Preparing for war is no easy task.

The days are grueling, with wolves fighting for hours upon hours only to listen to lectures on strategy for hours until they go to sleep and repeat it all the next day.

And it was the most fun I've had since my last war.

Cain and I train the wolves, pushing them to their breaking point and sometimes past that. When everyone else is asleep, Cain and I discuss battle strategies to go over the next day with the others, pouring over maps and old war books.

If that's not romance, I don't know what is.

Six days later, Killian arrives in Blood Lake, accompanied by his men. Cain and I greet him at the door, and I know Killian is only knocking as a formality, since he could simply teleport inside our home if he so chose.

What a hottie, Gwen mindlinks me, walking to the door with Axel.

"Luna, looking lovely as ever," He says with a wink, and Cain gives him a warning growl. "No need to get your fur panties in a twist, Alpha, you look simply ravishing as well, but it's rude to not compliment the lady first."

Cain's frame shakes in anger, but when I place my hand on his muscular arm, I can feel his anger subside through the bond. "Killian, stop trying to rile up my mate, would you?" I ask, giving him a pointed look.

Killian smirks. "As you wish, milady." He bows mockingly, and I kick his shin hard enough to bruise.

He winces. "As I said, lovely as ever."

"I won't stop her from killing you," Cain warns, and I know he means it, alliance or not.

Killian's grin only widens. "Is this how hospitality works in Blood Lake? Death threats and breaking shins?"

I smile sweetly. "It does as long as you're here."

Killian laughs, seemingly genuinely amused. "This will be a fun week. I hear Thane is joining the party?"

Hearing his name makes me stiffen, but Cain doesn't seem to notice when he answers. "Yes, he should be here any minute now."

"Three minutes, forty-two seconds," Katrina corrects, walking up from behind me. "If you want to get technical about it."

Killian's gaze goes to the Seer, but doesn't say anything as he stares at her in something resembling amusement.

"Killian, this is Katrina," Cain introduces them, not realizing that they have already met. "She's from Iron Claw."

Killian pulls his eyes away from Katrina to look at Cain. "Housing a wolf that belongs to an enemy's pack? I'd recommend tying her up. I'll do the honors," Killian offers, and Katrina glares at him.

"She's sympathetic to our cause," Cain says simply.

In truth, Cain had threatened Katrina if she tried returning to Iron Claw, to which Katrina assured him that her loyalties were with her sister, and therefore, Blood Lake. She had been feeding us bits and pieces of information about what little visions she had about Reed and his army.

"Lucky us," Killian says with mirth.

"She'll take you and your men to the conference hall where we'll have our first meeting," Cain says, and Katrina turns her glare on him.

"Regretfully, I seem to have forgotten the location of the room," Katrina says apologetically. "Foreign territories can be quite confusing to an outsider."

Based on the saccharine smile she gives Killian, it's clear she's lying, and based on his wide grin, he knows it too.

"I'll take them," Axel speaks for the first time, and Cain nods at him.

"Katrina should come with us, since she's your resident Seer," Killian suggests. "And it would be a shame if she never found the room."

Katrina grits her teeth. "How kind of you, Alpha," She nearly spits the word.

Am I missing something? Cain asks me in confusion.

I snort. Horny wolf drama. Best to stay out of it.

In truth, Katrina hates Killian because she doesn't trust his role in our plan, but of course, Cain can't know that.

Katrina perks up slightly, looking around Killian. "Door."

Sure enough, there's a single knock on the door shortly after she gives the warning. My heart beats faster knowing that it's Thane, the person who could blow up my entire life if he decided to tell everything to Cain.

Killian answers the door, since most of his men are blocking the entryway. "Killian," Thane says in surprise. "I didn't realize Cain had recruited you too."

"You know I can't stay out of a good fight," Killian chuckles, and he and Thane do a weird bro-handshake. I hadn't realized they were close, though Alphas tend to bond well with others like them.

