Chapter 4: An Impossible Bond
1237 Words
The scent of burning wolfsbane was intoxicating.
Thick, curling smoke filled the air of the luxurious honeymoon suite, the dim glow of the candles flickering against the walls. Kieran's breathing had slowed, his body heavy with heat, his head light with something unnatural.
Across from him, Alara shifted closer, her red silk robe slipping off one bare shoulder. Her golden eyes shimmered as she watched him, waiting. Hoping.
"You look tense, my love," she murmured, fingers grazing his arm. "You should relax… let go."
Kieran’s head swam. His instincts told him something was wrong—deadly wrong—but the pull of the scent clouded his senses.
Alara reached for him again, her touch deliberate, her lips curving. “Let me take care of you.”
But then, pain.
A sharp, searing agony ripped through his chest, so sudden that he staggered back, clutching his side. His fingers came away wet—blood.
His own blood.
Kieran’s pupils dilated.
This wasn’t just wolfsbane.
Nova. His mind pulled to her, again.
A deep, possessive snarl tore from his throat as a connection stronger than anything he’d ever known pulled at his soul. His mate. His real mate. She was in danger.
“Nova is not our mate!” He protested with his wolf, but every felt chaotic. Kieran's eyes snapped to Alara, and for the briefest second, confusion flickered across her face.
"Kieran?"
He shoved her away. Hard.
She gasped as she stumbled backward, hitting the edge of the bed.
But Kieran wasn’t looking at her anymore.
His mate was calling him.
And nothing—not Alara, not the wolfsbane—could hold him back.
In the blink of an eye, he vanished.
Nova didn't see them coming.
One moment, she was in her healing office, working on patient records. The next, the walls shattered, and shadows filled the room.
Rogues.
Four of them.
They moved fast—faster than the usual half-starved, desperate outcasts she’d encountered before. These ones had a purpose. A target.
Her.
Nova raised her arm just as the first one lunged. A devastating force slammed into her, sending her crashing against the desk. Sparks flew as her system registered the impact.
She barely had time to react before another set of claws raked across her shoulder, severing the synthetic flesh.
Her hand—her entire arm—ripped clean off.
A distorted alert buzzed in her system, warning her of critical damage. Her vision flickered.
She was losing stability.
But she wouldn't go down without a fight.
Nova swung her remaining fist, smashing into one attacker’s skull. He staggered, but the others pressed in.
Another clawed hand gripped her throat, lifting her.
“Not so strong now, are you?” one of them sneered.
Her circuits flared, struggling to repair the damage.
Nova kicked out, shoving the rogue away—but she was outnumbered. Overpowered.
And then, just as the final blow was about to land—
A monstrous snarl split the air.
The temperature dropped.
The rogues froze, eyes widening in horror as a dark figure stepped into the broken room.
Kieran.
His electric blue eyes burned in the darkness, his chest still slick with his own blood.
His power surged like a storm, rattling the very walls.
The rogues panicked.
“W-we were only following orders—”
Their pleas meant nothing.
Kieran moved.
Faster than sight.
One rogue's neck snapped before he could scream.
Another was impaled through the chest, blood splattering the floor.
The last two tried to run.
They didn’t make it.
Kieran tore through them like a beast possessed.
The room was silent again.
Only Nova’s broken breaths filled the space.
Kieran turned, his gaze falling on her.
She was slumped against the corner, her damaged body barely holding together.
He stepped forward, crouching before her. His eyes raked over her wounds, over the torn wires where her arm used to be.
A strange look crossed his face.
“You seem weaker than I expected,” he muttered.
Nova’s lips curled. “And you seem like a damn hypocrite.”
He arched a brow.
Nova forced herself upright, her systems barely keeping her stable. “You sent those rogues to kill me, didn’t you?” Her voice was sharp, accusing. “Now, you expect me to believe you’re some kind of hero?”
Kieran exhaled slowly, expression unreadable.
Then, to her utter shock—
He picked up her severed arm.
“Don’t move.”
“What the hell are you—”
She gasped as a jolt of unfamiliar energy surged through her.
Kieran’s hands worked with an unnatural precision, reconnecting her severed limb, his touch both firm and calculated.
It shouldn’t be possible. It would take Lucian weeks to do so and any normal, intellectual human, several years.
This kind of repair—it was beyond him.
And yet…
Her fingers twitched. Her circuits rebooted. As if he had an idea of who she was. Of what she was.
Her arm reattached.
Nova stared at him, chest rising and falling rapidly. “What are you?” she whispered.
Kieran smirked. “You’ll be fine.”
She clenched her fists. “Don’t follow me.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
She pushed past him, disappearing into the night.
But Kieran didn’t move for a long moment.
His own fingers still tingled with the energy he’d just used.
Something wasn’t right.
Something about her—about them—was beyond anything he’d ever known.
The next morning, Kieran sat across from Lucian in the hotel’s grand lounge.
His order was simple.
For the next five days, Nova would serve him.
Lucian laughed.
Hard.
“She’s a healing machine, Kieran. Not a robot maid, or your personal assistant.”
Kieran’s expression remained cold. “She’s mine.”
Lucian’s gaze darkened. “She’s not a possession.”
Silence stretched.
Alara, seated beside Kieran, watched the exchange with barely concealed surprise. Her mate had ordered something—demanded something—without telling her first.
Lucian leaned forward. “You want her to serve you? What the hell does that even mean?”
Kieran met his gaze. “It means I want her close.”
Lucian scoffed. “You’re playing a dangerous game, Alpha.”
“I don’t play games.”
Lucian exhaled, running a hand through his hair.
Kieran was serious.
Deadly serious.
But Lucian wouldn’t bend.
Nova wasn’t some toy for the Alpha to command at will.
Kieran’s jaw tightened. “If you refuse, I leave.”
Alara’s breath hitched. “Kieran—”
He ignored her.
Lucian folded his arms. “Then leave.”
Silence.
Then, after a long pause, Kieran exhaled slowly. “I’ll give you time to think about it. If I don't get a reply in two hours, I'll be leaving.”
Lucian’s eyes flashed. “I don’t need time. This idea is crazy! Nova won't do it!”
Kieran smirked. “Is there anything you can't do around here? I mean... Aren't you her boss? Make her do it.”
With that, he stood and walked away.
Alara stared after him, her mind spinning.
Kieran wanted Nova. And that was a problem. A very, very big problem.
Outside, Kieran’s electric blue eyes flickered once more.
He flexed his fingers.
He could still feel it.
That strange pull.
And for the first time in his life…
He wasn’t sure if he wanted to fight it.
- Writer
