Chapter15
1739 Words
Caius's Confession
POV: Caius
The moment her panic hit me through the bond, I knew something was wrong. I'd been in my room, trying to focus on game footage, trying not to think about her on a date with that Beta pretty boy. Trying to ignore the jealousy eating me alive from the inside out.
Then suddenly, fear. Sharp and acidic, flooding through a connection that shouldn't even exist anymore. We'd rejected each other. The bond should be dead. Severed. Gone.
But I felt her terror like it was my own. My wolf surged forward, demanding I find her, protect her, kill anyone who'd made her afraid. I was out of the mansion before I could think, following the pull of the bond like a rope tied around my heart.
The guards tried to stop me. I ordered them to follow instead. I tracked her across the city, my wolf's senses sharper than they'd ever been. Her scent lingered in the air, jasmine and roses mixed with Drake Sterling's cologne and underneath it all, the acrid smell of fear.
When I found the Mercedes doing eighty down a residential street, SUVs in pursuit, something in me snapped completely.
My mate was in danger.
Mine. To protect. To keep safe. To f*****g murder anyone who threatened her.
I followed them to the safe house, waited just long enough to make sure the immediate threat was gone, then came for her.
And found her alone with him. That Beta who thought he had any right to touch her, to look at her, to breathe the same f*****g air.
The door was nothing. Kindling. My wolf gave me the strength to rip it off its hinges.
My guards poured in, securing the room, but I only had eyes for her.
Serenye sat on the couch, a gun in her hands, her dress torn at the hem, hair wild around her face. She looked terrified and furious and so f*****g beautiful it hurt.
And Drake Sterling stood between us like he had any right to protect what was mine.
"Get away from my mate," I snarled, barely able to form words through the rage. "Now."
Drake didn't move. Brave or stupid, I couldn't tell which. "She's not your mate. You rejected her, remember?"
"The bond says otherwise." I stalked forward, my guards moving with me. "Last chance, Sterling. Walk away or I'll remove you myself."
"Caius, stop," Serenye said, standing up. "This isn't, you can't just, "
I ignored her, closing the distance to Drake in three long strides. My hand shot out, grabbing his collar, yanking him away from her. "She's mine. She'll always be mine. And if you ever put her in danger again, I'll rip your f*****g throat out."
"I didn't put her in danger!" Drake shoved at my chest, surprisingly strong. "Someone was following us. Someone was trying to, "
I threw him against the wall. Hard. He hit with a satisfying thud, the breath knocked from his lungs.
"Caius!" Serenye grabbed my arm. "Stop it! He helped me!"
I rounded on her, and she actually took a step back. Good. She should be afraid. She should know what she'd put me through tonight.
"Helped you?" I demanded. "By taking you on a date? By putting you in his car? By bringing you to some secret safe house instead of calling for pack protection?"
"I didn't know we'd be followed!" Drake wheezed, pushing off the wall. "And for the record, your mate was the target. Not me. So maybe you should be asking her what the f**k is going on."
My eyes snapped to Serenye. She'd gone pale, her hands trembling. "I don't, I don't know why anyone would follow me."
Liar. I could smell the lie on her. Taste it in the air between us. I moved toward her, and she backed up until she hit the couch. I caged her in, hands on either side of her, leaning down so we were eye level.
"Don't lie to me," I said quietly, dangerously. "I can feel your fear through our bond. I felt it across the entire f*****g city. So tell me the truth. What are you hiding?"
"I'm not hiding anything."
"Bullshit." I leaned closer, breathing in her scent, trying to calm my wolf who wanted to mark her, claim her, and never let her out of his sight again. "You show up out of nowhere. You seduce my father. You grind against Sterling at a party. You go on dates while professional mercenaries hunt you. Who are you really?"
Her eyes flashed with anger. "I don't need your protection, Caius. I never asked for it."
"Too bad. You're getting it anyway." I straightened up, pulling her to her feet. My hands ran over her arms, her shoulders, checking for injuries. "Are you hurt? Did they touch you?"
"No, I'm fine, stop." She tried to push me away, but I wouldn't let go.
"You're not fine. You're shaking."
"Because you're scaring me!"
The words hit like a physical blow. I released her immediately, taking a step back. My mate was afraid of me. That shouldn't hurt as much as it did.
Drake moved toward her, protective instincts still on high alert. "Serenye, you don't have to stay with him. My guards can escort you back to, "
"Your guards?" I laughed harshly. "You're a visiting student. You don't have guards."
