Claimed By The Twin Alphas

Chapter Eleven: Dante’s Concern

DANTE'S POV

I stood outside Lara's sitting room after leaving her alone with her thoughts, but I couldn't make myself walk away. My hand was still on the door handle, and everything in me wanted to go back inside, to hold her while she fell apart, to tell her she didn't have to figure this out alone.

But I couldn't do that. I was just her guard. Her friend, if I were lucky. Nothing more.

I'd been in love with Lara since we were fifteen years old.

We'd grown up together in Silverbrook Village, and I'd watched her struggle through every deaf week while other kids mocked her. Watched her try so hard to be perfect, to prove she was worth something despite being broken. And I'd fallen for her, slowly and completely, knowing the entire time that it could never be anything more than a silent, one-sided ache.

She was an omega. I was just a guard's son, training to follow in my father's footsteps. The gap between us might as well have been an ocean.

When her father appointed me as her personal bodyguard three years ago, I'd thought it was a gift and a curse wrapped together. I got to be near her every day, protect her, and make her smile. But I also had to watch Alpha after Alpha court her, knowing one of them would eventually claim her.

And then Kael had chosen her.

Watching him announce her as his Luna at the Claiming Ball had felt like something vital being ripped out of my chest. I'd stood in that crowd, applauding with everyone else, while inside I was dying.

But this, these mate bond marks, the Vale twins appearing and claiming she was fated to them, this changed everything.

And it terrified me.

Because if Lara chose the twins, if she left Kael, I'd lose her completely. She'd go to Frostborn territory, and I'd never see her again.

But if she stayed with Kael, if she ignored the mate bond, I had a feeling something terrible was going to happen. I'd been noticing things over the past few months. Strange meetings between Kael and Alden. Whispered conversations that stopped when I entered rooms. The way Alden looked at Lara sometimes, like she was a piece on a game board rather than a person.

I didn't trust them. Either of them.

I was about to finally walk away when I felt it, vibrations through the stone floor. Heavy footsteps, moving fast, coming down the corridor toward Lara's chambers.

My instincts kicked in immediately. I knocked sharply on the door, three quick raps that Lara would feel even if she couldn't hear, then opened it without waiting for permission.

She was still sitting by the fireplace, her head in her hands, and she looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes. Before she could sign anything, I was moving quickly across the room.

My hands flew in urgent signs. Someone's coming. Fast.

She stood immediately, wiping at her eyes, but there wasn't time to compose herself properly. The footsteps were right outside now.

I barely had time to step back to a respectful distance before the door swung open without even a knock.

Alden Vey strode in like he owned the place, his cold eyes sweeping the room and landing immediately on Lara. Then on me. Then back to Lara.

"Luna," he said, and I watched his lips form the word. "I hope I'm not interrupting."

The tone suggested he didn't care if he was. He didn't wait for an invitation, just walked further into the room, his gaze sharp and assessing.

Lara's hands came up to sign, but I stepped forward slightly, speaking aloud. "Councilman Alden. The Luna was resting after the council breakfast. Is there something urgent?"

His eyes cut to me, dismissive. "I need to speak with the Luna privately. You're dismissed, guard."

Every protective instinct in me rebelled against leaving her alone with him, but I had no grounds to refuse. I wasn't her mate. I wasn't even a part of the family. I was just a guard, and he outranked me completely.

I looked at Lara, trying to convey with my eyes that she didn't have to agree to this. Her hands moved quickly. It's fine, Dante. I'll call if I need you.

I bowed my head stiffly, the gesture barely respectful. "As you wish, Luna."

But as I moved toward the door, I caught the way Alden was staring at Lara's wrists. Both wrists, covered by those long sleeves. His expression was calculating, like he was working out a puzzle.

"Actually," Alden said as I reached the door, "perhaps you should stay, Dante. This concerns pack security."

I turned back, surprised. Lara looked equally confused.

Alden moved closer to her, and I saw her tense. His lips moved as he addressed her directly. "Luna, I need to ask you about an incident this morning. The Vale twins forced their way into the palace and were seen heading toward your chambers."

Lara's face remained carefully neutral. She signed back, and I translated aloud even though Alden probably couldn't read sign language. "The Luna says she didn't see anyone this morning. She was preparing for the council breakfast."

Alden's eyes never left Lara's face. "That's what Alpha Kael told me you said. But here's what I find interesting." He took another step closer, and I moved slightly, positioning myself between them without making it obvious. "Palace servants reported hearing voices from these chambers around the time the twins were seen in this corridor."

My stomach dropped. We hadn't accounted for servants overhearing.

Lara's hands trembled slightly as she signed. I translated, keeping my voice steady. "The Luna was speaking with me during that time. I brought news of the council breakfast."

"Hmm." Alden's gaze finally shifted to me, assessing. "How convenient that you were here to provide an alibi."

"It's not an alibi," I said coldly. "It's the truth."

"Is it?" He turned back to Lara, and his next words made my blood run cold. "Then you won't mind showing me your wrists, Luna. Just to ease my concerns."

Lara went completely still. I watched her face pale, watched her hands instinctively move to cover her wrists.

"Why would the Luna need to show you her wrists?" I asked, trying to buy her time. "What concerns could—"

"Mate bond marks," Alden cut me off, his eyes gleaming with something predatory. "They appear when true fated mates first see each other. Silvery marks that glow and can't be hidden forever."

He knew. Somehow, he knew about the marks.

Lara's hands were shaking now as she signed. I could barely keep my voice steady as I translated. "The Luna asks what this has to do with the Vale twins."

Alden smiled, and it was the coldest thing I'd ever seen. "Everything, my dear Luna. Because if the twins really were here this morning, if they really spoke to you, then those marks would have appeared. And if you're hiding them under those sleeves, well..." He stepped closer, ignoring my subtle move to block him. "That would mean you've been lying to your Alpha. And we both know what happens to Lunas who betray their Alphas."

The threat hung in the air like a blade.

Lara stood frozen, her eyes wide with fear. I could see her trying to figure out what to do, what to say, how to protect herself.

And then Alden's hand shot out, grabbing her wrist before either of us could react.

He yanked up her sleeve, and there it was. The silvery mate bond mark glowed bright against her skin.

His smile widened into something vicious and triumphant.

"Well, well," he said, his lips moving slowly so she could read every word. "It seems we have a problem, don't we, Luna?"