Chapter Fourteen

Ares

I am vengeful. Nobody messes with me and gets away with it. Leila Kaye and her parents are just about to experience that firsthand.

I get to the Kayes' gate and park outside. The last time I was here, the gates opened the moment I stopped in front of them, controlled by the security team from their booth the moment they saw my car.

Today, one of the guards runs out to meet me. They were not informed of my arrival, but I am too important to ignore at the gate.

"Hello there, Mr. Linds. Welcome to the Kaye estate. Are the Kayes expecting you?" he asks me politely.

I roll down the window. He bends to look into my car.

"No. They aren't." I smile charismatically at him.

He scrunches up his face and leans closer to my car. "I don't understand, sir."

I shake my head in mock sadness and release my pheromones directly at him. His grip on my car tightens as my power subdues him.

"Open the gate," I order.

He walks back to the gate, and in record time, he swings it open.

I'm taking a page from Leila's book and returning the favor.

I park my car in the front of the mansion and get out. Immediately, I release my pheromones, targeting the guards around the mansion. The guards at the front door are on their knees, unable to speak or walk, just like I wanted.

"Don't utter a single word, and you will be fine," I tell them as I stroll into the mansion.

I hold back my pheromones as I walk deeper inside the house.

They won't know what hit them.

I don't get too far when I sense the pheromone storm. It is so thick that I do not bother to subdue the servants. The raging pheromones from the Kayes perform the task perfectly for me.

What could be going on?

I follow the storm to the living room and gaze around. I hear and sense them before I see them. They are all in the living room, shouting at the top of their lungs and blasting pheromones at each other, too occupied in their heated battle to notice my presence.

Their disagreement will work for me

I head for the living room. As I move closer, their argument becomes clearer.

"How could you?" Mr. Kaye's voice booms through the room.

"What do you mean how could I? When you were busy being promiscuous and sleeping with fucking maids," Mrs. Kaye shouts back at him, venom lacing her shrill voice.

Hmmm! Interesting.

"That doesn't change what you did, Mom. Drugging her," Leila scoffs in disbelief.

Drugging who?

"You don't even know what I have done for you. You don't know anything!" Mrs. Kaye lashes out at Leila.

"Why did you do it, Mom?" Leila fires back.

Mr. Kaye jumps in. "It doesn't matter how upset you were about the affair, why couldn't you just leave them be?"

I hear the frustration in his voice.

Leave them be? Who are they talking about?

I am fully eavesdropping now, pausing at the door and listening in.

"Yes! You could have just left her to be another servanteven though you didn't want it to be found out, even though you were worried about the girl being an illegitimate child. You should have let it be. You didn't have to go as far as drugging her," Leila yells.

As I listen to them, my mind runs fast, devouring the information.

Mrs. Kaye laughs hysterically. "I could have left her alone? No way. I was protecting my family."

"No, Mom! No! You were putting your family in danger by using illegal blockers on a child! Why can't you see this?" Leila is frustrated. "That's illegal and warrants jail time, Mom!" she shouts.

Wait! She used illegal blockers on a girl? What girl are they talking about?

"No, I don't see anything wrong with what I did. I did want I had to," Mrs. Kaye presses.

Leila groans and angrily hits something.

"You did wrong and you are not seeing it. Who did I marry?" Mr. Kaye asks incredulously. "I am going to report you to the authorities. Maybe then you'd learn your lesson," he angrily states.

Good call! Mr. Kaye is finally standing up to his wicked wife.

"How dare you turn your back on me!" Mrs. Kaye shrieks.

"What you did was wrong, Mom!" Leila seems bent on her mom accepting this.

Mrs. Kaye remains unrepentant. "Shut up! You are threatening me with jail? You? Everything I did, I did for you. This is how you want to pay me back?" she growls. "You! Who couldn't catch Alpha Ares's attention, but that little bitch did it within a few seconds!"

I growl softly.

Hold on, are they talking about the girl.. my girl ?

Now she is overstepping.

How dare she call my Omega a little bitch?

Using illegal blockers on her too? We worked so hard to make the new formula because we wanted to improve the health of all wolves. To think that poor girl was being poisoned for years. I feel fury curl itself up in my chest.

I've been trying to find her, but she has been closer to me than I thought.

She is the illegitimate child of Mr. Kaye and a maid.

I don't need to lurk around anymore. I have a better understanding of what is happening, and I no longer need to eavesdrop on the Kayes.

My plans have changed. I push the doors open and walk into the room. I don't need to announce my arrival. They all go quiet as I walk in. The combination of their different pheromones is stronger in the room, but it doesn't affect me at all.

