Fangs of Love

Chapter Fifteen

Cassiopeia Nyx

"I can never accept him Hera".

Her presence was like a low hum, persistent, ever-present in the back of my mind.

"Mate... bond," Hera growled softly, her voice echoing in my head with a raw, primal edge. "Him. He is ours. We are his. Forever."

The way she spoke... it felt like i was talking to a different voice-different from the one earlier, her aura had changed and i could feel it, my words had evoked something in her, It was something deeper, more instinctual, something that tugged at the core of me. The Alpha King seemed to bring out her true and uncontrollable primal nature and that itself reflected in her speech and voice.

I recoiled slightly, shaking my head even though she couldn't see me. "What does that even mean?" I muttered, my voice laced with frustration.

"Mate bond," Hera repeated, her voice lower now, almost a rumble. "Strong. Stronger than fear, stronger than pain. His soul calls to us. We must answer."

Soul? Bond? I felt a wave of confusion and disbelief wash over me. This was too much, too fast. I hadn't asked for any of this - for him, for her, for this bond that seemed to entrap me more than free me. My mind spun, trying to grasp what Hera was telling me, but it didn't make any sense.

"How can he be mine?" I whispered, pacing the bathroom as my thoughts spiraled. "He doesn't even know me. I don't even know myself."

"You must get to know him," Hera's voice came again, primal and absolute. "You can't escape it human. It is deep and inside us. He needs us. We need him. This... is nature."

Her words made something in me tremble, an instinct I'd buried deep down, something I had refused to acknowledge. But need? That couldn't be right. How could I need him, someone so powerful, so dangerous?

"No," I said firmly, pressing my palms against my temples, trying to block her out. "It's not real. You're wrong."

"I'm always right, human," Hera growled, her voice sharper now, more insistent, pushing at the barrier I was lifting again "Mate bond is truth. Felt in the heart." She growled again, and this time, I felt a strange tug in my chest, like a thread was being pulled taut, connecting me to something - to someone.

Xeros.

I swallowed hard, my body tensing as a strange warmth tried to surge through me. The memory of his touch, his eyes on me, how my wolf had stirred when I saw him - it all came flooding back.

"No," I repeated, more to myself than her. "This can't be real. It's all a mistake."

"Not mistake!" Hera's voice snapped in my head, fierce and undeniable. "He is ours. We are his. No mistake in bond. Only truth."

I gritted my teeth, shaking my head violently as if I could shake her words out of my mind. "If that's true, why do I feel this way? Why am I still scared? Why do I feel like I can't trust him?"

"Fear... pain," Hera's voice softened now, the edge gone but still primal. "They all cloud you. You have to let it go. But bond is truth. We see him. He will protect us. He will heal us."

Love? I let out a bitter laugh, the sound harsh and foreign in the quiet room. "Love?" I scoffed. "No one loves me, Hera. No one ever has. Not even you"

"I do and so does our mate," Hera's voice was calm, but unwavering. "He will."

My chest tightened painfully at her words, a deep ache spreading through me. How could she believe that? How could she think anyone, let alone someone like him, could love someone as broken as me?

"My own parents didn't even love me," I whispered, my voice breaking. "Why would he?"

There was silence for a moment, and then Hera spoke again, her tone softer but still carrying that convincing edge. "Our father is a heartless monster, and the loss of our mother drove him mad. Xeros can never hurt us, he loves us and we love him."

Tears welled in my eyes, but I shook my head, trying to shut her out, trying to block out the hope that threatened to rise inside me. Hope was dangerous. Hope got you hurt. "No," I said, my voice trembling. "I can't... I can't believe that. i don't love anybody"

"Let it go, Human" Hera pushed firmly, and I could feel her presence recede slightly, as if giving me space, though she remained ever-present. "He is mate. We are his. He will not leave."

But I couldn't accept that. I couldn't allow myself to believe in something so fragile, something that would only lead to more pain. My heart had been shattered too many times, and I had learned long ago not to trust anyone, not even myself.

So I did the only thing I could - I pushed her away.

"I can't," I whispered, forcing her out, shutting down the connection, slamming the door on whatever bond we shared. I could feel her trying to stay, lingering at the edges of my mind, but I forced her out, locking her away in the deepest part of me.

The silence that followed was deafening.

I stood there, staring at my reflection in the mirror, my eyes still glowing faintly with the remnants of Hera's presence, but they were my eyes again. Just mine.

I was already weak and vulnerable, Love wasn't a baggage I wanted to add to the weight on my shoulders because I knew, I could handle anything physically but the woes of love pierced and tore more than poker irons and jagged whips. It was something that would destroy me completely.

There was a reason why I was cursed, I didn't deserve anything good and despite how promising Hera's words were, I knew the Moon Goddess would never put something so special in my life. I wasn't worth it and so was the Alpha King.

Our union was nothing but a cruel trick played by the Moon Goddess.