Chapter 3: Chains That Feel Like Protection

“Don’t touch that.”

Eiren stopped mid-reach toward the blade on the wall. He glanced over,there was a guard in the doorway, arms folded. It wasn’t Kael, but a different one.

“I wasn’t going to take it,” Eiren said, pulling his hand back. “I was just looking.”

“Looking gets you killed in this room.” The guard stepped inside, his eyes sweeping over Eiren with open disgust. “Lord Vorthran collects those from every wolf he executes. You want to end up on that wall?”

Eiren’s gut twisted. His eyes returned to the arms,so many piled up. Each weapon represented a life lost.

“He’ll be back soon.” The guard moved closer,too close. “Until then, you stay where I can see you.”

"I wasn't heading out," Eiren said, stepping slowly toward the bed. Yet the pull inside his chest twisted restlessly. Still, it flared at the sight of the guard. Worse, it refused to believe a word he said.

“You shouldn’t be here at all,” the guard said, his lip curling. “Defective omega. Playing mate to the executioner. Everyone knows what you really are.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means you spread your legs to avoid death.” The guard reached out and grabbed Eiren’s wrist, his grip bruising. “How much did you beg? Did you cry? Did you?”

The door burst wide open.

Kael stood in the doorway, blocking the exit. Then he saw it,the grip on her arm. His gaze fixed on that spot. Not a word escaped him.

"Let go." His tone was cold, barely above a whisper.

The guard immediately released Eiren. "My lord, I only meant

“I didn’t mean”

Kael moved swiftly across the room. With a quick motion, his arm snapped forward, clamping onto the guard’s neck. The man was lifted into the air, as if he were made of paper.

“Wait,” the guard’s voice strangled. “Please, I’m sorry. I didn’t”

The split echoed throughout the space.

The guard slumped down, lifelessly.

Kael let go. He crashed down,loud and sudden. The floor met flesh with a dull bang.

Eiren froze,no air in his lungs. His gaze locked onto the body: the twisted neck, the hollow stare. The moment stretched on forever. No sound,just silence pressing in.

Lifeless. That’s all.

“You did it,” Eiren said, barely loud enough to be heard.

"Yeah." Kael walked past the corpse, eyes forward, heading to Eiren now. "You okay?"

“You killed him for touching me?”

Kael said he ended the man because the guy disrespected you. He stretched out his hand, grabbing Eiren’s wrist,the one the guard had yanked. It wasn’t rough, though; it was light, almost soft. I wondered if that jerk had caused any pain.

Eiren moved his head from side to side, but his eyes remained fixed on the shape lying there. "No breath left in him."

“He broke the rules.” Kael examined Eiren’s wrist, where a bruise was already forming. His jaw tightened. “No one touches you without permission. Everyone knows that.”

“You didn’t have to kill him.”

“Yes, I did.” Kael released his wrist and tilted Eiren’s chin upward, forcing their eyes to meet. “You’re mine. That means you’re under my protection. Anyone who violates that dies. No exceptions.”

The words ought to scare him,and they did, without a doubt. Yet beneath that fear, a different feeling emerged: almost like comfort, but wilder and harder to define.

“I don’t understand you,” Eiren’s voice shook. “You’re so violent, so cruel,but not to me.”

“I’m violent to those who deserve it.” Kael’s thumb brushed across Eiren’s cheek. “You don’t.”

do you know? You barely know me.

“I know enough.” Kael stepped back and called toward the door, “Get this body out of here. Now.”

Two guards arrived quickly. Yet, they hauled off the body in silence,no talking, as if it were normal, just another routine task.

Maybe it did.

Once they had left, Kael shut the door tightly. Then he faced Eiren again. “Take a seat,” he said.

Eiren perched on the edge of the mattress. His palms trembled uncontrollably, no matter what he did.

Kael dropped down in front of him. That position should have made him appear smaller. It didn’t work that way. "Better get some food for you."

not hungry.

“You haven’t eaten since yesterday,” Kael said, his eyes narrowing. “Your scent is fading.”

“It’s always been weak,” Eiren said, looking away. “That’s why Rhydan rejected me.”

is foolish.

The words took Eiren by surprise. His gaze snapped back to Kael. "But you've never met the guy."

“I know he rejected his fated mate because of pack prejudice,” Kael said, standing. “That makes him weak,and stupid.”

“The whole pack thinks I’m defective.”

"The entire group is off track." Kael stepped toward the table and filled a cup with water. Then he handed it to Eiren."Swallow this down."

Eiren grabbed the cup, but his fingers trembled, causing water to spill over the edge. "Why bother whether I eat or drink?"

“Because you’re mine to care for now,” Kael said as he sat beside him on the bed. “Whether you like it or not.”

Eiren took a sip, but the water only slightly calmed his gut. He still felt uneasy. "This connection,I can't grasp it. It seems off."

