Chapter 10 Cassian

By the time I walked into the pack house, my mind was still back at that café table. Still on Bloom. Still on her eyes.

The pack house's massive stone hall was as cold and imposing as ever. Mom, Dad, and the others were gathered in the war room, reviewing the weekly patrol reports spread across the long oak table.

Kai, Ivy, and I stepped inside together. Kai met my eyes for a split second. Neither of us needed to say it. We both knew we were about to change the mood of the entire room.

Dad looked up first. "Did something happen?"

Even sitting down, Alpha Ronan Blade had a way of filling the room with authority.

I took a slow breath. "More than that." My thoughts drifted back to Bloom. To the way the entire atmosphere had shifted while she told us her story.

"You all remember why we came here," I began. "The rumors about a hybrid. The rogue wolf attacks."

Everyone around the table nodded.

"We've spent months tracking the attacks, but we've never been able to identify where they were really coming from."

Gamma Carter frowned. "You found something?"

"I think we found someone," I answered.

Before I could continue, Ivy quietly picked up the conversation. "Bloom told us about the night she lost her parents." Her voice was steady, but I still caught the slight tremor underneath it. "What happened to her..." She paused. "It's tragic." She looked around the table.

"The fact that she survived at all doesn't make sense. There was no one else in those woods. Just her parents and the wolves that attacked them."

Beta Zane folded his arms. "So we're certain the attackers were rogues."

Nobody argued.

"The center of these attacks..." he continued thoughtfully, "...keeps circling back to Bloom."

Mom frowned. "Bloom?" She looked from Ivy to me. "The human girl you've been talking about? She's human, Ivy. I didn't smell even the slightest trace of wolf."

"She has a scent," I said immediately. I leaned both hands against the table. "Her father was an Alpha." That got everyone's attention. "Her mother was human."

"Their pack refused to accept a human Luna, so he abandoned his title and left with her." I could still hear Bloom's voice telling us the story. "She says she doesn't have a wolf." I glanced at Kai before looking back at everyone else.

"But according to her, she has every physical ability a wolf has while remaining in human form."

"They tested it." Silence settled over the room.

Then I spoke the part I hadn't stopped thinking about. "Axel can smell something in her."

The words came out lower than I'd intended. "He keeps insisting..." I hesitated. "...that she's ours."

A strange pull lived inside her scent. Something impossible to explain. "And honestly..." I looked around the room. "The fact that someone like Bloom survived that attack in the forest..." I shook my head. "That's a miracle on its own."

"She's not human Cass." Axel's voice echoed through my head like a growl.

"She's a hybrid. Something inside her is sealed or buried. We found her. She belongs with the pack."

I forced him back. "Calm down, Axel."

"You heard what she said. She doesn't have a wolf. How are you supposed to be mated to someone without one?"

Axel answered instantly. "You're wrong. She has one. She just doesn't know it yet."

Dad leaned farther across the table. His expression had become noticeably more serious. "If she really is the hybrid we've been hearing rumors about..."

"...and if these attacks are centered around her then we need to be extremely careful."

His eyes swept across the room. "We're not the only ones looking for her. There are rogue wolves. Outcasts. And possibly others we still don't know about. If we've found her scent..." He paused. "They probably have too."

His gaze settled on me. "We protect her. But we do it without revealing ourselves."

Kai nodded. "It's not just Bloom." Everyone looked at him.

"During patrols, we picked up another scent in the northern forest." His expression darkened. "It wasn't hers. It was darker. More aggressive." He looked toward his father.

"I don't know if there's another hybrid out there or if something has been hunting her. We'll be tied up at school." He met Zane's eyes.

"Can you investigate while we're gone?"

Zane gave a single nod. "I'll handle it."

Ivy spoke next, almost in a whisper. "Bloom can fight."

"My first encounter with her already proved that. You all remember that report I gave you all."

Several heads nodded.

"But she also told us something else. The night her parents died she couldn't fight. Her father gave her an Alpha command. So she stood there until every sound disappeared." She looked down.

"What if..."

"What if something awakened inside her that night?" She slowly lifted her eyes again. "What if she stopped those attackers without ever realizing it?"

The room fell completely silent. Mom finally broke it. "We'll keep watching her." Her voice left no room for argument. "If she really is a hybrid and if all these attacks revolve around her then she has to remain under our protection."

She looked at each of us in turn. "But listen carefully. Bloom doesn't know anything. Our identities stay hidden. So does the real reason we're here. Not yet."

"I need to stay close to her." Axel refused to let it go.

"I can't sleep without her scent. She's mine, Cass."

"She's not yours." I answered sharply inside my own head. "She's a hybrid. She doesn't even have a wolf. Why can't you accept that?"

Axel only growled.

The possessiveness rolling through him was so intense that I knew some of it had slipped into my own expression.

Dad noticed immediately. "Cassian."

I looked up.

"I can feel the tension between you and your wolf." His blue eyes locked onto mine.

"Act like the future Alpha you're meant to become. If Bloom is truly the one we've been searching for she has the potential to change more than just our lives. She could change the balance of every pack."

A long silence followed. "Protect her." His voice hardened. "But under no circumstances do you reveal who we are. Not yet like yout mother said."

I gave a single nod. Images of Bloom filled my mind again. Her nervous smile. The way she tried to hide her tears. The stubborn courage behind those frightened green eyes. The more I learned about her...

