Page 31

TWENTY-FIVE

MAYA

M aya's fingers trembled as she tugged her black leggings back over her hips. The earth beneath her was still vibrating with a subtle pulse—like the land itself was breathing again after centuries of suffocation.

"Do you still feel that?" she whispered, balancing on one foot to slide the other through the legging. "It's like the whole forest is singing."

Kieran, already pulling his tight black t-shirt over his sculpted torso, paused mid-motion. "Not singing. Healing." His eyes flashed silver in the moonlight. "Whatever just happened between us—it's spreading."

Maya couldn't help but touch the fresh bite mark on her neck, still tender and warm.

A scientist to her core, she wanted to analyze this phenomenon, to understand how their mating could trigger geological and botanical responses.

But the wolf in her—that newly awakened part—simply accepted the truth with primal certainty.

"Your father isn't going to like this," she murmured, pulling on the oversized white t-shirt that hung to mid-thigh. "A human hybrid triggering magical forest events isn't exactly in the traditional shifter handbook."

Kieran laughed, the sound rich and deep in the night air. "Nothing about us has ever been in any handbook." He moved behind her, wrapping his powerful arms around her waist and nuzzling the mark he'd left. "And I couldn't care less what my father thinks right now."

Walking barefoot back to the safe house, Maya marveled at how different the forest felt under her feet.

Every step connected her more deeply to the earth—she could sense water running beneath the soil and feel the ancient roots stretching beneath them.

Her newly heightened senses registered everything from the smallest mouse scurrying underbrush to an owl's silent wings passing overhead.

"This is so incredible," she breathed. "I feel connected to everything."

"That's the mate bond being completed and fully solidified," Kieran squeezed her hand. "But heightened by whatever your hybrid nature awakened."

As they approached the safe house, Maya could hear agitated voices before they even reached the clearing. Kieran tensed beside her, instantly alert.

Inside, Malcolm was pacing frantically, his usual diplomatic composure shattered. The moment they entered, he whirled toward them.

"Where the hell have you been?" His eyes dropped to Maya's neck, widened briefly, then returned to his brother's face. "Never mind. I know exactly what you've been doing."

"What's happened?" Kieran's voice shifted instantly to command mode, making several young rebels straighten instinctively.

"Father is gone," Malcolm said, his voice tight. "Vanished during dinner at High Elder Thorne's home. No warning, no trace."

Maya felt her breath catch. Her scientific mind instantly calculated the timing—exactly when Kieran's teeth had pierced her skin, when their mate bond had sealed permanently.

"When?" Kieran demanded, his hand tightening protectively around Maya's.

"About an hour ago," Malcolm replied.

Lena stepped forward, her violet eyes fixed on Maya's neck. "The same time your mating completed," she whispered. "That can't be coincidence."

Maya felt everyone's eyes shift to her, their gazes a mixture of awe and suspicion. The knot of anxiety that had begun forming in her stomach tightened. Was their union somehow responsible for the Alpha's disappearance?

"The human hunter operatives," Kieran muttered, pulling Malcolm and Maya aside. "Father's secret allies. Could they have turned on him?"

Malcolm frowned. "Or someone from the rebellion faction that discovered his betrayal?"

"Or enemies we know nothing about," Maya added, keeping her voice low. "Your father seems to have been playing a much deeper game than either of you suspected."

Kieran's jaw clenched, the scar on his temple whitening. "I'll need to call an emergency meeting with the High Council soon, but not yet." His silver-blue eyes darkened. "First we need information—real information, not political posturing."

Maya pressed closer to him, suddenly aware of how their joining had irrevocably altered not just their bodies and the land, but potentially the entire power structure of the shifter world.

"What happens now?" she asked, feeling uncharacteristically vulnerable.

Kieran's arm wrapped around her, pulling her against his side in a gesture both protective and possessive. "Now," he rumbled, his voice pitched low, "we find my father—and discover exactly what our mating has unleashed."

Maya squinted at the red-gold sunlight filtering through ancient pines as their small convoy approached Moon Hollow.

Her body ached from the all-night search, her muscles protesting after hours of trekking through unfamiliar terrain.

Despite Kieran teaching her tracking techniques—harnessing her newly awakened shifter senses to detect scents and subtle trail signs—they'd found nothing of Alpha Alaric Silvercrest.

