Page 44 of Shadow's Claim

"As your possession," I add, unable to keep the edge from my voice.

Something shifts in his expression, shadows contracting around his massive form. "As my mate," he corrects, the word carrying weight beyond simple claiming. "The bond forming between us exceeds standard parameters. You know this."

The truth of his statement resonates uncomfortably. What began as violation has evolved into connection I lack vocabulary to properly name—not love, nothing so simple or human, but something I can no longer pretend doesn't exist.

As we stand facing each other in the steam-filled chamber, shadow currents flowing between us like invisible rivers, I realize I'm facing impossible choice. Gabriela offers escape from captivity, return to human society, but at cost of fundamentally altering the developing consciousness that touches my mind daily. Kael offers protection for both me and the hybrid as we are, but within constraints of continued shadow domain life.

Freedom with transformation, or acceptance with protection. Neither option feels entirely right or wrong.

The hybrid stirs inside me, its consciousness pressing against my mind with emotions too complex for words but unmistakably concerned with its own survival. Shadow patterns pulse across my skin, visual reminder of how far transformation has already progressed.

"I need time," I finally say, wrapping the towel more securely around myself. "This isn't simple."

Kael studies me with those glowing eyes that see too much. "There is no time," he states. "Obscura's monitoring begins soon. Gabriela's faction will attempt extraction before then." All four arms lower slightly. "You must choose."

As I look at him—this being who claimed me against my will, whose offspring grows inside me, whose protection now stands between me and forces that would alter what we've created together—I realize with startling clarity: somewhere in these months of captivity, choice has become possible again.

Not perfect choice. Not free choice. But choice nonetheless.

And that might be the most surprising development of all.

CHAPTER17

CONSTANTIN'S RETURN

Kael's absencefeels strange after weeks of his constant protective presence. With him attending the territorial governance meetings tonight, our chambers feel emptier, the shadows more still without his influence directing them. I find myself pacing restlessly, my bare feet silent against the cool floor as I move from window to bed to bathing chamber and back again.

Two days have passed since Gabriela's shocking revelation and offer of escape. Two days of Kael watching me with wary intensity, clearly expecting me to attempt flight at any moment. Two days of the hybrid's consciousness brushing against my mind with increasing anxiety, somehow sensing the turmoil in my thoughts.

I pause before the polished metal surface that serves as a mirror, studying my transformed body in the dim light. Six months pregnant, the shadow patterns have continued their relentless spread, creating intricate networks across my skin that pulse with both my heartbeat and the hybrid's separate rhythm. My face remains less marked than the rest of me, though thin tendrils now trace delicate patterns along my jawline and the curve of my neck.

"What are we becoming?" I whisper to my reflection, one hand resting on the visible swell of my abdomen.

The hybrid responds with a flutter of consciousness against my mind—curious, concerned, increasingly aware. Still not fully formed thoughts, but emotions and impressions growing more complex each day.

A faint sound from the outer corridor catches my attention. Not the heavy tread of shadow guards or the soft footfalls of human staff, but something stealthier. My newly enhanced senses extend outward through the shadows, detecting disturbance in the darkness—not like Kael's natural manipulation, but something artificial, technological.

The doors to our chambers slide open without the usual electronic announcement. Every muscle in my body tenses as a figure slips inside, movements careful and controlled.

My breath catches in my throat.

Constantin.

He stands just inside the doorway, the man who once commanded my loyalty and shared my bed before the capture. His appearance has changed—harder lines around his eyes, military-short hair now grown slightly longer, new scars visible on his exposed forearms. He wears black tactical gear designed for shadow infiltration, with specialized light emitters on his wrists and belt that create disruption fields in nearby darkness.

"Nova," he breathes my name like a prayer, relief flooding his expression. "Thank god."

For a moment, I'm frozen in place, emotions colliding inside me with painful force. Constantin represents everything I once was—resistance operative, freedom fighter, human. His presence should feel like salvation, like hope restored.

Instead, I find myself cataloging unexpected differences. His purely human scent hits my transformed senses as both familiar and strangely wrong after months of Kael's distinctive shadow musk. Constantin's average height and proportional limbs seem oddly diminished after adapting to Kael's towering form and four powerful arms. Most jarring is the complete absence of shadow connection—no darkness flowing between us, no sensory awareness beyond mundane human perception.

"Constantin," I finally manage, voice barely above whisper. "How did you get in here?"

He moves closer, reaching toward me with visible restraint, as if afraid I might vanish. "Light disruption technology. We've been developing it for months. They used it to break me out of detention." His gaze travels over me, relief shifting to something darker as he registers the shadow patterns visible on my exposed skin and the pronounced swell of my abdomen. "We have to move quickly. The disruption field won't hold long against their detection systems."

I take an instinctive step backward, arms crossing protectively over my belly. "What are you doing here?"

"Extracting you," he says with urgent intensity. "We've been monitoring Kael's movements for weeks, waiting for an opportunity. His attendance at the governance meeting gives us a narrow window."

---