Claimed By The Twins Alphas

chapter 7

~ ROWAN’S POV

The silk dress was too soft. It felt like a layer of oil against my skin, a mockery of the rough, woollen tunics I had worn back at Lunar Crest. I stood in the middle of the massive suite, my ears ringing with the silence Julian had left behind. He had walked out like last night was a business transaction. Like my body was just a piece of paper he had signed.

I looked at the door. I looked at the window. I looked at the bed.

"I’m not staying in here," I whispered.

My inner wolf whined, a low, submissive sound that made me want to scream. She was confused. She felt the lingering warmth of the twins’ scents—the rain and the woodsmoke—and she wanted to curl up and wait for them to return. But I wasn't just a wolf. I was a woman who had been betrayed, sold, and branded.

I walked to the door and turned the handle. I expected it to be locked. I expected a click of defiance. Instead, it swung open with a smooth, silent motion.

The hallway was long and wide. It looked like a museum, not a home. The floors were polished marble that reflected the dim overhead lights. There were no wooden beams, no smell of pine or damp earth. Everything was glass, steel, and stone. It was a fortress built by people who didn't want to be part of the forest, but wanted to rule it from above.

I stepped out, my bare feet silent on the cold floor.

"Going somewhere, Miss Brooks?"

I jumped, spinning around. An Enforcer stood just five feet from my door. He was huge, his chest straining against a black tactical vest. He didn't look like a pack guard. He looked like a soldier.

"I’m going for a walk," I said, my voice steadying. "Is that against the rules?"

The Enforcer didn't blink. "The Alphas said you are free to roam the residential wing. Just stay away from the north exit."

"Thank you," I said shortly.

I started walking. I didn't have a plan, but I needed to know where I was. I needed to see the walls of my cage.

As I moved down the corridor, I noticed something small and black tucked into the corner of the ceiling. A camera. Its red light blinked once, twice, tracking my movement. I looked away, but as I turned the next corner, there was another one. And another.

Every ten feet, a lens followed me.

I passed a wide staircase and headed toward what looked like a living area. The scale of the place was dizzying. At Lunar Crest, the Alpha’s house was a cabin—a big one, but still a cabin. We gathered around fire pits. We ate at long wooden tables. Here, there were leather sofas that looked like they cost more than my father’s entire house. There were floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the city of Moon Haven, the lights twinkling like fallen stars.

I felt like an ant in a palace.

I reached a long gallery filled with paintings. I wasn't looking at the art. I was looking at the men.

Enforcers were everywhere. They stood at every doorway. They paced the balconies. They didn't talk. They didn't laugh. They just watched.

One of them, a man with a scar running through his eyebrow, stepped into my path as I tried to enter a side hallway.

"Restricted area," he said.

"I’m just looking for the garden," I lied.

"The garden is that way," he pointed back the way I came. "Don't wander off the path, Miss Brooks. We wouldn't want to lose you."

The way he said it made my skin crawl. He wasn't worried about me getting lost. He was reminding me that I was being tracked.

I turned around, my heart hammering. I needed to get away from the eyes. I saw a pair of heavy oak doors at the end of the hall. They were the only things in this house that looked old. I pushed them open and stepped inside.

The smell hit me first. Old paper, leather, and vanilla.

The library was massive. Two stories of books lined the walls, with a rolling ladder and small, private nooks tucked away behind the shelves. It was quiet here. The cameras were still there, I could see them near the vents, but the shadows were deeper.

I walked deeper into the room, running my fingers along the spines of the books. It was the first time I felt like I could breathe. There were no guards in here. Just me and the stories of people who were actually free.

"You have a preference for the classics, or are you just looking for a place to hide?"

I gasped, my hand flying to the mark on my neck.

Marcus was sitting in a high-backed armchair in the corner. He had a book open on his lap, but he wasn't reading. He was watching me with those calm, baby-blue eyes. Unlike Julian, who always looked like he was about to start a fire, Marcus looked like a still lake.

"I'm not hiding," I said, pulling my shoulders back. "I was exploring."

"And what do you think of our home?" Marcus asked. He closed the book and set it on the side table. He didn't stand up, which I was grateful for. His presence was already heavy enough.

"It's not a home," I said, my voice bolder than I intended. "It's an urban fortress. My old pack... we lived with the trees. You live in a machine."

Marcus tilted his head. A small, almost invisible smile touched his lips. "The world is changing, Rowan. Trees don't stop silver bullets. Stone and surveillance do."

"So that’s what the cameras are for? Silver bullets?" I stepped closer, my stubbornness pushing me forward. "Or are they for me?"

Marcus didn't flinch at my tone. "They are for everyone. Security is not a luxury we take lightly. In Moon Haven, everyone is a target. Especially those who belong to us."

"I don't belong to you," I snapped. "I’m a breeder. You made that very clear."

"Julian made that clear," Marcus corrected softly. "He has a way of being... blunt. He sees the world in terms of objectives. He wants a strong lineage. He wants to ensure the future of the Crescent Moon."

"And you? What do you want?"

Marcus stood up then. He was just as tall as Julian, just as built, but his movements were more controlled. He walked toward me, stopping just outside my personal space. The scent of rain and cool air rolled off him.

"I want the same thing," he said. "But I understand that a vessel is still a person. Tell me, Rowan. Back at Lunar Crest, what did you do when you weren't being betrayed by your mate?"

The mention of Dylan stung, but I didn't let it show. "I wrote. I read. I helped the healers with the herbs. I had a life."

"You like to write?" Marcus asked. He sounded genuinely curious. "What kind of things?"

"Stories," I said, looking away. "About people who get to choose their own endings."

"A beautiful sentiment," Marcus said. He reached out, his fingers hovering near my arm before he pulled back. "There are journals in the desk over there. Finest parchment. You are welcome to use them. If you need more books, tell the librarian. I’ll make sure you have whatever you need."

For a second, I forgot where I was. I forgot about the marks Julian had left on me. I forgot about the cameras. Marcus was looking at me like I was a person, not a prize. His blue eyes were soft, almost kind.

"Why are you being nice to me?" I asked. "Julian treats me like a dog."

"Julian is Julian," Marcus said. "He protects with his teeth. I prefer to protect with a foundation. We both want you to be comfortable, Rowan. It’s important for what’s coming."

I felt a chill. "What's coming?"

Marcus stepped a bit closer, his voice dropping an octave. It was still calm, but the Alpha authority was there, lurking beneath the surface.

"The pregnancy," he said. "The strain of carrying a child is significant. It will take a toll on your body. We’ve already discussed your diet and exercise routine with the pack doctor."

The warmth I had felt a moment ago vanished.

"A routine?" I whispered.

"We have to optimize your health," Marcus said, his tone turning clinical. "We’ve installed monitors in your suite to track your heart rate and sleep patterns. The food you were served this morning was specifically designed for your blood type. We need your body to be in peak condition to host the heir. Anything less would be a risk we aren't willing to take."

He wasn't being kind. He was being a mechanic. He was checking the oil in a car he planned to drive into the ground.

"Optimizing me," I repeated, my voice trembling with rage. "Like I'm a f*****g piece of hardware."

Marcus didn't seem to notice my anger. He just nodded. "Exactly. You’re precious cargo, Rowan. It’s time we started treating you like it."

He turned back to his book, leaving me standing there in the shadows of the library, feeling more like an object than I ever had when Julian was shouting at me.

I looked up at the camera in the corner. It was watching. It was always watching.