THE SCENT OF LIES
1542 Words
Lila didn’t sleep.
Not really.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the necklace.
The dried blood.
The haunted look in Kaiser’s golden eyes.
And worst of all—
The way he’d looked at her.
Not like a woman.
Not even like a person.
Like a memory.
A ghost wearing someone else’s face.
By dawn, exhaustion had settled into her bones.
The city below glowed beneath a pale gray sky as sunlight filtered through the penthouse windows.
For a moment, she forgot where she was.
Then reality crashed back.
The contract.
The cage.
Alpha Kaiser.
A sharp knock interrupted her thoughts.
Three precise taps.
Not loud.
Not impatient.
Controlled.
Everything in this place seemed controlled.
Lila opened the door.
A maid stood outside.
She couldn’t have been older than twenty-five.
“Good morning, Miss Hart.”
Lila blinked.
Nobody had ever called her Miss Hart before.
Usually it was Blank.
Girl.
Hey, you.
The simple respect felt strangely uncomfortable.
“Morning.”
The maid offered a small smile.
“Alpha Kaiser requests your presence at breakfast.”
Requests.
Not orders.
Interesting.
“What happens if I decline?”
The maid’s smile vanished.
The answer was obvious.
Lila sighed.
“I’ll be there.”
The maid nodded and disappeared.
Twenty minutes later, Lila followed the scent of coffee through the penthouse.
Her stomach twisted with nerves.
She hadn’t seen Kaiser since the closet.
And honestly?
She wasn’t eager to.
The dining room was larger than her entire apartment had been.
A long black table stretched across the room.
Sunlight poured through towering windows.
And at the far end sat Kaiser.
Reading reports.
Looking like he owned the world.
Which, in many ways, he probably did.
He didn’t look up when she entered.
Didn’t acknowledge her.
Didn’t even seem aware she existed.
Lila hesitated.
Then sat down.
The distance between them could have fit twenty people.
Breakfast appeared almost immediately.
Fresh fruit.
Eggs.
Pastries.
Coffee.
Enough food for a royal family.
Lila stared.
Kaiser turned a page.
“Eat.”
The command broke the silence.
She grabbed a piece of toast.
Mostly because she didn’t know what else to do.
Minutes passed.
The silence became unbearable.
Finally she spoke.
“So.”
Nothing.
“You always interrogate your guests with breakfast?”
Still nothing.
Lila frowned.
“Or do you usually ignore them completely?”
That got a reaction.
Kaiser’s eyes lifted from the report.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
His gaze landed on her.
The effect was immediate.
Every muscle in her body tightened.
Predator.
That was the only word for him.
Not man.
Not Alpha.
Predator.
Dangerous.
Beautiful.
Deadly.
“What exactly are you trying to accomplish?”
His voice was calm.
Lila shrugged.
“Conversation.”
“You dislike silence.”
“I dislike awkward silence.”
Kaiser’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“You’ll find this house contains a great deal of it.”
“Because nobody likes talking to you?”
A dangerous glimmer appeared in his eyes.
For a second she thought she’d gone too far.
Then—
Unexpectedly—
The corner of his mouth twitched.
Not a smile.
Not quite.
But close enough to shock her.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The mighty Alpha apparently possessed facial muscles after all.
The moment vanished.
His expression hardened once more.
“Tell me about yourself.”
The request caught her off guard.
She immediately became cautious.
“Why?”
“Because I asked.”
“That’s not an answer.”
His eyes darkened.
“Neither was that.”
The atmosphere shifted.
Subtly.
Dangerously.
Like stepping onto thin ice and hearing the first c***k.
Lila looked away first.
Coward.
No.
Survivor.
There was a difference.
“What do you want to know?”
Kaiser folded his hands.
“Your childhood.”
Lie.
Immediately.
Instinctively.
The truth had never protected her.
“My father died when I was young.”
True.
“My mother raised me.”
True.
“We moved around a lot.”
Also true.
Kaiser remained expressionless.
She continued.
“We never belonged to a pack.”
Lie.
A tiny one.
Small enough to slip unnoticed into the truth.
Or so she thought.
His eyes sharpened.
Dangerously.
“Liar.”
The single word slammed into her.
Lila froze.
“What?”
“I said you’re lying.”
Her pulse stumbled.
How?
How could he know?
Kaiser leaned back in his chair.
Watching her.
Studying her.
Like a scientist examining an insect.
“Wolves smell fear.”
He tilted his head.
“We smell anger.”
Another pause.
“We smell desire.”
Lila’s face heated.
Kaiser ignored it.
“And we smell lies.”
A chill ran down her spine.
Of course.
Wolf senses.
She should have remembered.
