The Unwanted Bond
1516 Words
Kaiza Draeven’s POV
Pain.
It came in sharp, pulsing waves, radiating from the iron restraints biting into his wrists. The scent of blood, his blood, hung in the air, mingling with the cold, sterile scent of stone and metal.
Kaiza Draeven had endured pain before. He had fought in battles, survived ambushes, and faced wounds that should have killed him. But this… this was different.
Because it wasn’t just his pain.
Across the room, the huntress, his huntress, a bitter part of him whispered, stood rigid, her hand curled into a fist at her side. She was breathing hard, her pulse erratic.
She felt it too.
The realization sent a chill through him, colder than the iron shackles that bound him.
This bond… it shouldn’t exist.
It defied everything he knew, everything he had been taught. Bonds formed between mates, between those who belonged together. Not between a werewolf and a hunter sworn to destroy his kind.
And yet, here they were.
Tied together by something neither of them understood.
He tried to reach out to his wolf, but every attempt never worked.
Kaiza exhaled slowly, forcing himself to remain calm despite the storm raging inside him. He could feel her presence in a way that was unnatural, like an invisible thread tethering them together. It was faint, but it was there, humming beneath his skin, pulling at something deep and primal within him.
He didn’t want it.
Didn’t accept it.
“You’re going to let me go,” he said, his voice quiet but firm.
The huntress, Elara, he reminded himself snorted, crossing her arms. “Oh, am I?”
Kaiza met her gaze, holding it steady. “You don’t have a choice.”
She scoffed. “I think you’re the one without a choice here, prince.”
His jaw tightened. “If you truly believe that, then hit me again.”
Her expression flickered just for a second. He saw the hesitation, the memory of what had happened when she struck him before.
Kaiza leaned forward as much as his restraints allowed. “Go on. Use that iron rod again.” His voice was low, almost taunting. “See what happens.”
Elara didn’t move.
He gave a humorless smirk. “You already know, don’t you? If I feel pain….”
“I feel it too,” she finished, her voice quieter now.
Kaiza nodded, his smirk fading. “Which means your little interrogation techniques are useless.” He tilted his head slightly. “And that’s not even the real problem.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Oh? And what is?”
He sighed. “Your people.”
Elara’s stance stiffened. He saw the way her fingers twitched, the way her lips pressed together in a thin line.
“They don’t know, do they?” he continued. “They don’t know you’re bound to me. That you’ve been marked, and that any moment from now you will become like me”
Her silence was answer enough.
Kaiza’s expression darkened. “If they find out, you’re dead.”
She scoffed, but he could hear the forced edge in it. “You don’t know that.”
He did.
Hunters were merciless. He had seen what they did to werewolves they captured. He had witnessed their brutality, their unwavering hatred. If they discovered that one of their own, one of their best, was bonded to the enemy?
They would tear her apart.
The realization hit harder than it should have.
Why did the thought of her being hurt make his chest tighten?
He barely knew her. She was his enemy.
And yet…
The bond pulsed between them, as if reminding him that none of that mattered anymore.
Elara shook her head. “It doesn’t change anything,” she said stubbornly.
Kaiza’s patience thinned. “It changes everything.”
She flinched, just slightly.
He softened his tone—just enough to make her listen. “You don’t trust me. I get that. But think about it logically. You can’t keep me here, Elara. The longer you do, the more danger you’re in.”
He watched as the words settled over her, as doubt crept into her sharp blue eyes.
Still, she was a fighter. He could see the war within her, the part of her that refused to bend.
He exhaled through his nose. “If you let me go, I can figure out how to deal with this bond, for both of us.”
She blinked, surprised by his words. “For both of us?”
Kaiza clenched his jaw. “Do you think I want this any more than you do?” His voice was raw now, edged with frustration. “I don’t want to feel you. I don’t want to be connected to a hunter who would have killed me without hesitation.”
Elara didn’t speak, but something in her gaze shifted.
He sighed, suddenly tired. “But here we are.”
The silence stretched between them, heavy and uncertain.
And then, finally, he saw it, doubt.
She was considering it.
Kaiza stayed still, letting her think. He had done what he could. Now, it was up to her.
But gods, he hoped she made the right choice.
** *
Kaiza Draeven sat in silence, the cold iron biting into his skin. His mind churned, still struggling to process what had happened—what was happening.
A bond.
It shouldn’t be possible.
Yet he could feel it. The phantom pulse of her emotions lingered at the edges of his mind, a constant reminder that he wasn’t alone in this. As much as he wanted to deny it, the truth remained.
Elara had left him alone, likely torn between her instincts as a hunter and whatever the bond was doing to her. He could still sense the remnants of her frustration, her hesitation.
But he wasn’t the only one thinking.
The sound of approaching footsteps broke through his thoughts.
The scent of blood, sweat, and iron filled the air as the heavy door swung open. A group of hunters stepped inside, their eyes gleaming with cruel delight.
And then….
“I’ll be damned,” one of them muttered, stepping closer. His eyes locked onto Kaiza’s shoulder, widening in recognition. “He’s marked.”
Another hunter’s grin widened. “Not just marked.” He tilted his head. “That’s a royal mark.”
Kaiza remained still, expression unreadable, even as his muscles tensed.
They knew.
The first hunter let out a low chuckle. “A werewolf prince in our grasp. Do you know what this means?”
Kaiza said nothing.
“We could break him,” another added, voice laced with cruel amusement. “Take him apart piece by piece and revenge him for all of our people they killed,this is the best revenge.”
Still, Kaiza remained silent. He had no intention of giving them anything.
The first hunter sighed, shaking his head. “Not in a talking mood, are we?” He reached for a nearby weapon, an iron baton. “Maybe we can fix that.”
Kaiza braced himself, jaw tightening as the hunter raised the weapon.
“Stop.”
The voice cut through the air like a blade.
The hunters turned as Elara strode into the room, her expression cold and unreadable.
“I’ll handle this interrogation,” she said firmly.
A beat of silence followed.
The first hunter frowned. “You sure?”
Elara’s gaze didn’t waver. “I brought him in. He’s mine to deal with.”
The hunter hesitated, but eventually gave a curt nod. “Fine. Have it your way.” He turned to his men. “Let’s go. We’ll let you… soften him up.”
The moment the door closed behind them, Kaiza let out a slow breath.
Then he smirked.
Elara turned to face him fully, arms crossed. “What?”
“You stopped them.” His voice was smooth, teasing. “I must be growing on you.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re insufferable.”
Kaiza tilted his head. “And yet, you just saved me. Why?”
Elara stiffened slightly. She didn’t answer right away, which only made his smirk widen.
She was already entangled in this bond more than she wanted to admit.
Finally, she exhaled sharply. “I need answers.”
Kaiza raised a brow. “Ah. So you do need me.”
She ignored his remark. “If I let you go, can you really find a way to break this bond?”
His smirk faded.
Elara’s voice was quieter now. “Can you stop me from… becoming like you?”
Kaiza studied her carefully. There was no mockery in her tone, no sharp edge. Only fear, buried beneath her stubbornness, but there nonetheless.
His jaw clenched. “I don’t know.”
Elara’s lips pressed into a thin line.
“But,” he continued, meeting her gaze steadily, “I’ll find out.”
Silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken tension.
Then, finally, Elara took a step back, uncertainty flickering across her face.
The weight of a choice hung in the air.
- Writer
