Chapter Forty-Six

Silas

No amount of pacing seems to make a difference. If anything, the rhythmic thud of my boots on the floorboards just draws me back to that gut-wrenching scene.

My imprint mate. Blood-splattered. Unconscious.

I took some solace in learning it wasn’t her blood. Not enough to forgive the rest.

“ Two broken ribs, ” the healer determined. “ And severe head trauma. ”

If Kane hadn’t all but slaughtered their attackers, I’m not sure how I would’ve stopped myself from doing the same.

She looks eerily peaceful, lying flat in bed. The room suits her. Solid walls. Clean drapes and cozy bedlinen. Something resembling the life I want to provide for her, when all of this is finally over.

When . My jaw tightens . If.

I turn on my heel to start another lap when I hear it.

“Si … las?”

I throw myself at Willow’s bedside. She looks even smaller with her hair cut short—her face a soft, delicate pearl in my palm. When she hacked it off, or why, I still don’t know.

“Omega,” I breathe, relief cascading over me. “I’m here. You’re safe.”

Her brow furrows. “Am I … dead?”

“What? No, little one, of course not.”

“But you’re so clean,” she whispers, lifting a shaky hand to my face. She sees her own hand—her pink, pale fingers, and her eyes widen. “ I’m so clean.”

“We’re somewhere safe.” I look around the room, certainly more polished than anywhere she’s lived in the last four months. “Safe, and clean.”

“I see.” Suddenly, she feels her neck, checking her bond mark is intact. “Where’s Kane?”

Damn . I should’ve seen this coming. “Willow …”

“He got hurt,” she recalls. “H–he was bleeding.”

“He’s fine. It was just a scratch.”

Her eyes flash. “If he’s fine , why isn’t he here?”

Now there’s a question I did see coming, and yet, I haven’t had the sense to think of an answer.

She notes her bandaged midsection, but struggles to sit up anyway.

“Omega.” I stop her. “You need your rest.”

“I need my mate,” she snarls.

“He’s close by,” I assure her.

“Doing what?”

“ Resting . Just like you should be.” When she tries to force her way up again, I growl, “Willow. You have a lot of healing left to do. Do you really think Kane would want to see you hurt even worse than you already are?”

“No, I don’t,” she returns, “which is how I know he wouldn’t leave my bedside unless someone forced him.” She scans the room with a sharper eye. “Where is he? Where are we ?”

I take a deep breath. “That’s a long story, little one.”

“Either you tell it to me, right this instant, or you take me to my mate!”

The more she raises her voice, the more my alpha is on edge. I reach for her hand, pressing the inside of my wrist to hers. My scent rolls over her. She bristles, resists, before the pheromones gradually take effect.

“I’ll tell you everything,” I promise, gently.

Her bottom lip quivers. “Then you’ll take me to Kane?”

I sigh. “Yes, little one. Whatever you want.”

She’s still fighting me. Still aching for her mate. But she must realize the best way to get to him is by going through me, and so, finally, she nods.

“I’m listening.”

***

We make it halfway down the hall before Kelina stops us. As per my request, she’s dressed casually—opting for tan trousers and a loose tunic. I was worried being surrounded by a bunch of alphas in uniform would make Willow nervous.

Kelina glares at me, then at Willow, scooped up in my arms. “So, the omega’s awake,” she notes.

Willow bristles. “One of Northside’s guards, I presume?”

I nod. “This is Kelina. She’s been assigned to our watch.”

Kelina quirks an eyebrow. “Giving the girl a tour?”

“Something like that.”

She hesitates. “You tell her what’s going on here?”

“I’ve been filled in,” Willow answers for herself.

“Mm.” Kelina stares at Willow another moment, making my chest rumble possessively, then looks up at me. “You know I can’t let her go any further.”

“What?” Willow snaps. “Why not?”

“First off,” Kelina nearly barks back, “if Silas told you everything, you’d know that you’re not just a guest here. You’re a prisoner. Our prisoner.” She sneers. “What we say, goes.”

My alpha roars defiantly. How dare she speak that way to my mate ?

“Secondly,” she goes on, “letting you anywhere near that rogue downstairs is only going to lead to more bloodshed.”

“Downstairs?” Willow notes the solid wooden floorboards, then the ground-level windows. “What downstairs?”

Kelina’s cool eyes glint. “So, he didn’t tell you everything.”

As much as I’d love to shove my fist in her mouth, the words are already spoken, and Willow is already growling.

“Silas,” she seethes, “ where is Kane ?”

“Where do you think?” Kelina sighs. “We had to lock him in the cellar.”

“The cellar?” My omega’s pheromones burst with outrage. “He’s not an animal!”

“He slaughtered two of our villagers. Maimed two others.”

“He was protecting me.” Suddenly, like she’s only now realizing she’s still in my arms, Willow tries to force her way out. I let her stand, if only to stop from jostling her ribcage.

“Easy, omega,” I purr. “Take a breath, and we can talk about this.”

“ Talk ? All day, we waited for you, and you were here.” She shoots me an accusatory snarl. “Talking.”