"Shows what you know." Drake's expression hardened. "My father isn't just a professor. He's the Silver Ridge Pack's head of intelligence. And I'm his second in command."
That explained the safe house. The training. The weapons. Sterling wasn't just some spoiled rich kid. He was a spy. Which made this whole situation even more f****d up.
"Get out," I ordered. "Now. Before I have you arrested for kidnapping."
"I didn't kidnap anyone!" Drake's hands clenched into fists. "I saved her from whoever was chasing us. Where the f**k were you when she needed help?"
"Tracking her across the city. Gathering my guards. Coming to kill anyone who touched her." I bared my teeth. "And if you don't leave right now, you'll be first on that list."
"Caius, stop." Serenye stepped between us again, her hand on my chest. The touch sent electricity through me, making my wolf purr with satisfaction. "Drake didn't do anything wrong. He helped me. You should be thanking him, not threatening him."
"I don't thank people for doing what I should have been doing myself." I covered her hand with mine, pressing it harder against my chest, needing the contact. "You're my mate. My responsibility. Mine to protect."
"We rejected each other," she whispered, but there was no conviction in her voice.
"Did we?" I stared down at her, willing her to understand. "Because I still feel you. Every emotion. Every fear. Every time your heart races, mine races with it. The bond didn't break, Serenye. It's damaged, weak, but it's still there."
Her eyes widened. "That's not possible."
"Then explain why I felt you panic tonight. Explain why I can't sleep because all I think about is you. Explain why seeing you with him makes me want to commit murder." My voice dropped to barely a whisper. "Explain why you're the only thing that matters anymore."
She stared at me, conflict written all over her face. Fear, confusion, and underneath it all, something that looked almost like longing.
"This is insane," she breathed.
"I know."
"You rejected me."
"Worst mistake of my life."
"Your father, "
"I don't give a f**k about my father right now." I cupped her face, forcing her to look at me. "All I care about is keeping you safe. So tell me the truth. Who were those people? Why were they following you?"
"I don't know," she said, and I could feel the partial truth in it. She knew something, but not everything.
Drake cleared his throat. "I hate to interrupt this touching moment, but maybe we should focus on the fact that professional mercenaries just tried to grab her. That seems more important than your relationship drama."
I shot him a look that promised violence. "You're still here."
"Because unlike you, I actually give a s**t about her safety over my ego." Drake crossed his arms. "Those weren't random thugs. They knew exactly where we'd be. They had multiple units. Coordinated attack. Someone with serious resources wants her."
"Then she stays at the mansion," I said firmly. "Under pack protection. Where I can, "
"No." Serenye pulled away from me. "I'm not some damsel you need to lock in a tower. I can handle myself."
"Like you handled yourself tonight?" I gestured at the destroyed door. "You needed me to save you."
"I needed Drake to save me," she corrected. "You just showed up and started breaking things."
"Because that's what I do when someone threatens my, "
"I'm not yours!" The words came out sharp, loud, filled with power. Alpha power. The command hit me like a physical force. My knees buckled. My wolf whimpered, instantly submissive. Even my guards dropped, heads bowing, unable to resist the sheer dominance in her voice.
Omegas didn't have Alpha voice. Couldn't command. It wasn't possible.
I forced my head up, fighting against every instinct screaming at me to submit. And froze.
Serenye stood there, breathing hard, her eyes,
Silver.
Not hazel. Not brown. Silver, like moonlight, like starlight, like nothing I'd ever seen before.
Royal bloodline. The mark of true-born Alphas from the ancient packs.
But she was an Omega. She had to be. Her scent, her status, everything about her screamed Omega.
So how the f**k did she have Alpha power? Royal Alpha power?
"What are you?" I breathed, still on my knees, still unable to fully stand under the weight of her command.
She seemed to realize what she'd done. Her eyes widened, the silver fading back to hazel. Her hand flew to her mouth.
"I, I didn't, " She looked terrified, trapped, like she wanted to run.
"That's what I'd like to know."
The voice cut through the tension like a blade.
I turned, still on my knees, and saw him standing in the doorway.
Sebastian. My father. The Alpha King.
Arms crossed. Expression completely unreadable. Eyes fixed on Serenye with an intensity that made even me uncomfortable. And from
the power rolling off him, he'd felt her command too. Felt it and wanted answers.
- Writer
