Brandon crouched beside the footprints, his expression hardening.

Emma knelt beside him.

“They’re fresh?”

He nodded.

“No dust has settled over them. Whoever came through here was here recently… not winters ago, or even months ago.”

Emma followed the trail with her eyes as it disappeared into the darkness.

“Do you think they’re still inside?”

Brandon slowly rose to his feet.

“I don’t know.”

He stepped into the passage, his eyes sweeping over the walls.

“Stay close.”

Emma nodded and followed him.

After several moments of silence, she ran her fingers over the ancient stones.

“How did you even find this place?”

Brandon glanced at the weathered walls.

“This passage once stretched all the way to the eastern border of the kingdom. When I was younger, I’d slip out through here whenever I wanted to escape the palace for a few hours.”

Emma stepped beside him, her fingertips gliding over the ancient stones as she examined their worn surface.

“So this was your secret.”

“It was.”

She glanced at him. “Did Bernard know?”

Brandon shook his head.

“No.”

“Elara?”

“Only because she caught me sneaking back into the palace one moonfall…”

Emma’s fingers tightened around his hand.

“You were searching for me.”

“I searched every place I thought you might be.” His voice was calm, but the ache behind it was impossible to miss. “Every time I came back empty-handed, I’d leave again before dawn.”

He fell silent for a moment before continuing.

“When I finally returned…” He let out a soft breath. “Father had the passage sealed.”

Emma looked at him in surprise.

“Why?”

“He said a future king shouldn’t have an escape route.” Brandon smiled sadly. “He told me if I wanted to leave the palace, I should walk through the front gate like everyone else.”

He rested his palm against the stone one last time.

“I think he also knew I’d keep disappearing if he left it open.”

Emma looked at him, her heart tightening.

“So all this time…”

He met her eyes.

“I never stopped looking for you, my moonblessed one.”

For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The silence between them was filled with everything words could no longer carry.

Finally, Emma slipped both of her hands into his.

“I’m here now,” she whispered.

Brandon’s fingers closed gently around hers, and a small smile touched his lips.

“Yes,” he said softly. “You are.”

—

Three hours later, she headed straight to Elara’s chamber and quietly pushed the door open.

Emma walked in with her device pressed to her ear.

“Lyn, I’ll call you back.”

She ended the call and slipped the device into her pocket.

“You said two hours.” She folded her arms. “It’s been three.”

Elara sat up, rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and climbed out of bed.

“I know.”

A short while later, she stepped out of the bath, slipped into a black gown, and zipped it up. The dark fabric caught the light as she crossed the chamber.

Emma, who had been sitting on the bed, tapping her foot, sprang to her feet the moment Elara finished dressing.

Together they walked to the main feeding chamber.

Elara reached for a cup of tea, took a slow sip, then set it back on the table.

For a moment, she stood there with her fingers wrapped around the cup.

Then she turned away.

Without another word, she and Emma headed for the king’s living chamber.

The alpha king was already waiting in his chamber. The moment she stepped inside, a wide grin spread across his face.

“You really miss him, don’t you?” the king teased.

Elara let out a small scoff and rolled her eyes.

“Good day, my High Alpha King,” she said, lowering herself into a chair.

He gave a careless wave instead of answering, then turned toward the window.

She followed his gaze.

Outside, Brandon and Bernard stood beside one of the cars, talking quietly.

Her breath caught.

Bernard looked nothing like the man she remembered. His clothes hung loose on him, his face had lost its color, and his cheeks looked hollow.

A guard approached them, bowed, and spoke a few words.

Elara knew they would look up. She quickly lowered her eyes to the device in her hands, pretending to read.

The king motioned for Brandon and Bernard to come inside.

Bernard walked over and took the seat beside Elara while Brandon sat beside Emma.

She kept her eyes on the screen. The question sitting on her tongue refused to leave.

What happened to you?

“Would you like to go first?” the king asked Elara.

She shook her head.

Bernard reached over and gently tucked a loose curl back into her bun.

Her shoulders stiffened.

She wished he had chosen another seat.

“Alright. Bernard, tell us what happened,” the king said.

Bernard looked at Elara.

“I lied to her,” he said quietly. “I’m not proud of what I did.”

Elara didn’t look up. Her thumb moved across the screen as if she were reading another message.

“Isn’t it obvious she’s already moved on?” the High Luna snapped, glaring at Elara. “We’re trying to bring them back together, and she’s over there chatting with her moonallies as if nothing ever happened. Bernard doesn’t even seem to exist in her life anymore. If that’s the case, then maybe he never really did.”

“Mother, please. Calm down,” Brandon said.

Silence settled over the chamber.

After several long minutes, Brandon looked at Elara.

“Elara… please talk to us.”

