In Between Two Alphas: Love for War

CHAPTER 5

By the time Caius came to fetch her, she had managed to calm herself, masking the storm of emotions swirling inside her. They walked in silence through the dim hallways of the Bloodfang Pack’s territory, the scent of pine and earth thick in the air.

When they reached the main hall, Lila’s breath caught in her throat. Alpha Lucian stood at the far end, his back to them as he spoke with two of his warriors. His presence filled the space, powerful and commanding, even from a distance.

Caius nodded toward Lucian. “You’ll be fine.”

But Lila wasn’t so sure. As Lucian turned to face them, his eyes locking onto her with a look that sent a chill down her spine, she realized that her entire future hinged on what happened next.

Lucian’s gaze flicked to Caius, then back to Lila. “So,” he said, his voice smooth but laced with authority, “this is the one who’s caused so much commotion.”

Lila’s throat went dry. “I—I didn’t mean to—”

But before she could finish, Lucian raised a hand, silencing her. His piercing green eyes seemed to see right through her, as though he already knew the secrets she was hiding.

“Tell me,” Lucian said, his voice deceptively calm. “Who are you really?”

Lila’s heart hammered in her chest as Lucian’s question hung in the air. The sharpness of his gaze made it feel like he could see into her very soul, peeling away the layers of her carefully constructed facade. The silence stretched between them, and she realized that this was the moment she had been dreading since she first arrived at the Bloodfang Pack.

Caius shifted beside her, clearly picking up on the tension. “Alpha Lucian, she—”

Lucian raised his hand again, cutting Caius off without a word. His eyes never left Lila’s, and the weight of his scrutiny pressed down on her like a mountain. She was caught in a trap with no clear way out. The truth? Or another lie?

“I...” Lila began, her voice barely above a whisper. She swallowed hard, trying to find her footing. “I told you, my name is Raven. I come from a distant pack, far from here.”

Lucian’s expression remained unchanged, cold and unreadable. “That’s not what I asked.”

Lila felt the panic rising again. Every instinct told her to run, but where would she go? She had no allies outside this pack, and if Lucian decided she was a threat, it would all be over. She couldn’t lose everything again—not after coming so far, not after surviving betrayal and death.

But before she could continue, Lucian’s eyes darkened with suspicion. “You think I don’t know the scent of a lie? You’ve been hiding something since you arrived. I can feel it. You don’t belong here.”

Caius stepped forward, his tone firm but pleading. “Alpha, she’s proven herself. She’s been nothing but loyal since the day I found her. Surely she deserves the benefit of the doubt.”

Lucian’s eyes flicked to Caius, narrowing slightly. “Your loyalty to her is admirable, Caius, but dangerous. You may trust her, but that doesn’t mean I should. Especially when I can feel the weight of secrets lingering around her.”

Lila’s pulse quickened. Lucian was far more perceptive than she had given him credit for. The Alpha’s ability to read others was part of what made him so feared and respected. He didn’t need the truth to sense that something was off, and now, she was being cornered by his insight.

Lila’s mind raced, grasping for something—anything—that could deflect Lucian’s suspicion. She had been so careful, playing her role as Raven flawlessly since the moment she arrived, but she had underestimated Lucian's keen instincts.

"I..." she stammered, her voice hoarse. She glanced at Caius, then quickly back to Lucian, hoping that her desperation wasn’t as obvious as it felt. "I came here... because I had no choice."

Lucian’s eyes narrowed further, and she could feel the weight of his scrutiny, like a predator circling its prey. Every fiber of her being screamed at her to flee, to abandon the tangled web she had woven, but she knew that running would only confirm Lucian's doubts.

“I was running from someone. From... my old Alpha,” she said, carefully choosing her words, trying to shape a believable story. “He—he wanted me for reasons I didn’t understand. I wasn’t strong enough to fight him, so I fled.” She swallowed, willing her heart to stop hammering against her chest. “I took on a new name, a new life, to escape him.”

Lucian’s gaze didn’t falter, and Lila felt like he was probing the truth from her, seeing through her with a piercing clarity that made her palms sweat. Her lie was out, but the truth still clawed at the edges of her consciousness, threatening to break free.

“Is that all?” Lucian’s tone was icy, his disbelief obvious. “You’re hiding more than just a name, Raven.”

The way he said "Raven" made her flinch internally, as if the very sound of it no longer belonged to her. But she held her ground, forcing herself to meet his gaze.

"That’s all I can say right now," she replied, her voice steadier than she felt inside. "I came here to find safety, to find a new life. I have no reason to harm this pack. You have my loyalty, Alpha."

Lucian studied her for a long, agonizing moment, and she had to force herself not to look away. She could feel Caius tense beside her, though he remained silent, watching his Alpha carefully. The room seemed to close in around them as the silence stretched, and Lila wondered if Lucian could hear the frantic beating of her heart.

Finally, Lucian took a step back, the tension in his posture easing just a fraction. "For now, you stay. But mark my words," he said, his voice low, a dangerous edge beneath it, "if I find out you’ve lied to me again, you won’t just be leaving this pack—you’ll be leaving this world."

Lila swallowed hard, nodding. "Understood, Alpha."

Lucian’s piercing gaze lingered on her for another breath, then he turned on his heel and strode from the room, his warriors falling in line behind him. The weight of his words hung heavy in the air long after he was gone, and Lila felt the crushing realization sink in.

She had spun her lie well enough for now, but she knew Lucian would never stop watching her. He would be waiting for the moment when her deception crumbled, and she feared that moment was closer than ever.