Fated to the Enemies Daughter

THE PRINCE

Chapter 5

Kaelen’s pov

I woke up with a headache that felt like a silver spike was being driven through my temples.

Sunlight streamed through the window of the Alpha’s estate, hitting my eyes with so much aggressiveness that made me groan. I rolled over, opening my eyes, the morning light blinding me for 2 seconds.

"Imani?" I croaked, my voice sounding like I’d swallowed glass.

Silence.

That was the first red flag. Usually, by this time, Imani would have climbed through my window or I’d be hearing her laugh from the gardens below. My heart gave a strange, hollow thump.

Was Rina giving her a hard time? I chuckled a bit.

I sat up, rubbing my face. My mind felt like it was filled with thick, gray wool. I remembered getting ready for the party... I remembered the scent of lilies and expensive cologne. I remembered my father putting a hand on my shoulder and giving me a drink a special "Alpha-to-be" tonic, he’d called it.

And then... nothing. Just a blur of lights, a loud ringing in my ears, and a feeling of cold, crushing ice in my chest. It was like a hole in my memories,

I stumbled out of bed and into the bathroom, stripping off my clothes. I needed a cold shower to shake this fog. I stepped under the spray, letting the water pelt my skin, trying to catch a thread of a memory.

Why does my chest hurt so much? I stepped out after 5 minutes and wiped the steam off the mirror. I looked at my reflection, expecting to see the usual Kaelen.

I froze and I swear my freaking heart stopped.

Who was this stranger? It wasn’t…me…was it?

My eyes.

The gold of my wolf was there, but around the iris was a jagged, angry scar. It was a broken bond mark. And on the side of my face was a faint, fading shimmer of purple magic.

"No," I whispered, my knees going weak. "No, no, no."

A broken bond. Rejection.

"IMANI!" I roared, the sound echoing off the marble tiles.

I didn't even dry off first. I threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt, my hands shaking so badly I could barely zip my fly. I burst out of the room, ignoring the guards who tried to speak to me, and ran.

Goddess please, Goddess please.

I ran toward the outskirts, toward the small, cozy cabin that smelled like cedar and cinnamon.

"Imani!" I screamed as I reached her front door. I didn't knock; I kicked it open. "Imani, tell me I’m dreaming! Tell me I…"

The house was cold.

The scent of her that sweet, earthy smell that was the only thing that could ever calm my wolf was fading. I ran to her bedroom. The quilt was messy, but her dresser was empty. Her stuff was gone. The small, cracked mirror she always complained about was still there, but everything she possessed was gone.

I slumped onto her bed, clutching a pillow that still held a hint of her scent.

"What did I do?" I sobbed into the fabric. My wolf was howling in the back of my mind, a mournful, agonizing sound. "What did he make me do?"

I loved her. I had loved her since we were six years old. I had spent every day of my life planning how I would make her my Luna, how I would protect her from the people who called her "Omega."

I stood in the center of her empty room, the silence screaming at me.

"Where are you?" I whispered, my voice cracking. I tried to reach for our bond, that golden thread that had always been in the back of my mind, but it was like reaching for a ghost. There was only a cold, dark void.

I left the cabin and headed straight for the palace. I didn't care who saw me. I didn't care that I was half-dressed and soaking wet.

I found my father in the war room, staring at a map of the territories. He looked up, his expression unreadable.

"Kaelen. You’re awake. You put on quite a show last night," he said, his voice smooth and cold. "The pack is stronger for it. A leader shouldn't be tied to an Omega, let alone a traitor’s blood."

I lunged across the table, grabbing his collar. The guards stepped forward, but Lucian held up a hand, a mocking smile on his face.

"What did you do to me?" I growled, my wolf snapping its jaws inside my chest. "I loved her! Yoy knew I was going to mate her!"

"You were going to ruin this lineage," Lucian hissed, shoving me back with Alpha strength. "I did you a favor. I cleared the fog of that 'friendship.' You rejected her, Kaelen. In front of everyone. You called her a 'piggy.' You think she’s ever coming back to you after that?"

The words felt like physical blows. I could see the memory now Imani’s face, the way she looked so small and broken in that dress. I had said those things? To her?

"Where is she?" I demanded.

Lucian turned back to his map. "Dead, probably. She ran off. No one survives the nights out during replenishing. She’s gone, Kaelen. Accept it and prepare for your coronation."

I rushed out before i could even think. All my senses shut down, my ears were overwhelmed by a ringing that ran from my ear to my spine.

"Harek!" I roared, stepping out of the cabin.

The Lead Tracker of the Kade Pack appeared from the shadows of the trees, his eyes cold and efficient. He was my father’s most loyal dog, a man who could find a single drop of blood in a hurricane. Behind him stood four other elite hunters, their silver-tipped spears glinting.

"Prince Kaelen," Harek bowed, though his eyes remained sharp. "The Alpha has already given the order. The girl is a traitor’s seed. We were ordered to... eliminate the threat. If she isn’t already dead."

The word eliminate felt like a blade to my throat.

"No," I barked, my voice cracking with an authority I didn't know I had. I stepped into Harek’s space, my eyes glowing a feral, desperate gold. "You will find her. But you will not touch a hair on her head. If you find her, you report to me. Not the Alpha. Me."

Harek hesitated, his gaze flickering toward the palace spires. "The Alpha’s orders were—"

"I am your future King!" I hissed, grabbing his leather tunic. My heart was thumping against my ribs, I was terrified of my father, terrified of the treason I was committing right now, but the thought of Imani alone and hunted was scarier than anything in this life. "You find her, and you bring her back to me safely. If she has so much as a scratch on her, I will personally feed your heart to the swamp crocs. Do you understand?"

Harek’s eyes widened. He saw the desperation, my father said desperation as a ruler was like bleeding in a tank of sharks’

"Yes, Prince," he muttered, signaling his men. "We head for the borders of the Silver claw territory. That’s the most likely path for an Omega on the run."

"Go," I commanded.

They vanished into the woods, and I was left standing in the dirt.

I looked up at the sky. I felt the rough, broken edge of our bond. It hurt. It felt like a limb had been torn off.

"I'm sorry," I whispered into the wind, hoping the Goddess would carry my voice to her. "I didn't mean it, Imani. I swear on my soul, I didn't mean any of it."

My face became wet as I let my emotions get the best of me.

"I need you, Imani," I choked out, a sob finally breaking through my throat as I fell to my knees. "Please... just stay alive. I need you. Where are you?"