Chapter 2

Stella's POV

The forest path stretched before us, snow-laden pines creating a natural corridor as we made our way back from the clan's trading post.

I could feel Damon's gaze on me, his ice-blue eyes searching my face with an intensity that always made my heart race. We had fallen a few paces behind the others, our snowmobiles idling quietly, the distance just enough to grant us a small measure of privacy.

"Little wolf." he said softly, using the nickname he'd given me as a child. "Something troubles you."

His voice low and intimate, sent a familiar warmth through my chest despite the biting cold around us.

I sighed, trying to mask my unease. "I'm fine."

He wasn't fooled. I felt the gentle brush of his mind against mine, the Mind-Link opening between us as naturally as breathing.

"Whatever happens, I will never forget you, All will be well."

His words of comfort only deepened my melancholy. Once Damon found his Soul Mate, she would become his entire world. Our closeness, the bond we'd shared since childhood, would fade like morning mist before the sun.

In just a few days, at the winter solstice, I would experience my Ice Blood Awakening and complete my transformation. Only then would I know if the goddess had blessed me as I hoped, or if my fears were justified.

"Thank the Goddess!" Haley's excited voice broke through my thoughts. "We've arrived!"

I looked up to see our small convoy approaching the clan settlement, the wooden structures of Aurora Peak appearing through the trees, smoke rising from chimneys into the clear winter sky. I forced myself to smile. This was no time for dark thoughts.

After storing our purchases in the community storage shed, we headed to Haley's home to examine our festival attire more closely. I held my chosen dress against myself, admiring how the deep emerald fabric seemed to capture and reflect the light.

The dress featured a modest neckline and fitted bodice that would hug my form before flowing gracefully over my hips, with a subtle slit that would reveal my guardian-trained legs when I moved. My mother's emerald ring would complement it perfectly.

The small group that had gathered in Haley's living room fell silent, their eyes fixed on me. I knew instantly that I had found the perfect garment—both dignified and celebratory for the Polar Night Festival.

A low warning growl from Damon broke the silence, causing heads to turn quickly away. I suppressed a smile at his protective instinct.

"Stella," Haley breathed, her eyes wide. "That dress looks as though it was made for you."

"Thanks," I replied, then nodded toward her selection. "Yours is beautiful too. The color brings out your eyes."

While Haley and I went to her bedroom to change back into our everyday clothing, I felt Damon's mind touch mine again.

" I hope you don't cherish that ceremonial dress too much, because even if I am not your Soul Mate, I will tear it from your body after the Polar Night Festival."

Heat flooded my cheeks, and my heart raced at his bold words. I struggled to maintain my composure as I replied through our mental connection.

"Who says I would allow such a thing?"

"I would have you against the pine tree beneath the northern lights, claim you right there, woman."

"The entire clan would smell me on you. Is that what you want?" I challenged, my mental voice barely a whisper despite no one else being able to hear our exchange.

I heard his low chuckle, then the mental connection dimmed as he called out loud, "Come on, fellows. Let's go look at those ceremonial robes," before shouting, "Hurry up, girls. We'll wait for you outside!"

"Jerk," I sent through our fading connection, feeling his amusement in return.

After Haley and I changed back into our thermal gear, we met the men who had already selected their ceremonial attire. Together, we started the journey back to our snowmobiles, the late afternoon sun already hanging low on the horizon, promising only a few more hours of daylight.

Behind us, Travis, Haley, and Chuck argued about whose technical skills would best impress the elders during the festival's traditional demonstrations.

I barely heard them, my attention drawn to the dappled sunlight playing across the snow-covered ground. I couldn't shake the feeling that after the winter solstice, everything would change, though I couldn't say why. The sensation wasn't unfamiliar—my "Storm Sense" often came to me this way, a vague disquiet that preceded danger or betrayal.

When we returned to the settlement, I made my excuses, claiming I needed to prepare for tomorrow's security patrol training.

After bidding my friends farewell, I confirmed my parents were still at the security meeting, carefully stored my new ceremonial dress, and slipped quietly from our cabin. Twilight had fallen, the sky painted in fiery red and golden orange. Though late December had brought the polar night to northern Alaska, our location just south of the Arctic Circle still granted us a few precious hours of twilight. The evening forest carried a bitter chill that prompted me to wrap my wolf-fur parka tighter around my shoulders.

The Aurora Bay lay half a mile from our settlement—a hidden inlet of a larger frozen lake where I could be alone with my thoughts. As I walked the familiar path, I breathed deeply, taking in the scents of pine, snow, and the crisp arctic air.

The subtle crunch of snow broke my reverie. I didn't need to look up—the scent of pine and winter told me who approached. Damon.

"I knew something was bothering you," he said, his voice gentle as he entered the clearing.

"I don't know what you mean," I replied, not meeting his gaze.

"Really?" He moved closer, his tall frame silhouetted against the twilight sky. "Whenever something troubles you, you always come here.."

I sighed. He knew me too well—the intimacy born of growing up together made it impossible to hide my feelings from him.

"I just have a feeling," I admitted. "Like something bad will happen after the winter solstice, after the Polar Night Festival. Five clans' worth of young people will gather. Things will change. I just don't know if they'll change for better or worse."

Damon knew about my "Storm Sense"—my intuition had proven accurate many times before, saving our warriors on several occasions. The clan elders claimed it was the Moon Goddess's special gift to me.

He lay down beside me on the ice, silent for a moment. The first star had appeared, and the sky was deepening to indigo, with the faintest hint of green beginning to shimmer at the horizon—the first whisper of tonight's aurora.

"I've always admired you," he said finally. "You would make a perfect Alpha's mate, and I would be proud to have you as my Soul Mate. Even if we are not destined mates, we will find balance. Anyone who is not my destined mate would make me jealous, but as long as you are happy..."

"If only it were that simple," I whispered.

The truth was, if we weren't destined mates, my heart would shatter. I had secretly hoped since childhood that Damon would be revealed as my Soul Mate—a secret I dared not confess to anyone.

"Do you sense anything else might happen?" he asked, his eyes searching mine.

"I just don't know," I answered truthfully.

"Stella..." he murmured, my name on his lips like a prayer.

Above us, the aurora began to dance in earnest, ribbons of green and purple light stretching across the sky, as if the goddess herself was listening to our whispered fears.