CHAPTER 2

Prince Rhett's chambers were nothing like what I had expected. Where his brothers displayed their power through size and intimidation, the youngest prince surrounded himself with books, maps, and shadows. Candles flickered in every corner, casting dancing light across walls covered with detailed drawings of faces I did not recognize.

The servant girl pushed me gently inside and fled, leaving me alone with the most dangerous Ironfang of all. I kept my head down, hands clasped in front of me like the perfect submissive omega. My heart pounded so loud I was certain he could hear it.

"You may look at me." His voice was smooth as silk, but something cold lurked beneath the surface. "I do not bite. Usually."

I lifted my gaze slowly, prepared for another intimidating display of alpha dominance. Instead, I found myself staring at a man who looked almost... normal. Prince Rhett was lean where his brothers were broad, graceful where they were forceful. His dark brown hair fell across sharp green eyes that seemed to see everything.

"There we are." He smiled, but it never reached those calculating eyes. "Much better. I prefer to see the faces of people I am speaking with."

"Yes, My Prince." I kept my voice soft and trembling. "How may I serve you?"

"Serve me?" Rhett laughed, a sound like breaking glass. "Oh, my dear little omega, I think you misunderstand your situation entirely."

He moved toward me with predatory grace, circling just as his eldest brother had done. But where Kael had been studying a possession, Rhett was dissecting a puzzle. I felt exposed under that piercing gaze, as if he could peel away my disguise with his eyes alone.

"You see, I know things," he continued, his voice dropping to almost a whisper. "I know that the Crescent Moon Pack has been planning something for months. I know they chose their tribute very carefully. And I know that you, sweet Lyra, are not what you appear to be."

Ice flooded my veins. This was it. My mission was over before it had truly begun. I would die in this room, and my family's murder would never be avenged.

"I do not understand, My Prince," I whispered, backing toward the door. "I am only an omega. Nothing more."

"Are you?" He was suddenly in front of me, moving faster than should have been possible. One hand pressed against the door, trapping me between his arm and the wooden surface. "Because my sources tell me something very interesting about tribute omegas from that particular pack."

His free hand lifted to touch my cheek, fingers trailing down to rest against my throat. I could feel my pulse hammering against his palm, betraying my terror.

"They tell me that such tributes often carry... messages. Instructions. Perhaps even weapons." His thumb pressed against my windpipe, not enough to hurt but enough to remind me how fragile I was. "What message do you carry, little omega?"

"None, My Prince," I gasped. "I swear it. I am nothing special."

"Nothing special." He repeated the words thoughtfully. "Yet my brother Kael spent ten minutes studying you this morning. Darius has already visited your chambers, which he never does with new acquisitions. And here I am, breaking my own rules about involving myself with omega politics."

Terror and confusion warred in my chest. They were suspicious, but they did not seem to know my true identity. Perhaps there was still a chance to salvage this mission.

"I do not know why your brothers showed interest, My Prince. I have done nothing to attract their attention."

"Have you not?" Rhett stepped back, but his eyes never left my face. "Tell me, Lyra of the Crescent Moon Pack, what do you know of the old bloodlines?"

The question hit me like a physical blow. Everything in my training screamed at me to deflect, to play dumb, to give him nothing that could lead back to my heritage. But something in his tone suggested this was a test I could not afford to fail.

"I know what everyone knows, My Prince. The great houses ruled before the packs united. Moonspire was the strongest, until..." I let my voice trail off, hoping he would fill the silence.

"Until they were eliminated." His voice was flat, emotionless. "Every last one of them. Men, women, children. Even the babies were not spared."

I flinched, unable to hide my reaction to hearing about my family's massacre spoken so casually. Rhett's sharp eyes caught the movement immediately.

"Interesting. Most omegas would not react so strongly to ancient history." He leaned against his desk, studying me like a specimen under glass. "Unless, of course, it was not so ancient to them."

"It is just... sad to think of children dying," I managed to say.

"Yes. Sad." He picked up a piece of parchment from his desk, glancing at it briefly. "Tell me, what color are your eyes really?"

The question came from nowhere, hitting me like a slap. "My Prince?"

"Your eyes. They are brown now, but there are traces of something else around the edges. Something that suggests you wear contacts to hide their true color." He set down the parchment and moved toward me again. "I wonder what you might be hiding behind those false brown eyes."

Before I could react, his hand shot out and caught my chin in an iron grip. His other hand moved toward my face, clearly intending to remove my contact lenses by force.

"Please," I whispered, real panic flooding my voice. "Do not hurt me."

"Hurt you?" His laugh was cold. "My dear omega, if you are who I think you are, you should be far more afraid of what I might do when I prove it."

The door burst open suddenly, saving me from discovery. Prince Darius filled the doorway, his amber eyes blazing with anger.

"Release her, Rhett."

"I am conducting an investigation, brother."

"You are terrorizing a frightened omega." Darius stepped into the room, his massive frame radiating protective fury. "Whatever game you are playing can wait."

Rhett's grip on my chin tightened for a moment before he let go, stepping back with obvious reluctance. "Very well. But this conversation is not over, little Lyra. Not by far."

As Darius led me from the room, I caught sight of the parchment Rhett had been holding. Even upside down, I could make out enough of the writing to make my blood freeze.

It was a letter about Moonspire survivors.

And my name was at the top of the list.