Kael's POV
She ran from me.
Even now, with her scent still clinging to the castle walls like smoke, Kael could feel the echo of her footsteps. Aria had come that close to disappearing into the night—and taking the last shred of his control with her.
He should've killed the guard who let it happen. And maybe he would. Later.
But right now, all Kael could think about was her eyes when he found her in the ruined eastern tower—wild, defiant, terrified. And that blade in her hand.
She would've stabbed him if he'd been one second slower.
He paced the war room like a caged animal, growling under his breath. Draven stood quietly near the hearth, arms crossed, watching his Alpha unravel piece by piece.
"You were supposed to keep her contained," Kael snapped.
"I did," Draven replied calmly. "Until your guard got bold and she got smart."
"She nearly escaped."
"But she didn't." Draven's gaze was steady. "She hesitated, Kael. Don't you get it? She had the chance. She could've killed him. She could've run. But something pulled her back."
Kael stopped moving.
The bond.
That invisible, maddening thread between them that tightened with every heartbeat. He felt it now more than ever—twisting in his chest like a thorned vine, aching where it had no right to.
"She hates me," he muttered.
"Yes," Draven said. "But she also feels you."
Kael's hands clenched. "That doesn't make it real."
"No," Draven said. "But it makes it dangerous."
---
Later that night, Kael descended into the cellar beneath the war wing. Not the dungeon this time—he'd had Aria moved to a quieter, warmer room. A place that didn't reek of rot and despair.
She was chained still—but lightly. Enough to keep her from running. Enough to make her understand that her life now existed in the space between his mercy and her defiance.
Kael paused at the door.
His chest tightened. His wolf snarled beneath his skin.
He didn't want to go in there. He wanted to throw open the door, take her in his arms, kiss her until she hated him a little less.
But he wouldn't.
Because this wasn't love.
This was war.
He pushed the door open.
---
Aria's POV
She expected a punishment.
A beating. A threat. A cruel game to remind her who held the chains.
Instead, Kael walked in like a storm waiting to explode—silent thunder behind his eyes, shoulders broad with tension, hands twitching at his sides as if they wanted to destroy something just to feel something.
She didn't speak.
Didn't move.
Just sat in the corner, the dagger still clutched loosely in her lap. She hadn't given it up. And strangely… he hadn't taken it.
"Did you think you'd make it far?" he asked.
His voice was quieter than she expected. Low. Controlled.
"No," she said simply. "But I had to try."
Kael stepped closer. "And if I hadn't found you in time?"
"You'd be rid of me."
A muscle twitched in his jaw. "Is that what you want?"
Her eyes met his—blue flame to smoldering ash.
"What I want," she said, "is to wake up and find out this bond never happened."
Silence.
Pain flashed across his face—too fast to name. He turned his back to her, walking to the hearth and lighting the fire with a snap of his fingers.
"You think I don't feel it too?" he asked. "This curse. This… need."
Aria didn't answer.
He turned slowly, eyes glowing faintly gold.
"I dream of you," he said. "Even when I don't want to. I feel your pain. I feel your rage. It's in my blood. My bones."
"Then rip it out," she whispered.
"If I could, I would."
They stared at each other across the flickering firelight—wolves caught in a standoff that could only end in surrender or ruin.
Kael stepped toward her.
She didn't back away.
"You want me to say I'm sorry," he said. "For the war. For your father. For everything."
"You're not," she spat.
"No," he admitted. "I'm not. He betrayed me. He killed my brother. He made me into this."
"And what am I supposed to be?" she snapped. "Your reparation? Your pet? Your prize?"
"No." His voice dropped. "You're my punishment."
That stunned her.
He wasn't taunting. He wasn't lying.
He believed it.
"Aria…" he knelt before her now, close enough to touch, but he didn't reach for her. "I don't know what the Goddess was thinking. But I do know this—I won't force you."
She narrowed her eyes.
"I'll never take what you don't give," he said softly. "Not your body. Not your loyalty. Not your forgiveness."
Aria's chest ached.
Her wolf was howling, clawing at her insides. Wanting him. Yearning for the bond to finally snap into place.
But Aria couldn't.
Not yet.
Maybe not ever.
"I should hate you," she whispered.
"I know."
"I do hate you."
"I believe you."
"But I also…" She broke off. Her throat tightened. "I also don't understand why my heart beats louder when you're near."
Kael swallowed hard.
Their faces were inches apart.
"If I kiss you now," he said, voice like silk and fire, "will you bite me?"
Her lips twitched. "Try it and find out."
He didn't.
But he wanted to.
She could feel it.
And maybe that was the most dangerous part of all.