Signed To Be His Wife - Chapter 38: Chapter 38
You are reading Signed To Be His Wife, Chapter 38: Chapter 38. Read more chapters of Signed To Be His Wife.
Amara woke before dawn. Frost laced her blanket, and stars burned cold above the Arctic. She inhaled the brittle air, last night’s events flickering in her mind—Clara’s sudden departure, the strange signal, the crack in the ice.
Beside her, Dominic slept, his breaths steady. She sat up quietly, but the movement stirred him.
“Morning?” she whispered.
Dominic blinked groggily. “Ice-cold morning.” He sat up, voice rough. “Couldn’t sleep?”
“I had a bad dream,” Amara said, then hesitated. “No… just a feeling. About Clara. Something’s off. She got that comm message after we caught the signal, but she wouldn’t say who it was.”
Dominic frowned. “I want to trust her. But lately... I’m not sure.”
Amara wrapped her arms around her knees. “This place makes everything feel more dangerous.”
Dominic leaned closer. “We have each other. That’s what matters.”
His words warmed her more than the heater. She nodded, offering a faint smile.
“Come on. Let’s get some coffee before the others wake,” he said.
They dressed quietly. In the kitchen corner, Dominic poured coffee into two metal mugs. The heater clanked to life. Amara wrapped her hands around her mug, grateful for the warmth.
Outside, pale sunlight crept over the snow. They stepped into the icy air, laughing softly when Dominic zipped Amara’s coat correctly.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
The snowmobiles waited outside, ready for the day’s trek. Lena was already up, checking gear. Amara and Dominic joined her.
“Morning,” Lena said, tapping a scanner. “Ready for more ice-core mysteries?”
Dominic held up his coffee. “Barely.”
Lena glanced at Amara’s tired eyes. “You okay?”
“Just cold and running low on sleep,” Amara murmured.
Lena smiled. “Let’s get moving. You’ll warm up soon enough.”
Their team split into groups. Amara, Dominic, and Lena led the way; Maria and Otis followed with the sleds. Wind swept across the ridge, ice cracking softly beneath their boots.
At the site, Lena began drilling. The machine hummed—then clunked hard.
“Stuck,” Otis muttered, kneeling beside it.
Dominic and Amara helped. Together, they twisted and pulled until the drill released with a loud snap. They all exhaled in relief.
Lena retrieved the ice core and froze. “Guys... look.”
The outer edge of the ice glinted with faint, silvery lines—like circuitry etched into it.
“That’s not natural,” Maria said, scanning it. “Metal embedded inside. An inch deep, maybe more.”
Otis frowned. “What the hell is that doing under the ice?”
Amara whispered, “Project Aurora…”
Clara’s voice crackled over the radio: “I’m heading to the satellite uplink for signal clarity. Keep me posted.”
Amara and Dominic exchanged a look. “We didn’t send her anywhere,” he muttered.
Lena’s face hardened. “We need to secure this site. If that’s tech under the ice... this is bigger than us.”
Dominic nodded. “Amara and I will head to the uplink. Let’s see what Clara’s really doing.”
Lena hesitated. “You think she’s hiding something?”
“We suspect,” Dominic said. “But we’ll find out.”
“Be careful,” Lena warned.
They climbed onto their snowmobiles and sped off into the freezing wind. Visibility dropped, but they pushed north, guided by the tracker.
The uplink station came into view: a low concrete bunker buried in snow, antennae reaching skyward like skeletal arms.
“Ready?” Dominic asked.
Amara nodded.
Inside, they found Clara hunched over a console, headphones on. She spun when she saw them.
“I thought you were at base!”
“Why are you here alone?” Dominic asked. “You left without telling us.”
“Lena said the signal data was glitchy,” Clara said quickly. “I needed better bandwidth to decode it.”
Amara stepped forward. “Then why didn’t you respond to my message? What was that midnight call?”
Clara hesitated, glancing at the screen. “It was from Command. An encrypted data packet. I was downloading it.”
Dominic crossed his arms. “You’re hiding something.”
Clara sighed. “Aurora is real. And it’s not just research—it’s experimental climate control. They’re trying to use polar energy to stabilize weather systems. But it’s going wrong. The ice is reacting in ways they didn’t predict.”
Amara’s eyes widened. “That pattern in the ice… it’s part of the project?”
