Kael's POV
I couldn't get her out of my head.
Three hours had passed since I left her room. Three hours of pacing my office like a caged animal. Three hours of my wolf howling and clawing at my mind.
*GO BACK TO HER. SHE NEEDS US.*
"She needs information," I growled. "That's all."
*LIAR.*
I slammed my fist on my desk. Papers flew everywhere. The wood cracked down the middle.
This was pathetic. I was pathetic. The most feared Alpha in the north, losing control over a skinny omega with sad eyes and a swollen belly.
But those eyes. Those dark, haunted eyes that had seen too much pain. They followed me everywhere.
I needed answers. Real answers. About Blackwood's defenses. About Damien's weaknesses. About anything I could use to finally destroy him.
And she was going to give them to me.
I stormed back to the east wing. The guards jumped out of my way like frightened rabbits. Good. At least someone still feared me properly.
I didn't knock. I just threw open her door.
She was sitting by the window, staring out at the forest. When she heard me enter, she flinched. But she didn't cower. She turned to face me with her chin raised.
That surprised me. Most wolves couldn't even meet my eyes.
"We need to talk," I said.
"We already talked."
"That wasn't talking. That was me telling you things." I pulled a chair in front of her and sat down. Our knees were almost touching. "Now you're going to tell me things."
She pressed her lips together. "Like what?"
"Blackwood Pack. How many warriors? What are their defenses? Where are the weak points in their border?"
Her eyes widened. "You want me to betray them?"
"They betrayed you first."
"That doesn't mean—" She stopped herself. Her hands twisted in her lap. "There are innocent people in that pack. Children. Omegas like me who never did anything wrong."
"I don't care about innocent people. I care about killing Damien."
"Then you're just as bad as him."
The words hit me like a slap. My wolf snarled in anger, but underneath it, I felt something else. Something that felt strangely like shame.
"You don't know anything about me," I said coldly.
"I know you want revenge. I know you'll destroy anyone who gets in your way." Her voice shook but she didn't back down. "I spent four years with a monster who smiled while he planned my death. I won't help create another one."
I leaned forward until my face was inches from hers. I let my Alpha power roll off me in waves—the kind of pressure that made grown wolves fall to their knees.
She went pale. Her body trembled. But she didn't look away.
*Brave*, my wolf whispered. *Our mate is brave.*
"Tell me about the defenses," I commanded, pushing power into my voice.
"No."
The refusal shocked me. An Alpha command should have forced the words out of her. But she resisted. Her whole body shook with the effort, sweat forming on her forehead, but she resisted.
"How are you doing that?" I demanded.
"I don't know." Tears streamed down her face from the strain. "But I won't... I won't be used... as a weapon... again."
Something cracked inside my chest.
I pulled back my power immediately. She gasped and slumped in her chair, breathing hard.
And I just sat there, staring at her like I'd never seen a wolf before.
She had resisted an Alpha command. That should have been impossible for an omega. The only wolves who could resist were Alphas themselves—or wolves with power equal to an Alpha.
The Moon Goddess bloodline. It was already changing her.
"I'm not going to hurt you," I heard myself say.
She laughed bitterly. "Everyone says that."
"I mean it."
"Damien meant it too. Every night he held me, he told me I was safe. That he loved me." She wiped her tears with shaking hands. "Words are easy. Everyone lies with words."
My wolf whimpered. Actually whimpered. The beast who had torn out a hundred throats was whimpering because our mate was in pain.
"What would make you believe me?" I asked.
She looked at me with those broken, beautiful eyes. "Nothing. I'll never believe anyone again."
The honesty in her voice cut deeper than any blade.
I stood up abruptly. I needed to leave. I needed to get away from her before I did something stupid—like pull her into my arms and promise to spend the rest of my life proving she could trust me.
"You'll stay in this room," I said, forcing my voice to stay cold. "You'll have food, clothes, whatever you need. But you don't leave without my permission."
"So I'm still a prisoner."
"You're still alive. That's more than most rogues get."
I walked to the door. My hand touched the handle.
"Kael."
I froze. It was the first time she had said my name. It sounded different coming from her lips. Softer. Almost like a prayer.
"What?" I asked without turning around.
"Your sister. The one Damien killed." Her voice was barely a whisper. "What was her name?"
No one asked about Lily. No one dared. Her name was forbidden in this pack—too painful, too raw, even after ten years.
But somehow, this broken omega had asked the one question that could shatter my walls.
"Lily," I said quietly. "Her name was Lily."
Silence stretched between us.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry he took her from you."
I couldn't respond. If I opened my mouth, I didn't know what would come out. A scream. A sob. A confession of every dark thing I had done in Lily's name.
I left without another word.
But as I walked down the hallway, my hands were shaking again. And this time, it wasn't from anger.
It was from something far more dangerous.
I was halfway to my office when Marcus came running toward me. His face was pale. His eyes were wild with panic.
"Alpha! We have a problem."
"What?"
"A messenger just arrived. From Blackwood Pack." Marcus swallowed hard. "Damien knows she's here. He's given us an ultimatum."
My blood turned to ice. "What ultimatum?"
Marcus handed me a scroll sealed with Blackwood's crest. I tore it open and read the words.
My vision went red.
"He wants her returned in three days," Marcus said. "Or he's coming with his entire army. But that's not the worst part."
"What's the worst part?"
Marcus looked like he was going to be sick.
"He's not coming alone. He's formed an alliance. Five packs have joined him." Marcus met my eyes. "They're calling it a holy war, Kael. They're saying she's an abomination—that the Moon Goddess bloodline must be destroyed before it destroys us all."
The scroll crumpled in my fist.
Six packs. Against one.
And they were coming for my mate.