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I wrinkled my nose.Seriously, Grandmother?To Garrett’s left sat Jessica and Jenna, with Sydnee’s family seated on the other end of mine. The rest of the rows were filled with my inner circle, council members, alphas, and assistants. A medic was standing by, and a handful of soldiers were around the room as always.
As I stepped fully into the conservatory, the runner scattered with red and white rose petals, I caught my first glimpse of Kayden. She stood at the end of the runner, the sunlight glinting off her silvery-white hair that she’d left down and flowing. Tiny flowers were braided into it, and for a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
Our eyes locked, and she smiled, her feelings for me shining through. I wished nothing else existed at that moment but the two of us, but we had an audience, so I turned my gaze on Sydnee. She wore a white dress like Kayden, but she was nowhere near as radiant as my mate.
Her smile was for appearances only, and there was no emotion in her eyes. I continued toward them, the words I’d rehearsed so many times running through my mind.
“Good afternoon, ladies.” I stopped between them and inclined my head. “You both look stunning.” The stylists had outdone themselves with both women, but Kayden radiated an energy that went beyond style. Her spirit, her soul, called to me, as it had from the very beginning, though it had taken me a while to figure out why. “I’ve made my choice.”
I looked between my one true mate and the woman I’d be sending home, ready to make my decision known.
Before I could open my mouth to speak the words that would end this for good, Sydnee lunged forward, wrapping her hands around Kayden’s throat and knocking her to the floor.
The crowd gasped, and I darted towards the women, ready to pull Sydnee off and give her a piece of my mind. The only thing that stopped me was my father’s voice booming through the room.
“Stop, son! You cannot interfere.”
I jerked my gaze to the balcony, where Father stood, his face a hard mask. Mother held onto his arm, her brow furrowed in worry. Kayden had wrested free of Sydnee’s grasp, but her neck was covered in cuts. Instinct had me surging forward, but Garrett grabbed my arm and held me back.
Kayden had barely gained her footing when Sydnee lunged again, already shifting. The room seemed to go eerily silent, everything moving too slow. My ears were ringing, and my chest felt like it was going to burst. How could this be happening.
Suddenly, Kayden’s wolf burst forth with a mighty roar, knocking Sydnee back.
“What am I supposed to do?” I roared. Surely, there was some precedent or rule for this.
“This is still part of the Contention,” Father called out, his voice grim. “You didn’t make your choice. They can duel.”
My gut twisted, which meant that whoever won would be my wife. I had made my choice, though. Long ago. This was just a formality, a technicality. My wolf raged inside me, demanding I do something. My mate was under attack. The only thing to do was save her.
I looked around, my horror reflected on the faces of everyone gathered—everyone except Sydnee’s father, who watched with a perfectly calm expression. As if he knew this would happen. I’d been an idiot to keep her around this long. Kayden had told me how ruthless Sydnee was, that she’d be willing to go to any lengths to get what she wanted.
The two wolves circled each other, snarling and baring their teeth. We’d been here before. Just as it had been on the beach, neither woman was willing to step down from this challenge. It was a fight to the death, and everyone in the room knew it.
Sydnee lunged first. Kayden crouched, ready for the attack. But at the last minute, Sydnee flung to the side, scraping her claws along Kayden’s flank. Kayden roared in pain. Sydnee rolled, getting back on her paws in no time. While Kayden, taken by surprise, shook her head and tried to get back in the game.
She barely moved in time to avoid Sydnee’s next attack. “Come on,Kayden,” I bit out through bared teeth. “You’ve got this.”
Garrett still held me back. I wasn’t sure what I might have done if he hadn’t. My heart thundered, adrenaline coursing through my veins. The primal urge to intervene, to maim—tokillanyone who threatened my mate, was all-consuming.
Kayden skittered back out of Sydnee’s reach, and I breathed a sigh of relief when she seemed to settle into her body more, moving with lethal grace as she watched her opponent.
Sydnee had the element of surprise at first, but now Kayden had evened the playing field. The determination in her eyes was enough to let everyone know she wasn’t going down so easily. Just two weeks ago, I wouldn’t have been sure she was capable of seeing this through to the end—of delivering a killing bite.
But now, she was a different woman. She was stronger, more sure of herself. She’d been through hell and was still standing—still fighting. My mate wasn’t one to give up.
Kayden lunged, hurtling herself forward with power and speed that knocked Sydnee flat on her back. Kayden pinned her instantly, pressing a paw to her throat; offering her the chance to submit, even now.
Sydnee snarled, and Kayden’s claws pierced her flesh. A final warning. Then Kayden went for the kill, replacing her claws with her teeth. Sharp canines sank in, and Kayden gave a jerk of her head. But even as she ripped out her throat, Sydnee scraped her claws down Kayden’s belly, a final attempt to save herself.
She was too late.
Sydnee’s body lay limp as Kayden fell to the floor, her sides heaving. I ran to her, screaming for a medic.
“Kayden,” I breathed, my stomach knotting when I saw the deep gashes along her wolf belly. She was losing blood fast. “You have to shift. Now. You can’t wait.”
One large honey eye rolled toward me, and my heart stuck in my throat. She wasn’t moving.
“Kayden.” My voice was raw, ragged as it echoed through the conservatory. “Shift.” The command was from an alpha, not to be disobeyed.
