Page 34 of The Onyx Covenant

“Listen to me, Lyra. No one out there is on your side once we begin, but I am.” His voice drops to a whisper that ghosts across my ear. “Remember who is enemy and who is friend.”

“Friend?” I scoff, stepping back just enough to meet his gaze. “They didn’t just attack me, Theron.”

His expression hardens instantly, the teasing wiped clean.

“They tried to shove me over the gorge.” My tone is steady, but the memory makes my blood run cold. “They wanted me dead.”

Theron’s jaw clenches, his body going still. “Fuck!”

“And not just me,” I continue, stepping closer. “They clearly wanted you gone, too. Seeing me falling would break our fifty-feet rule, then we’d both be poisoned by our manacles.”

Theron’s nostrils flare, but his gaze burns with something lethal. “Umbra you think?” His tone is ice.

“I don’t know for sure,” I admit, though the suspicion claws at me. “But it seemed like it…” I let the implication hang heavy between us.

Theron’s eyes darken, his silence more dangerous than any words.

“They don’t care about your title.” I step closer, the space between us crackling with tension. “They’d rather see us both fall than let you win.”

“Then we make damn sure that doesn’t happen.” His voice is calm, but I feel the storm beneath it.

I fall silent, my own decisions warring inside of me.

His gaze holds mine, steady, intense.

“Looks like we’re the only ones we can trust.” His words are quiet, but they settle like a promise. “So we need to stop pretending we’re enemies.”

I can’t bring myself to respond. My throat tightens when someone calls out for us to join the group. Then we’re on the move.

Two enemies.

Two broken hearts.

Two fates hanging by a thread.

The most dangerous part of this ritual isn’t the challenges ahead or even the rivals waiting to strike. Because if I let my guard down, even for a second, Theron won’t just cost me the ritual for my pack.

He’ll cost me everything.

ChapterSeven

THERON

Imarch toward the training grounds with everyone else already there, fury burning in my veins with every step. The purple bruises on Lyra’s face bloom against her golden skin. Someone thought it was acceptable to hurt her because I selected her as my Omega in the Harvest Ritual.

Someone believed they could touch what’s mine and walk away unscathed.

My gaze sweeps over the gathered members of my Umbra pack, studying their faces as I approach. The way they glare at both me and Lyra tells me everything I need to know. They’re making her pay for my decision, punishing her for my sins. And I’m not fooled to know my father would have a hand in this.

IknowI have to bide my time. The Harvest Ritual demands focus, requires control, but seeing Lyra again after a year apart has unleashed something animalistic in me. I’d forgotten how her presence affects me. For twelve long months, I’ve ached for her—for her touch, the sound of her laughter, her voice—and now she’s here, forced to stand at my side once more.

I will make her mine again, even if she pushes me away now, even if she claims to hate me. Some bonds can’t be broken, not completely. And ours… ours was forged in fate and shadows.

The training field stretches at the side of the Onyx Covenant building, an expanse of emerald grass. Beyond it, ancient pines stand, their shadows barely touching the field’s edge. Twenty contestants—ten pairs.

Kieran falls into step beside me, his perpetual smirk firmly in place. “You look ready to commit murder,” he states, nudging my shoulder. “Not the best strategy for winning friends and influence.”

“I don’t need new friends,” I growl. “I need answers.”

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