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59

Mason's POV

The ritual chamber deep within the packhouse was dimly lit, the faint glow of enchanted candles casting long shadows across the stone walls. The air was thick with the scent of burning sage, a requirement for the magic to bind. The pack elder who Matthias said was going to help me complete the ritual, a frail but sharp-eyed woman named Elda, stood before me, clutching the ancient tome that would seal my fate—and Bethany's.

"This will tie her to you, Alpha Mason," Elda said, her voice raspy but firm. "Once the contract is sealed, her soul will recognize you as her mate, regardless of her feelings. The bond will be unbreakable unless death intervenes."

"Good," I said, my voice steady even as my chest tightened. It wasn't love driving me—it never had been. It was possession, the primal need to keep what was mine. Bethany had slipped through my fingers once. I wouldn't let it happen again.