She let out a slow, shaky breath before raising her eyes to Bernard.

“I’m moving on,” she said quietly. “You need to move on too.”

“Elara, please…” Bernard whispered, reaching for her hands.

She pulled them back before he could touch them.

“You spent all this time pretending to love me. I… I don’t know how to move on yet, but I’m going to try. I’m going to put my energy into building a new life without you.”

“I never pretended to love you, Bernard. What I felt for you was real. But that Chapter of my life is over. I’m choosing to move forward, and I hope you’ll do the same. We both deserve the chance to heal, even if it’s apart.”

Bernard’s hand fell back to his lap.

He stared at the floor for a long moment, then drew in a slow breath and looked up.

“When Queen Luna told me I’d see you in two hours, I spent every minute hoping we’d find our way back to each other. I even imagined us leaving here together.”

A faint, bitter smile crossed his face before it disappeared.

“But I was wrong.”

He turned to the king.

“My High Alpha King, I’d like to return every gift you gave me. I’m not angry with anyone. I just want to go back to my Alpha King and continue serving him.”

He paused and rubbed a hand over his face.

“This has taught me something I’ll never forget. I made choices I’m not proud of, and I’ll have to live with them. All I can do now is learn from them and try to build a better future.”

His eyes found Elara again.

“She was a good mate. She showed me a side of life I’d never known.”

His voice broke.

“I… don’t deserve her.”

He covered his face with one hand as a sob escaped him.

The High Luna stepped over to Bernard and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. He buried his face against her and cried. After a few minutes, the sobs eased. He drew the back of his hand across his face and took a shaky breath.

Across the chamber, Elara pressed her lips together. Her eyes burned, and before she could stop them, tears slipped down her cheeks. Emma moved beside her without a word and gently rested a hand on her back.

Bernard straightened and wiped his face again.

“I’m going,” he said.

“Silverheart,” the king said, his voice heavy. “What would it take for you to forgive this young man? Name it, and I’ll make it happen.”

“The whole truth,” Elara answered. “That’s all I want.”

Bernard slowly turned to face her.

“I already told you why I kept it from you. I was ashamed. I didn’t want anyone else to know.”

Elara frowned.

“Ashamed of what?”

Bernard swallowed.

“Maelis is obsessed with her late mate. I look so much like Linc that she… she started seeing me instead. She doesn’t see me as her pup. She sees me as her mate.” His voice cracked. “I hate it. I hated admitting she was my birth mother when that’s how she looked at me. I… I…”

“It’s okay,” Elara said softly.

She walked to him, closed the distance between them, and wrapped her arms around him. After a brief hesitation, Bernard held her just as tightly.

Brandon watched Elara and Bernard for a long moment before turning to the king.

“My High Alpha King, there’s something else you need to know.”

The king’s smile faded as he looked at Brandon.

“What is it?”

“Emma and I discovered that the old tunnel beneath the palace has been reopened. It was sealed winters ago, but when we entered it today, we found fresh footprints leading deeper inside.”

The king’s expression hardened.

“Fresh footprints?”

Brandon nodded.

“There wasn’t enough dust on them for them to have been there for long. Some wolves have been using that passage recently.”

Silence settled over the chamber as everyone exchanged uneasy glances.

The king slowly rose from his chair and walked toward the window with his hands clasped behind his back.

“That tunnel stretches beyond the palace grounds,” he said quietly. “If some wolf has reopened it, they could enter the palace without passing through the main gates.”

Emma felt a chill run down her spine.

“The royal mating is only four days away.”

The king turned to face them, his expression grim.

“Which means our enemies may already be planning to use that passage to sneak into the palace and throw the entire kingdom into chaos.”

Brandon nodded in agreement.

“I believe the tunnel and the traitors are connected.”

The king didn’t hesitate.

“Seal the tunnel immediately, double the palace guards, and search every entrance leading into the royal grounds. No one enters or leaves without my authorization.”

Brandon inclined his head.

“There’s one more thing. Nelson is still our best chance of identifying everyone involved.”

The king looked directly at him.

“Bring him here.”

Brandon immediately took out his device and called the security division.

“Escort Nelson to the king’s duty chamber immediately.”

The line went quiet for several seconds before a guard finally answered.

“My High Alpha, we’ve searched his quarters and every part of the security barracks.”

Brandon’s grip tightened around his communication device, his jaw hardening as unease settled deep in his chest. “Where is he?”

The guard lowered his head, clearly struggling to deliver the report. “We don’t know where he is, My High Alpha. We’ve searched everywhere we could think of, but he’s nowhere on the estate.”

Brandon’s eyes narrowed. “What are you saying?”

The guard drew in a slow breath before finally saying the words he had been dreading.

“Nelson has disappeared.”