Bound by Blood and Fang

Chapter 13

Dimitri

*From the moment that he leaves Alora’s room.*

The door clicks shut behind me, and the sound is far too final for how unfinished the moment feels. Walking out of that room was harder than I ever thought it would be. The threads that wrap around my wrist physically burned as the bond called to me, begging me to turn around and return to her.

I don't know where this sudden conscience of mine has come from, but I despise it.

I didn't care that much that night when we claimed her. I have been all but waiting for the right moment to tempt my bonded, only to be reminded that the heat was still a factor that she was not aware of. I was so consumed with fighting with the flea-bitten mutt that I forgot that this wasn't over yet.

Not even close.

I shouldn’t have stopped.

The thought coils sharp and ugly inside my chest, threading itself through the lingering heat of her scent that still clings to my skin. Restraint has never been my failing, and discipline has always come easily to me. Too easily. But this—this wasn’t discipline. This was hesitation.

And hesitation is dangerous in this world. And even more so when you are a King.

But hearing her say ‘No’. That single word falling off her lips the way that it did caused a visceral reaction inside me. It was like, for the first time in all my years, that I actually felt… Human. That I got the briefest glimpse of what was happening to her, and that feeling made me pause.

I roll my shoulders once, as if I can physically dislodge this strange feeling that is still dragging at my center.

The threads tug relentlessly once more, as if they are testing the limits of my control, asking just how far I’m willing to bend before I finally break. I’ve always believed choice was a luxury—something you allow when it suits you, and revoke when it doesn’t.

Now, it feels more like a leash, and she is holding the other end.

Bane roars from the courtyard outside. The sound drew me from my mindless wandering on human feelings. I roll my eyes and allow my feet to follow the sounds of the Alpha warring with his Beta.

The cold, winter air hits me the moment I step outside. There is still ice clinging to the ground everywhere, glittering in the dying light. A few of my guards were hanging around, and the moment they saw me, they all inclined their heads in respect. They were not happy about being here any more than I really am, but they understand why.

The bond tugs at my wrist again, a burning thread that is pulling me back toward Alora, but I ignore it.

Bane’s roar echoes through the air, drawing eyes from every direction.

I followed the sounds, rounding the corner of the pack house just in time to see him pacing like a caged animal, chest heaving, eyes now pitch black—his wolf now fully in control. Silas stands in front of his Alpha with his arms crossed, posture unyielding. The Beta looks like he’s been carved from the same stone as the courtyard pillars behind him—immovable, unimpressed, and entirely done with the Alpha's theatrics.

“You’re not going back in there,” Silas says, voice low but firm.

Bane Wolf snarls, stepping forward. “The sooner it's done, the sooner she will no longer be in pain. Now move.”

Silas doesn’t budge. “No.”

I don’t bother to intervene. Yet.

I want to watch to see what happens first. See just how unhinged Vorian is going to get. Call it research if you will. I roll my head to the side, hoping that the motion will relieve the building pressure in my back, but it doesn't.

Beta Silas holds his ground, not daring to look away from the partially shifted wolf in front of him. I think I can tolerate any mutt that manages to stand toe to toe with their Alpha and refuse to give him the one thing that he wants. It takes balls to do that.

The Alpha King towers over him, their chest touching, muscles coiled, his wolf pushing at the edges of his skin. But Silas holds his firm with the kind of calm that only someone who’s wrestled with this particular beast before can manage.

“You’re out of control,” Silas adds. “And I’m not letting you near her until you get your head on straight.”

Bane’s growl deepens, the sound vibrating through the courtyard stones and drawing even more eyes from every direction. I let my gaze drift over the crowd. Many of them wear expressions of shock as they watch the scene unfolding before them. Challenging the Alpha is not something that one sees every day.

The scent of wolves, humans, and several of my vampire guards fills the air as they gather around to watch the werewolf Alpha king lose his absolute sh*t right now.

Bane’s fury now crackles through the space like a dry brush waiting for a flame, his control hanging by a fraying thread. He is a wolf that has been pushed too far and has forgotten how thin the line is between dominance and destruction.

His Beta hasn't, though, and that alone makes him interesting.

He stands his ground without posturing, without raising his voice, and I note—absently—that Alora’s presence has already begun to shift the balance here too. Not through strength. Not through command.

But through disruption.

I lean against a nearby column, folding my arms across my chest. I knew this was going to happen. I just didn't want to admit to myself that I was even out of my element when it came to navigating a Triad’s bond. And I had the feeling that there was something else to our little bonded that made her special— something that has yet to be uncovered.

Hopefully, Cassian returns soon with something that helps before all hell breaks loose between both Kingdoms.

“For once, I agree with your Beta,” I say. My words aren’t loud by any means, but they still cut through the shushed courtyard like a blade.

