Brianna

"Did you hear? Colton Westbrook is demanding an unmated bride from Duskwood. They say he needs a young maiden, that means Paige."

The words drifted through the hallway, I froze with my hand on the banister, and for a moment I could not breathe. Colton Westbrook, the War Dog. The same man who had buried four wives and smiled at every funeral. The monster who had been terrorizing the outer territories for years, and now he had set his sights on Duskwood.

Paige, My sister. The golden daughter, she was the one they would send, because she was the unmated maiden of the house, the one everyone looked at when they thought of marriage and alliances.

I felt a small flicker of something in my chest, something that was not quite relief but close to it, because for once I was not the one being offered up to the wolves. I was not the one being told to lay down my life for the pack. But the feeling did not last because I knew what it meant for Paige , and despite the years of being treated like the shadow she cast, I did not want her to suffer.

I needed to find Jax. He would know what to do. He was clever, always thinking ahead, always planning, and he had connections that I did not. Maybe he could find a way to shift this, to buy Paige more time or negotiate with Colton or find some other solution that did not involve my sister being sent to her death.

I ran through the hallways, my feet pounding against the floor, and I did not stop until I reached Jax's quarters. I pushed open the door, and the words were already on my lips.

"Jax , you will not believe what I just heard. They are saying Colton Westbrook is demanding a bride from Duskwood, and everyone thinks it is going to be Paige. We need to find a way to help her. We need to find a way to shift this somehow, or at least buy her some time."

And then I stopped.

The sitting room was not empty. My parents were seated on the couch, their faces calm and measured, and Jax was standing near the window with Paige in his arms. Her face was buried in his chest, and his hand was stroking her golden hair, and he was murmuring something soft into her ears. My father was looking at the floor, and my mother was watching me with an expression that was impossible to read.

For a moment I told myself it was fine. Jax was just consoling her because of the news, because she was terrified, because anyone would need comfort after hearing that they were being sent to marry a killer. I stepped forward, and I forced a smile onto my face.

"You must be so scared, Paige ," I said, my voice soft. "I know it seems hopeless, but Jax and I will figure something out. We will find a way to fix this."

My mother laughed, a short, sharp sound that made me flinch. "Do not be silly, Brianna . There is nothing to fix. You are the one going. You are the unmated female."

The words did not make sense. I stared at her, and for a moment my brain refused to process what she had just said. "What do you mean? I am not unmated. Jax is my mate. Everyone knows that."

Jax looked up from Paige 's hair, and his eyes met mine. His gaze was cold and flat, and I recognized that look.

"There is no mate," he said, and his voice was quiet and deliberate. "There never was. I was never your mate, Brianna. I was just keeping an eye on you, like your parents asked me to."

My heart stopped, and at that moment it froze in my chest. "That is not true. You promised me. You said we would be together. You said—"