"Getting the band back together at last," Thane laughs, and looks at Cain, and I'm glad when he doesn't look at me, though I'm right next to Cain.

"It's good to see you, cousin," Cain says, departing from my side to go to Thane, and pulls him in for another weird bro sign of affection, a hug, but smacking each other on the back. "Bring your men on in, it's cold outside."

Thane nods his head to his men outside, and Killian's men move to make room. Leo almost barrels past all of them, his eyes crazed.

Thane looks at Leo in confusion, as do I. "Leo, what's-" He starts to ask.

"Mate," Leo growls, and I turn to follow his gaze to see who he's talking about.

Katrina stares at him in horror.

"No," She whispers in disbelief.

Gwen's hand covers her mouth in shock, possibly terror. Likely both.

Leo's frenzied walking to Katrina stops when he sees Gwen right next to her. His eyes move in between the two of them, widening slightly, no doubt seeing their identical red hair and green eyes.

Cain, Axel, and I look at each other, sharing a mutual look of shock. Thane's mouth is open slightly. Killian's face is completely blank.

Katrina seems to shake herself out of whatever paralysis froze her. "What's your name?" She asks, her voice cold.

"Leo," He answers, a look of pure horror still stuck on his face.

"Full name." Katrina's voice is harsh, cutting through the silence as nobody dares to make a sound.

Leo is confused, as are the rest of us. "Leonardo Arsenau," He answers, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I, Katrina Parker, reject you, Leonardo Arsenau as my mate." There is no hesitation as she says those final words. They can never be taken back or undone.

Leo's face twists in pain, as does Katrina's. Both of them double over, clutching at their chest as some unseen force shatters their mate bond. They're feeling the pain of the bond being broken. Permanently.

Gwen reaches out to her sister, who growls through gasps, "Don't fucking touch me."

Gwen's hand recoils, her face frozen in horror. She's pregnant with her sister's mate's child.

And Katrina had just rejected him for her.

Katrina stumbles forward, and continues to stumble out the door, still hunching over slightly in pain. Gwen takes a step to go after her, but Axel grips her tightly by the shoulder. "Don't."

Gwen looks at the door, undoubtedly torn about what to do.

Cain is the first one to attempt to control the situation. "Gwendolyn, Leo, take this outside. You both need to talk. Thane will catch you up on what you miss."

Gwen and Leo look at each other, their bodies completely still.

"Now," Cain commands, his voice booming.

Thane gives a slight nod to Leo, and he and Gwen exit the Pack House.

The tension in the room is thick even after they leave.

I expect Killian to make some joke about being thankful for the free entertainment and a front row seat to the show, but his face is still completely devoid of any emotion.

"We should start the meeting," I say, breaking the silence, and a couple of wolves exhale in relief.

We go to the conference hall. Cain and Thane take the seats at opposite sides of the table, and I'm glad to put distance between us. Killian doesn't look bothered by not sitting at either head of the table, but he didn't seem to much care for displays of dominance.

Cain goes over the battle strategies we established, while everyone listens intently, hanging on to every word. When he's finished, he opens the floor to questions.

"Why is Iron Claw declaring war?" Thane asks curiously.

Cain pauses. "Reed didn't give a reason. We haven't had any territory disputes in hundreds of years."

"You have one of the best armies," Killian says, his voice thoughtful, uncharacteristically serious. "Your wolves are stronger than his, and your top warriors are coveted. Perhaps he wants to kill you so he can take your best ones and bring them to Iron Claw to make his army stronger."

Cain and Thane consider his words, but I know that it has something to do with that Moon-Bitch.

"What would he need a strong army for?" Thane asks pensively.

Killian shrugs. "If he takes Cain's strongest warriors, he would be virtually unbeatable. Starting with Ares."

All of their gazes go to me, and I immediately regret not wearing my mask or cloak.

"No," Cain snarls. "He's not taking my mate."

Killian leans forward, narrowing his eyes slightly. "She's the perfect weapon. If he kills you and captures her, he will want to wield her. Perhaps he may even want to breed with her to produce a stronger bloodline. His children would be far more powerful than any other Alpha."

