Chapter 11: The Captured Stranger
764 Words
My heart stopped.
"Your father knew about the mate bond before either of us were born."
The words echoed through my mind.
Over and over.
Impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
I stared at Damien.
Waiting for him to laugh.
Waiting for him to admit it was some kind of joke.
He didn't.
His expression remained completely serious.
Which somehow made everything worse.
"No."
The word escaped before I could stop it.
Damien didn't react.
"No?"
"No."
I shook my head.
"That's impossible."
His eyes softened slightly.
"It's true."
Frustration exploded inside me.
"How?"
Neither Damien nor Ethan answered immediately.
Of course.
My wolf sighed dramatically.
"They never answer immediately."
"Not helping."
"Just stating facts."
I ignored her.
Damien folded his arms.
"Your father knew things most people didn't."
The answer only made me angrier.
"What things?"
Silence.
Again.
I threw my hands into the air.
"This is unbelievable."
"Ava."
"No."
I pointed at him.
"Every answer comes with five more secrets."
Something that looked suspiciously like amusement flashed through Ethan's eyes.
I glared at him too.
It disappeared immediately.
Good.
Damien rubbed the back of his neck.
A rare sign of discomfort.
"I can't tell you everything."
"There it is."
His jaw tightened.
"The truth is dangerous."
"The truth is always dangerous."
For a moment neither of us spoke.
Then Ethan unexpectedly broke the silence.
"Your father wasn't just a member of the Crescent Guard."
My attention snapped toward him.
Damien's eyes narrowed.
"Ethan."
Too late.
The Beta had already spoken.
"What does that mean?"
Ethan hesitated.
Then sighed.
"He was one of its leaders."
The room spun.
"What?"
Nobody answered.
My pulse exploded.
Leader?
My father?
The man everyone called a traitor?
Nothing made sense anymore.
Every answer shattered another piece of the life I thought I understood.
I sat heavily in my chair.
The movement suddenly felt necessary.
Because standing seemed impossible.
My father had led an ancient organization.
He had known Damien.
Known about the mate bond.
And died protecting me.
Who exactly had he been?
A sharp pain exploded behind my eyes.
I gasped.
The room vanished.
Again.
Darkness swallowed everything.
Then—
A vision.
Moonlight.
Trees.
Voices.
My father stood beside a woman I had never seen before.
She was beautiful.
Not in a delicate way.
In a dangerous way.
Silver hair.
Sharp eyes.
Power radiated from her.
Even through the vision.
She looked worried.
My father looked worse.
Tired.
Desperate.
As though time was running out.
"The child must never know."
The woman spoke first.
My stomach tightened.
The child.
Me.
My father nodded slowly.
"Not until she's ready."
The woman stepped closer.
"Not until the bond awakens."
My heart hammered.
Bond?
Mate bond?
The vision flickered.
The woman's expression darkened.
"They'll come for her."
Fear crossed my father's face.
The first real fear I'd ever seen.
"Then we hide her."
The vision shattered.
I sucked in a breath.
Reality slammed back into place.
Damien was kneeling beside me.
Again.
Apparently collapsing in front of Damien was becoming a habit.
I hated that.
"What did you see?"
His voice was tense.
I blinked rapidly.
Trying to steady myself.
"A woman."
The room went still.
"A woman?"
I nodded.
Silver hair.
Sharp eyes.
The moment I described her, Ethan swore.
Damien's face hardened.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
"You know her."
Neither answered.
Which meant yes.
Obviously.
Before I could press further, the office door burst open.
A warrior rushed inside.
Breathing hard.
Pale.
Terrified.
Every person in the room immediately stood.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
"Alpha."
Damien stepped forward.
"What happened?"
The warrior swallowed.
His eyes flicked toward me.
Then back to Damien.
"We found him."
The room froze.
A chill crawled down my spine.
Found who?
Damien's expression darkened.
"Explain."
The warrior took a shaky breath.
"The stranger."
My heart stopped.
The messenger.
The man with the necklace.
The man who claimed my father sent him.
My pulse exploded.
"What?"
The word left my mouth before I could stop it.
The warrior nodded.
"We captured him near the northern border."
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
Even Damien looked stunned.
Which terrified me.
Because Damien was never stunned.
Ever.
The warrior shifted nervously.
"He's asking for her."
Every muscle in my body locked.
For me?
Why?
How?
The room suddenly felt too small.
Too hot.
Too dangerous.
Damien's expression turned to stone.
"What did he say?"
The warrior swallowed.
Then answered.
The words sent ice through my veins.
"He says Ava already knows who he is."
I stared at the warrior.
My heart pounding wildly.
Because I didn't know him.
Did I?
- Writer
