Claimed By My Enemy Alpha

Chapter 5

Kiana

In one swift move, he picked me up and tossed me back on the bed. Wincing at the pain, I dropped my gaze. There was no escape. Choosing a different tactic, I cleared my throat. “I apologize, Alpha. How can I be of service to you?”

With a growl, he settled in the chair on the other side. It was almost comical to watch him fit his large body in the small armchair. With a frown, he picked up the crowbar and studied it before letting it fall back to the floor.

“I am not here to take what’s mine, so relax,” he growled.

Take what was his. I tried not to wince. It was true that I was his mate. That gave him plenty of power over me, power he’d never wielded. If he wanted to bed me, he would have done it before now. That gave me a little bit of peace, so I readjusted myself on the bed so I was more comfortable and tried not to stare at the dresser that was blocking my path.

“For three years, I’ve left you alone. Given you a place to live. Let you do whatever you wanted so long as you didn’t try to escape or cause trouble.”

“Look, what happened tonight…”

“I know exactly what happened tonight,” he cut in sharply. “Don’t interrupt me again.”

Inside me, my wolf howled mournfully. I’d upset our mate. Closing my eyes, I tried to push her down. Try as I might, I still couldn’t talk her out of this stupid mate bond. I didn’t really know how wolves chose their mates, but she’d picked a terrible one. As far as I knew, there was no way to change the mating, but that didn’t stop me from trying. Obviously, my wolf had lost her mind.

He didn’t want an apology, so I didn’t give it. I just waited to see what the hell he wanted.

“I think it’s time we talk about what you owe this pack. What you owe me.”

My veins ran cold, and for the first time, I met his gaze head-on. My wolf dove deep inside of me until all I could feel was her fear, but I didn’t let her control me. Troy’s words echoed another’s.

My father's.

He nearly killed me. If Troy wanted something from me, he was going to discover that I wasn’t just going to roll over and give it to him. Not this time.

“My father’s crimes aren’t mine,” I bit out, voice hard.

Troy’s lips curled—more sneer than smile. “Did I not pull you out of his wreckage? You think I didn’t consider killing you that night? I had blood on my hands already. Yours would’ve been easy.”

My jaw locked.

“There are wolves who still think I made a mistake,” he went on, “that I should’ve gutted you on sight. Instead, I gave you a chance here.”

“I’ve earned my place,” I hissed. “Razor’s Edge is the most profitable thing you own, and I made it that way. I’ve never taken a paycheck. I don't owe you shit.”

He tilted his head, eyes narrowing. I saw the challenge spark in him—the temptation to punish me just for raising my voice.

But I wasn’t done.

“You don’t want me here? Fine. Let me go. You want something from me? Then stop circling like a coward and f*****g say it.”

Troy’s stare darkened, and when he finally opened his mouth, the words knocked the air right out of me.

“Tell me about Wisteria Wood.”

The name hit like a thunderclap. My body stiffened, breath choking in my throat.

I couldn’t breathe.

‘Kiana, you have to run. Right now.’

Panic clawed at my insides. I looked away, heart slamming against my ribs. “I’ve heard the name before…”

“Don’t bullshit me,” he snarled, stepping closer, the floor groaning under his boots. “I swear to the f*****g moon, Kiana—lie to me again and I’ll show you just how merciful I’ve been.”

My breath hitched and I couldn't meet his gaze.

“I know you disappeared from your father for six months. He left a trail of bodies trying to get you back, some of them mine. Wolves I was supposed to protect. I also know that he retrieved you from Wisteria Wood. You will tell me what you know.”

Troy hadn’t shown up because of an alarm or because of reports that I was trying to escape. He’d already been on his way here. That was the only explanation on how he’d gotten here so fast.

He’d been on his way here, at four o’clock in the morning, to wake me up and grill me on Wisteria Wood. That meant whatever Troy wanted from Wisteria Wood, it was damn important.

“Wisteria Wood is home to the most powerful coven in the region, the Darkwyn coven.

There are no roads big enough for vehicles. Rogue shifters call Wisteria Woods home, at least those powerful enough to survive the magic seeped into the trees and ground. The witches let them live because they make it impossible for anyone stupid enough to try to get there. My father was a killer and a liar. If he said he found me in Wisteria Wood, it was to serve his own needs.”

