The silence of the Great Hall was heavy, broken only by the crackle of the dying embers in the fireplace. Alistair's grip on Sera's waist was like iron—unyielding and dangerously warm.
The parchment she had shown him, the "Right of the Mate's Decree," lay forgotten on the stone floor. For the first time, the intellectual shields Sera had built were useless.
"The contract is a piece of paper, Seraphina," Alistair rasped, his golden eyes burning with a fire that no ledger could extinguish. "But this... this is blood. This is bone. This is the wolf screaming for what belongs to him."
Sera's heart hammered against her ribs like a trapped bird. Her icy blue eyes didn't blink. "You gave me your word, Alistair. Strictly business. No intimacy. Are you telling me the Alpha's word is as brittle as a human's?"
Alistair let out a low, pained growl. He didn't let go; instead, he pulled her even closer, until she could feel the frantic rhythm of his own heart.
"My word was based on the lie that I could resist you," he admitted, his voice dropping to a vulnerable whisper she had never heard before. "I thought I could use you as a tool. But every time you defy an Elder, every time you fix a problem I didn't even know I had... you stop being a tool and start being my soul."
* * *
The tension was snapped not by a kiss, but by a sudden, violent crash from the courtyard.
Alistair's protective instinct shifted instantly. He thrust Sera behind him, his body shielding hers before she could even register the danger. His claws began to unsheathe, his platinum blonde hair shimmering with lethal intent.
"Stay here," he commanded, his voice once again the absolute Alpha.
"No," Sera countered, grabbing his arm. "If this is Alpha Kael or an internal rebellion, you need your Luna, not just your wolf. Remember what I learned in the Ancient Rites: 'The Alpha is the Sword, but the Luna is the Shield that keeps the Sword from breaking.'"
Alistair glanced back at her, a flash of pride crossing his golden eyes. "Fine. But stay behind me."
* * *
They stepped out into the moonlit courtyard. It wasn't an army. It was Gareth, the Beta male and Elara's mate, standing over a bleeding warrior. Behind him stood Lydia Thorne, her face twisted in a mask of regal betrayal.
"Alistair!" Lydia shouted, her voice echoing off the stone walls. "This human has poisoned your mind. You chose her over your own mother! You chose her 'audit' over our traditions! Gareth and the traditionalist guard will not stand for a Luna who treats the Pack like a corporation."
"Gareth," Alistair's voice was a low, terrifying warning. "Step back. This is your only warning."
Gareth, influenced by Lydia's manipulation and Elara's jealousy, didn't move. "The Pack needs a wolf, Alistair. Not a human who hides behind books and spreadsheets."
Sera stepped out from behind Alistair. She didn't have claws, but she had the truth.
"Gareth!" Sera called out, her voice clear and commanding. "I know why you're doing this. I found the discrepancies in your security budget during my audit. You weren't just 'neglecting' the funds; you were funneling them to Alpha Kael in exchange for a position in his Pack if Alistair fell."
The courtyard went silent. Gareth's eyes widened in panic. Lydia turned to look at Gareth, her own shock visible—she had been used by her own Beta.
"You... you found that?" Gareth stammered.
"I found everything," Sera stated, pulling a small digital device from her pocket. "Every transaction, every encrypted message. You think I'm just a 'human toy'? I'm the auditor who just ended your career."
Alistair didn't wait. With a roar that shook the trees, he lunged. The fight was swift and brutal. Alistair didn't just win; he decimated Gareth's resolve, pinning him to the ground in seconds.
* * *
When the dust settled, the traditionalist guards dropped their weapons. They had seen the Luna's intelligence save the Alpha from a traitor he hadn't even suspected.
Lydia Thorne stood alone, her power stripped away by the very human she had despised.
Alistair walked back to Sera, his breathing heavy, his chest bare where his tunic had been torn. He looked at her not with clinical irritation, but with absolute, raw devotion.
"The contract is dead, Seraphina," Alistair stated, his voice ringing out for the entire Pack to hear.
He took her hand and lifted it, showing the world their joined fingers.
"From this moment on, there is no 'business.' There is only the Thorne Pack. And there is only my Luna. She didn't just save our finances; she saved my life."
Sera looked at the Alpha—the man who was no longer a stranger, but her partner. She realized that by refusing to be "dead weight," she had become the most powerful force in his world.
"Then let's rewrite the rules together, Alistair," she whispered.
He didn't wait this time. He leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss that tasted of pine, fire, and a future they would build on their own terms.
END OF CHAPTER THIRTEEN.