Little Green Monster

Kai:

The castle never truly sleeps.

Even in the dead of night, or maybe morning now, judging by the pale hint of light straining against the horizon, Ashwyck breathes. The stones sigh. The shadows twitch. Secrets coil like smoke in every hallway, and if you know where to listen, you’ll catch them whispering back.

I’ve always been good at listening. Finding everyone's deepest, darkest secrets is my specialty.

That’s why I was here, tucked behind a cracked column in the stairwell outside her room, leaning in the shadows like some lovesick idiot. Not that I’d ever admit to it. If anyone asked, I’d say I was just lurking for fun, waiting to jump out and scare her when she went down to breakfast. Classic Kai. Always the trickster, always the light-hearted bastard who never takes anything seriously.

That was the mask I wore.

But this morning, dreadful mourning, I couldn’t hold it.

I didn’t even notice when my fist clenched around the edge of the stone. All I heard was the sound.

The sound that shredded through me like a blade.

Her.

Her moans.

Soft at first, then breaking, rising into desperate little cries that reverberated down the stairwell, wrapping around me like a noose. My body went rigid, every nerve set on fire. My skin burned hot and cold at once, jealousy sinking its teeth deep into me before I could fight it off.

And then I heard him.

The growl.

Low. Guttural. Possessive.

Rhett.

Of course it was fucking Rhett.

I should have known the wolf wouldn’t keep his cursed claws to himself. Stupid beast. Should’ve known that the second she let him too close, he’d sink his teeth in and claim her like some goddamn gods forsaken prize.

The stone under my hand cracked. Literally cracked beneath my grip. I forced myself to unclench my fist, to drag in a sharp breath, to remember who the hell I was. Kai doesn’t brood. Kai doesn’t stew in shadows like some jilted lover.

But then she said it.

She wept his name.

And something in me went dark.

“Kai.”

The sound of my name cut through the haze, sharp and cold. My head snapped to the side, and of course, of fucking course, it was him.

Lucien.

He leaned against the opposite wall, his silhouette all elegant decay, the faintest smirk tugging at his lips. His eyes glowed in the dark, sharp and merciless, like he’d been watching me fall apart this entire time.

“Looks like the big, bad wolf beat you to the little, lost lass.” His voice dripped with mockery, smooth as poisoned silk.

My jaw tightened. “Lucien.”

He tilted his head, studying me the way a predator studies prey it doesn’t quite feel hungry enough to kill yet. “Careful. You’re gripping that column so tight I almost thought you’d snap it in half. Wouldn’t want to leave evidence of your… feelings.”

I forced a smirk, casual, easy. Mask on. Always the mask. “Feelings? Please. I was just waiting for her to leave so I could steal her books and watch her unravel.”

He arched a brow. “And the moaning?”

“Just added bonus.” I shrugged. “Free entertainment.”

Lucien didn’t laugh. He never laughs. Not really. Instead, he let out this dry, humorless sound, his lips curving into something sharp. “What do you want, Kai?”

The question was a knife, meant to slice right into me.

“What do you want?” I shot back, heat flashing through my tone before I reined it in, rolling my shoulders like I couldn’t care less. “What are you even doing here?”

“Taking an early morning stroll.”

“Uh-huh.” My smile was all teeth, sharp enough to hide the ache in my gut. “Conveniently outside her room. Conveniently at the exact moment the wolf decided to fuck her senseless. You’ve always been a terrible liar, Lucien.”

His gaze sharpened, cutting into me like a blade. “You think you’re subtle? You think no one sees the way you circle her? You’re more a moth than fae, Kai. A fool drawn to flame. You’ll burn before you ever touch her.”

I should’ve laughed. Should’ve brushed him off, thrown some careless joke to keep myself untouchable. But jealousy had its claws in me too deep tonight, ripping through the light-hearted mask I wore like it was nothing.

“You’re drawn to her too,” I said, my voice low, dangerous, more confession than accusation.

For the briefest second, something flickered across his face. But then he smirked, cruel and cold. “Like a maggot to a carcass, I suppose.”

My chest tightened.

“Fresh blood,” Lucien continued, his voice dropping into that slow, taunting rhythm of his. “That’s all she is. A vein waiting to be opened. Nothing more.”

“Whatever helps you sleep better at night.” I forced my voice back into something sharp, cutting, my grin lazy. “Oh wait… you don’t.”

His eyes narrowed into daggers.

The silence between us thickened, tension a tangible thing crawling across my skin. We would’ve kept going, would’ve stood there tearing each other apart with words until one of us snapped...

But then the door creaked.

Both of us went still, shadows swallowing us whole as the hinges groaned open.

I turned just in time to see her.

Isadora.

Her hair was mussed, her lips still swollen, her cheeks still pink. She clutched a stack of books to her chest like a shield, descending the stairs with careful steps. And right behind her, like the obedient guard dog he pretends not to be, was Rhett.

Following her. Watching her. Always too close.

A cruel pang ripped through me, sharp and undeniable.

Jealousy.

There it was again, gnawing at my insides until I swore I’d choke on it.

I pressed myself back into the shadows, heart pounding harder than I’d admit, eyes locked on the curve of her back, the sway of her hair, the way Rhett’s hand hovered like he wanted to touch her but knew better.

She didn’t look back. Not once.

Didn’t see me.

Didn’t see how my hands curled into fists, or how every bone in my body screamed to drag her away from him, to wipe his scent off her skin, to take back something I hadn’t even had to begin with.

When they disappeared down the hall, the silence closed in again.

I could feel Lucien’s gaze on me, sharp as ever.

But I didn’t look at him.

Couldn’t.

Because for the first time in longer than I could remember, the mask slipped.

And underneath it, I wasn’t laughing.

I was burning.