CLAIMED THEN CAST ASIDE

🌙Chapter Ten – Sisters with Knives

The air in the room was still when Selene woke. For a moment, she thought the strange feeling pressing against her chest was just a dream—but then she saw her.

Zara.

Her supposedly younger sister stood near the foot of the bed, arms folded, her eyes scanning Selene with a mix of curiosity and something colder—calculation. Two of Richard’s guards lingered near the door, silent and armed.

“Morning, big sis,” Zara said softly. Too softly. The kind of voice a snake might use before striking.

Selene pushed herself up, her muscles stiff. “What are you doing here?”

Zara gave a slow smile, the kind she wore when she wanted people to believe she cared. “Richard thought it would be nice for us to… reconnect.”

Her gaze slid to Selene’s stomach for a fraction of a second. She knew. Selene’s heart gave a sharp thump in her chest.

The guards didn’t move, but Selene could feel their presence like weights in the room. She couldn’t say what she wanted—not here.

“You’ve changed,” Selene said, trying to keep her voice steady.

“So have you,” Zara replied, stepping closer. The light from the window caught her eyes, making them gleam. “And I hear you’ve been keeping secrets.”

Selene didn’t answer. The silence stretched between them until Zara’s smile faded into something harder.

“I know about the pregnancy,” Zara said, her voice flat now. “I haven’t told Kael.”

Selene’s chest tightened. “Why?”

“Because it’s not his business,” Zara said, lowering her voice. “And because I don’t want him charging in here and ruining… arrangements.”

Arrangements. The word made Selene’s wolf stir. Her instincts prickled under her skin, sharp and restless.

Zara’s hand drifted to the edge of the bed, her nails tapping the wood. “Richard has been… generous. He sees value in you, Selene. In the child. That’s why you’re still breathing.”

Selene’s throat felt dry. “Value,” she repeated.

“Do you know how rare it is for a wolf to get pregnant?” Zara’s tone turned almost instructional, as if she were explaining something to a stubborn child. “It almost never happens unless you’re marked by your true mate. And we both know who marked you.”

Selene didn’t reply. She didn’t have to. They both knew the truth: Richard was not the father. He never could be.

Zara straightened. “He doesn’t care. In fact, that makes it better for him. This child will give him power in places you can’t even imagine. You should be grateful.”

Grateful. Selene’s wolf pressed harder against her skin at the word, a low growl curling in her mind.

“And Kael?” Selene asked quietly. “What if he finds out?”

Zara’s smile returned—sharp, dangerous. “He won’t. Not from me. And by the time he does, it won’t matter.”

She moved closer, leaning down so her lips were near Selene’s ear. “Stay quiet. Behave. Or I’ll make sure you regret ever opening your mouth.”

The scent of her perfume was thick, sweet, cloying. It reminded Selene of poison dressed in flowers.

When Zara pulled back, she glanced at the guards. “We’re done here.”

They moved toward the door, and Selene felt her wolf push again—harder this time. Her hearing sharpened, picking up the faint beat of Zara’s heart, the slower thump of the guard on the right. Scents separated in the air—iron from the weapons, leather from their jackets, and the faintest trace of Richard’s cologne down the hall.

Her wolf was waking.

And she would need every bit of that strength.

Selene sat in silence long after Zara left. The door shut with a heavy click, but the scent of her sister lingered, sharp and smug.

Zara knew everything—about the pregnancy, about Kael—and she’d kept it from him. Not out of loyalty to Selene, but to keep her trapped here for Richard’s plans.

The thought twisted like a knife in Selene’s stomach.

She pushed the blanket aside and stood, moving to the small window. Outside, the grounds stretched wide, guarded at every corner. Wolves in human form patrolled in pairs. Richard wasn’t taking chances.

Her wolf’s voice was louder now, no longer a faint whisper. Run. Fight. Break.

But Selene knew she had to be careful. Reckless moves would only get her killed.

Later that afternoon, she heard footsteps in the hall. She moved closer to the door, senses sharp. Voices drifted in—low, urgent.

“…she’s restless,” Richard was saying.

“Then keep her restless,” Zara replied, her tone cold. “A desperate wolf is easier to control than a calm one.”

Selene’s nails dug into her palms.

Richard’s voice lowered, but her sharpened hearing caught it anyway. “If she tries to leave—”

“I’ll hand her to Adrian myself,” Zara cut in smoothly.

Selene’s breath caught. Adrian. The name was like a shadow from their past—a man with charm like silk and hands stained with blood.

“You trust him with her?” Richard asked.

“I trust him to do what I tell him,” Zara said simply. “And I trust him to make sure Kael never sees her again.”

The voices moved away, footsteps fading down the hall.

Selene stayed frozen by the door, her mind spinning.

Her own sister. The one person she thought might help her, even a little—was working to deliver her into the hands of someone even worse than Richard. I mean, who was she kidding? They've never gotten along since they were sisters, what makes her think they'll get along now? And Kael… Kael didn’t even know she was carrying his child.

Her wolf surged so fiercely she almost staggered. Her hearing, her sense of smell, even the strength in her limbs felt doubled. The thin veneer of control she’d kept was starting to c***k.

She turned back toward the window, gripping the sill hard enough her knuckles ached.

There would be no help coming.

No mercy from Richard.

No loyalty from Zara.

If Selene wanted to survive, she would have to outthink them all—before the full moon.

Outside, a guard glanced up at her window. His eyes lingered for a moment, suspicious.

Selene forced herself to step back, her heart hammering.

The moon was coming.

And so was her chance.