Chapter 10: Welcome home

"You can't just...."

But Kieran was already moving.

He swept her up before she could even finish the sentence, one arm hooking under her knees and the other around her back, lifting her off the ground like she weighed nothing.

"No!" Elara shrieked, immediately thrashing in his hold. "Put me down! Put me down right now!"

"Not a chance, tesoro," Kieran said, adjusting his grip as she struggled.

Elara twisted violently, trying to get free, her hands shoving at his chest. "Let me go! You can't do this! You can't just..."

"We can," Caspian said quietly, falling into step beside Kieran as he started walking. "And we are."

"This is kidnapping!" Elara's voice pitched higher, panic flooding her system. "This is....you're insane! All of you are insane!"

"Probably," Kieran agreed cheerfully, completely unbothered by her struggles. "But you're stuck with us anyway."

Elara aimed a kick at his stomach.

He caught her ankle with his free hand without even looking, his grip firm but not painful. "Careful, piccola. You're going to hurt yourself."

"I don't care!" Tears were streaming down her face now, hot and furious. "Let me go! Please let me go!"

Something in Kieran's expression softened, but he didn't stop walking.

"I can't," he said quietly. "I'm sorry, but I can't."

Elara's breath came in ragged gasps, her chest heaving as she fought against his hold. But it was useless....he was so much stronger than her, and no matter how hard she struggled, his grip didn't loosen even a fraction.

She was trapped.

Completely, utterly trapped.

"I hate you," she sobbed. "I hate all of you."

"I know," Kieran murmured, and there was something almost gentle in his voice. "But you'll forgive us eventually."

"Never."

"We'll see."

They walked through the town...the same eerily empty town she'd driven through twice now. But this time, Elara saw movement.

Faces in windows. Shadows in doorways. People...wolves...watching as the three Alpha Kings carried a struggling human woman through their territory.

No one moved to help her.

No one even looked surprised.

It was like they'd been expecting this.

"Why isn't anyone helping me?" Elara gasped, her struggles weakening as exhaustion set in.

"Because they know who you are," Caspian said. "Or rather, what you are to us."

"I'm not anything to you..."

"You're our mate," Alaric said from behind them, his voice carrying easily over her protests. "And every wolf in this territory knows it. They can smell the bond on you now. Smell us on you."

Elara felt sick. "That's not...I didn't..."

"It doesn't matter if you accepted it or not," Alaric continued. "The bond exists. And to them, that makes you untouchable. Ours to protect. Ours to claim."

"I don't want to be claimed..."

"Too late."

The town fell away behind them, and the path began to climb. Higher into the mountains. Deeper into the forest.

And then, suddenly, the trees opened up.

Elara's protests died in her throat.

Because there, sprawling across the top of the mountain like something out of a fairy tale, was the pack house.

But calling it a "house" was like calling the ocean a puddle.

It was massive. A sprawling estate built from dark stone and timber, with multiple wings and towers that stretched toward the sky. Huge windows glinted in the morning sun. Balconies jutted out from upper floors. And surrounding it all was a stone wall that looked like it had been built to withstand a siege.

It looked like a fortress.

No.....it looked like a palace.

"Oh god," Elara whispered.

"Home," Kieran said, and there was unmistakable pride in his voice. "Welcome to Shadowmere Pack House, tesoro. Seat of the Alpha Kings and the largest pack territory in the northern mountains."

Elara couldn't speak.

Couldn't process what she was seeing.

She'd thought the cottage was isolated. Thought she was dealing with three men who lived in the woods.

But this....

This was a kingdom.

As they approached the massive front gates, they swung open seemingly on their own. More wolves appeared...guards, she realized. Massive men and women who moved with predatory grace, their eyes tracking her with curiosity and something else.

Reverence?

No. Recognition.

They were looking at her like she was someone important.

"Put me down," Elara said, but her voice came out weak now. Defeated.

"Soon," Kieran promised.

They passed through the gates, across a courtyard paved with smooth stone, and up a wide staircase to the main entrance.

The doors...carved wood that had to be fifteen feet tall...opened as they approached.

And then they were inside.

Elara's breath caught.

The interior was even more impressive than the exterior. Soaring ceilings. Massive fireplaces. Tapestries hanging on stone walls. Furniture that looked both ancient and expensive. Everywhere she looked there was evidence of wealth, power, history.

This wasn't just a pack house.

This was the seat of power for an entire territory.

And she was being carried into it like a prize.

Kieran finally set her down in what looked like a massive entrance hall, his hands steadying her when her legs threatened to give out.

Elara stumbled backward, putting distance between herself and the three of them, her eyes darting around wildly.

Wolves....so many wolves....were appearing from doorways and corridors, all of them stopping to stare at her. All of them with that same look of curiosity and recognition.

"What is this?" Elara whispered. "What...."

"This is your new home," Alaric said, moving to stand in front of her.

His presence commanded the room in a way that made every other wolf immediately drop their gaze in submission. Even Caspian and Kieran, who'd been flanking her, took half a step back.

Alpha authority.

She could feel it rolling off him in waves.

"You tried to run," Alaric continued, his dark eyes holding hers. "So now you need to understand exactly what you've walked into. What you are to us. What we are to you."

"I don't want...."

"You're not going back to the cottage," he interrupted. "You're staying here. In the pack house. Where we can ensure you're safe. Where the bond can settle. Where you can learn what it means to be mated to three Alpha Kings."

Elara's legs finally gave out.

She sank to the floor, her back against the wall, staring up at the three of them towering over her.

At the pack house stretching out around her like a beautiful, inescapable cage.

At the wolves watching her with eyes that said she belonged to them now, whether she wanted to or not.

"This can't be happening," she whispered.

Caspian crouched down in front of her, his silver eyes surprisingly gentle.

"It already has, bellissima," he said softly. "Welcome home."