The Kayes are all in feral mode with their canines and claws out, eyes shining with wrath. Shock passes over their faces as I stop in the center of the room.

"How did you get in here?" Mr. Kaye questions. "Where are the guards? Did no one see you walk in?"

"Oh, I am simply returning the favor of an uninvited visit that I got from Leila." I smile.

Leila's parents turn to face her with raised eyebrows, but Leila looks always without answering their silent question.

At least she knows what she did was wrong. I guess her anger overshadowed her logic.

I'm tempted to yell at them for what Mrs. Kaye did to the poor girl I met for a few moments the other day, but this is a family affair. Despite my plans to wed into this family, I am still not yet a member. However, this revelation doesn't in any way affect my plans.

"I came to settle the books. And to make up for not getting hitched to your wonderful daughter over here like you had hoped. But the way I see it, there is no need for that. I can still marry Mr. Kaye's daughter as I planned," I calmly inform them.

"What do you mean?" Leila rolls her eyes.

Mrs. Kaye's countenance brightens at this.

I quickly understand that they may not be getting what I am saying.

"I will still be marrying a Kaye like you want, but it will not be Leila Kaye," I rephrase.

They look at me like I have grown a third head, and then Leila grits her teeth.

"I heard everything," I say, clearing the air. "I will be taking the girl I kissed in the garden. She is also a Kaye, no?"

Mr. Kaye is taken aback, but Mrs. Kaye takes this badly. She growls at me aggressively. "What the fuck are you talking about? You want to marry the daughter of a maid?" she yells.

It seems the woman does not remember her last altercation with me.

I growl loudly and she bows her head.

That's better!

I eye her. "We had an arrangement to see if your daughter was compatible with me. She isn't. But the other Kaye daughter is. " I pause and shake my head in mock pity at Mrs. Kaye. "It doesn't have anything to do with you. You are not even her mother. So, why are you getting involved? It's all in Mr. Kaye's hands."

Mr. Kaye speaks, stealing my attention from Mrs.Kaye. "Mr. Linds, I am still trying to figure this whole thing out. I just found out that I am her father and it's mind-boggling. I don't think I can give her away in marriage, especially at a time like this. I don't even know where she is. So, I cannot tell you anything. I can't say that there can be a settlement."

I look him over and I am immediately disgusted.

Whatever his reasons, this Alpha allowed his wife to drug his daughter.

"I have decided that there will be no settlement. And that's just perfect." I smirk wickedly at him.

He meekly nods to this.

I am quite pleased with myself. I will legally marry a Kaye when I claim my Omega.

I have effectively used a loophole to avoid a conflict with the Kayes. They will not have any right to come for me now.

There is still the issue of finding where my Omega is, but that can be easily rectified now that I know her identity.

"What's her name?" I ask.

"Cassie," Leila provides.

Cassie .

A beautiful name for a beautiful Omega.

I can't wait to call her name.

To moan out her name.

I want Cassie to call out my name. The thought of her name has me burning up.

I am so lost in my thoughts of Cassie that I ignore Leila's attempt to rile me up.

They are all watching me as I shake myself out of my daydream.

I stretch out my hands to shake Mr. Kaye. "You don't have to bother looking for her. Leave that to me," I tell him.

"Don't you dare shake his hand, Augustus!" Mrs. Kaye screeches.

Mr. Kaye ignores her. "Let's see how it plays out." He shakes my hand.

Mrs. Kaye doesn't take this lightly. She flares up, voice rough from all the shouting she has been doing "Are you insane Augustus? You are going to let that wretched illegitimate child marry him? You're going to just let that happen? You accept that little bitch as your daughter?" She is hitting him on his back as she speaks.

Mr. Kaye just stands there, head bowed, large shoulders hunched, and arms folded silently, taking it all.

Leila is in the corner now, head buried in her hands. I momentarily feel pity for her. She is a decent person and a powerful Omega. She just has crappy parents.

I walk out of the room with Mrs. Kaye's voice echoing in my ears. She keeps screaming at the top of her lungs as I step outside.

It is somewhat comical, if a little terrible.

I am walking to my car when a text from Henry comes in.

"We found out the girl's name. It's Cassie Munt."

But she is a Kaye. She is really Cassie Kaye.

More messages come in from Henry. They are pictures of Cassie standing outside an apartment building. She looks like she's waiting for the door to open.

So, that's where she is.

I'm going to have to seek her out. We have things to talk about.