The problem was—
She wasn’t used to dealing with powerful Alphas.
Especially not ones who could apparently smell dishonesty.
Lila forced a smile.
“Maybe you’re mistaken.”
His eyes flashed.
Gold.
Bright.
Predatory.
Ancient.
The sight stole her breath.
“No.”
For the first time, genuine tension entered his voice.
“I am never mistaken.”
The statement should have sounded arrogant.
Instead it sounded factual.
Like gravity.
Like death.
Like the rising sun.
Certain.
Unavoidable.
Lila looked away.
Trying to think.
Trying to recover.
Trying not to panic.
Because she suddenly had the horrifying realization that living here would mean lying became almost impossible.
And some truths absolutely could not be told.
Not yet.
Not ever.
The silence stretched.
Then Kaiser stood.
Towering over the table.
Towering over her.
Towering over everything.
He walked around the length of the room.
Slow.
Steady.
Deliberate.
Lila’s pulse quickened.
One step.
Two.
Three.
Until he stood directly beside her chair.
Far too close.
The scent of cedar and winter surrounded her instantly.
She hated how aware of him she became.
Every breath.
Every movement.
Every shift of muscle.
Predator.
Predator.
Predator.
Kaiser extended his hand.
“Look at me.”
Lila did.
And immediately regretted it.
Those golden eyes felt impossible to escape.
Like falling into fire.
“Tell me the truth.”
His voice dropped lower.
Softer.
More dangerous.
“What are you hiding?”
Her throat tightened.
Everything.
I’m hiding everything.
But she couldn’t say that.
So she lied again.
“I have nothing to hide.”
The gold in his eyes brightened.
His jaw clenched.
And suddenly—
His hand shot forward.
Grabbing her wrist.
The contact sent a shock through her.
Not pain.
Not exactly.
Something stranger.
Something hotter.
Something alive.
For one impossible second, the world stopped.
Kaiser’s eyes widened.
A sharp breath escaped him.
And then—
He recoiled.
Violently.
As though he’d touched fire.
Lila stumbled backward.
Heart racing.
“What the hell—?”
Kaiser stared at his hand.
Shock carved into every line of his face.
Real shock.
Not controlled.
Not hidden.
Genuine.
Raw.
Impossible.
The room fell silent.
Neither moved.
Neither spoke.
Something had happened.
Something neither understood.
Then Kaiser abruptly turned away.
Mask snapping back into place.
“Breakfast is over.”
Lila blinked.
“What?”
His voice became cold again.
“I have work.”
“Kaiser—”
“Leave.”
The command cracked through the room.
Not shouted.
Worse.
Controlled.
Final.
Lila stared at him.
Questions burned inside her.
But one look at his face told her she wouldn’t get answers.
Not today.
Maybe not ever.
So she left.
Confused.
Frustrated.
And strangely unsettled.
An hour later, she found Dorian in the penthouse library.
The Beta looked up from a tablet.
“You look troubled.”
“Your Alpha is insane.”
Dorian laughed.
Actually laughed.
The sound surprised her.
“That’s not exactly breaking news.”
Lila crossed her arms.
“Something happened.”
Dorian’s amusement faded.
“What kind of something?”
She hesitated.
Then explained.
The interrogation.
The lies.
The wrist grab.
The reaction.
The shock.
As she spoke, Dorian’s expression changed.
First curiosity.
Then confusion.
Then something close to disbelief.
When she finished, he stared at her.
“You’re certain?”
“Pretty hard to miss.”
Dorian sat back slowly.
Silent.
Thinking.
Lila hated when powerful men did that.
It usually meant bad news.
Finally she asked—
“What?”
The Beta shook his head.
A strange look entered his eyes.
“I’ve known Kaiser for fifteen years.”
Lila waited.
Dorian continued.
“I’ve seen him break bones with his bare hands.”
Not comforting.
“I’ve seen him survive poison.”
Less comforting.
“I’ve seen him stare down entire packs.”
Definitely not comforting.
His gaze locked onto hers.
“But I’ve never seen him react to anyone that way.”
A knot formed in Lila’s stomach.
“What does that mean?”
Dorian’s expression darkened.
For the first time since meeting him, he looked uneasy.
Genuinely uneasy.
“I don’t know.”
The answer somehow felt worse.
Because if Dorian didn’t know—
Then whatever had happened wasn’t normal.
Not even by werewolf standards.
And somewhere inside her chest, a tiny voice whispered a terrifying possibility.
Maybe Alpha Kaiser Valen wasn’t the only one hiding secrets.
Maybe she was, too.
The problem was—
She didn’t know what they were yet.
And somehow, that frightened her more than anything.
- Writer