Palming the wall for balance, she tries to storm past Kelina. The other alpha blocks her with ease.

“Don’t touch her,” I warn.

Kelina smirks. “Don’t worry. Red-heads aren’t my type.”

Enraged as I am, it doesn’t come close to the fury emanating from Willow’s scent. Even Kelina seems taken aback. It’s not every day us alphas see an omega turn feral. I wonder if it’s her mate’s bloodlust travelling through the bond. Tainting her.

“Let. Kane. Go,” she demands. “ Now .”

I hover, not touching her. One wrong move is sure to set her off. If she doesn’t hurt herself, restraining her will.

“Kelina,” I say, keeping my voice level. “They’re bonded. Keeping them apart will only make them both more volatile.”

The smug Northside guard swaps her gaze between us. I can see the cogs turning. Calculating. Finally, she huffs, telling us to wait here. As she turns into the adjoining room, a quaint little kitchen with a hatch in the floor, Willow moves to follow.

I catch her wrist. “She’ll be back, little one.”

The sight of her contempt makes my jaw clench, my inner alpha aching to bite her. Remind her that she’s mine, as much as she is his. I’m not going to let her hurt herself just to get to him.

Not after everything I’ve done to keep her safe.

“I’m sorry,” I say at last. “I shouldn’t have kept you waiting.”

She scowls at me, like she’s trying to figure out my angle.

“I wanted to reach you sooner,” I explain. “But I didn’t. Because of that, you got hurt, and Kane …” turned into a feral killing machine . I sigh. “It was my fault.”

Finally she softens, if only slightly. “You were trying to save us.”

Trying . Is she not convinced I succeeded?

Finally, Kelina resurfaces. She regards my omega. “He’s ready for you.”

We follow Kelina through the kitchen and down the cellar stairs. Shards of daylight slice through the barred window. The room reeks of oil, dirt, and sweat.

Guilt churns in my stomach. This shouldn’t be my first time venturing down here. I know I couldn’t bring myself to leave Willow’s bedside, but even still … Kane deserved better.

Two male guards, Tristan and Aster, straighten as we approach.

Kane is pressed against the wall, hunched in shadows. He’s shirtless. Barefoot. There are shackles attached to his ankles and wrists. He breathes hoarsely, like he’s not quite awake, but not quite asleep.

“Alpha,” Willow gushes.

Red eyes cut through the dark, tainted with feral sickness, as she throws herself into his arms.

“Hey!” Tristan protests.

The second he moves closer, Kane flashes his teeth. He pulls Willow in, scenting her as best he can over the shackles.

“Get these off of him,” Willow demands.

Aster balks. “Are you crazy?”

“Hey,” I bark. “Speak to her that way again, and you’ll be the one in shackles.”

Aster shrinks. Kane meets my eye over Willow’s head. Something like approval flickers there.

Next to me, Kelina folds her arm. “Really? You thought this would make him less feral?”

I watch my imprint mate frantically scent the feral alpha lucky enough to wear her bite. “Give it a minute.”

The four of us hang back, shifting uncomfortably, until Kane and Willow are all over each other. He holds her face, growling into every breath as he maps her injuries.

“Alright, reunion’s over,” Tristan says at last. “You two planning to behave now?”

He’s met by matching glares—one crimson, one emerald (and only the latter making my cock stir in my trousers). But neither of them snarl, which has got to be a good sign.

“If you behave,” Kelina drawls, “we’ll let you upstairs. Otherwise—” she knocks the wall. “It’ll be another night in the cellar.”

To this, Kane does growl.

“It’s okay,” Willow sweeps in. “We’ll behave.” She squeezes Kane’s arm. “Right?”

He grumbles, resentment clouding his pheromones as he surveys the Northside guards, before begrudgingly nodding.

“Oh, yeah,” Tristan mutters, “real convincing.”

“Aster.” Kelina nods to Kane’s shackles.

The third, and likely youngest, guard swallows. He produces a key and wades up to Kane, undoing his locks. The second the shackles drop, he backs off. Not that it matters. All Kane cares about is holding Willow properly, turning her around so he can properly examine her wounds.

“I’m okay, alpha,” she says. “Really.”

His nose wrinkles. He stares at the Northside guards accusingly. “They touched you.”

“We bandaged her up,” Kelina returns. “You’re welcome.”

“Stop talking like you’re doing us a favor,” Willow says bitterly. “Silas is the one who cut a deal. You’re benefitting from our being here, alive, as much as we’re benefitting from you.”

Once again, Kane’s eyes find mine. This time it’s confusion I see there.

I might’ve explained myself to Willow. But her mate is still in the dark. I told myself it didn’t matter if I tried to spell it all out for him while he was still feral. He could barely speak in full sentences, let alone process them.

Now, the beast has his sanity back. And somehow I doubt he wants to hear jack shit from the likes of me.

“Alpha,” Willow murmurs, her thinking in sync with mine, “let’s get you upstairs.” Her jaw sets. “We need to talk.”