“The lass retains her innocence,” he says.

I frown, wondering why he lied while simultaneously cursing him for it.

“A trade can be made,” says James.

Sebastian flicks his wrist.

The man with the box approaches.

“Duncan,” says James.

The blond male dismounts and grabs the box. My heart stops, and the wind seems to hold her breath as Duncan opens it.

His eyebrows raise, and he shows the contents to James. There’s a white rock within it that seems to absorb the moonlight.

Is it the Heart of the Moon? Or a replica?

I wonder if I will ever know.

James nods, then pushes me forward. I stumble the few paces away from the Northlands Wolves, the long grass snagging on my skirts.

And then I am on the Borderlands side of this war. Sebastian, my betrothed and my new captor, at my side.

Sebastian does not acknowledge me. Nor does he show any indication that he means to leave. James stands just as still.

A strange energy hangs over the valley—taut and dangerous.

“We finally meet,” says Sebastian. “Your Highness.” His smile is mocking.

“Aye, so we do.” James’s voice is quiet, yet filled with menace. “And what an honor it is when usually you have your men do your dirty work for you.”

“Oh, I thought I’d make an exception for this.”

My muscles clench. At the sides of the valley, James’s men are readying to charge. Behind me, the air is thick. Violence whispers through the trees. I can smell the promise of war in the scent of male sweat and silver and steel.

“You’re a fine specimen, you know,” says Sebastian. “You’d do well in our fighting rings.”

The wolf flickers in Duncan’s eyes at the insult to his king. One of the horses drags her hoof across the earth. Sebastian’s men put their hands on their swords.

James merely smiles. “Is that so?”

“Oh yes,” says Sebastian.

My gaze flits across the landscape, as skittish as a rabbit among Wolves. I cannot find a route to escape. Blake was right. When the battle begins, I will be consumed within its jaws. Did I make the wrong choice?

No. I could not marry James.

I made my decision, and I will live—or die—by it.

I turn my insides to stone, to steel.

“Better than your mother, at least,” says Sebastian.

James’s expression darkens.

“No. She was not made for the fighting ring.” Sebastian lowers his voice. “Although we got our entertainment from her in other ways.”

The valley holds its breath. Hate rises within me, sharp and bitter. I feel sick. How could I ever have agreed to wed this monster?

James lunges at him, only to stagger back with a grunt. His eyes widen. An arrow protrudes from his shoulder. I spin around and an archer on horseback behind me smiles.

The ground shakes as Wolves spill down the hillside to defend their king.

“Put her in the carriage,” says Sebastian, flicking a dismissive wrist at me. “Let me finish off this savage.”

Panic rises and roils over me in waves. I barely register the man who grabs my arm and pulls me back. Nor James, as he breaks the arrow with a grimace that turns into a smile promising violence.

“You’re a dead man, Sebastian.” James throws the arrow aside.

“I don’t think so.”

The valley is loud with the sound of thundering hooves. I’m dragged through the men that are getting ready to fight.

My pulse races.

No.

The wind rages around me, stirring my skirts and stinging my skin. It whispers to me. It stirs the wildness within.

I’m not going to die.

I rip myself out of the man’s grip. Something thrums in the air. An energy. Or a song. It flows through my body and pulses through my soul.

Goddess, help me.

I will not be a prisoner again.

The clouds block the moon, and the valley plunges into darkness. I am blind to the surrounding danger, yet I do not fear it. The shadows seem to curl around me. They protect me.

There’s a murmur of voices, a skidding of hooves.

Confusion rings in the air.

A soft light draws my eye. Within the box Duncan holds, the white stone glows. I hear a voice on the breeze, soft and female. It is a song, ancient and in a language I do not know. Yet in my heart, I know the tune.

Freedom, it sings.

As if in answer to the song, or perhaps it is in answer to my prayer, the Moon pushes from behind the clouds and floods the valley. It brightens, as blinding as the darkness. Ahead of me, Sebastian’s eyebrows knit together, a flash of confusion on his face.

James’s eyes widen in surprise, then triumph. His muscles jerk. The crack of bones resounds in the night. And when he lunges forward again, he is not a man.

He is a wolf with brown fur and rippling muscles and sharp teeth. There are markings on his forelegs where his tattoos are inked when he is a man.

The male beside Sebastian shifts and meets James in mid-air, and the two hurtle to the ground, gnashing their jaws. The Borderlands army charges past me, knocking me between them. The rest of James’s men have shifted, and an army of bloodthirsty Wolves charge at them.

Sebastian rears back, grabs my arm, and drags me away from the screams.

I let him.

Not because I am scared by the violence. But because the violence has fed something wild and hungry inside me. And now it wants more.

I will do this for Callum. For Callum’s mother and all the others Sebastian has harmed.

And I will do it for me.

I will do it for the future I never dared to hope for.

The knife is heavy at my thigh as Sebastian hurls me into a horse-drawn carriage.

“Ride!” he hisses at the driver, before throwing himself in after me.

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Chapter Fifty-Seven

The carriage hurtles across the landscape.

We’re followed by the sound of howling Wolves, and the roars of battle.

Sebastian settles on the bench in front of me and smooths down his breeches and dark tunic. He’s the picture of calm despite what is happening. His sword and daggers hang in his belt—deadly but unused as he leaves his army to fight for him.

He smiles.

“My sweet betrothed, it is time we had a chat, don’t you think?”

I straighten and smooth down my dress. I force myself to smile back sweetly, even though violence coats my tongue. “Yes, it is.”

“Did you spread your legs for him?” asks Sebastian—as though discussing the weather. “Their king.”

“Didn’t your wolf confirm I didn’t?”

He shrugs. “If he had voiced the truth, I’d have killed you both on the spot. I can’t marry you if my people know you’ve fucked a wolf. And if I can’t marry you, you are of no use to me. But I don’t believe you’ve been with those savages for this long, and not been touched by at least one of them. Let us be honest with one another, shall we? Was it their king that you fucked?” He arches an eyebrow. “Or was it the one from my kennels? The one you ran away with?”

My insides harden. He makes a tutting noise, his expression cold.

“Or did you think I didn’t know about that?” He smiles, his eyes dark. “You were seen, you know? Running away with him. Which one was it? Or did you open your legs for both of them? No matter. I’ll have them both killed before long. And before tonight is through, you’ll have my heir inside you and everyone will know you are mine alone.”

My blood runs cold, but I refuse to look away. The knife is heavy against my thigh, but I do not know how to reach for it without alerting Sebastian to its existence.

“Yes,” Sebastian continues. “Soon, this will all be just a bad memory. And you will learn to conduct yourself better in future as my wife, and lady of the Borderlands. Otherwise you may find yourself meeting the same fate as your mother.”