MY HUMBLE VIOLETTA

MATE

AUTHOR'S POV

Kai screamed all the way back to the company. He cried and begged them to let him go, saying he was forced to do it. But none of them paid any attention to him.

As soon as they arrived, they grabbed him and dragged him into the company.

Everyone stared at Kai, murmuring among themselves as they watched the men drag him to a room.

Kai kept his eyes shut throughout the walk through the company, already accepting his fate.

The moment the door shut, Kai's eyes snapped open.

“Please.” His voice came out smaller than he intended. “Please just let me go. Whatever you need, I’ll cooperate. Just don’t hurt me.”

They exchanged glances.

“We don't want to hurt you,” the one closest to him said.

Kai blinked against the tears in his eyes.

“You missed your mandatory health check at the company yesterday,” the man continued. “We were sent to confirm your status.”

The room went very quiet.

“My status,” Kai repeated.

“Whether you’re an Omega.” The man said it flatly. “You know, the mandatory check-up.”

Kai couldn't believe he had been crying because he thought they were here to kill him.

Before he could find a single word to say, the front door opened again.

Mr. Hanes walked in like a storm. “There you are!” He pointed at Kai before he was even fully inside. “Do you have any idea… any idea at all — what you put me through yesterday?”

He grabbed Kai by the arm and started pulling him toward the door.

“Sir –”

“Not a word.” He held up a hand. “I had to get on my knees — my knees, Kai… and beg those men to let another group present first. Do you know how that felt?”

He didn't wait for an answer. He just dragged Kai away.

“I’m sorry,” Kai said, still trying to catch up with everything that was happening.

Mr. Hanes stopped at the door, turned, and shoved a thick folder of documents into Kai’s chest. “You’re presenting now. Today. This morning. Right now.” He straightened his jacket. “And you better make it worth every second of humiliation I went through.”

He walked in. Kai followed.

He had no other option.

Kai stepped in behind Mr. Hanes and stopped walking immediately.

The brothers were seated across the table, their expressions unfriendly.

Kai quickly recognized two of the brothers.

The dark-haired one from the corridor… the one with the sharp jaw and the voice that carried — sat to the left. The one with the unreadable eyes, the one Kai had nearly walked into at the corner, sat to the right.

Between them was a third, who looked more dangerous.

All three of them looked at Kai at the same time.

The dark-haired one’s brows knitted slowly in recognition.

Kai’s heart dropped to the floor.

“Get yourself together,” Mr. Hanes whispered in his ear.

“I can't —”

Mr. Hanes ignored him and turned to the brothers. “Once again, my apologies and my gratitude.” He turned to Kai, who was still shaking like jelly. “He's the most talented man on the team. Please feel free to ask any questions.”

Then Mr. Hanes stepped aside.

Kai stood alone in front of them.

He touched his face without thinking. The cut was still there, not fully healed … a thin line running along his cheek. He watched the dark-haired one’s eyes follow the movement and land on the mark.

None of them said anything.

He knew they knew. But he didn't know why they weren't saying anything, which was worse than if they had said something.

Mr. Hanes cleared his throat from the corner.

Kai opened the folder.

His hands were shaking, so he pressed them flat against the documents for a second before he started talking. His voice came out unsteady as he tried to explain the project.

He paused after every few sentences, bracing for something … a hand raised, a word spoken, someone standing up and pointing at him and saying, “That’s him.” But it never came.

By the time he reached the last page, his voice had steadied. Not because he was calm, but because there was nothing left to do except finish and get the hell away from here.

Their silence was enough to reassure him that they hadn't recognized him. And he wasn't ready to change that.

He closed the folder.

The one in the middle leaned forward and pointed at the documents. “Come here. Explain this part.”

Kai's heart practically jumped.

He looked at Mr. Hanes for help but met nothing but a hardened expression.

Reluctantly, he walked over.

The man pushed the documents toward him. “Explain this part,” he repeated, pointing.

Kai swallowed hard, forcing the words out. His eyes kept flicking between the brothers by the side, who were watching him like predators.

He was torn apart.

Do they recognize him? Do they not?

These questions kept running through his head.

When he finished, the man leaned back. “Good presentation,” he said. He looked at Mr. Hanes. “That will be all for today.”

All three of them stood up at the same time.

Kai flinched backward. His heel caught on nothing and he stumbled, arms reaching out for balance.

The three brothers moved at once. The one on the left grabbed his left hand. The one on the right grabbed his right hand. And the one in the middle held his shirt.

They all stood still, staring at each other, almost breathless.

And one single word ran through the brothers' minds. Their wolves stirred as the word came out.

Mate.