Clara nodded. “The tech embedded under the glacier is one of several relay points. Our expedition was supposed to observe. They never told us the risks.”
Dominic clenched his jaw. “So we’ve been used.”
Clara swallowed. “I didn’t know until recently. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
Just then, the lights flickered. The radio blared: “Dominic! Amara! Big storm rolling in—ETA fifteen minutes!”
Lightning flashed outside. Dominic snapped into action. “Grab the data drives. We’re heading back—now.”
They gathered everything. Clara hugged Amara tightly. “I’m sorry for the secrets.”
“You did the right thing,” Amara said.
They piled into the communications truck. Snow whipped around them. Dominic drove with steady focus through the blizzard. Amara sat in the front, clutching the drives. Clara lay shivering in the back, wrapped in an emergency blanket.
“How is she?” Dominic asked quietly.
“Cold. Exhausted. But she told us the truth,” Amara replied.
“She trusted you,” Dominic said. “We’ll protect her.”
Red hazard lights blinked as they finally spotted base camp through the storm. Dominic pulled up fast. Barnes and the others rushed out, faces tight with worry.
They guided the trio inside and into the heated garage bay. Everyone gathered in the briefing room.
Dominic plugged the data into a laptop. Static hissed from the speaker—then a broken voice: “...Polar Code Red… Project Aurora… under the ice…”
Silence fell.
Barnes looked grim. “This confirms it. They’re manipulating the ice field.”
“What now?” Lena asked.
“We disable that equipment—quietly,” Barnes said. “At first light. No one outside this room hears a word until then.”
Amara met Dominic’s gaze. They had answers now—but more danger ahead.
Clara stepped forward, her voice soft. “Thank you. For believing me.”
“You earned it,” Amara replied, offering a gentle hug.
That night, after preparations were made, Amara and Dominic returned to their bunk. He pulled her close.
“You okay?” he asked.
“With you, I am,” she murmured.
He stroked her hair. “We’ll get through this.”
“I trust you.”
Dominic looked into her eyes. “I love you, Amara. More than anything.”
She kissed him. “I love you too.”
Outside, the storm eased. Dawn light began to rise
over the snowy world.
The Arctic still held its secrets. But inside the station, two hearts beat as one—united against whatever waited beneath the ice.
Beside her, Dominic slept, his breaths steady. She sat up quietly, but the movement stirred him.
“Morning?” she whispered.
Dominic blinked groggily. “Ice-cold morning.” He sat up, voice rough. “Couldn’t sleep?”
“I had a bad dream,” Amara said, then hesitated. “No… just a feeling. About Clara. Something’s off. She got that comm message after we caught the signal, but she wouldn’t say who it was.”
Dominic frowned. “I want to trust her. But lately... I’m not sure.”
Amara wrapped her arms around her knees. “This place makes everything feel more dangerous.”
Dominic leaned closer. “We have each other. That’s what matters.”
His words warmed her more than the heater. She nodded, offering a faint smile.
“Come on. Let’s get some coffee before the others wake,” he said.
They dressed quietly. In the kitchen corner, Dominic poured coffee into two metal mugs. The heater clanked to life. Amara wrapped her hands around her mug, grateful for the warmth.
Outside, pale sunlight crept over the snow. They stepped into the icy air, laughing softly when Dominic zipped Amara’s coat correctly.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
The snowmobiles waited outside, ready for the day’s trek. Lena was already up, checking gear. Amara and Dominic joined her.
“Morning,” Lena said, tapping a scanner. “Ready for more ice-core mysteries?”
Dominic held up his coffee. “Barely.”
Lena glanced at Amara’s tired eyes. “You okay?”
“Just cold and running low on sleep,” Amara murmured.
Lena smiled. “Let’s get moving. You’ll warm up soon enough.”
Their team split into groups. Amara, Dominic, and Lena led the way; Maria and Otis followed with the sleds. Wind swept across the ridge, ice cracking softly beneath their boots.
At the site, Lena began drilling. The machine hummed—then clunked hard.
“Stuck,” Otis muttered, kneeling beside it.
Dominic and Amara helped. Together, they twisted and pulled until the drill released with a loud snap. They all exhaled in relief.
Lena retrieved the ice core and froze. “Guys... look.”