“He’s not my only source of information.”

Great. So either Troy had been working for a while on getting as much information as he could about Wisteria Wood, or the few who knew I’d been there blabbed their mouths.

Neither of those options was good for me. The last thing I needed was every wolf to know I could get them to Wisteria Wood.

Most packs housed one solitary witch. Any more than that, and the pack became a turf war. There wasn’t a huge need for witches. At least, not anymore since most of the packs were at peace. Because of that, shifters didn’t bother traversing through Wisteria Wood.

Only witches wanted to get to Darkwyn coven.

The world was full of magic. Most suspected that magic to be the source of shifters themselves, but witches closely guarded magic. Some of the solitary ones were attached to packs and clans. Symbiotic protection. Some tried to disappear into the human world, but the most powerful witches were isolated in impossible-to-reach compounds.

Darkwyn coven was the only witch compound on this side of Shadowed Moon. They were reportedly incredibly powerful.

“Being alpha to the biggest pack in the region isn’t good enough for you?” I asked softly, just loud enough to sting. “Greed is an excellent path to death. Just ask my father.”

Troy was on his feet before I blinked—towering, tense, furious—and then he was on top of me, caging me in with his body, the mattress sinking beneath his weight.

My back hit the sheets, but I didn’t flinch.

He needed me—and it was killing him.

“Snapping my neck isn’t going to get you the information you want, you know” I mused.

“True,” he whispered, lips near my ear. “But pain… has a way of unraveling even the most stubborn tongues. Ever wondered what your limit is, Kiana?”

“A lifetime of torture…” I replied coldly, refusing to break eye contact, “...and no one’s found it yet.”

His golden gaze burned into mine, not just with fury—but with something darker. Hungrier. My breath caught. There was heat between us. Heavy. Wrong. Electric.

His thigh pressed against mine. There was no space. No fear. Just the unwanted awareness of every inch of him.

“You want to get to Wisteria Wood,” I said. “You need me. But I’m not giving you a damn thing unless I get something out of it.”

He arched a brow. “And what is it that you want, Kiana?”

His voice dipped low, curling around my name like silk and sin. My pulse betrayed me. Was it just my imagination, or was his voice wrapping around me like that of a lover's?

“You take me with you, but once you’re there, I’m gone. You let me go with no strings attached.”

“You expect me to trust you?” he growled, voice dripping with disdain. “You, daughter of a butcher, slithering your way through blood and lies?”

“I think if you’re stupid enough to go, you want it enough to do anything. You could torture me for the information, but I guarantee it’s nothing I haven’t already experienced. Hard to torture a broken wolf. You can’t threaten to kill me because I’ve been waiting for death for years. The only thing you can offer me is freedom, and we both know you aren’t going to let me go until you have what you want. If you can fight off the rogue wolves, I can handle the magic of Wisteria Wood. I can get you to the compound, and then we’re done. I go somewhere no one has ever heard of me. I change my name. And we’re both free.”

Free of this stupid bond that was clawing into me even now.

“Just like your father,” he snapped, eyes narrowing. “No loyalty. No soul. Always angling for survival.”

The words cut deeper than they should’ve, but I didn’t let it show. Not to him.

He pushed off me like I’d burned him, every muscle taut with something between rage and restraint.

“If you won’t see a healer, then shift and fix your damn leg. We leave Friday. Pack light.”

He turned toward the door, but I wasn’t done.

“There’s one more thing.”

He growled. “What now?”

“We travel as humans. My wolf won’t surface around your guards.”

Or around you. But I bit my tongue.

His snarl cracked through the room, and he slammed the dresser so hard it splintered. Fury and something far more dangerous boiled behind those golden eyes.

“One more,” I added, not backing down.

“Goddess,” he muttered, pacing.

“Danny’s not to touch me before we leave. Or any of them. He’s got a key. Maybe they all do.”

“Razor’s Edge is closed till Friday,” he bit out. “But the place will be watched. If you so much as try to run, they’ll bring you down, Kiana. I don’t care how pretty your neck looks, they’ll snap it without hesitation.”