HIS MATE, MY DOOM

Chapter 3: He is coming

“Swing!”

“Dodge!”

“Charge!!”

The warriors’ chants echoed across the training grounds, a chorus of raw strength and blood-pounding energy. Sweat gleamed on their bare chests as they lunged and struck beneath the blistering sun, their muscles rippling with each fluid motion. The pack girls lurked behind the hedges, giggling like schoolgirls, eyes wide with hunger and awe. I wasn't much better.

I watched from behind the wall of broken stone and ivy near the east wing, out of sight but not out of danger. My back still ached from the lashes, red welts crossing over old scars. But I could still feel it. I could still breathe. That meant I was alive.

If not for the Moon Goddess, I’d be dead by now.

That night when they’d whipped me nearly unconscious, my tears had soaked into the wounds. And then…they closed. Healed. Fast. As if the Moon herself had kissed my skin. That miracle had kept me alive. They called it a gift, but I knew better. It was survival.

And the gift…was dying.

Every scream, every strike, every moment I was forced to kneel before them drained something out of me. My healing had limits—and they were nearing the edge.

“Peekaboo!”

A voice like honey-drenched venom slammed into me from behind.

Alyssa.

I jumped and spun around, my heart lurching into my throat.

Her face appeared around the edge of the wall, golden curls bouncing, smiling bright and wicked. She was glowing from head to toe in sunlight and satisfaction.

“Oh, did I frighten you, dear cousin?” she mocked sweetly, tilting her head. Her little court of vipers stood behind her, giggling into their hands like they’d rehearsed it.

“No! I..you didn't.”

“Oh, Dabria,” she cooed, her voice dripping with mock sweetness. “Still hiding like some rat in the walls? Tsk. I hope you’re not watching my mate.”

“I wasn’t… I didn’t mean to—” I began, stepping back instinctively.

“Oh please. Don’t tell me you’re here to watch Lucien again,” she said, eyes sparkling.

“I mean, it’s sweet. Tragic. Do you really think someone like him would ever want someone like you?

“She has the balls.”

“Poor thing. As if someone like you—less than an omega—could ever dream of him.”

The words hit harder than any slap.

“In two days,” she added, voice lilting like a songbird, “Lucien will be mine. Mated, bonded, blessed. And you’ll still be…what? The daughter of a traitor. Dirt beneath our paws.”

The laughter behind her was deafening. I bit my tongue so hard I tasted blood.

“I wasn’t looking at him,” I said quietly. I had to choose every word like I was walking barefoot on broken glass.

Alyssa scoffed, eyes narrowing. “Sure you weren’t.”

They all laughed

Alyssa scoffed and bumped her shoulder into mine as she turned to leave. “Careful, cousin. You might start thinking you deserve things.”

I trailed behind her, limping slightly, the old wounds beneath my dress throbbing with every step. At the training grounds, she immediately latched onto Lucian’s arm, laughing too loudly at whatever he said. He smiled—his rare, crooked grin that made my heart twist. My stomach churned.

What was I even thinking? That someone like Lucien—respected, admired, free—would look twice at someone like me? My wrists still carried the bruises of last night’s ropes. My body still bore the scars of my father’s execution.

Stupid!

I was nothing.

“Hey! Slum rat!”

Torren’s bark snapped me out of my thoughts. He was one of the larger warriors—loud, arrogant, and constantly testing his strength.

“Where are the towels? Move it!”

I snapped out of it and rushed to obey, passing out damp towels and bottles of water. The last one in my hands was Lucian’s. I hesitated. It felt warm in my palm, like something sacred.

I hesitated for a moment, my fingers tightening around the cool plastic. Then I walked toward him, pulse racing.

But before I could speak, Alyssa snatched it from me with a smirk. “Let me,” she said, taking the bottle from my hands like it belonged to her. “Here you go, Lucien. Drink up, love.”

She unscrewed the cap and held it to him like it was a goblet of gold.

Lucian’s gaze flicked to mine. For a second—just a heartbeat—I thought I saw something in his eyes. Something sharp. Sad. Gentle.

“It’s fine,” he said, his voice calm but firm. “I can do it myself.”

Alyssa’s laugh was too loud, too forced. “Of course, just trying to help,” she giggled, masking the irritation in her eyes.

“What are you still waiting for?

I bowed my head quickly and turned away. My face burned—not from embarrassment, but from the strange, painful hope clawing at my chest.

No. No hope. Hope is dangerous.

My next duty was the library. I welcomed the quiet, the smell of old parchment and polished wood. I began to stack the books, my fingers tracing the spines like they were sacred. I continued my duty as I entered the far wing

Then I heard it.

Voices.

Low. Urgent. From the back of the library—in the restricted section. The one only the Alpha and Beta were allowed to enter.

I froze. My heart slammed against my ribs.

“…the peace pact is broken,” someone whispered.

I moved silently, slipping into the shadows between the tall shelves, every sense heightened.

“He’s coming,” the voice said again. I knew it. That voice—it was Beta Damien.

…We need a plan,” Beta Damien continued “The peace ended with Alpha Theodore’s death.”

“Alpha Atlas has sent word,” came my uncle’s voice. “He’ll be here in two days.”

My stomach dropped.

Atlas. The name throbbed like thunder in the silence. The new Alpha. The son. The executioner. Death himself. He would come for them. For revenge.

“I told you this day would come!” Damien hissed. “What if the truth comes out? What if she finds out?”

Silence. Then Marcus answered, voice low and heavy.

“She won’t,” Uncle Marcus replied coldly. “The truth dies with us. My brother had to take the fall to protect the alliance with Alpha Theodore. He wanted Iris dead. I delivered. And I became Alpha.”

My breath caught. My hands clutched the bookshelf so tightly that I thought the wood would c***k.

Iris. They were talking about Atlas’s mate. The one who died.

They killed her. My uncle killed her.

And my father… took the fall.

A sharp gasp slipped from my lips before I could stop it.

Silence.

Footsteps shifted.

“Did you hear that?”

“Someone’s here,” Uncle Marcus growled.

No. No no no.

I scrambled backward, heart in my throat, knees trembling. My back hit the cold stone wall as their shadows grew closer, stretching across the floor like reaching claws. Heart hammering, blood roaring in my ears. I couldn’t breathe.

“Come out,” Damien growled, each step measured, precise.

Their steps were coming closer.

They were coming for me.

I pressed my back to the wall, clenching my teeth, trying not to cry. If they found me—if they knew I heard—

I wouldn’t survive the night.

Not this time.