Chapter 6- Pretend mate

"I’m only joking, Miss Jo," Dante said with a smirk tugging at his handsome mouth.

Jo didn’t believe him for a second.

He knew something.

She could see it in the way he watched her — sharp, too sharp.

She would need to get back to her room later to reinforce the masking of her scent.

She also had to strengthen Lucy’s masking... and fast.

This was getting riskier by the hour.

Nothing — absolutely nothing — was going to come between her and her future.

She had been on the run for too long.

Sleeping with one eye open. Fighting off the darkness at every turn.

And now?

Now, she had Lucy to fight for too.

Lucy deserved freedom. They both did.

"Ha-ha," Jo said dryly. "Do all the werewolves from the royal kingdom have such impeccable humor? Because if so, I’ll need to strike the royal kingdom off my travel list."

She clapped her hands together before Dante could reply, flashing him with a sarcastic smile.

"If you’re done with your jokes, shall we make haste to the hunting grounds, Ge-ne-ral?" she said sweetly, rolling her eyes.

Dante chuckled lowly.

"Sure. Lead the way."

Jo turned sharply and began walking, her steps brisk.

Dante followed, leaving Lucy awkwardly standing outside the general’s room alone.

Lucy hesitated for a moment.

Polly had ordered them to stay close to the general's quarters, but now Jo was gone.

Unsure of what else to do, Lucy wandered down the corridor, hoping to find somewhere nearby she could wait without drawing attention.

Across the estate, Caleb was far less focused on work.

An eager omega knelt before him, her soft mouth working expertly at his shaft. Caleb groaned, threading his hand into her hair, only for Dante’s mindlink to suddenly crash into his head with demands about witnesses.

Caleb barely stifled a grunt of frustration.

Could Dante have any worse timing?

Without wasting a second, Caleb flipped the omega onto all fours and pounded into her fast and rough.

"Faster," the omega begged.

Her desperate clenching around him was all it took — Caleb climaxed hard inside her with a low growl, pulling away immediately.

"You’re a good little fuck," he muttered, already stepping into the shower.

"A pleasure to serve you, General," the omega purred behind him.

Maybe this extended stay wouldn’t be such a bore after all.

Later that day, Caleb wandered the gardens, questioning witnesses about the string of murders haunting the werewolf world.

Dozens of young she-wolves, strangled, each marked with a cross on their wrists.

So far, no leads.

Only panic lurking under the surface.

As Caleb paced near the outer paths, a scent slammed into him so hard he nearly staggered.

Roses.

Ocean breeze.

Sweet, wild, mate.

Titan, his wolf, went crazy inside him, clawing to surface.

Caleb followed the scent urgently, weaving through the trees — but the scent started wavering. Weakening.

Fading.

He growled lowly in frustration, only to catch sight of a slender blonde girl standing at a footpath junction.

Even from a distance, her figure captivated him.

The soft sway of her hair. The nervous twist of her hands.

Just as he stepped forward, ready to claim her, a dark figure grabbed her roughly by the arm.

*

"Come to my room tonight, little mate," Alpha Jayden’s voice rumbled into Lucy’s ear.

Lucy recoiled, trying to pry her arm free, but Jayden's grip was brutal.

"Let me go," she whispered hoarsely. "Please."

Jayden only smirked.

She thought she could resist him? It only made the chase sweeter.

"Alpha Lame-den, isn’t it?" a lazy, mocking voice interrupted.

Jayden turned toward it, scowling, to find one of the generals — dressed in distinctive armor — standing a few feet away.

Jayden quickly dropped Lucy’s arm, his face tightening.

He could not afford for a general to witness him rough-handling an omega... even if she was his mate.

"It’s Jayden," he corrected stiffly.

The general gave a slow, amused smirk.

"Ah, right. And here I thought the host of today’s hunt would actually be... at the hunt."

"I got caught up," Jayden muttered. "Come — I’ll lead you to the hunting grounds, General."

Without waiting for an answer, Jayden turned on his heel, desperate to leave.

The general nodded casually, but before he followed, his gaze lingered on the blonde girl — on Lucy.

She was staring at him, wide-eyed, mouth parted as if she wanted to speak.

He gave her a wink.

Her breath hitched.

"See you around," he mouthed before disappearing after Jayden.

Lucy stayed frozen long after they were gone.

Her hands trembled at her sides.

Her heart thundered painfully in her chest.

The silver-haired general — the one with those breathtaking stormy silver eyes — was her true mate.

Her real mate.

Not Jayden.

Not the fake mate bond Jo had helped her create.

Her true, fated mate.

Tears burned behind her eyes as she wrapped her arms around herself.

She had dreamed — begged — for her true mate to find her.

To save her.

To see her.

And now... now he had.

But she could never go to him.

Jo’s plan, their escape, their future — it depended on Lucy hiding the truth.

Pretending.

Surviving.

Besides, who was she kidding?

A royal general would never want a cursed, murder-accused omega like her.

He would reject her publicly, humiliate her.

Better he never knew.

Better she protect herself.

Lucy collapsed to her knees, tears sliding down her face, clutching the small locket around her neck — her mother's last gift.

"Mumma," she whispered brokenly. "Please... please give me strength to get through this."

The locket warmed against her skin.

But no answer came.

Only the hollow ache of her breaking heart.