POV EMMA BELLE
The frost on the windows of the tactical chamber looked like jagged silver lace, a perfect reflection of the man standing before the massive map of the North. Nathaniel didn't turn when I entered. He remained perfectly still, his silver hair catching the pale morning light, his fingers tracing the ley lines of our territory with clinical precision.
"Damon is brooding in the armory," Nathaniel said, his voice as cool and smooth as polished marble. "He claims the anchor you forged with him is… incomplete. That the energy transfer lacked the depth of a traditional union."
I walked to the center of the room, my boots clicking sharply against the obsidian floor. "The anchor is holding, Nathaniel. The fortress is stable. Damon's pride is the only thing that's broken."
Nathaniel finally turned. His silver eyes were unreadable, stripped of the warmth he sometimes showed when we were alone. He walked toward me, his movements measured and graceful. "Emma, you are playing a dangerous game with the biology of our kind. A Queen's power is not just a battery; it is a living ecosystem. Without the physical consummation with the Four, the ley lines will eventually fray. Your wolf will become restless. The mountain will feel the imbalance."
He stopped inches away from me, his scent of ozone and ancient parchment wrapping around me like a shroud. He leaned in, his voice dropping to a persuasive, logical whisper. "Félix has your heart. We have accepted that. But for the sake of the kingdom, for the stability of the very air we breathe, you must allow the rest of us to complete the bond. It is not about love, Emma. It is about mathematics. About survival."
I felt a surge of cold fury rise in my chest, a violet flame that flickered in my eyes. I didn't back away. I leaned forward, my face inches from his.
"Mathematics?" I spat the word like it was poison. "You think my body is a variable in your equations, Nathaniel? You think because you've read a thousand books on ancient lore, you get to decide who touches me?"
"I am thinking of the children we just rescued," Nathaniel countered, his gaze unwavering. "I am thinking of the army Caleb is gathering. If you fail because you were too stubborn to follow the rites, their blood will be on your hands."
That was the final straw.
I reached out and grabbed the lapels of his pristine tunic, yanking him toward me. The power of the White Queen flared, a shockwave of kinetic energy that sent the maps flying off the table and rattled the glass in the windows.
"Listen to me very carefully, King Nathaniel," I hissed, my voice echoing with a power that made him blink in surprise. "I have been used, sold, and rejected. I have spent my life being told what my body is for. Those days ended the moment I stepped into this forest."
I felt Félix's presence at the door. He didn't intervene; he stood there like a silent guardian, his green eyes burning with a fierce pride.
"If any of you—you, Damon, or even Vincent—continues to insist on this," I continued, my voice dropping to a deadly, quiet tone, "I will take Félix and we will leave. We will disappear into the deep woods where no map can find us. I will leave you with your fortress, your 'mathematics,' and a throne made of cold, empty stone. Do you understand?"
Nathaniel's eyes widened. For the first time, I saw a crack in his icy facade. He looked at the mark on my neck—the silver sigil that glowed brighter at the mention of Félix's name.
"You would abandon your destiny?" he whispered, horrified.
"My destiny is not to be a breeding mare for four Alphas!" I roared. "My destiny is to lead. And I lead with my heart whole, or I don't lead at all. Only Félix will ever have my body in that way. Only he will be the one to knot me, Nathaniel. Because he is the only one who earned the right to see the woman behind the Queen."
The word knot hung in the air like a thunderclap. It was the ultimate boundary. In our world, the knot was the seal of the soul, the final act of a mated pair. By declaring this, I was telling Nathaniel that he would never truly possess me, no matter how many 'anchors' we forged.
Nathaniel stepped back, his hands trembling slightly. He looked past me to Félix, then back to my defiant violet eyes. He realized then that his logic had no power here. He was facing a force of nature that didn't care about his equations.
"You would risk everything for him," Nathaniel murmured, a strange note of envy in his voice.
"I'm not risking anything," I replied, smoothing out the front of my leathers. "I'm securing my foundation. Now, are we going to forge the mental anchor, or are you going to keep wasting my time with your traditions?"
Nathaniel went silent for a long moment. He looked at the scattered maps on the floor, then gave a stiff, formal bow. "The mental anchor will suffice for now, my Queen. I apologize for… overstepping."
"Good," I said.
I reached out and took his hand. It was cold, but as the energy began to flow between us, it warmed. This time, I was the one in control. I guided his silver logic into my violet flame, weaving the two together without a single touch of intimacy. It was a cold, sharp connection—a bridge of minds. The second pillar of the Black Crag was set, anchored not by flesh, but by the sheer force of my will.
When it was over, Nathaniel looked exhausted, his silver eyes dim. He didn't try to linger. He gathered his maps and left the room without a word, his pride as bruised as Damon's.
Félix walked into the room, a wide, triumphant grin on his face. He didn't say anything at first; he just walked up to me and lifted me off the floor, spinning me around in a circle.
"You're terrifying, Little Bird," he laughed, his voice full of wonder. "I think Nathaniel actually broke a sweat."
"He needed to know, Lixie," I said, my feet hitting the floor as I looked into his green eyes. "They all do. I won't let them turn what we have into a political transaction."
Félix's expression softened. He reached out, his thumb grazing the mark on my neck, his touch sending a wave of warmth through me that no Alpha's power could replicate. "The knot, Emma? You really told him that?"
I felt my cheeks flush, but I didn't look away. "It's the truth. My wolf... she won't even consider anyone else. She only recognizes your rhythm."
Félix pulled me into a deep, possessive hug, his nose burying in the crook of my neck. "I'm going to spend the rest of my life proving you made the right choice," he whispered. "I don't need a throne, Emma. I just need you."
We stood there for a long time, the silence of the tactical chamber finally peaceful. Two pillars were set. Two remained. But as I looked at the door where Vincent was undoubtedly watching from the shadows, I knew the hardest part was over.
I had set the law of the Black Crag.
I was the White Queen. And my heart had a permanent home.