Page 53 of When Two Worlds Collide

“Because if we’re doing this, we need all three days before the Alliance forces arrive.” Her pulse races beneath my fingers. “Forty-eight hours minus preparation time. We’ll barely complete the ritual in time.”

The reality of her proposal hits with full force. She’s not merely suggesting we acknowledge the bond—she intends to complete the ancient claiming ritual immediately. To transform herself before the Alliance forces surround us.

“You’ve thought this through,” I observe.

“I’ve done little else since our conversation in the forest.”She doesn’t pull away from my grip. “I’ll have preparations in place by dawn.”

For the first time since entering the war chamber, hope flickers to life. A desperate hope, but hope nonetheless. If the bond is completed, if Ember becomes my true mate before the Alliance forces arrive, perhaps my pack stands a chance.

Yet even as this hope rises, doubt shadows it. Ember proposing this sacrifice seems too convenient, too perfectly timed. The diplomat in her could be manipulating me, using the bond to control my pack’s response to the Alliance.

I release her arm. “Dawn, then.”

She hesitates, something unspoken in her eyes. For a moment, the diplomatic mask slips, revealing vulnerability beneath.

“Whatever you’re thinking, Zane, whatever doubts you harbor—know this.” Her voice drops to barely a whisper. “I’m terrified. But I’m also tired of denying what I feel every time we’re together.”

With those words, she returns to the war chamber, leaving me alone with a decision that will determine my pack’s future—and my own.

I stare at the closed door, the bond between us pulling like a physical tether even through solid wood. My certainty about absolute positions—wild versus civilized, freedom versus constraint—wavers for the first time.

Because if Ember Steelclaw, Haven’s Heart ambassador, defender of structure and order, can contemplate transforming herself so completely, perhaps change doesn’t mean what I thought it meant. Perhaps evolution doesn’t require surrender.

Perhaps, like the fire that defines her panther form,transformation can forge something stronger than either original element.

I follow her into the war chamber, my decision already forming. Dawn will reveal whether hope or extinction awaits the Shadow Wolves…and whether the bond between fire and shadow will save our worlds or consume them completely.

12

EMBER

The meeting stone is cold beneath my palms as I wait in pre-dawn darkness. Frost clings to the grass, and my breath mists in the air. I’ve been here an hour already, running through arguments, marshaling logic for what I’m about to propose.

Insane. That’s what Kade called it when I told him. Maybe he’s right.

Zane emerges from the forest like a shadow becoming flesh. Even at a distance, I feel the mate bond flare—stronger now, painful. We haven’t been alone since our kiss in my office two days ago. Two days of careful distance during council meetings. Two days of the bond eating at us both.

He stops ten feet away. Close enough to see the hollow exhaustion in his eyes that mirrors mine.

“You said it was urgent.” His voice carries the same ragged edge I’ve been fighting.

“The Alliance mobilizes at dawn.” I force the words past the tightness in my throat. “Forty-eight hours to surround allwild territories. Unless we present a united alternative today.”

“There is no alternative. Your council made that clear.”

“There’s one.” My hands shake as I pull out the rolled parchment. “A formal treaty. Full recognition of Shadow Wolf territorial rights. Joint governance of disputed regions. Haven’s Heart’s protection against the bears.”

He doesn’t move to take it. “In exchange for what?”

This is the moment. The cliff’s edge. Once I speak these words, there’s no retreat.

“Complete the mating ritual with me.”

Silence stretches between us. Even the forest seems to hold its breath.

“What?” The word comes out cracked.

“Three days. The wild claiming. I’ll submit to the pack law.” My voice sounds steadier than I feel. “In exchange, you sign the treaty. Help broker peace with other emerging clans. Give my people a reason to see wild shifters as allies, not enemies.”

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