Chapter 3
795 Words
Kael found his father in the study, a room lined with leather-bound books and hunting trophies. Magnus Blackwood was still an imposing figure at sixty-five, with silver-streaked hair and eyes the same pale gray as Kael’s own. He was standing by the fireplace, a glass of whiskey in hand, his expression thunderous.
“You brought a rogue into my house,” Magnus said without preamble.
“My house,” Kael corrected. “You abdicated. I’m Alpha now.”
Magnus’s jaw tightened. “That doesn’t give you the right to endanger the pack. Rogues carry disease, they attract trouble—”
“She’s not just any rogue, is she?” Kael cut in. “She’s Elara. Your former mistress.”
The color drained from Magnus’s face. For a long moment, he said nothing. Then he took a slow sip of whiskey and set the glass down with deliberate care.
“She told you.”
“She told me everything. How you found her, an orphaned omega with no pack and no protection. How you used her for two years and threw her away when Mother found out.”
Magnus’s eyes flashed. “Watch your tongue, boy. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Then enlighten me.”
Magnus turned to the fire, his broad shoulders rigid. “It was a mistake. A weakness. I’m not proud of it. But it was a long time ago, and it’s done. You need to send her away. Immediately.”
“No.”
Magnus whirled. “What do you mean, no?”
“She’s injured and she’s being hunted by rogues. I’m not throwing her out to die.”
“Why do you care? She’s nothing. A piece of my past that should stay buried.”
Kael took a step closer, his Alpha power crackling in the air between them. “She’s my mate.”
The word hung in the room like a thunderclap. Magnus stared at his son, disbelief warring with something that looked disturbingly like fear.
“That’s impossible.”
“The Moon Goddess doesn’t make mistakes,” Kael said. “She’s mine. And I won’t let you—or anyone else—hurt her again.”
---
The pack house buzzed with rumor by the next morning.
Elara’s identity spread like wildfire. Wolves who had been part of the pack a decade ago remembered the scandal—how Luna Seraphina had discovered her mate’s infidelity and how the young omega had vanished overnight. Some whispered that Magnus had killed her. Others claimed she’d been driven out with nothing but the clothes on her back. The truth, it seemed, was closer to the latter.
Elara remained in her room, too weak to leave and too ashamed to face the pack. Mari, the healer, treated her with professional detachment, but even she couldn’t hide her curiosity. The omega who had nearly destroyed the former Alpha’s marriage, now returned as the current Alpha’s claimed mate. It was the stuff of legend.
Kael ignored the whispers. He visited Elara every day, bringing her books, food, quiet company. She was wary of him at first, flinching at sudden movements, never quite meeting his eyes. But gradually, as the days turned into a week, she began to relax.
“Why are you being kind to me?” she asked one evening, as the sunset painted the room in shades of rose and gold.
Kael considered the question. “Because you deserve kindness.”
“After what I did? After what I was?”
“You were a victim, Elara. You were young and scared and my father took advantage of that. That’s not your sin to carry.”
Her eyes glistened. “You don’t understand. I didn’t just submit because I had to. There were moments when I... when I thought I loved him. He was powerful, protective. He made me feel safe. What kind of woman does that make me?”
Kael reached out and, very gently, took her hand. The touch sent a jolt of electricity up his arm, and he saw her eyes widen, felt her pulse quicken beneath his fingertips.
“It makes you human,” he said. “Or wolf, I suppose. We all want to feel safe. He manipulated that. The fault is his, not yours.”
A tear slipped down her cheek. “The bond,” she whispered. “I feel it too, you know. Since I woke up. It’s like gravity. Like I’m being pulled toward you and I can’t stop it.”
“Do you want to stop it?”
She looked at him then, really looked at him, and Kael saw the answer in her silver eyes before she spoke.
“No,” she said. “Moon help me, no.”
- Writer
