"Mara Voss."
Ronan pulled the Warden ring free and held it up between two fingers.
Every camera in the studio zoomed in.
My hand stayed at my side.
"Don't," I said.
His jaw tightened. "You came here to force my hand."
"I came here to stop you from drowning half the city."
"You came because you still think the bond gives you a claim on me."
A few council members shifted in their seats. The live feed caught every movement. Every breath. Every second I stood there beneath the studio lights while Ronan Vale prepared to ruin me in front of Briarport.
I kept my chin up.
"I never claimed you," I said. "You were the one who begged me to stay."
A sharp breath cut through the room.
Ronan's fingers closed around the ring.
For one second, the anger slipped. Fear showed beneath it.
I hated that I saw it.
Worse, I hated that I still wanted to reach for him.
He stepped closer.
His chest brushed mine. Heat came off him through his black uniform, and his breath touched the side of my face.
"Say it," I whispered. "If you're going to destroy me, say it where everyone can hear."
His eyes locked on mine.
"You don't get to order me around."
"No, I don't." I smiled without warmth. "That's why you love hiding behind your title."
His nostrils flared.
The bond snapped tight between us.
I felt his heartbeat through my dress. Fast. Angry. Too close to mine.
He lifted the ring.
I didn't move.
"Ronan," the host said, his voice thin, "what are you doing?"
Ronan looked at the main camera, then back at me.
"I'm ending this."
The room went dead quiet.
"Ending what?" I asked.
His voice turned flat. Rehearsed. "The bond."
My fingers went numb.
The city saw my face. The council saw it. Every person who'd watched me stand beside him saw the exact moment he cut me loose.
"You can't reject a bond in the middle of a defense briefing," I said.
"I can."
"Not without a witness review."
"The council is here."
"They're not witnesses. They're your employees."
His eyes hardened. "Choose your next words carefully."
"Or what? You'll fire me twice?"
He caught my left hand.
I yanked back, but his fingers locked around mine. The ring hovered over my knuckles. Its cold edge almost touched my skin.
"Let go."
"Look at me."
"I am looking at you. I'm trying to figure out when you became such a coward."
His thumb pressed into my palm.
Heat shot up my arm and settled behind my ribs. My body leaned toward him before my pride could stop it.
Ronan noticed.
His mouth parted.
For one dangerous second, he wasn't the High Warden. He was the man who'd kissed me beneath the old gatehouse. The man who'd whispered my name against my throat and promised the city would never use me.
Then the cameras moved closer.
His face shut down.
"I, Ronan Vale, High Warden of Briarport, reject Mara Voss as my fated mate and release her from any claim connected to my name, my office, or my protection."
The bond tore.
Pain ripped through my chest.
I bit down until I tasted blood. Not for him. Not for the council. Not for the city waiting to watch me break.
Ronan dropped my hand.
The ring never touched me.
That was the cruelest part.
He'd brought it close enough to make everyone think he might mark me. Then he'd left my skin untouched.
The studio erupted.
The host stood. Council members shouted over one another. Cameras swung toward me like my pain was the next segment on the schedule.
I laughed.
It hurt like hell, but I laughed anyway.
"You rejected me without even touching me," I said. "That's impressive. I didn't know cowardice came with a ceremony."
Ronan's face went rigid. "Leave."
"Give me my chip."
"No."
"Then I'll tell them where the second ledger is."
His eyes snapped to mine.
There.
The first real fear.
I stepped closer, even though my knees shook. The front of my body nearly touched his.
"It's not on me," I whispered. "It's already in the city archive. If I don't cancel the release in ten minutes, every transfer goes public."
His breath caught. "You wouldn't."
"Try me."
The guards started toward us.
"Don't," Ronan ordered.
They stopped.
The floor shuddered.
A metallic groan rolled through the studio. The lights blinked. One of the council members grabbed the table to stay upright.
The host spun toward the emergency panel. "What was that?"
Another tremor hit.
It threw me into Ronan's chest.
His arms came around me on instinct. One hand locked around my waist. The other braced the back of my neck.
His body was solid and hot against mine. My cheek pressed to his throat. His pulse slammed beneath my mouth.
For one breath, neither of us moved.
Then every tide gate in Briarport screamed.
The sound came through the walls, the speakers, and the phones scattered across the council table. One gate answered. Then another.
The harbor alarms began to howl.
Ronan shoved me behind him.
"Get her out," he said.
"You just rejected me." I pushed against his back. "Don't pretend you get to protect me now."
He turned so fast I nearly hit his chest again. His breath struck my lips.
"I don't need a bond to keep you alive."
"No. You just need a title and a room full of armed men."
"Mara, listen to me."
"You had your chance."
The council doors burst open.
Celia Hart ran inside with emergency tablets stacked against her chest. Her silver braid had come loose. Blood streaked one side of her face.
"The west gate is dropping," she said. "The harbor pumps aren't responding."
Ronan's hand closed around my waist again. "How long?"
"Maybe twelve minutes before the lower districts flood."
"Send the wardens to the control tunnels."
"They're already there."
"Then send more."
Celia looked at me. Her gaze fell to my empty left hand, then returned to Ronan.
"The council has voted," she said.
I pulled away from him. "Voted on what?"
Celia swallowed. "The defenses won't answer to the Warden command alone. The old emergency law has been triggered."
Ronan's face turned cold. "No."
"You don't get to refuse this one."
"Celia."
"The city needs a living anchor and a Warden seal."
My stomach dropped. "What does that mean?"
She held out the top tablet.
A black contract filled the screen. The letters shifted like wet ink.
"It means Mara Voss must enter a life-binding moon covenant with Ronan Vale before the next tide bell."
Ronan stepped between us. "Find another anchor."
"There isn't one."
"Then evacuate the harbor."
Celia gave a short, bitter laugh. "The roads are already underwater. If the gates stay open, thousands won't make it out."
I looked past Ronan at the emergency panels flashing red.
The bond was gone. My chest still burned where it had torn away. He'd rejected me in front of the city and stripped me of every public right to stand beside him.
Now the council wanted to chain me to him anyway.
"What happens if I refuse?" I asked.
Celia's face went pale. "The covenant won't form. The gates will stay locked."
"And the harbor?"
She looked at Ronan.
He said nothing.
He didn't have to.
The alarms screamed again.
Celia shoved the tablet toward me. "Sign, Mara. Or let the harbor drown."
I reached for the screen.
Ronan caught my wrist.
His grip was hard, but not hard enough to hurt. His mouth came close to my ear. Heat slid over my skin with every word.
"If you sign that covenant, you won't just share my protection. You'll share my pain, my dreams, and every—"