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He strains against the hold, muscles corded and trembling. "Please fight it, Serenity. I know you're still in there."

The entity tilts my head and studies him like a cat studies a pinned mouse. "Such devotion and delicious desperation. Tell us, wolf—what would you sacrifice to save her?"

"Everything," Darius says without hesitation, and the honesty nearly shatters my concentration.

The entity drinks in his anguish, savoring each syllable before flinging him aside. Darius hits the ground hard but rolls to his feet, never taking his eyes off me. The entity has already moved on, turning my body toward the crumbling walls where fresh cracks bleed moonlight, dismissing him as it surveys the scope of its emerging kingdom.

But those few seconds of distraction are all I need. Inside my own skull, the pieces lock together, and everything becomes horribly clear. My ancestors built a living prison using their bloodline as the bars. Each generation carried a fragment of the seal, weakening it over centuries until someone like me came along—someone with enough power to either outright shatter the cage or forge it whole again. Instead of a ritual formula, the solution requires opening myself up to drag this thing back inside, holding every last drop of its power until my body becomes the lock itself.

No, will not be caged again, the entity hisses through my consciousness as it senses my realization.

But I'm already reaching for the ritual, tapping into every fragment of Crowe magic in my blood. The protective brands on my arms blaze hot as I call upon the ancient seals, reversing their purpose to help me contain something infinitely more dangerous.

"I know what I have to do," I say through gritted teeth, battling the entity for control of my voice. Blood from the ritual cuts drips from my wrists before my palms press against the stone altar, enabling the fluid to pool into the carved lunate symbols.

The entity thrashes against my mental barriers as my resolve holds firm in reclaiming my body and my magic.

"Darius, you need to run," I gasp as light begins spiraling around me in tight, controlled patterns. "Get everyone out of here right now."

He glares. "Like hell."

"I'm serious." The ritual circle beneath my feet starts glowing as I pour my intent into the ancient stone. "This is going to get ugly, and I can't protect you while I'm doing this."

The entity makes one more violent attempt to seize control by sending cracks spider-webbing across the chamber walls. Debris rains down, but Darius stays in place.

"I'm not leaving you," he says fiercely, stepping closer despite the magical chaos erupting around me.

The cosmic power burns through my veins as I begin channeling the entity's essence back into myself. Every instinct screams at me to release the magic and let it flow outward. But I clench my teeth and strain harder.

You cannot hold us. We are eternal. We are inevitable, the entity rages

"Maybe," I admit, tears streaming down my cheeks as the strain threatens to tear me apart. "But I'm stubborn as hell."

Darius moves closer, reaching for me. "Rene⁠—"

Holding up a shaking hand stops his advance. "Please, I need you to survive this. I need—" My voice breaks. "I love you and every infuriating inch of your stubbornness, which is exactly why you can't be here when I finish this."

Darius becomes stone, all motion abandoning him in an instant. His face cycles through fury, grief, and something so close to devastation that I have to look away.

"You think I'm going to let you sacrifice yourself alone?" He breathes the words, a dangerous whisper that brushes against my skin. "After everything we've been through?"

"Darius—"

He steps directly into the ritual circle, ignoring the power searing his skin. "No, there's another way."

32

DARIUS

The astronomical power crackling around us makes my skin feel like it's on fire, but I push into the ritual circle anyway. Serenity's eyes are wide with terror, utterly consumed by the grim reality of what she thinks she has to do.

"When I was researching ways to help stabilize your magic, I found references in the old pack archives," I say, stepping close enough that the energy makes my senses recoil instinctively. "Soul-bonded mates are very real, Rene. And it only requires us to open the connection."

Her face goes pale beneath the veins spreading across her skin. "Darius, this isn't the time for⁠—"

"Listen to me." I grab her shoulders and ignore the power burning through my palms. "The bond explains why your magic calms when I touch you and why my wolf goes insane when you're in danger. I can feel you even when you're miles away."

The entity snarls through her voice, distorting the sound into something inhuman. "Mortal bonds mean nothing to us."