KADE POV
"ASHER!" Sera's scream tore through my soul.
I spun around to see my son bleeding, Elena's claws still dripping red, and everything inside me shattered.
My wolf exploded forward with a rage I'd never felt before. I shifted mid-leap, slamming into Elena with enough force to crack the stone floor. She twisted away at the last second, laughing.
"Too slow, Alpha. I already got what I needed." She held up her bloodied claws. "Twin flame blood. The ritual is mine."
I lunged again, but she was gone—disappearing into the smoke with supernatural speed.
"Kade!" Sera's voice pulled me back. "Forget her! Asher needs healing NOW!"
I shifted back and ran to where Sera knelt over our son. The slash across his side was deep, bleeding too fast. Aria was crying, her small hands pressed against her brother's wound like she could hold his life in.
"Don't die, Asher! Please don't die!"
"I'm not gonna die," Asher whimpered, but his face was so pale.
Sera's hands were already glowing silver, but I could feel through our bond that she was exhausted. The fire escape had drained her. She didn't have enough power left for a wound this severe.
"Take mine," I said, dropping to my knees beside her. "Use the mate bond like before."
"It's too much. It could kill you—"
"I don't care! Save him!"
Sera grabbed my hand, and the bond roared open. My Alpha power flooded into her healing gift, and silver-gold light exploded from her palms. Asher gasped as the wound began closing, flesh knitting back together.
But something was wrong.
"The blood," Elder Thea said urgently, appearing through the smoke. "Elena didn't just wound him. She poisoned the blade. I can smell it."
"What?" Sera's voice cracked. "What kind of poison?"
"Nightshade mixed with wolfsbane. It's already in his bloodstream." Thea's face was grim. "You can heal the wound, but the poison... Sera, you'd have to pull it out of every vein. The pain would be—"
"I don't care about pain!" I roared. "Do it!"
Sera looked at me, then at Asher's terrified face. "This is going to hurt, baby. I'm so sorry."
"It's okay, Mama," Asher whispered. "I'm brave like you."
The words destroyed me.
Sera closed her eyes and dove deeper into the healing. I felt it through our bond—her power searching through Asher's veins, hunting down every trace of poison. Our son screamed.
"Stop!" Aria sobbed. "You're hurting him!"
"We have to," I said, pulling Aria against my chest even though I wanted to scream too. "Or the poison will kill him."
Asher's screams echoed through the halls. Every sound was a knife in my heart. This was my fault. Elena wanted revenge on me, and my children were paying the price.
Finally, Sera pulled back, gasping. The silver light faded. Asher went limp, unconscious but breathing.
"Is he—" I couldn't finish the question.
"He'll live," Sera confirmed, tears streaming down her face. "But Kade, Elena has his blood. She can use it for the ritual even without having him physically. We didn't stop anything."
The world tilted.
"How long?" I demanded, looking at Elder Thea. "How long until she can complete the ritual?"
"The full moon is in three days, but the blood is fresh. She'll need time to prepare the spell, gather the right materials." Thea's expression was grave. "We have maybe forty-eight hours before she tries."
Finn burst through the smoke, his face streaked with soot. "Alpha! Elena's forces retreated, but they took twelve of our warriors hostage. They left a message."
He held out a blood-stained note. I read it, my vision going red.
Trade: The twins for your warriors. Tomorrow at dawn, neutral ground. Come alone, or I start sending body parts. - E
"She knows we won't trade them," Sera said quietly. "This is a trap."
"Of course it's a trap." I crumpled the note. "But she also knows I can't ignore it. Those warriors have families. Children."
"So do the twins," Sera snapped. "Your children. Or do they not count because you just met them?"
The accusation hit like a physical blow. "That's not fair."
"None of this is fair!" Sera's voice broke. "You exiled me while I was pregnant. I gave birth alone in a cave. I raised them by myself for five years while you had your pack and your power and your—"
"I was in hell!" I shouted back. "Do you think I was fine? I felt you through the bond every day—your pain, your fear, your hatred. It drove me half insane. My wolf rejected every other female. The pack suffered because their Alpha was broken. So don't act like I was living a perfect life while you struggled!"
"At least you were warm and fed and safe!"
"I would have traded it all to find you!"
We were both breathing hard, the mate bond crackling with rage and pain and something deeper—the love that had never actually died, no matter how much we'd both tried to kill it.
Aria's small voice cut through our fight. "Stop yelling. You're scaring Asher."
We both looked down. Asher was awake but trembling, tears on his cheeks.
Guilt crashed over me. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
Sera gathered both twins close. "This isn't the time. We need a plan."
"I'll go to the meeting," I said immediately. "Take a team, get the warriors back—"
"And walk into Elena's trap? She'll kill you and take the twins anyway."
"Then what do you suggest?"
Before Sera could answer, the entire packhouse shook. An explosion from somewhere above us sent dust and debris raining down.
"What now?" Lyra snarled, appearing with a squad of my warriors and her rogues.
Finn's radio crackled. "Beta! Eastern border—it's Marcus Redclaw! Full army! They're demanding we surrender the twins or they'll level the entire territory!"
"Marcus is working with Elena," I realized. "This is coordinated. She attacks from inside while he sieges from outside."