“Too strong. Too fast.” Eiren set the cup down. “With Rhydan, it was gentle at first, like a whisper. But this” He pressed a hand to his chest. “This feels like drowning.”

“Second bonds are always stronger,” Kael said matter-of-factly. “Fate compensates.”

bonds aren’t supposed to exist.

“And yet, here we are.” Kael stood up again and moved toward the door. “I have work. You’ll stay here.”

“For how long?”

I decide it's safe for you to leave.

a prisoner.

Kael paused. “You’re protected. There’s a difference.”

“Is there?” Eiren’s voice rose. “You locked the door. You killed a guard for touching me. You won’t let me leave. How is that different from a cage?”

“Because I’m keeping you alive.” Kael’s eyes burned gold. “The elders want you dead. Half the pack thinks you’re cursed, and the other half thinks you’re fair game since Rhydan rejected you. Without me, you wouldn’t last a day.”

The words stung,mostly because they rang true.

“So, what am I supposed to do?” Eiren’s voice broke. “Just sit here and wait for you to decide my life?”

“For now, yes.” Kael opened the door. “I’ll send a healer to check on you.”

He was gone by the time Eiren tried to respond.

The lock clicked.

Eiren remained alone in the space, surrounded by weapons from fallen wolves. His wrist was sore, and his ribs throbbed from a bond he had not chosen.

He was still breathing. But what had it cost him?

-----

The healer arrived sixty minutes later. She was an older woman with a warm gaze and firm fingers. Not once did she look at Eiren as if judging her,she simply examined her carefully and slowly.

“You’re malnourished,” she said, pressing a hand to his forehead. “And exhausted. When did you last sleep properly?”

don’t remember.

She made a disapproving sound. “Your body is trying to adjust to a new bond while still healing from a broken one. You need rest,real rest.”

“I’ll give you something to help.” She pulled a small vial from her bag. “Take three drops in water before bed.”

Does it make me unconscious?

“It’ll make you sleep.” She pressed the vial into his hand. “Lord Vorthran wants you to be healthy. Don’t fight it.”

Once she was gone, Eiren stared at the small bottle. Part of him considered tossing it out, but he decided to keep his eyes open and stay sharp instead.

Yet his body gave out on him. Worse still, exhaustion hit him hard, aching deep within his bones. Then everything went fuzzy before his eyes.

He grabbed the drops.

Sleep hit quickly, like a ton of bricks.

-----

He opened his eyes when people began talking.

Down below, filled with rage, echoing from beyond the entrance.

Eiren blinked awake. Light barely slipped through the crack beneath the door, casting a thin line across the floor. He pushed himself upright, his thoughts murky like stirred water.

“You can’t just claim him and expect us to accept it,” a man’s voice said, unfamiliar.

“He’s defective. The law is clear.” Another voice, older, added, “Rejected omegas are to be executed.”

“Kael Vorthran doesn’t follow pack law when it inconveniences him.”

“Then we’ll force his hand.” The older voice dropped lower. “The Alpha won’t protect him forever. And once the bond is challenged”

“It cannot be challenged. It is sealed.”

can be broken. A pause. bring it to the council and force a vote. Kael can't ignore the entire pack.

“And what if he refuses?”

“Then we remind him that even executioners can be replaced.”

Shadows slipped along the hall, then silence took over.

Eiren's heart raced, and his breathing quickened. They intended to take his life solely to force Kael to hand him over.

The door opened.

Kael walked in. Right away, he spotted Eiren. “So, you already know,” he said.

That’s just how it was.

“They’re going to make you choose,” Eiren’s voice shook, “between me and your position.”

"Go ahead, give it a shot." Kael shut the door behind him and turned the lock. Then he walked over to the bed and lowered himself onto its side. "Do you really believe politics matter to me?"

“You should. They’ll replace you. They’ll”

“They’ll do nothing.” Kael’s hand cupped Eiren’s face, his thumb brushing away a tear Eiren hadn’t realized had fallen. “I’ve spent ten years as an executioner. I know every secret the elders hide, every law they’ve broken, every body they’ve buried.”

“Then why let them talk about killing me?”

“Because talk is harmless,” Kael’s eyes burned. “Action is what matters. And the moment they try to act” His voice went cold. “I’ll show them exactly what happens when someone threatens what’s mine.”

Eiren searched his face. “Why? Why risk everything for me?”

"Fate never gives you another chance just for fun," Kael said, rising to his feet. Then he walked toward the window, hiseyes fixed on the shadowy woods outside. "You’re not bound by pack rules anymore."

“What does that mean?”

Kael turned back, his expression unreadable. “It means you’re not part of the pack anymore. You’re something else,something they can’t touch.”

“What am I, then?”

"Mine." That's it. No doubt. "Only I,nobody else gets a say."