Page 55 of Bite the Power
"Let her go," Kaidan commanded, every word edged with fury. His bear raged against his ribs, demanding blood and complete destruction.
"I don't think so." Magnus's blade pressed closer to the delicate skin of Tessa's neck, drawing a thin line of crimson. "You're going to watch her die, just like I watched my father die—slowly, painfully, broken by your family's mercy."
His words tumbled out in a rush of bitter venom, thirty years of resentment and pain spilling across the ice like poison."He was supposed to be king. My father was stronger, smarter, more worthy than yours ever was. But your father cheated, used politics and backroom deals to steal what was rightfully ours."
Kaidan's hands clenched, but he forced himself to remain still. Through their perfect bond, he felt Tessa's controlled breathing.
"And then what happened?" Magnus continued, his voice breaking slightly. "My father became a shell. A drunk who spent every day drowning his shame in alcohol, taking his failures out on everyone around him. Especially me."
The raw pain in Magnus's voice might have evoked sympathy under different circumstances. But Kaidan's entire focus remained locked on the knife threatening his mate's life.
"You want to know what real weakness looks like?" Magnus pressed the blade deeper, and Tessa's sharp intake of breath sent rage flooding through Kaidan's veins like molten metal. "It's loving someone so much that you'd sacrifice everything for them. Your father's mistake. And now yours."
Kaidan saw Tessa's subtle shift in position. Her eyes met his across the ice, and in that fraction of a second, an entire conversation passed between them. Trust. Timing. Perfect synchronization born of a connection deeper than words.
He gave the slightest nod.
Tessa drove her elbow backward into Magnus's solar plexus with every ounce of strength in her compact frame. Magnus doubled over with a grunt of pain, the knife wavering just enough?—
Kaidan shifted mid-leap.
His human form dissolved in a rush of heat and power, five hundred pounds of polar bear materializing where a man had stood heartbeats before. Golden-streaked white fur rippled over muscle as he launched himself across the ice, claws extended, and teeth bared.
Magnus recovered faster than expected, his own shift beginning even as Kaidan closed the distance. The knife clattered to the ice as Magnus's form expanded, his pale fur erupting across broadening shoulders and extending limbs.
They collided in an explosion of fur and fury, two massive bears locked in a battle that had been thirty years in the making. Magnus's claws raked across Kaidan's shoulder, drawing blood that steamed in the Arctic air. Kaidan's response was swift and brutal—his fangs found purchase in Magnus's neck, just missing the jugular.
This ends now,Kaidan's bear snarled silently.No more threats. No more fear.
The battle raged with primal savagery across the ice-slicked cliff top. Magnus's bear form was slightly larger than Kaidan's, his pale fur matted with blood from where Kaidan's teeth had found their mark. But size meant nothing when fury and desperation drove every movement.
Magnus's massive paw caught Kaidan across the ribs, claws raking deep furrows that sent crimson spattering across the pristine snow. The impact sent Kaidan sliding toward the cliff's edge, his own claws scrambling for purchase on the treacherous ice.
This bastard's not going to stop until he kills me,Kaidan realized with stark clarity as Magnus pressed his advantage, using his superior weight to pin Kaidan against the frozen ground. His massive jaws snapped inches from Kaidan's throat, his hot breath clouding in the Arctic air.
Kaidan's bear roared in defiance, but exhaustion was setting in. Blood loss from multiple wounds was slowing his reflexes, making his movements sluggish. Magnus sensed the weakness, his ice-blue eyes gleaming with predatory satisfaction.
I'm going to die defending what's mine,Kaidan thought fiercely.But I'll take this son of a bitch with me.
Then, like the sun breaking through storm clouds, pure warmth flooded through their everlasting mate bond. Tessa's undying love. The sensation was so powerful it nearly knocked him senseless—raw energy coursing through his exhausted body like molten gold.
Images flashed through his mind: Tessa in his bed every morning, her laughter echoing through the palace halls, their children playing in the snow outside, growing old together while ruling Frosthaven with strength and compassion.
My future queen needs her king.
Magnus had made a critical error. Believing victory was within his grasp, he'd loosened his grip just enough to position for the killing blow. In that split second of overconfidence, Kaidan erupted upward with renewed ferocity.
His powerful jaws clamped around Magnus's throat with crushing force. Magnus's roar of triumph became a gurgle of shock and pain as Kaidan's fangs pierced the vital arteries beneath thick fur.
This is for Tessa. For my kingdom. For our beautiful future.
Magnus thrashed wildly, but Kaidan held on with grim determination, his enhanced strength fueled by the mate bond and thirty years of pent-up justice. Blood filled his mouth—metallic and hot—as Magnus's struggles grew weaker.
When Magnus finally went limp, Kaidan held on for several more heartbeats, ensuring the threat was permanently eliminated. Only then did he release his grip, staggering backward as his bear form dissolved.
Kaidan collapsed to his knees in the blood-stained snow, his human body wracked with pain from wounds that looked even worse without fur to hide them. Deep gashes crisscrossed his ribs and arms, and he could feel warm blood seeping through his broken skin.
"Kaidan!" Tessa's voice reached him through a growing haze of pain and exhaustion.