"They're boxing us in," Sera said, her strategic mind already working. "Elena wants us panicked and desperate. Marcus wants us divided. If we send forces to fight him, Elena attacks the packhouse. If we fortify here, Marcus destroys the territory."
Another explosion rocked the building. Aria screamed and buried her face in Sera's shoulder. Asher was crying silently, overwhelmed.
Looking at my children's terrified faces, something in me snapped.
"Enough." My Alpha voice echoed through the hall, making every wolf drop their eyes in submission. "This ends now. Finn, evacuate all non-fighters to the underground bunkers. Lyra, combine your rogues with my warriors—I want every entrance fortified. Elder Thea, take the twins somewhere safe."
"No," Sera interrupted. "The twins stay with me."
"Sera—"
"They're targets because of their power. Separating them from me makes them vulnerable. I'm their best protection."
She was right, and I hated it.
"Fine. But you don't go anywhere without a full security detail."
"I don't take orders from you."
"I'm not ordering. I'm begging." I met her eyes. "Please. Let me protect you. All of you."
Sera studied my face for a long moment. Finally, she nodded.
"Okay. But we do this together. No lone wolf hero nonsense."
"Together," I agreed.
Finn's radio crackled again. "Beta! You need to see this!"
We ran to the nearest window. Outside, Marcus Redclaw's army stretched across the eastern border—hundreds of wolves, all in attack formation.
But that wasn't what made my blood freeze.
In the center of Marcus's forces, bound in silver chains, were the twelve captured warriors. And standing behind them with a blade was Elena.
Her voice carried across the distance, amplified by pack magic.
"Alpha Thorne! I'll make this simple. You have one hour to deliver the twins to neutral ground. If you refuse, I start executing your warriors. One every ten minutes." She grabbed the first warrior—a young male named Cody who had a wife and newborn daughter. "Starting now."
She raised the blade.
"Wait!" I roared, but she couldn't hear me from this distance.
The blade fell.
Cody's scream cut off abruptly.
Beside me, Sera made a sound of horror. The twins were crying. My warriors looked at me with desperation and fury.
Elena's voice came again. "Fifty minutes until the next one dies. Your move, Alpha."
I turned to Sera, my heart shattering. "What do I do? Those are my people. But the twins—"
"Are your children," Sera finished quietly. "And you have to choose."
"I can't choose between my pack and my family!"
"You already did once." Sera's voice was hollow. "You chose the pack over me. Over us."
The accusation hung in the air like poison.
Before I could respond, Asher tugged my hand. His silver eyes—my eyes—looked up at me with heartbreaking clarity.
"Daddy?" The word was tentative, testing. "Are those people going to die because of me and Aria?"
The question destroyed what was left of my heart.
"No," I said fiercely. "They're going to die because bad people are making bad choices. None of this is your fault."
"But if we went to the bad lady, she'd let them go, right?"
"Asher, no!" Sera grabbed him. "You're not going anywhere near Elena!"
"But people are dying!" Asher sobbed. "I don't want people to die because of us!"
Aria was crying too. "We're special, right? That's what Elder Thea said. Special means we should help people, not make them die!"
I looked at my children—four years old and already carrying guilt they shouldn't have to bear—and something inside me made a decision.
"I'm going," I said. "I'll trade myself for the warriors."
"What?" Sera's eyes went wide. "Kade, no—"
"Elena wants to hurt me. Fine. Let her. But she gets me, not the twins, and she releases my warriors. I'll negotiate a trade."
"She'll kill you!"
"Maybe. But at least the twins will be safe. And the warriors will be free."
I started toward the door, but Sera grabbed my arm. The mate bond flared between us—her terror, her rage, her desperate need to keep me alive.
"Please don't," she whispered. "I just got you back. The twins just found their father. Don't make them lose you already."
"I have to. It's the only way."
"There's always another way!"
"Name it!"
Sera opened her mouth, then closed it. She had nothing.
I cupped her face gently. "If I don't come back, promise me you'll protect them. Run far away from here. Build a new life somewhere Elena and Marcus can't find you."
"Kade—"
I kissed her forehead. "I love you. I never stopped. And I'm sorry I don't have more time to prove it."
Then I turned to my children. Aria was sobbing, and Asher looked devastated.
"Be good for your mama," I told them. "Be strong. Be brave. And know that your daddy loved you from the moment he knew you existed."
I walked toward the door.
Behind me, Sera's voice was barely a whisper.
"There's a third option."
I stopped.
"What?"
Sera's eyes were hard as diamonds. "We give Elena exactly what she wants. We bring her the twins."
My wolf snarled in rage. "What? No! Absolutely not!"
"Let me finish." Sera's smile was sharp as a blade. "We bring her the twins. But not the real ones."
Understanding dawned.
"A trick," I breathed.
"A trap," Sera corrected. "We make her think she's won. Then we destroy her."
Elder Thea stepped forward, her eyes gleaming. "It could work. I know a glamour spell that could make two adult wolves appear as the children. It won't hold for long, but long enough."
"Long enough for what?" Finn asked.
Sera looked at me, and through the bond, I felt her ruthless determination.
"Long enough for us to kill everyone who ever threatened our family."