CHAPTER FIVE
738 Words
The night after the council gathering, the Blackthorn estate felt… heavier.
Not because of the late hour, but because of what now hung unspoken between Kael and Selene.
The confrontation with Lucien still burned in Kael’s chest. His words had been measured, but his rage was anything but calm. He’d seen the way Lucien looked at her — and worse, the way Selene hadn’t noticed. Or perhaps she had… and simply hadn’t minded.
Selene was in their shared chambers when Kael entered. She was seated at the dressing table, brushing her hair slowly, and her eyes focused on her reflection rather than him.
“You left the gathering early,” she said without looking up.
“So did you,” Kael replied evenly. He removed his jacket and draped it over the chair, his gaze fixed on her in the mirror.
“I didn’t feel like staying,” she said simply, her voice light, but lacking warmth.
“Neither did I,” Kael murmured. “Too many snakes in the room.”
Something in his tone caught her attention, and she turned slightly. “You mean Lucien.”
Kael stepped closer. “I told you before — he’s dangerous. Stay away from him.”
Selene set the brush down gently. “He’s an Alpha, Kael. It's not a common thief in the night. He hasn’t threatened me.”
“Not with words,” Kael said sharply. “But that’s not how men like him work. He plants ideas. He sows doubt. That’s his weapon.”
Her brows furrowed slightly. “Is that what you think I am? An easy target for his ideas?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“It’s what you meant.” Her voice was quieter now, but it cut deeper than if she had shouted.
Kael exhaled slowly, fighting the urge to snap back. Instead, he placed his hands on the back of her chair, leaning closer until he could see her reflection in the mirror. “What I meant is that I’ve seen this before. Wolves like him don’t go after packs by force — they go after the heart. And you, Selene, are mine. Which means you are his prize.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line. “You talk about me like I’m a territory to be guarded.”
“You’re my mate,” Kael said firmly. “And protecting you is not a duty. It’s instinct.”
She held his gaze in the mirror for a moment longer before standing, slipping past him without another word. She crossed to the window, staring out at the silver-lit forest beyond.
For a long while, neither spoke. The silence between them wasn’t empty — it was thick with everything they weren’t saying.
Finally, she asked, “What did you say to him?”
Kael’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Enough to make him understand that if he touches what’s mine, there will be consequences.”
Her shoulders tensed, though she didn’t turn. “You sound like you’re preparing for a war.”
“I am,” Kael said simply. “Because that’s exactly what this is.”
When she finally faced him, there was no anger in her eyes — only something heavier. Something like sadness. “You think you’re protecting me, Kael. But lately, it feels like you’re protecting your pride more than your mate.”
That hit harder than anything Lucien had said.
He stepped toward her, his hand lifting as if to touch her cheek, but she took a step back. Not with malice — but with a quiet distance that hurt more than any rejection.
“Goodnight, Kael,” she murmured and slipped into the adjoining room, closing the door softly behind her.
Kael stood alone in the moonlit chamber, staring at the door she had just shut. He could feel the shift happening — the fracture widening. And he knew that every day he failed to close it, Lucien would be there to wedge it open even more.
When he finally turned toward the window, his reflection in the glass was almost unrecognizable. An Alpha at war — not with an enemy on the battlefield, but with the woman he loved and the shadow of a rival who was getting far too close.
And somewhere deep inside, Kael feared that if he didn’t move carefully, this war wouldn’t end with victory.
It would end with loss.
- Writer