He had simply vanished without a trace.

"Any news?" she whispered to Kieran as the imposing stone structure that housed the High Council came into view.

He shook his head, his jaw tight with tension. "No. Nothing from the eastern scouts either."

The mate mark on her neck throbbed in response to his distress, their bond transmitting emotions like electrical currents between them.

She reached for his hand, squeezing it gently.

His fingers laced through hers instantly, a gesture that still surprised her—how naturally their bodies sought connection.

"How are you holding up?" Malcolm asked, falling into step beside them. Dark shadows circled his eyes, his usual diplomatic polish dulled by exhaustion.

"I'm fine," Maya answered automatically, then corrected herself.

"Actually, I'm terrified. I've gone from wildlife biologist to wolf shifter to potential Alpha's mate in.

.. what, one week? And now we're walking into a meeting with the most powerful wolf shifters in the territory who probably think I'm responsible for all this, especially after I escaped from that medical facility. "

Kieran's arm snaked possessively around her waist. "They can think whatever they want. You're mine now. You're protected."

The primal claim in his voice sent a shiver through her that had nothing to do with fear.

Damon appeared from the tree line ahead, his expression grim. "Council's assembled. All seven elders."

"That was fast," Malcolm murmured.

"Too fast," Kieran agreed, his eyes narrowing. "Someone wanted this meeting to happen immediately."

Inside the council chamber, seven austere figures sat in a semi-circle on elevated stone chairs. Maya tried not to fidget as their penetrating gazes swept over her, lingering on the fresh mate mark.

"Former Silvercrest heir," the central elder addressed Kieran, "you've called this emergency session during a time of unprecedented crisis."

"As you know, my father is missing," Kieran stated, his voice resonating with authority that made the hairs on Maya's arms stand up.

His silver-blue eyes flashed as he surveyed the room.

"As his next viable successor, I request temporary appointment as Alpha of the Silvercrest pack until he's found. "

Maya felt a rush of pride watching him. Where was the conflicted man who'd captured her in the woods just a week ago? In his place stood a leader—commanding and resolute.

"You were banished by your father," another elder countered. "For treason."

"For love," Kieran corrected, his hand finding Maya's. "And for challenging outdated beliefs that will destroy us. The very beliefs that led to whatever has befallen my father."

"Bold accusation," a female elder with silver-streaked hair remarked. "What evidence connects your father's disappearance to his policies?"

"The timing," Lena stepped forward, her violet eyes unflinching despite addressing the Council uninvited. "Alpha Alaric vanished precisely when Kieran and Maya's mate bond completed. That's not coincidence."

A ripple of murmurs spread through the chamber.

"We've confirmed through multiple witnesses that none of the Silvercrest siblings could have been involved," Damon added, his voice cool and precise. "They were miles away when it happened."

The Council exchanged meaningful glances before the center elder nodded.

"Very well. Given these extraordinary circumstances, we hereby appoint Kieran Silvercrest as Acting Alpha until Alaric Silvercrest is found or confirmed deceased. The banishment is thereby lifted."

Maya felt a wave of relief and terror simultaneously wash over her. Their lives had just changed irrevocably—again.

"Your official coronation will occur tomorrow at dusk," the elder continued. "Until then, gather your lieutenants and secure your territory. These are uncertain times."

As they exited the chamber, Kieran pulled Maya against him, his mouth claiming hers in a kiss that left her breathless.

"My Alpha," she whispered against his lips, half-joking, half in awe.

"Acting Alpha," Kieran mused as they walked toward the waiting vehicles. "Not exactly how I pictured taking on the role."

"Nothing about us has followed the expected path," Maya reminded him, her fingers brushing the mark on her neck. "Why start now?"

At dusk the next day, Maya's heart hammered as she stood beside Kieran at the ceremonial stone dais.

The ancient circular clearing was packed with hundreds of Silvercrest wolf shifters, their expressions ranging from open curiosity to barely concealed hostility.

Torches blazed around the perimeter, casting flickering shadows across the faces of the seven High Council elders who stood in a solemn arc behind them.

Kieran looked every inch the Alpha in his formal black attire, the silver embroidery catching the firelight as he squared his broad shoulders. His voice carried effortlessly across the clearing as he completed his acceptance speech.