Bane’s head snaps in my direction, and his lip curls in disdain, flashing his canines the moment that he sees it is me who has spoken. I responded in the same fashion, lip curling away to show my own set of fangs.

Bane stalks toward me, each step heavy enough to crack the stone beneath him. “You have something to say, leech?”

I don’t answer right away.

I tilt my head and study him in the way one might examine a poorly tempered blade—it’s still useful, still powerful, yet it's prone to shattering when put under the wrong pressure.

Silas shifts his weight behind his alpha, muttering something that sounds suspiciously like a prayer or a curse.

I pushed off the column, meeting him halfway. “Only that, Silas is right. You’re behaving like a pup who lost his favorite toy.”

There is a ripple that moves through the watching wolves. I am sure many of them are waiting for their Alpha to rip my throat out. Unfortunately for them, they won't get to see that. I wonder if he has shared the truth with the rest of his kingdom about why Vampires are in their territory for the first time in hundreds of years.

Probably not. But he will have to soon, that is for sure.

Another growl crawls up from his chest as the wolf's jaw flexes when he comes to a stop directly in front of me. The courtyard goes deathly silent.

Even the wind seems to hold its breath in anticipation.

His wolf surges to the surface, and I don't have to even tap into his mind to hear the snarling that he is doing.

“Careful, Vampire.”

I take one step closer—a calculated step and gauge their reaction. “Or what, Alpha?” I taunt. “You can't do anything, remember,” I added through his mind.

The corner of his mouth ticks upward. “You think you are so much better just because you fought the bond back there, don't you? That you could say no, while I couldn't?” He leans in closer, lowering his voice. “You think I don't see the way you despise yourself for stopping?” he chuckles a little.

I feel the little blood that is left in my veins freeze over as I glare at the mutt before me. “I am better than you. And as for stopping, that was solely for her benefit. So that in the end, she realizes that too.” I respond, and the crowd gasps.

“Alright,” Silas snaps, stepping between us before Bane has the chance to try and fail at killing me. “That’s enough for one day. Bane — take a run. Don’t come back until Vorian has calmed down enough to handle being around his bonded.”

Bane’s entire body goes rigid at Silas’s order.

For a heartbeat, the courtyard holds still—every wolf, every guard, every breath suspended as the Alpha King processes the fact that his Beta just told him what to do. Vorian snarls through him, a guttural, bone‑deep sound that vibrates the air. His claws punch through his fingertips. His spine arches. His teeth lengthen.

Silas doesn’t back away, not even as the Alpha shifts mere inches in front of him.

“Run,” Silas repeats, voice steady as stone. “Now.”

For a breath, I think even while half shifted, Bane will refuse.

I’m almost certain of it.

No king is accustomed to being commanded—especially not by someone who once answered to him. The air tightens, heavy with the promise of violence, and I find myself calculating the numerous outcomes instead of stopping them.

“You forget your place,” Bane snaps.

“No,” Silas says calmly. “I know it better than you do right now.”

For a moment, I think Bane might actually attack him.

Then—

With a violent shudder, his wolf surges forward. His bones crack. Muscles twist. His clothes tear as black fur ripples across his skin. The shift is fast, brutal, fueled by rage and instinct. When it’s done, a massive black wolf stands where the Alpha King had been, chest heaving, eyes black as his fur.

Power realigns in ways it hasn’t in generations, and I feel it settle uneasily in my chest. Not because Bane submitted—but because he could be made to.

He bares his teeth at Silas.

Silas just lifts his chin, motioning to the dense forest behind Vorian.

The wolf snarls once—furious, frustrated, thwarted—then wheels around and bolts into the trees, disappearing into the dark with a spray of snow and shattered ice.

My jaw tightens as Bane disappears into the trees, fury radiating off him like heat from a forge. This isn’t over. It isn’t even close.

“Alright, everyone, back to what you were doing,” Silas' voice rose loud enough to be heard, and those who had gathered in the courtyard slowly began to disperse, but not without a side glance at the Vampire standing among them.

I nod to my guards, and they slip away, garnering several more glares from some of the wolves nearby. I turn to do the same. I’ve had enough of wolf politics for one evening. And now that the wolf is dealing with his anger, I want to see if I can find my Bonded.

“Not you,” Beta Silas says. “You’re coming with me.”

I stop and look down at where his hand is now clamping around my arm. A hiss escapes through my teeth. “I might respect the way you stood up to him,” I say, my voice low and cold, “but I don’t take f*cking orders from you. And if you want to keep that hand of yours, I would highly suggest you unhand me.”

He meets my gaze with the same unshakable steadiness that he used on his Alpha.

"Not even for Alora?"

The bond burns at the mention of her name, and I grit my teeth.

“Follow me,” he adds. “We need to talk.”

And despite myself…

I follow.