The outer edge of the ice glinted with faint, silvery lines—like circuitry etched into it.
“That’s not natural,” Maria said, scanning it. “Metal embedded inside. An inch deep, maybe more.”
Otis frowned. “What the hell is that doing under the ice?”
Amara whispered, “Project Aurora…”
Clara’s voice crackled over the radio: “I’m heading to the satellite uplink for signal clarity. Keep me posted.”
Amara and Dominic exchanged a look. “We didn’t send her anywhere,” he muttered.
Lena’s face hardened. “We need to secure this site. If that’s tech under the ice... this is bigger than us.”
Dominic nodded. “Amara and I will head to the uplink. Let’s see what Clara’s really doing.”
Lena hesitated. “You think she’s hiding something?”
“We suspect,” Dominic said. “But we’ll find out.”
“Be careful,” Lena warned.
They climbed onto their snowmobiles and sped off into the freezing wind. Visibility dropped, but they pushed north, guided by the tracker.
The uplink station came into view: a low concrete bunker buried in snow, antennae reaching skyward like skeletal arms.
“Ready?” Dominic asked.
Amara nodded.
Inside, they found Clara hunched over a console, headphones on. She spun when she saw them.
“I thought you were at base!”
“Why are you here alone?” Dominic asked. “You left without telling us.”
“Lena said the signal data was glitchy,” Clara said quickly. “I needed better bandwidth to decode it.”
Amara stepped forward. “Then why didn’t you respond to my message? What was that midnight call?”
Clara hesitated, glancing at the screen. “It was from Command. An encrypted data packet. I was downloading it.”
Dominic crossed his arms. “You’re hiding something.”
Clara sighed. “Aurora is real. And it’s not just research—it’s experimental climate control. They’re trying to use polar energy to stabilize weather systems. But it’s going wrong. The ice is reacting in ways they didn’t predict.”
Amara’s eyes widened. “That pattern in the ice… it’s part of the project?”
Clara nodded. “The tech embedded under the glacier is one of several relay points. Our expedition was supposed to observe. They never told us the risks.”
Dominic clenched his jaw. “So we’ve been used.”
Clara swallowed. “I didn’t know until recently. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
Just then, the lights flickered. The radio blared: “Dominic! Amara! Big storm rolling in—ETA fifteen minutes!”
Lightning flashed outside. Dominic snapped into action. “Grab the data drives. We’re heading back—now.”
They gathered everything. Clara hugged Amara tightly. “I’m sorry for the secrets.”
“You did the right thing,” Amara said.
They piled into the communications truck. Snow whipped around them. Dominic drove with steady focus through the blizzard. Amara sat in the front, clutching the drives. Clara lay shivering in the back, wrapped in an emergency blanket.
“How is she?” Dominic asked quietly.
“Cold. Exhausted. But she told us the truth,” Amara replied.
“She trusted you,” Dominic said. “We’ll protect her.”
Red hazard lights blinked as they finally spotted base camp through the storm. Dominic pulled up fast. Barnes and the others rushed out, faces tight with worry.
They guided the trio inside and into the heated garage bay. Everyone gathered in the briefing room.
Dominic plugged the data into a laptop. Static hissed from the speaker—then a broken voice: “...Polar Code Red… Project Aurora… under the ice…”
Silence fell.
Barnes looked grim. “This confirms it. They’re manipulating the ice field.”
“What now?” Lena asked.
“We disable that equipment—quietly,” Barnes said. “At first light. No one outside this room hears a word until then.”
Amara met Dominic’s gaze. They had answers now—but more danger ahead.
Clara stepped forward, her voice soft. “Thank you. For believing me.”
“You earned it,” Amara replied, offering a gentle hug.
That night, after preparations were made, Amara and Dominic returned to their bunk. He pulled her close.
“You okay?” he asked.
“With you, I am,” she murmured.
He stroked her hair. “We’ll get through this.”
“I trust you.”
Dominic looked into her eyes. “I love you, Amara. More than anything.”
She kissed him. “I love you too.”
Outside, the storm eased. Dawn light began to rise
over the snowy world.
The Arctic still held its secrets. But inside the station, two hearts beat as one—united against whatever waited beneath the ice.
End of Signed To Be His Wife Chapter 38. Continue reading Chapter 39 or return to Signed To Be His Wife book page.