Claimed

Darkness pulled at me.

Heavy. Suffocating. Endless.

For a moment, I welcomed it.

It was easier than the pain… easier than the humiliation… easier than remembering the way my world had shattered in a single sentence.

I, Alpha Kael… reject you.

Even now, the echo of it burned.

But then,warmth.

Strange… unfamiliar warmth.

Not gentle,not soft,powerful, but demanding.

My consciousness flickered.

Voices… distant at first.

“…she’s still alive.”

“Barely.” a pause followed

Then “Good.”

My eyes snapped open.

I gasped sharply, dragging in air as if I had been drowning.

The first thing I saw… was him.

The Alpha.

He stood a few steps away, his back partially turned, speaking to two other wolves who immediately lowered their heads in submission.

Even without facing me, his presence filled the entire space.

Dominant. Unshakable.

Dangerous.

Panic surged through me.

I pushed myself up too quickly, pain shooting through my body as dizziness hit me hard.

I nearly collapsed again,but forced myself to stay upright.

I wouldn’t look weak.

Not again.

His head turned slightly.

He had noticed.

Of course he had.

“Awake already?” His voice was calm… almost bored.

But there was something underneath it.

Something sharp.

I said nothing.

Did nothing.

Just watched him carefully, every instinct on high alert.

He dismissed the others with a single look.

They disappeared instantly.

Leaving just the two of us.

Silence fell.

Thick. Heavy. Charged.

Slowly… he turned fully to face me.

And for the first time, I saw him clearly.

He was… terrifying.

Not just because of his size or strength,but because of the quiet control in his expression. The kind of control that meant he didn’t need to prove anything.

He already knew what he was capable of.

My throat went dry.

He stepped closer.

Once.

Twice.

Until the distance between us felt dangerously small.

I didn’t move.

Couldn’t move.

His eyes locked onto mine.

And then, his gaze dropped.

To my neck.

A frown touched his lips.

Confusion.

No… not confusion.

Recognition.

“You feel it, don’t you?” he said quietly.

My brows pulled together.

“Feel… what?”

He didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, he reached out.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

I flinched when his fingers brushed against my skin,but he didn’t stop.

His touch lingered at my neck.

Right where a mark should have been.

But wasn’t.

My breath hitched.

And then, it hit me.

A pull.

Deep. Unavoidable. Magnetic.

Stronger than anything I had ever felt before.

Stronger than what I had felt with Kael.

My eyes widened.

“No…” I whispered.

That wasn’t possible.

It couldn’t be.

His gaze darkened.

And this time, there was no mistaking it.

Possession.

Certainty.

When he spoke… his voice was low.

Final.

Unarguable.

“You belong to me.”

The words slammed into me.

Harder than the rejection.

More terrifying than death.

“No,” I said quickly, shaking my head. “No you’re wrong. I already had a mate.

“You had a mate,” he cut in coldly.

“Now you don’t.”

I froze.

He stepped even closer.

Close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body… the sheer power in his presence.

“The bond you felt before?” he continued, his voice dropping slightly, almost dangerous in its softness. “Weak. Breakable.”

His fingers tightened slightly against my skin.

Not hurting.

But claiming.

“This one…” his eyes held mine, intense and unwavering, “is not.”

My heart pounded wildly.

Fear.

Confusion.

Something else I didn’t want to name.

“I won’t accept it,” I said, even as my voice betrayed me.

A faint smirk touched his lips.

Like he already knew how pointless that was.

“You don’t have a choice.”

The words settled between us.

Heavy.

Unavoidable.

Then he straightened, stepping back just enough to break the contact but not the tension.

“Get some rest,” he said, turning away from me again like the conversation was already over. “You’ll need it.”

My hands trembled at my sides.

“For what?” I demanded, forcing strength into my voice.

He paused.

Just for a second.

Then, without looking back

“For your new life.”