Anya refused to break. Even as her heart hammered against her ribs, she managed a defiant hiss: "I don't negotiate with terrorists, Alpha."
Kaelan Vex simply mocked her. He explained that her anti-tracking tech was intercepting his Clan's sensitive movements, and the Lycan Council would execute her for espionage. He needed her skills and her silence. The only "legal" solution, by Lycan law, was the Mate-Contract.
Anya analyzed the terrifying odds. Fighting Kaelan was suicide; running was a delay. A contract was a chain, but she could eventually break a chain.
"What are the terms?" she bit out, forcing the venom into her voice.
Kaelan's cold smirk disappeared. "You are mine. You live under the Clan's protection and serve my interests. In exchange, you get to live." He paused, his gaze dropping to her throat with a disturbing intensity. "And there is the Primal Price."
Before she could react, his massive hand snatched her silver dart pistol away, while his thumb brushed her jawline. The gesture was terrifying and possessive, sending a shudder of involuntary reaction through her.
His voice dropped to a deep, resonant rumble, signaling the Beast's authority: "The contract is sealed with a bite. It binds our instincts. You will be tied to my pack, and you will respond to my Alpha Command. And as my Mate, you must, physically, accept my claim."
He shifted his head, his sharp canine teeth elongating and catching the dim light. Anya knew, with chilling certainty, that her fight for freedom was over. Her war against shifters had just become a devastating, intimate surrender.