Chapter Twenty Five: Party's End

The pack house throbbed with a frenetic energy, the bass of the music vibrating through Elara's bones. Colored lights pulsed across the room, painting lurid streaks across the faces of the revelers. Tonight, Damon was in his element, the master of ceremonies in a spectacle of his own making. He'd declared it a celebration of a "successfully closed deal," but pack members knew it was about the handsome sum he'd squeezed out of the crown prince for the training facility. Elara knew the truth, of course. It was a victory bought and paid for with her clandestine meetings with Kaelen, a truth she held close, a burning secret in her heart.

The air hung thick with the scent of cheap beer and potent pheromones. Pack members, dressed in their finest party attire, mingled and swayed to the music. Elara moved through the crowd, a ghost at her own mate's celebration. She picked at stray napkins, straightening up discarded glasses, a habit born of years of cleaning up after Damon's excesses.

"Elara, dear! You shouldn't be doing that," a pack member, Sarah, cooed, her eyes glinting with a false concern. Sarah was one of the first to scorn Elara as a weak omega, but now, she was all smiles and saccharine words. "Are you feeling alright? Pregnancy must be so tiring."

Elara forced a smile. "I'm fine, Sarah. Just helping out."

"Helping out? Oh, you shouldn't exert yourself. Damon should be having the others do this." Sarah paused, her voice dropping conspiratorially. "He seems awfully... pleased lately. Has the prince said anything else about the, uh, project?"

The implication was clear. They wanted to know how much influence Elara had over the royal heir. The pack, once so quick to dismiss her, was now eager to curry favor through her connection to Prince Kaelen. It was a grotesque dance of hypocrisy.

"The prince is pleased with Damon's work," Elara said coolly, giving nothing away. "That's all that matters, isn't it?"

She moved on, the weight of their gazes heavy on her back. Other conversations followed a similar pattern. Queries about her health, thinly veiled curiosity about the prince, and a palpable hunger in their eyes for a piece of the royal pie. She answered in short, noncommittal sentences, erecting a shield around herself, protecting the burgeoning hope that bloomed in her chest whenever she thought of Kaelen.

Across the room, Damon held court, surrounded by his usual cadre of sycophants. He was flushed with alcohol and pride, his laughter booming over the music. Elara watched him as he performed a silly magic trick, making a beer bottle appear to float in the air with a flourish. His friends roared with laughter, clapping him on the back. He was a caricature of the alpha she had once loved, a cruel imitation of the man she had dreamed he could be.

"Did you see the look on that man's face when Damon presented the revised plans?" one of his friends, Mark, exclaimed, slurring his words. "He practically handed him a blank check! Damon's a genius."

"He has a certain... persuasive talent," a pack member chuckled, winking suggestively. "Especially now that the Prince seems so... taken with our little Elara."

Damon grinned, a predatory glint in his eyes. "Let them talk. As long as the money keeps flowing, I don't care how I get it. And if Elara wants to play the Prince's little pet, who am I to stop her? She's finally earning her keep."

The words were like a slap in the face, yet they landed with a surprising dullness. She was past the point of being surprised by his callousness. Past the point of expecting anything different.

As the night wore on, the party descended further into debauchery. The music grew louder, the dancing more frenzied, the inhibitions lower. Elara found herself clearing away a spilled tray of appetizers when she saw Damon detach himself from the crowd. He caught the eye of a young woman with bright red hair, lured her closer, whispered something in her ear, and then, hand-in-hand, they disappeared up the stairs towards the bedrooms.

The pack members pretended not to notice, or perhaps they were too drunk to care. Elara found herself cleaning up alongside Sarah again and a few other pack members. She's not sure if they are really concerned or are just pretending to notice Damon's wrongdoings. "Are you sure you're okay, Elara? Damon is really...out of hand." Sarah asked, her voice laced with feigned concern. The others nodded in agreement.

Elara nodded, a numb sensation filling her. She finished wiping a table. "I'm going to head upstairs," she muttered. "I'm tired."

