Chapter 240: The engagement

Aevia was the one who spoke up, her voice laced with quiet anxiety as she reached over to cover Yuki’s hand. "The Court has been asking far too many questions about you lately, Yuki. They’re paying entirely too much attention to your status, and I don’t like the direction those conversations are heading."

Killian quietly set his tablet face-down on the table, his full, sharp attention instantly locked onto the conversation.

"To keep the pack stable and protect you before we leave," Aevia continued carefully, her eyes darting away from Yuki’s for a fleeting second, "we have a proposition to make."

Yuki felt a prickle of suspicion at her sister’s sudden nervousness. "A proposition? What kind of proposition?"

Alexander looked her dead in the eye. "To make things easier and keep the Court from intervening, we think it’s best to arrange an engagement for you before Aevia and I leave." he said.

A sudden, suffocating silence fell over the massive dining table.

"To... to Declan?" Yuki blurted out, her chest tightening as a wave of panic washed over her.

Aevia quickly shook her head. "No, sweetie. Not Declan. Given the recent security threats outside our borders, we decided against sending you away from Ravencourt territory. It’s too dangerous right now. Keeping you here in Raven City is the safest option."

Killian and Kaden remained dead silent, though neither looked entirely surprised. They had already discussed this security risk with Alexander behind closed doors, and it seemed the Alpha had ultimately agreed with their assessment—meaning something deeply sinister was brewing outside their borders. Yet even with that confirmation, a heavy elephant remained in the room. Who, exactly, was she being given to?

Yuki’s face drained of color. She had known political maneuverings like this were bound to happen eventually, but she hadn’t expected it to hit her this fast. "An engagement... before you leave for your trip?" she whispered.

Aevia squeezed her cold fingers tightly. "I know this is sudden, Yuki, and I hate that I brought you into this world only for you to face this pressure. But we can’t ignore reality. You were once fated to a Ravencourt, and now that the bond is broken, the Court sees you as a political piece. We can’t leave you vulnerable while we’re gone."

Kaden scoffed under his breath, leaning back in his chair. "She has nothing to fear from the Court."

Alexander shot Kaden a lethal, suffocating glare that cut the warrior off mid-sentence. Yuki stared at her plate, her mind churning. She understood the stakes. As terrifying as the word *engagement* sounded, a small, practical part of her felt a bizarre sense of relief. An officially recognized engagement would shield her from the Court’s meddling and buy her time. She looked up, meeting Alexander’s eyes.

"Do I get a say in who it is? Can I pick?" she asked hesitantly

Alexander hesitated for a fraction of a second before speaking smoothly. "After careful consideration, we chose someone entirely trustworthy. A close ally to our house. And you don’t need to feel pressured by this, Yuki. If you don’t get along with him in the future, the engagement can easily be dissolved. But for now, he is the best possible choice."

Before Yuki could ask another question, Aevia’s voice slithered directly into her mind through a private link. ’He comes from a prominent, respectable family, Yuki. He isn’t an Alpha, but that doesn’t make him any less capable or noble. He will treat you well.’

Yuki’s gaze flickered between her sister and the Alpha. "Who is he?"

Alexander rested his hands on the table. " The Gamma’s eldest son." he revealed

The moment the name left Alexander’s mouth, a sudden, icy chill settled over the room. Kieran’s eyes darkened into a storm of icy blue, his posture rigid as a stone statue. Killian’s jaw set into a tight, dangerous line, his dark eyes veiled in absolute stillness.

Neither of them uttered a single word, while a storm of complicated, bitter emotions flickered across Kaden’s harsh features. Yuki didn’t know the Gamma’s son personally, but from the way Alexander spoke of him, she knew he was a high-ranking, capable warrior—someone respected within the pack hierarchy. She swallowed hard, taking a slow breath.

"Okay... I’ll give it a try." she stuttered.

Alexander’s face relaxed into a warm, genuine smile. "Wonderful. That makes things much simpler. We’ll be meeting with the Gamma and his family tomorrow evening to formalize the arrangement."

Across the table, Kieran’s sharp, analytical eyes swept over his brothers. He noticed instantly that neither Killian nor Kaden looked surprised by the name. This wasn’t a sudden decision—it was a calculated move they had already discussed with Alexander, a plan they had kept him completely in the dark about.

Kaden’s glass froze against his lips. Through their shared link, he could feel the sudden, dangerous flare of dark aura radiating off Kieran. Unable to ignore the suffocating pressure, Kaden reached out to Kieran privately through their mindlink.

’What the hell is your problem? Why are you radiating killing intent?’

Kieran didn’t waste a single breath on pleasantries, his voice slicing through the link like a serrated blade. ’Did you and Killian orchestrate this decision behind my back?’

Kaden paused, but before he could answer, Killian’s voice quietly slid into their private mindlink thread, cold and pragmatic.

’This engagement has to happen immediately, Kieran. Especially now, when none of us know how long it will take for any of you to get a second chance.’ Killian’s mental tone was immovable, laced with absolute harsh reality. ’We have to make the Court understand that our house has zero romantic interest in her. It’s the only way to protect her.’

Although the thought of protecting the sister of the woman they hate was weird but it was true getting Yuki engaged wasn’t just to let everyone know they weren’t interested in her but to make the court know she wasn’t a political pawn

Left unspoken between them was the darkest, most terrifying truth of all—the very real, agonizing probability that none of them would ever receive a second-chance mate again.