassie lifted a finger to stop her.

“What hunt?” Cassie asked.

No one wanted to answer her.

She looked at me. “Ian.”

My name in her mouth reached the wolf before it reached the man. I turned toward her.

“There are old mate trials,” I said.

Ronan’s jaw tightened. I kept speaking because she had asked me, and I had promised myself I would not make truth another locked door.

“In disputed claims, the marked mate is set loose under moonrise. The wolf must find her by scent, protect her through the course, and bring her back before dawn.”

Cassie stared at me.

“Set loose,” she repeated.

“It was made for wolves.”