Chapter 19
1280 Words
Gwen
The door creaked open before I could lock it. I turned sharply, expecting an Omega or maybe my dad, but it was Justin.
He stepped inside like he belonged there. Like everything between us hadn’t already cracked and splintered into something twisted. I stood by the window, arms crossed, heart hammering.
“Gwen,” he said softly, closing the door behind him. “I’ve missed you.”
I didn’t answer. I watched him, the way his eyes tried to soften, how his expression mirrored guilt and something desperate. But I didn’t trust it. Not anymore.
“I know things have been...tense,” he went on. “But I wanted to talk. Just us. No one watching.”
I clenched my jaw. “There’s nothing left to talk about, Justin.”
His brow furrowed. “Don’t say that. You’re just confused. You don’t know what you want anymore. But I do. I want you. I’ve always wanted you.”
“You don’t love me,” I whispered. “Not really.”
He stepped closer. “Of course I do. Everything I’ve done—”
“Everything you’ve done?” I cut in, fire creeping into my voice. “Including Olivia? She was your fated mate and you destroyed her!”
He flinched but quickly recovered. “She doesn’t matter. The Moon Goddess made a mistake. She's not my real mate. She's an Omega.”
“She’s a person, Justin!” I exploded, my voice trembling. “She matters. She’s been through hell and you used her. Like she was nothing.”
His face hardened. “I did what I had to do.”
Tears stung at the corners of my eyes, but I wouldn’t let them fall. “If you really loved me—if any of this meant anything to you—you’d let me go.”
He shook his head, stepping forward again. “No. No, we’re meant to be together. The bond between us, it’s not fake. I can show you. I can remind you how it felt.”
“Justin, don’t—”
He grabbed my wrists, not harshly, but firmly. “Let me love you. Please, Gwen. Let me prove it to you.”
He pressed his lips to mine.
I went stiff, not kissing him back, heart racing for all the wrong reasons. His hands moved to my waist, pulling me closer. I shoved against his chest but he didn’t budge.
“Stop,” I said, voice cracking.
He didn’t.
Panic flared white-hot in my chest. I yanked one hand free, adrenaline crashing through me. “Justin—stop!”
And then I punched him.
I heard a satisfying crunch as my fist connected with his nose. Blood sprayed, and he stumbled back, clutching his face, eyes wide in shock.
The door burst open.
Karl’s voice thundered through the room. “What the hell is going on in here?”
Terrance was behind him, wide-eyed but quiet.
Justin snarled through the blood. “She attacked me!”
“I defended myself,” I snapped, chest heaving. “He tried to force himself on me. I told him no.”
Karl’s face darkened. “You struck an Alpha?”
“I protected myself,” I said again, louder this time. “You weren’t here. You didn’t see him.”
Terrance stepped forward, his voice calm but firm. “Maybe we should all slow down. She’s shaken. Let’s get her out of here and talk this through.”
Karl glared at me like I was filth under his boot. “There will be consequences for this.”
Let there be, I thought, staring him down.
Cain
I felt it like a jolt through my spine.
Panic. Fear. Raw, unchecked emotion lanced down the bond and hit me square in the chest, seizing my lungs. I was halfway down the hall before I realized I’d moved, my feet pounding toward Gwen’s room.
By the time I reached her door, the hallway was empty. Karl and Terrance had already left. Blood smeared the floor — not a lot, but enough to spike my rage. My knuckles clenched as I pushed open the door.
She was sitting on the floor, her back against the wall, cradling her hand. Her shoulders were shaking, but she didn’t look up when I stepped inside.
“Gwen,” I said, voice rough. “What happened? I felt—”
She raised her eyes to me, and I flinched at the devastation I saw there.
“It doesn’t matter,” she said flatly. “It’s none of your business anymore.”
I crouched beside her. “Don’t say that. Of course it matters. I—”
“You what?” she hissed. “You’ve kept secrets. You’ve used me. You’ve stood by while Karl and Justin and everyone else decided what I should be, where I should go, who I should belong to.”
I opened my mouth. Closed it again.
“I begged you,” she whispered. “Begged you to tell me the truth. I asked for help. And you—you just let me fall.”
My chest ached. “Gwen…”
She stood slowly, her hand still cradled to her chest. “I don’t want to see you again. I don’t want to feel this—this connection. I wish it was someone else.”
The bond between us trembled.
“I wish you were more like Achilles,” she said, her voice soft and cutting. “At least he listens.”
I stared at her, stunned silent.
She didn’t know.
She didn’t know Achilles was me.
And I couldn’t say a word.
She turned her back on me, and I let her.
Because she was right.
And I had no idea how to fix it.
Third Person POV
Terrance caught up to Karl just outside the main hall, closing the door behind them before Karl turned on him.
“She struck an Alpha!” Karl’s voice was low and furious. “Do you know how that makes us look with half the council arriving tomorrow?”
Terrance held his ground. “Justin tried to force himself on her.”
Karl scoffed. “He’s young. He made a mistake.”
Terrance’s voice sharpened. “It wasn’t a mistake. She told him no. That makes it assault.”
Karl stepped closer, teeth bared. “She disrespected a future Alpha. If you can’t keep your daughter under control, I will.”
“Do what you want to me,” Terrance said quietly. “But don’t touch her.”
Karl smirked. “After all these years, are you still hoping I’ll tell you where her mother is?”
Terrance didn’t answer.
“You think if you keep obeying, I’ll hand her back?” Karl sneered. “She’s long gone. You should’ve buried that hope with your pride.”
Terrance’s silence was carved from stone.
He had spent decades under Karl’s command, keeping his head low and his soul chained. Gwen thought he was just a quiet Beta who served loyally. She didn’t know that Karl had taken her mother from him — a woman Terrance had loved, had lost, and still dreamed of every time he closed his eyes.
He didn’t even know if she was alive.
But Gwen… Gwen was all he had left of her.
And he would keep her safe. Even if it killed him.
“I’ll handle Gwen,” Terrance said.
Karl turned and walked away, but Terrance remained in place, fists clenched, heart a battlefield of sorrow and secrets.
For now, he would stay silent.
But one day, Gwen would know the truth.
And he would be ready.
- Writer
