CHAPTER TWO

I clutched the hem of my dress, my knuckles turning white as I tried to steady my shaky breaths. This had to be a nightmare. But it was real. His face was harder now, all softness gone, but I knew it was him.

I looked between him and my father, but the cold, utter indifference on my father's face splintered what was left of my heart. Doesn't he recognize him? Isn't he aware?

However, the next statement from my father made me know that he's aware of what exactly he's doing.

"Welcome Alpha Kaelan," he greeted, almost bowing his head deeply, and my mouth went agape. "Of course she's ready. She just signed," he said, stretching out the paper to him.

The paper hung in the air until Kaelan nudged his shoulders, and another man I hadn't noticed came from behind to retrieve the document.

"The agreement has been sealed. Keep your side of the coin, and I'll keep mine," he said with an air of authority, and when my father bowed once again, I blinked in surprise.

My mind reeled, struggling to piece together the horror. How could Kaelan be the one? The brutal Alpha? The Lucifer everyone whispered about in terrified tones?

"I'm sure you read through the contract. Every second of your life now belongs to me. So, quit wasting more time, and follow me," He said sharply, and I almost choked on my own saliva.

He already started walking, without even waiting for my reply, and I took a heavy step after the other.

I turned back to look at my father, whose face held a stern look, as if warning me not to try anything funny.

I let out a shaky breath, before following him outside.

"Get in," He said, entering the car that was parked just at the entrance. When I didn't move, he gave me a dirty look, his jaw tightening.

"I don't repeat myself, and I won't do it now. So, little wife, do as I say unless you want to regret your whole existence."

My lashes fluttered rapidly, and my stomach churned. This sounded nothing like the Kaelan I knew ten years ago.

I entered the car through the other side, without wasting any further time.

I looked at my pack once more, the place I had called home for twenty eight years now, and I bit my lips. I hadn't dreamed of such a farewell. Such a cold one.

I tore my gaze from the palace, and focused on the windscreen. I couldn't dare look at my left even when his dangerous aura filled the confined space.

The atmosphere was quiet. So quiet yet deafening. I had so many questions to ask yet I couldn't dare. Where do I even want to start from? How can I even question him, when I can't even dare to meet his gaze.

The whole journey was made in silence, and I never even caught him casting a glance towards me. Not even once.

The speedometer suddenly lurched into a dangerous red zone, and I jolted, my eyes widening in alarm. "Are... aren't we going too fast?" I asked, the words tearing from me in a panic I could no longer contain.

He was driving with a reckless, suicidal intensity, and showed no sign of slowing.

His attention remained fixed on the road, his jaw clenching in a rhythmic tick of pure fury.

He acted as if I weren't there, his foot planted firmly on the accelerator.

"Kaelan!"

His name ripped from me in a scream before I could stop it. That was when he finally looked at me. His face was carved from stone, and he looked incensed that I had dared speak his name.

"Call that name one more time," he said in a voice so lethal it felt like a physical blow, his teeth gritted. "I'm... I'm sorry," I whispered, shrinking back into the leather seat.

Get down," he snarled after pulling the car to a stop, his eyes rolling in disgust.

I looked out the window to see a towering, ancient mansion looming like a gargoyle. It was opulently large, beautiful in a way that was cold and menacing. I turned to look at him, but he was already gone. He was out of the car, and the rows of guards—a small army dressed in black—that surrounded us was terrifying.

They were about twenty of them, arranging themselves in two rigid rows before greeting him in a chilling, synchronized chorus.

"Welcome back, Alpha!"

He didn't so much as flicker a glance in their direction, simply striding past as if they were statues. I gulped before getting out of the car. I tried to keep my head high, but my heart was a wild, frantic drum against my ribs.

I walked in, and the decor of the interior struck me with its cold magnificence. My father was an Alpha, and he was rich, but this... this was obscene wealth, designed to intimidate.

"This is beautiful," I muttered, my dilemma momentarily eclipsed by awe.

"Of course it is."

That deep, hated voice sliced through the air. I turned to find him staring at me, his gaze so intense it felt like he was peeling back my skin to see the rotten core beneath.

"It has a very beautiful interior, unlike you," he spat, the words meant to wound.

"I.. I'm sorry," I stammered, the apology feeling pathetic and feeble even to my own ears.

He erupted in a mockery of laughter, a harsh, grating sound that held no warmth, only scorn. I bit my lips till I tasted blood again, a familiar metallic punishment. His laughter was no longer carefree; it was the sound of a predator toying with its prey.

"Did you just mutter sorry? Are you joking right now?" He scoffed. "Now, look..." He said, drawing himself up to his full, imposing height, a mountain of muscle and menace.

I couldn't remember him being this tall. He looked like a panther poised to strike.

"What's that your name again?" He clicked his tongue, the gesture dripping with contempt. "Oh yeah... Seraphina."

He hissed my name like it was a curse, and my hands clenched into fists so tight my nails carved half-moons into my palms. "Immediately you signed that document, you became my property."

He faced me squarely, his height casting me in his shadow. I could see a promise of violence in his eyes as he spoke.

"You became mine to deal with. Mine to punish, and mine to break. I can do whatever fuck I want with you," he smirked, a cruel, predatory expression that made my palms slick with cold sweat.

He walked around me in a slow, deliberate circle, his presence a cage, before stopping in front of me, his fingers gripping my chin with bruising force.

"I'm sure you didn't think I'd let you go so easily, did you?"

"I bet not," he chuckled darkly, the sound vibrating through me as he released my face as if I were filth.

"For ten years, it's been fun for you. You've had your freedom and lived life like a dainty little princess. Did you forget there was a boy whose life you ruined?" He asked, his eyes darkening into bottomless pits of hatred.

"I.. I —" I tried to find my voice, but I couldn't even form a word.

"You had your fun, Seraphina. And now," he said, leaning in so close I could feel his breath, "It's my turn."