The Weston Bond

6

"So that's it?" I whispered, almost in tears. "You humiliate me, you bring another woman into your room, and then you just... reject me like I'm nothing?"

Cain's expression flickered, just for a second.

Guilt.

Then it vanished behind that same cold mask he wore like armor.

"You don't understand how dangerous this is," he said quietly.

"Oh, I understand perfectly," I snapped. "You don't want me."

The words cracked coming out of my mouth.

Something twisted painfully in my chest again, sharp enough to make me grab the counter for balance.

Zane moved instantly. His hand caught my arm before I could fall.

"Easy," he muttered.

Cain's eyes dropped to where Zane was touching me, and something dark flashed across his face so quickly I almost missed it.

Interesting.

For someone who rejected me, he looked furious seeing another man hold me.

"You're hurting her," Zane said flatly.

Cain laughed once, humorless. "The bond hurts both ways."

"Then why do it?" I shouted.

The kitchen shook with the force of my voice. Silence crashed down afterward. Cain looked away first.

That surprised me more than anything.

His jaw clenched tightly, like he was holding something back.

"You think I had a choice?" he said.

"Yes," I fired back. "You always have a choice."

"You don't know anything about me."

"And whose fault is that?"

The tension between us crackled violently.

I could feel the remnants of the bond thrashing inside me like a wounded animal. Every breath hurt. Every heartbeat felt wrong.

Zane stepped forward again, placing himself fully between us now.

"Enough."

Cain's eyes narrowed immediately. "Move."

"No."

The single word carried enough warning to freeze the room.

For the first time, I realized something terrifying.

These two men weren't just different. They were opposites.

Cain was wildfire. Destruction. Rage held together by barely restrained control. While Zane was colder. Quieter.But somehow far more dangerous.

Cain scoffed. "What are you going to do? Pretend you're her protector now?"

Zane's voice dropped low.

"If I have to."

My breath caught.

The air between them turned lethal instantly.

And somehow the bond with Zane pulsed stronger. It was steady and felt warm

I hated that my body reacted to him now of all times.

Cain noticed too.

I saw the exact moment he felt it. His face darkened.

Then he laughed bitterly and dragged a hand through his hair.

"See? This is exactly why this whole thing is screwed up."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I demanded.

Cain looked directly at me. Not cold this time. He looked Tired.

"The second I rejected the bond, yours with Zane strengthened."

The room went silent. I stared at him.

"No," I whispered.

But deep down, I knew he was telling the truth. I could feel Zane too clearly now. His heartbeat.His anger.

The strange protective instinct rolling off him in waves. It terrified me.

Zane's expression hardened. "You shouldn't have done this impulsively."

Cain barked out a laugh. "Impulsively? You think I haven't spent months thinking about this?"

Months?

I blinked.

"What?"

The word slipped out before I could stop it.

Cain went still.

And suddenly I realized what he had accidentally revealed. He knew. Before tonight.Before the ceremony.

Zane lied to me about Cain not knowing.

"You knew I was your mate?" I asked slowly.

Neither of them answered immediately. Which was answer enough. My stomach twisted violently.

"You both knew," I whispered.

Zane closed his eyes briefly. Cain swore under his breath. Rage exploded through me so fast it burned away the heartbreak.

"You knew," I repeated louder. "And nobody thought maybe I deserved to know?"

"It wasn't safe," Zane said immediately.

I rounded on him. "Don't you dare give me that excuse."

His face tightened.

"You don't understand what you walked into."

"Then why bring me into this? Why? You shouldn't have approached me "

Nobody spoke. That hurt more than anything.

Not the rejection.Not the broken bond clawing at my chest.The silence. Because silence meant guilt, silence meant they knew exactly what they had done.

I stared between both of them, breathing harder with every second.

"You manipulated me," I whispered.

Zane's expression immediately hardened. "No."

"Yes," I snapped. "You did."

His jaw flexed.

"We were trying to protect you."

I laughed bitterly. "Funny. Because all I feel right now is trapped."

Cain leaned against the counter with his arms crossed, but I noticed how tense he looked. Like every muscle in his body was stretched too tight.

"You think this is easy for us?" he muttered.

I rounded on him instantly.

"I don't care if it's easy for you!"

The words echoed through the kitchen.

"You rejected me like I was disposable."

Something dangerous flashed in Cain's eyes.

"You think that's what I wanted?"

"Isn't it?"

"No."

The answer came too fast. The room fell still. Even Zane looked surprised.

Cain cursed under his breath and looked away again, dragging a hand through his dark hair.

"You don't get it," he said quietly.

"Then explain it to me!"

His eyes lifted slowly back to mine. And for the first time since I met him I saw fear. Real fear.

"If I accept the bond," he said carefully, "you die."

The world stopped. I blinked once.

"What?"

Zane's expression immediately darkened. "Cain."

"She deserves the truth."

"No," Zane said sharply. "Not like this."

But Cain ignored him. His gaze never left mine.

"There's a reason nobody's seen a dual-bonded mate in over two hundred years."

A chill crawled down my spine.

"The bond becomes unstable," Cain continued. "It tears at everyone connected to it."

I stared at him blankly. Does that mean the story they told me earlier was all a lie? I'm so confused right now. They are making it so difficult for me to understand.

The story keeps on changing. I can't do this.

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It doesn't have to," Cain said bitterly. "The Moon Goddess doesn't explain herself."

Zane stepped closer to me slowly.

"There are stories," he admitted quietly. "Old ones."

I looked at him in disbelief.

"You knew too?"

His silence answered for him. Anger exploded through me all over again.

"So everybody knew except me."

"You weren't supposed to be involved," Zane said.

I actually laughed at that.

"Are you insane? I'm literally the center of this!"

"You were supposed to stay hidden," Cain muttered.

"From who?"

Nobody answered immediately. That terrified me. My heartbeat sped up.

"From who?" I repeated louder.

Cain pushed away from the counter finally.

"The Blood Moon pack."

The name hit the room strangely. Like something cursed. Even Zane looked tense hearing it aloud.

I frowned. "Who are they?"

Cain's expression went cold.

"They hunt rare bonds."

Ice slid through my veins.

"What do you mean by hunt?"

Zane answered this time.

"They believe special bonds create stronger bloodlines. Enhanced wolves. Stronger heirs."

The realization made me feel sick.

"You're talking about breeding."

Neither of them denied it. Disgust rolled through me instantly.

"That's insane."

"It gets worse," Cain said flatly.

A horrible feeling settled in my stomach.

"How could this possibly get worse?"

Cain hesitated.

Then—

"Your mother was one of them."

The room spun.

I actually stumbled backward.

"What?"

Zane moved immediately to steady me again, but this time I jerked away from him.

"No," I whispered. "No, that's not true."

Cain's face remained unreadable.

"She escaped before you were born."

I shook my head violently.

"You're lying."

"I wish I were."

My chest tightened painfully. My mother died when I was little. At least that's what I'd always been told. Every memory I had suddenly felt cracked around the edges.

Incomplete and Fake.

"You knew my mother?" I whispered.

Cain looked away. That was answer enough.

Rage surged through me so fast my wolf stirred violently beneath my skin.

"You knew her," I repeated.