As she climbed the stairs, the muffled sounds of the party faded, replaced by a different kind of music. Guttural moans, breathless gasps, and the rhythmic creaking of the bed frame emanated from the master bedroom. The sounds were a familiar soundtrack to Damon's infidelity. But tonight, something was different. The pain wasn't there. The sting of betrayal, the crushing weight of inadequacy, were absent. She felt... detached.

She slipped into the guest bedroom, closing the door behind her. Lying on the unfamiliar sheets, she stared at the ceiling, the sounds from downstairs fading into a distant hum. Was it possible? Could it be that Damon's betrayals no longer held power over her? Had the seed of hope that Kaelen had planted in her heart finally taken root, eclipsing the darkness that Damon had cultivated for so long?

Was she finally free? Free from the toxic grip of her mate, free to embrace the longing that bloomed for another? The realization was like a breath of fresh air, a release from a suffocating prison. She was still trapped, still bound by the mate bond, still pregnant with Damon's children, but in her heart, she knew the truth. Her love, her loyalty, her future... they belonged to Kaelen. And that, she realized with a quiet surge of hope, was a freedom worth fighting for.

Before her tiredness could dissolve into dizziness, her phone vibrated inside her dress and almost jolted out of the bed over the startle. By the time she managed to get the phone out, the vibration had stopped but it soon started again. It's a call from "My Own"? Her own? She swiped the screen, accepting the call, and there comes his voice from the other end:

"My love." Kaelen's voice whispered from the other end.

"Kael." Elara called out softly.

"How do you like the phone? For me, I love it for you, because I want to hear your voice whenever I want."

Elara giggles, "It's amazing. I feel like I'm holding a piece of you."

Prince Kaelen chuckled, "You are. Always. So, how are my little ones doing?"

Elara smiles, her hands instantly finding its way to her round belly. "They're kicking and rolling around. I can feel them growing stronger every day."

"I wish I could be there to feel it with you." Prince Kaelen uttered tenderly.

"Me too." Elara replied dreamily. "Kael, the phone displayed incoming call from "My Own" did you make it like that?"

"I told you, I belong to you."

"Oh, my heart, you don't fail to amaze me."

"Where are you? You sound... distant. Your voice seems to be echoing."

"I'm in the guest bedroom and it's basically empty, just bed..."

"Why?"

"The main bedroom is occupied. Damon is having a session in there with one of his random party guests."

Prince Kaelen lets out a lowly growl. "I don't want to think about that right now. Come back to me. Tell me you're mine."

"I'm yours, Kael. Always." Elara softly said, giggling right after.

"Sleep, my love. Dream of me holding you, and our little ones safe between us." Kaelen muttered soothingly.

Elara yawns, suddenly feeling dizzy. "Mmm... I can feel your arms around me."

"Forever, Elara. Forever." Kaelen whispers, his voice ever so dreamy.

There's silence for a moment, only soft breathing heard through the phone.

Prince Kaelen softly, almost singing; "think of the waves crashing on the royal beach, Elara. The silver sand cool beneath your feet. Imagine the moonlight turning the water to diamonds.

Elara, sleepily; "the water... so cold..."

"I'm there with you. I wrap my arms around you, warming you from the inside out. We stand there, watching the moon pull the tide, our secret whispered to the stars."

"Stars... beautiful..." Elara murmurs.

Prince Kaelen, lowering his voice further; "feel my hand resting on your belly, feeling the tiny movements of our pups. I whisper promises to them, promises of safety, of love, of a future."

Elara sighs contentedly. "Future... with you..."

"Yes, my love. A future with me. I kiss your neck, softly, gently. The cool sea air carries the scent of salt and the warmth of your skin. I bury my face in your hair, breathing you in."

Elara, almost asleep, "you smell like... pine and storms..."

Prince Kaelen chuckles softly. "That's me, always. Now, close your eyes. Let the rhythm of the waves lull you to sleep. I'll be here, always listening, always watching over you, until we can truly be together. Sleep, my Elara. Sleep."

Silence, broken only by Elara's even breathing on the receiver, Kaelen remaining on the line, guarding her sleep from afar, a silent, forbidden promise hanging in the air.