Placing his hand on the back of her neck again, Valentin tugged her closer. “Have you spoken to your grandmother?”

“No. But I will—when we have a course of action.” She leaned into him, knowing that, to the bears around her, such affection was nothing unusual. To her, it meant far more—something Valentin alone would ever truly understand.

“Ena is tough.”

“Even the tough can break.”

A sudden commotion at that instant had Silver jerking around to look behind her. Valentin was up and running toward the sentry, even as the woman pounded into the center of the Cavern. Whatever words were spoken, Silver didn’t hear, her audio telepathy drowning her in a sudden, painful crescendo of noise that couldn’t augur anything good. It passed quickly, but the sentry had finished speaking by then.

Valentin’s reaction, however, told her all she needed to know: a shudder tore through him, his eyes closing for a long second before he opened them again and said something to the sentry that sent the woman racing back out.

Chapter 37

VALENTIN’S EYES SEARCHED for her, met hers. Their bond flared deep inside her. And somehow, she knew what he was about to say, though he wasn’t a telepath and she would never breach his shields. At that instant, the psychic form of an alpha bear filled her to the brim, her skin feeling as if it were coated with luxuriant fur, her hands powerful beyond compare.

Hands on his hips and eyes amber, Valentin shifted his gaze to speak to a clan that had gone unusually silent. “Our clanmates are coming back home. Make sure their rooms are prepped.”

A moment of utter motionlessness before everyone exploded into action.

When Dima clambered up to sit next to Silver, quickly followed by three other cubs of a similar age, she decided to assist by keeping them amused and out of the way. Even as she drew the cubs into a logic game, however, she kept an eye on the entrance to the Cavern. It wasn’t the entrance to Denhome, but it was the heart of this sprawling place, and it was where Valentin stood waiting.

He shot her a speaking look minutes later, holding out his hand.

“Stay here,” she said to the cubs in a tone she knew they’d obey.

She was standing by Valentin’s side when the air changed. Everyone went quiet, the frenetic activity coming to an abrupt standstill. Suddenly looking down at her, Valentin said, “Don’t kill Sergey.”

Silver narrowed her eyes. “I’ll decide once I hear what he has to say.”

The man who appeared in the large entranceway was tall and thin with granite-colored hair and deep grooves carved into his face.

Pain scored that face as he took in the solemn expressions of those who waited. His body was heavy when he stepped inside. Others came in behind him, including two people carried on stretchers. Nova walked next to the stretchers. She was barefoot, her commands crisp and clear as she ordered that the two be taken to the infirmary.

Cubs tumbled into the Cavern after the adults, went immediately to Valentin. He laughed and cuddled each one before giving them permission to join their excited friends at the table and around the Cavern. Dima and the others had stayed in place—though they were bouncing up and down and waving.

Under their chatter was a taut silence.

The adult newcomers, their faces gaunt with strain, lingered near the entrance as if unsure of their welcome. More than one gaze went to Silver.

“Small bears,” Valentin said into the mass of unspoken words, “you’re out of here. Thirty seconds.”

The cubs slid off their seats and ran, the bigger ones holding on to the hands of their younger friends, the cubs who lived in this den reminding their returned friends which way they had to go.

The area was clear of children well within the mandated thirty seconds; two of the adults who Silver knew were in charge of the nursery went with them. The teenagers remained, clearly having permission to stay when the “small bears” order was given.

“There will be no punishment,” Valentin said at last, his eyes locked with those of the tall man with granite-colored hair who had to be Sergey. “We’ve all been punished enough.”

Tears on many faces, stark-white shock on others.

“But”—Valentin’s tone was brutal—“I will not accept disloyalty. Punishment for any such action from this point on will be immediate and harsh.”

He looked around, his eyes hard and his voice a boom of sound. “StoneWater as a clan will stay strong, stay a safe place for those who call it home. If that means I have to banish or kill threats to the clan, I will.”

Silver was watching the returnees closely, saw the flinches at his use of the word “kill.” They had no idea her Valyusha wasn’t the real threat. Silver would annihilate anyone who dared hurt him again.

“If you can’t live with my ‘tainted blood’”—shamed looks from many of the returned—“leave now and you’ll live. After this, there will be no second chances.”

No one moved.

“Then”—smile open and genuine, he wrapped an arm around the shoulders of a middle-aged male who’d been inching closer to him during the entire speech—“welcome home.”

The man turned in to Valentin, hugging him tight before breaking away so someone else could do the same. Only Sergey kept his distance, his expression openly torn.

When he did approach—while Valentin was speaking to two others—it was to come to Silver. “You’re Psy.”

His harsh words were bullets shot into stone. The Cavern turned deadly quiet.

“She is my mate.” Valentin responded before Silver could, his tone as harsh. “If you have anything to say about that, Sergey, say it to your alpha.”

The older male looked away, his jaw working.

Others, meanwhile, were staring at Silver, waiting. And she knew this moment was critical, would determine who she was as Valentin’s mate. Much as she wanted to turn Sergey’s brain into neural soup, that was not what her bear wanted. So she’d give this man and the others a chance to redeem themselves. “Welcome home,” she said. “Your clan has missed you.”

More than one shaky smile, the pinched look fading from their faces.

“Food! Drink!” Valentin yelled into the tremulous hope. “Today, we celebrate a united clan!”

Cheers thundered through the Cavern, coming first from those who’d never left, but joined only seconds later by those who had—many of whom were red-eyed and shaking. Valentin’s arms were open to all, his big body a sturdy oak against which they could find strength.

When people kept glancing at Silver with wide eyes, she went with instinct and extended her hands to show them that contact was welcome. The offer was taken up by many. “I always knew he’d pick a mate as strong as he is,” one woman whispered with a deep smile.

Another said, “Trust Valentin to nab not just a Psy but Silver Mercant herself. He’s always made his own rules.” There was pride in those words, respect in the eye contact.

Sergey remained aloof, but he was a bear; he couldn’t hide his torment.

Walking over to him once she was free, Silver spoke before he could say a word. “You have only two choices.”

He held her gaze in an aggressive challenge.

Silver was intimidated by no one, least of all a tortured bear. She did not look away. “You can hold on to your fear and let it drive you to hate, or you can trust in the bonds of clan. There is no middle ground.”