Page 14

K ieran

The phone call comes in the middle of a strategy meeting, Elder Darrel is droning on about fortifying the northern borders while Damon silently flips through a stack of maps.

My focus is split between their words and my wolf’s aching need for her.

It’s more persistent now that she is mere feet away from me.

As Darrel talks about the patrol formations, the memory of her lips moaning my name flashes in my mind.

But the fantasy is interrupted when my phone buzzes on my desk.

The screen blinks Eldon Hayes’ name and I feel the curiosity bloom in the room. Darrel leans back in his chair and even though Damon is still clicking through the maps on the display, I know he’s keen on what the call is about.

“Eldon,” I growl, lifting the receiver.

“Kieran,” his voice oozes over the line, slick and taunting. “I was wondering when we’d get a chance to chat.”

“If this is not about how you will withdraw your troops from my northern border, we have nothing to discuss,” I snap, my patience fraying before he even starts .

Eldon chuckles, a low heinous sound that reverberates through the line, grating against my nerves. “I’m calling about something—or rather, someone—you’ve taken from me. I think you already know. Hazel belongs to me. She’s been my prize for months, and now you’ve deprived me of my right.”

I clench my fist around the phone, the sound of it creaking under my grip. “Hazel isn’t yours.”

His voice is smug and smooth and it makes me want to rip his vocal cords right out. “You tossed her aside, left her to fend for herself. So, I claimed her. Everyone knows she’s mine.”

The words send a surge of anger coursing through me, hot and immediate.

My wolf snarls, his fury matching my own.

The filthy bastard rogue. But beyond the possessiveness my wolf feels, this is just according to plan.

The more triggered Eldon is, the more erratic he will behave.

His plan will weaken, be driven by passion, become reckless. And that’s just where I want him.

But if the plan is to trigger Eldon, why am I the one triggered now?

Get a grip, I scold my wolf and he snaps his teeth at me.

“I don’t care about what claim you think you have on her.”

“And yet my prize is held hostage behind your walls,” Eldon muses, ignoring my words. “Interesting choice for someone you so easily discarded.”

I grit my teeth, refusing to rise to his bait.

“But here’s the thing,” Eldon continues, his voice hardening, the familiar ruthlessness returning to his tone.

“You had your chance, Alpha. Now, she’s mine.

And if you don’t surrender her, there will be consequences.

Unless, of course, you’re willing to hand her over peacefully. If not…well, you know what’s coming.”

I grind my teeth, the promise of war hanging unspoken in the air. The threat is now open. No more hiding behind the shadows. “Try it, and you won’t have a pack left to lead.”

Eldon’s laughter fades, replaced by a deadly calm. “You’d risk your entire pack for a woman you already rejected? Bold move, Kieran. Let’s see how it plays out.”

The line goes dead before I can respond, his threat lingering in the silence like a storm cloud .

I lower the phone slowly, my mind racing. Eldon wants Hazel back, enough to risk an all-out war with Moonfang.

“She isn’t worth this,” Elder Darrel says, his voice breaking through the haze. “This is madness, Alpha. And for what?”

I glance up, his disapproving gaze sharp and unyielding. Damon stands beside him, his expression more neutral, but the tension in his jaw speaks volumes. His loyalty to me has never wavered, but I can see the questions in his eyes, the doubts he’s trying to suppress.

I meet his gaze, my wolf growling low in my chest. “This is my decision.”

“It’s a reckless one,” he snaps.

“Enough,” I bark, my voice reverberating through the room.

“You think I don’t know what’s at stake?

” I say, my voice low and dangerous. “You think I don’t understand the risk?

Eldon would come for us regardless.” And he would be mincemeat under my fangs, regardless.

“She’s a catalyst,” I say through gritted teeth.

“Eldon’s obsession with her is a weakness we can exploit. ”

Darrel’s eyes narrow, disbelief etched across his face.

“And you think keeping her here, under your roof, is the best way to do that? You’ve let your personal feelings cloud your judgment, Kieran.

” He scoffs, leaning forward. “And yet you’ve chosen to antagonize Eldon further by keeping her here. Why? Because she’s your Mate?”

“Do you doubt my leadership?” I ask, my voice low, dangerous.

Darrel doesn’t flinch. “I question your priorities.”

“Get out before I have your head severed from your body,” I finally say, my voice cold.

Darrel hesitates, but Damon nods and gestures for him to leave.