The more questions I had. I needed to be careful. I needed to keep my distance. But more than anything  needed to know her better.

***

The next morning, the school hallways were just as loud and crowded as ever. I barely made it halfway down the corridor before Fiona stepped directly into my path. Two of her friends followed behind her like shadows.

Even through the cloud of expensive perfume she'd drenched herself in, all I could smell was the artificial sweetness that made my nose itch. I resisted the urge to wrinkle it.

"Cassian." She smiled brightly as she reached for my arm. "You're coming to the party tonight, right?" She leaned in a little closer. "Someone like you has to be there."

I didn't even look at her. "I'm not interested, Fiona." My voice was calm. Cold enough that it echoed through the hallway.

"I don't like her scent, Cass." Axel's impatient growl echoed through my mind. "Where's Bloom? This woman is nothing but unnecessary noise."

"Be patient" I answered silently. "We agreed we'd protect her without making it obvious. We're here to observe her. Nothing more."

Leaving Fiona standing in the hallway, I continued toward my classroom. Then I saw them.

Kai and Ivy were walking ahead, laughing about something, while Bloom trailed a few steps behind, trying to balance a stack of books in her arms.

The moment I passed her that familiar scent drifted toward me. Vanilla. Caramel. Every wall I'd built inside myself collapsed in a single heartbeat. Kai and Ivy waved over their shoulders. "See you in class!"

They disappeared around the corner. Bloom bent down to straighten the pile of books in her arms. At that exact moment, a group of students rounded the hallway too quickly. She stepped aside to avoid crashing into them and lost her balance.

My body reacted before my mind could. I reached her in a single stride. My arms wrapped instinctively around her before she could hit the floor. Her back collided with my chest. Everything stopped.

She felt impossibly small in my arms. The difference in our height struck me all over again. The top of her head barely reached my chest.

"Yes!" Axel practically howled inside me. "Feel her, Cass! She's ours. She's part of us. Touch her. Leave your scent on her."

Bloom looked up. Her bright green eyes met mine. For one suspended moment...

The noise of the crowded hallway disappeared completely. It was just us. "Careful, Little Fox." My voice came out lower than usual. Almost a growl. "We know you can fight. But ever since the first day, I keep catching you when you lose your balance."

The corner of my mouth twitched. "I'm starting to think you're doing it on purpose."

She didn't look away. "I dropped my books." Her eyes sparkled with defiance. "Don't flatter yourself big guy." Even though she looked tiny standing in front of me, she took another unconscious step closer.

Close enough that I could feel her breathing. Close enough that Axel nearly lost his mind. "Kiss her, Cassian! What are you waiting for? Fate is calling us."

"Shut up, Axel!" I forced the thought through clenched teeth. "She doesn't have a wolf. She's not our mate. This is attraction. Nothing more." It took every ounce of control I had to quiet him.

When I finally spoke again, my own voice surprised me. "Oh?" It came out as a rough rumble. "You want to talk about how big I am, Little Fox?"

What the hell was wrong with me? I'd actually growled.

She crossed her arms. "I'm not your Little Fox. I already told you to stop calling me that." A stubborn smile appeared. "And you seriously underestimate me." Instead of answering I turned her gently toward me. Then I stepped forward.

Once. Twice. She kept backing up until her shoulders met the hallway wall.

I planted one hand on either side of her head. Trapping her between my arms. "I already told you..." I lowered my voice. "I'll call you whatever I want."

"You also know I'm an Alpha." My eyes stayed locked on hers. "I'd suggest adjusting that attitude." A dangerous smile tugged at my lips. "Otherwise... I might have to punish you."

Her breathing hitched. Just for a split second. Her gaze flickered down to my lips. Then she smiled. "Future Alpha." She emphasized the word deliberately. "Not the current Alpha."

She tilted her head. "And I'm not part of your pack. You can't punish me." Another tiny step closer. "Or..." Her grin widened. "Maybe that's exactly why you keep trying."

She lowered her voice until it was almost a whisper. "You want to punish me..."

"...don't you, little Alpha?"

Axel lost it. Every instinct inside me screamed to close the distance between us. To claim her. To erase every inch of space separating us. For one terrifying second...

I almost listened. Then reality crashed back into me. She wasn't ours. No matter how desperately Axel believed otherwise. I tore myself away so abruptly it felt like her skin had burned me. I straightened immediately, forcing several feet of distance between us.

"Be careful." My voice turned cold again. But keeping the storm inside me contained was becoming harder with every passing second.

"Cassian... wait." Bloom instinctively stepped toward me.

I didn't stop. "Go to class, Bloom." I never looked back. I simply walked away down the hallway.

"Coward." Axel's voice had become darker now. Sharper.

"You're only making this worse. The farther you push her away the more we're both going to suffer. She's our mate. You're killing both of us by denying it."

"She's not my mate, Axel." My jaw clenched. "You're obsessed because she's a hybrid." That's all this is.

"Some instinct you've convinced yourself is fate. It'll pass." But my heartbeat refused to listen. It pounded against my ribs with the same relentless hunger Axel carried inside him.

Even after I left her behind... Even as I walked faster and faster through the halls... The scent of vanilla and caramel refused to leave me. I had to put an end to this...

Before it destroyed both me and my wolf. And unlike Axel... I knew exactly how I was going to do it.