His words confuse me. He knows that my mother was a descendent of Lucille and so is Reed, and so he knows that we're relatives. Why would he put that on the table as a possibility?

Cain's snarl cuts through the room, and I see Thane's body tremble slightly as he clenches his fists so tightly his knuckles turn white.

"I will kill you," Cain says, ready to jump across the table to throttle him.

Killian holds both of his hands up. "I'm merely giving you a suggestion as to why he's declaring war. Surely, you didn't think wolves wouldn't come after your mate for her strength?"

Cain pauses.

"If Ares is what he's really after, and I believe she is, then you have to make sure that she's far away from the battle. We can hide her in my territory, where he won't think to look for her," Killian suggests smoothly, and I realize what he's doing.

He's coming up with an excuse for me to be away from the battle so I can kill Selene. Even better, away from Cain so he can't stop me.

Smart wolf.

Cain considers his words, and Thane looks pale.

"Think about it, Cain," Killian continues, his voice persuasive. "We go to war, slaughter him and his pack, while your mate is safe, far away. If Reed looks for her during the battle, or maybe even doesn't come because he expects you to hide her in Blood Lake, he will try to find her. The last place he would expect is in my pack. Your army will be at the war and won't be able to protect her in Blood Lake. I can have the entirety of my warriors guarding her. It's the safest place she could possibly be."

Smart, smart wolf. He's painting a picture so perfect Cain won't be able to say no. He's counting on Cain's possessiveness, and it's the perfect thing to bet on.

"I think it's a good idea," I throw in, and Cain and Thane's head snap to me in surprise. They're probably expecting me to put up a fight about not being included in the fighting. I'll admit having to sit out is a bit disappointing, but I have bigger fish to fry and gods to kill.

"You do?" Thane asks, looking at me in surprise.

I shrug. "Killian makes good points. You'll be able to wipe out his pack easily, with or without me. It would be taking a huge risk to have me on the battlefield if his suspicions are correct."

Thane's eyes narrow in suspicion. He doesn't believe me, but he's not the one who needs to agree.

Cain rubs his beard thoughtfully. "It's not a bad plan," He admits. "Fine, Ares will go to your territory during the battle. When should we take her to Crimson Shadow? It'll be a long journey."

Killian grins wickedly. "No, it won't. Ares, be a dear and throw a knife at me, would you?"

I shrug. Who am I to deny that kind of request, no matter how suicidal.

I summon a knife, throwing it at Killian's stupid smirk. Some of the wolves gasp, no doubt expecting a slaughtering.

Killian waves his hand in front of his face, creating a small black mass with grey and purple smoke protruding around the sides of what looks like an endless pit.

The knife goes into the portal, and a few moments later, appears on the center of the table.

The Blood Lake and Blue Moon wolves gawk at him. The man on Killian's right, presumably his Beta, rolls his eyes.

"I'll take her there shortly before the battle begins," Killian says, grinning cockily. "You'll have her back as soon as it's safe."

Thane narrows his eyes at Killian. "How do we know that you're not trying to steal her for yourself?"

Killian puts his hand on his chest mockingly. "Thane, I'm offended you'd even suggest that. After all the wars we've fought in, side by side, I would think you would know me better than that."

Thane's intense glare doesn't ease up.

Killian adds, "I'm willing to make a Blood Oath, since you're so protective over her, Thane."

Cain snarls. "Stop the games, Killian. Just make the fucking oath."

Killian looks at me. "Knife, please."

I slide a blade across the table, wondering what kind of Oath he's planning on making. If he promises to return me at Cain's request, then we won't be able to kill Selene, there won't be enough time, because Cain will surely want me back as soon as Reed is dead.

"I swear to return Ares to you after the war is over," Killian says before slashing his palm, and Cain does the same before they shake hands.

He was careful with his wording, cunningly swearing to return me after the war. He never said how long after the war.

He also didn't promise to return me alive.

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