They exit without another word. When they leave, the silence that follows is suffocating.

My wolf paces restlessly. I want to believe what I said.

That she here just to taunt Eldon, to serve as a vital strategy against my foe.

But the thought of him being lewd to her, running his slimy tongue over her skin, sends me into a different kind of bloodlust.

She Mated with that slimy male, threw away everything we could have been.

The thought claws at me, raw and unrelenting.

I can’t stop picturing her with him, her skin bearing his scent, the memory of his touch.

Even alone in this room, all I see is red.

I swipe at the lamp on my desk hoping the shattering and clanging will satisfy this bone-breaking rage that I’ve worked up.

I don’t know if I want to punish her or pull her closer, whether to make her pay or sink my teeth into her shoulder as I plunge into her sopping wetness.

I push away from the desk, my movements quick and deliberate as I leave the room. I leave instructions for the Omega to bring in a rack of clothes appropriate for my next plan.

When I reach her room, I don’t knock. I push the door open, stepping inside without hesitation.

Hazel is sitting by the window, her silhouette framed by the fading light of the afternoon. I can see the tension in her body and her shoulders stiffen in my presence.

She turns to face me, her storm-grey eyes locking onto mine. “What now?”

“Eldon wants his plaything back,” I say bluntly, not bothering to mince words. I grind my teeth as I watch her reaction.

Her expression doesn’t falter, but I see the flicker of something in her eyes—fear, anger, maybe both. Her lips press into a thin line, her gaze searching mine.

“You’re going to present yourself to him. Since he has claimed you as his, that should be light work for you.” Tease him with his bait. That will get him riled up. Make him want to act sooner, more recklessly.

Her eyes widen, shock flashing across her face. “Excuse me?”

And in the end, I will ensure he never sees the light of day for daring to breathe the same air as her, my wolf adds.

My eyes trail down to her lips. She licks her plump pink lower lip and my mouth waters, craving to taste, tease with little bites, bruise it so hard it purples.

“You heard me,” I say, stepping closer.

Her hands clench into fists, her anger radiating off her in waves. “You’re using me as bait.”

“Call it whatever you want, really. You put yourself in the perfect position for my plan.”

Her defiance doesn’t waver, her chin lifting as she glares at me. The fire in her eyes lighting the lust rumbling under my skin. “You have no right—”

“I have every right,” I snap, cutting her off. “You’re in my territory. Under my authority. That means you do as I say.”

She stands, her posture rigid as she steps closer. “And what happens when this backfires, Kieran?”

The chuckle that rumbles in my chest overrides the snarl of my wolf at the back of my mind.

She thinks me weak? She dares question my competence?

“You dare not underestimate me,” I say, my voice low and dangerous. “Get dressed.”

“You’re wasting your time. I’m not claimed by anyone and I will not let you sell me off like some bundle of meat.”

Hazel glares at me with a fury that would make lesser wolves cower. She doesn’t flinch, even though my wolf is pressing at the edges of my control, daring her to challenge me further.

Her words should ease the gnawing frustration in my chest, but they don’t. Instead, they fuel it, stoking the fire of my anger.

“Not claimed?” I scoff, taking a step closer. “Eldon’s men call you his Mate. Broadstone has seen you frolicking with him. He’s threatening war over you. And you’re telling me it’s all lies?”

She straightens, her chin tilting up as if daring me to challenge her. “Yes. It’s all lies. As if you expect better from a rival pack. But I wouldn’t expect you to believe me.” She rolls her eyes.

My wolf growls, his presence pressing against the edges of my control. She so fucking sexy it’s hard to not want to rip her clothes off her. I want to reveal the supple cleavage straining the plain T-shirt she’s wearing.

“Why should I believe you?” I ask, my voice low, dangerous. “You’ve done nothing to earn my trust.”

“And you’ve done nothing to deserve my honesty,” she spits.

There’s a soft knock on the door and an Omega soft voice requests to come in with her head poking through the crack I left. I nod, and she wheels a rack full of dresses in.

“Get dressed,” I say, nodding toward the dresses on the rack .

She scoffs and raises a perfectly arched brow. “You’re joking.”

I growl, taking a step closer. “You’ll wear a dress. You’ll present yourself to Eldon exactly how I tell you to. And you’ll do it without another word of protest.”

Her laugh is bitter, cutting through the tension in the room. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you? Parading me around like some prize while pretending you have everything under control.”