The air in the boardroom was stretched to a breaking point.
Two apex predators were clashing in a space too small for their egos.
Silas's cold, cedar scent warred with Lucian's reeking, rot-and-blood pheromones.
Sienna was the eye of the storm.
The Mate Bond shivered with every spike of Silas's rage, but she forced herself to stay still.
She even leaned slightly back into Lucian's hold, her hand resting on the arm he had draped over her chair.
"Since the Silvermoon Pack seems reluctant about the merger," Sienna said, her voice airy and mocking, "we shouldn't force things. Alpha Lucian, I suggest we scrap this cooperation. Bloodfang can find allies who are less… temperamental."
Silas's amber pupils contracted. His inner wolf was clawing at the bars of his restraint.
To see his mate—his quiet, submissive Sienna—negotiating for his enemy while nestled against another man's side was a torture he hadn't prepared for.
"Cooperation is mutually beneficial," Silas growled, his voice sounding like grinding stones. "Silvermoon can open the eastern trade routes for you." He flicked his eyes toward Victoria. "Victoria, the contract."
Victoria stepped forward with a practiced, seductive sway, releasing a cloying scent of fake lilies.
She offered the papers to Sienna with a saccharine smile. "Sienna, this is our Alpha's 'sincerity'…"
Sienna didn't even look at her. The moment her fingers touched the paper, she turned and fed it directly into the shredder sitting beside the desk.
Whirrr—crunch.
The sound of the machine eating the contract was the only noise in the deathly silent room.
Victoria's eyes widened, and she looked at Silas with exaggerated tears. "Sienna! How could you? Are you trying to make a fool of the Lycan King? We had an agreement!"
Sienna lifted her chin, her gaze cutting through Victoria like a blade. "Was I not clear? The deal is canceled. Lucian, let's go."
Silas slammed his fist onto the table, the marble cracking under the pressure.
His aura made Victoria's knees buckle, but he didn't stop Sienna.
He looked at Victoria and hissed, "Victoria… see the guests out."
As Sienna turned to leave, Lucian's hand shot out, catching her wrist.
But he wasn't looking at her. His crimson eyes were fixed on Victoria, who was trying to look small and vulnerable. A dark, wicked grin spread across Lucian's face.
"If Bloodfang is to sign an alliance with a pack as 'tempted' as yours, Silas, we need to see Silvermoon's true sincerity," Lucian provoked. He stepped toward Victoria, his massive frame looming over her. "Secretary Victoria, what do you think? Maybe you and I should talk in private? Silas, surely you won't mind if I borrow your new secretary for a few hours?"
Victoria turned deathly pale. She shrieked, stumbling back and clinging to Silas's arm. "Alpha Silas, save me! He's a monster!"
Silas's gaze went dark. His territorial pride was absolute.
He stepped in front of Victoria, a wall of unyielding Lycan muscle, his aura flaring to push Lucian back.
"There will be no alliance," Silas stated, his voice a flat, lethal line. "Lucian, take your people and get out of my territory. Now."
Behind Silas's back, Victoria looked at Sienna and flashed a grin of pure, triumphant malice. She had won. Silas was protecting her.
Sienna stood frozen for a second, her nails digging into her palms until she drew blood.
Silas… so you do know how to protect your pack members, she thought, her heart shattering into a thousand cold pieces.
You just never thought I was worth the effort. You let Lucian drag me away three days ago without a word, but for Victoria, you stand like a god.
This bond is nothing but a curse.
She turned and walked out of the skyscraper, the cold wind of the city hitting her face.
Outside the Silvermoon headquarters, the wind howled through the concrete canyons.
Lucian stopped by his armored SUV, spinning Sienna around with a rough hand.
He laughed, a jagged, wolfish sound. "The high-and-mighty Lycan King, playing the hero for a little secretary.
Sienna, seeing your 'mate' protect someone else like a precious pup… doesn't it make you jealous? Doesn't it make you want to burn him down?"
Sienna's face remained a mask of stone, though her soul was screaming. "Who Silas protects is no longer my concern. My only goal is his destruction. I will do whatever it takes to see Silvermoon fall."
"Good," Lucian said, his eyes glowing with predatory greed.
He stepped closer, pinning her against the side of the car.
He gripped her chin, forcing her to look up at him. "I don't care about contracts. I want to hurt him where it counts. I want that girl, Victoria."
Sienna's pupils shrank. "Lucian, she's his favorite. He won't let her go."
"That's why you're going to give her to me," Lucian hissed, his fangs grazing her jaw. "You have three days, Sienna. Find a way to put Victoria in my bed. If you don't…"
He trailed a claw down her throat, leaving a thin red line. "Then you will have to take her place in my territory. You will be the one screaming in my bed. Choose wisely, little Omega."
Lucian climbed into the car, his laughter echoing in the cold air as he drove away.
Sienna stood alone, looking up at the towering glass spire of the Silvermoon Pack.
She had loved Silas for five years, and in return, he had handed her to a devil. Now, the devil was asking for her soul.
She was standing at the edge of the abyss, and for the first time, she realized that to survive, she might have to become the very monster she feared.