Chapter 4 Smoke Before the Fire

The war room fell into silence, the tension hanging thick and choking. Eva stared at the scroll, her blood running cold. Roen's threat wasn't a bluff-it never had been. If he said he'd bring war, he'd already drawn his blade.

Kael crumpled the scroll in his fist, the veins in his arms bulging as the paper turned to ash. His Beta, Rhys, exchanged a glance with the others.

"What's the move?" Rhys asked.

"We prepare," Kael replied. "Lock down the gates. Double the watch. If Roen wants a war, we'll give him a reason to bleed for it."

Eva stepped forward. "You can't fight him. Not like this. He's calculating. You don't understand what he's capable of."

Kael turned to her slowly. "Then enlighten me."

Her lips parted, but the words tangled in her throat.

Because she knew exactly what Roen was capable of.

Because once, she'd helped him do it.

---

Back in her room, Eva paced.

Everything was spiraling. Roen had found her-sooner than she expected. The only reason he hadn't launched a full-on assault was because he wanted to scare Kael first. To remind her she didn't belong here. That he owned her fate.

But Kael... he hadn't flinched.

Not even a little.

A knock came at her door-soft, but firm. She knew that rhythm now.

Kael.

He didn't wait for her response.

"You knew he'd come."

She didn't turn to him. "He's obsessed with power. Losing me-meant losing control. And he doesn't lose."

Kael crossed the room in three strides. "Then why run?"

"Because I chose to."

She turned now, meeting his eyes, unflinching.

"I won't go back."

"I won't let him take you."

His voice was low, dangerous.

Eva studied him. There was steel in his eyes-but not for her. For Roen.

"Why?" she whispered. "Why protect me?"

Kael didn't answer immediately. He stepped closer, closing the space between them until she could feel the heat of his body in the icy room.

"Because I see you," he murmured.

Her throat tightened. She hated how her heart reacted-how it leapt despite everything. Despite the lies, the danger, the blood on both their hands.

"I'm not someone worth saving."

Kael's jaw clenched. "Let me be the judge of that."

---

That night, Eva snuck out again-this time to the archives.

She had to find more about the Northern rogue camps. If her brother was alive, he might be caught in the middle of the brewing war.

She pulled the map scrolls from the dusty shelf, fingers trailing over the inked borders. Kael's kingdom was vast, but so was Roen's. If a war broke out, countless innocents-Omegas, rogues, children-would die.

Her eyes landed on a red mark in the corner of the map. A rogue camp, labeled "X13." Circled in Kael's own hand.

Eva traced it.

Then froze.

Footsteps behind her.

"You're brave," came a voice. Not Kael. Not Rhys.

Someone colder. Sharper.

She turned slowly.

And gasped.

Riven.

The last person she expected.

Kael's estranged younger brother.

His betrayal years ago had nearly shattered the pack. Word was, he'd been exiled. Or worse.

But here he stood, leather-clad and smiling like a serpent.

"You-" she started.

"Shouldn't be here?" he finished. "Neither should you."

Eva backed away, hand instinctively moving toward the dagger hidden beneath her cloak.

Riven noticed. "Relax. I'm not here to kill you. Not yet."

She narrowed her eyes. "What do you want?"

He tilted his head. "Roen's not your only problem. There's rot inside this kingdom too. Kael plays king, but he's bleeding trust faster than he can patch it."

"You're saying you want to help?"

"I'm saying," Riven whispered, stepping closer, "war makes strange allies."

---

By dawn, the castle was a frenzy. Scouts had spotted the first wave of Roen's soldiers approaching the outer mountains.

Kael was already in his armor, issuing commands. Eva stood in the shadows of the war room, debating whether to tell him about Riven's return.

But then Kael turned-and something shifted in his expression.

"You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Maybe I have," she said.

Before he could press, a messenger burst in.

"They've crossed the border."

Kael's eyes darkened.

He turned to Eva. "Get to the vault. Lock it. Don't come out until I send for you."

She shook her head. "I'm not hiding."

"Eva-"

"I won't be caged again. Not by Roen. Not by you."

Their gazes clashed like fire and steel.

Then Kael did something unexpected.

He stepped forward, brushed his fingers against her cheek, and whispered, "Then fight with me."

---

As the first fire arrow lit up the dawn sky, Eva stood on the balcony, heart thundering.

Smoke began to rise from the distant trees.

War had come.

And this time, she would choose her own fate.

Even if it meant burning everything behind her.

---