More Than A Target

Chapter 7

“You can't speak to my guest in such a manner, uncle!” Kieran's angry voice filled the room— Sienna was forced to sit up as she looked at the person who just walked in.

Elder Reid, Kieran's uncle.

Thanks to her research before she came here, she got to know quite a lot about Reid. He was Kieran's mother's elder brother and after Kieran's parents died, Reid was the one who stood by him while he took hard decisions required of him by the throne.

As such, he respected Reid like his own father but Reid was known by all as a difficult man.

“What?! Kieran, you let a rogue lie on your precious bed?” His voice boomed through the room like a storm crashing against a stone.

Sienna knew the cards to play next, she took a kneeling position on the bed. Her muscles became stiff as she held tightly to the sheet. Her legs trembling beneath her…

“I’m sorry, I'll go…” she quickly said as she tried standing but she missed her steps and fell but before she reached the ground, Kieran caught her.

“You better stay where I kept you” Kieran said but she steadied herself again and tried to walk away.

“I said go back to bed!” Kieran growled as he gripped her wrist before she could take another step.

She froze.

Kieran stepped forward as he stood between her and his uncle. Reid was obviously not happy experiencing this first hand.

“You still care…”

“Uncle…” Kieran said slowly— his tone dangerously calm.

“You seem to forget where you are, do you need a reminder?”

Reid’s eyes widened with disbelief.

“Look young man, I raised you! I stood beside your father's body and swore to protect this pack. Now, I won't watch you throw all that away over some rogue! Remember, you were my nephew long before you became Alpha.”

“She's my guest…”

“Kieran you're getting it wrong, she's a rogue” he cut in.

“And you're crossing the line!” Kieran's voice thundered. “Get out.”

The silence that followed was razor-sharp. Reid's jaw clenched as his eyes darted from Kieran to Sienna who sat frozen on the edge of the bed.

“You're sending me out instead of her?” He asked like the words choked him.

“I'm choosing respect over arrogance” Kieran muttered. “Out. Now”

Reid scoffed, he turned sharply and stormed out, slamming the door hard.

Kieran's chest rose and fell in a rather too fast rhythm, his fist clenched at his both sides. A moment passed and he didn't utter a word, he just stood in front of the door like a guard— face unreadable again.

Sienna swallowed hard as she finally spoke, her voice soft.

“You didn't have to get into an argument with him… I should've just left”

“You're not going anywhere” he muttered walking back to her.

“I choose who stays and who leaves. So if I tell you to stay, you stay.”

Kieran’s voice cut through the air like a blade, cold and commanding. His eyes, intense—stared into her as if trying to pin her in place.

Sienna stared up at him, her lips parted slightly, but no words came. She fought to keep the emotions building up inside her from surfacing. The tension in the room was thick enough to strangle. Her hands remained clasped tightly together, beside her as she tried to maintain the façade of obedience.

“I told you to stay put, and you were going to listen to my uncle?” he added, the edge in his tone unmistakable.

“I didn’t mean any disrespect, my lord,” she murmured, lowering her gaze. “It’s just that he’s your uncle, and I wanted to show as much respect as I could.”

“You show all respect to me,” he snapped, the authority in his voice making her flinch slightly. “My word comes first. Do you understand?”

Sienna nodded once, keeping her head low to hide the frustration in her eyes. She knew better than to push him, not when he was like this—rigid with tension and sharp with power.

“Now rest. I have something to take care of.”

He didn’t wait for a response. The sound of his boots echoing against the floor filled the silence as he turned and strode toward the door. Within seconds, he was gone, the door clicking shut behind him.

Sienna let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, her shoulders finally loosening from the coil of tension they had been trapped in. The walls of the room suddenly felt closer, the air thicker.

This has just been one complication after another, she thought bitterly, running a hand through her hair. I thought I would’ve been done with all this by now.

All she’d wanted to do when his uncle appeared was quietly slip away—no drama, no attention. But of course, that was impossible. She’d already drawn the eyes of the maids, the suspicion of them, and now… now she’d earned the disapproval of Kieran’s uncle.

She leaned back into the pillows, her thoughts racing.

‘Let’s say I succeed. Let’s say I get rid of Kieran… they wouldn’t just let me leave even if I wanted to, then what’

It wasn’t a question she liked asking herself, but she had to be realistic. The castle was filled with people who didn’t trust her. Even the servants looked at her like she didn’t belong. She’d never had illusions about fitting in—but she had hoped to be invisible long enough to execute her plan.

Now, thanks to tonight’s chaos, she had the full attention of the Alpha, his beta, the help… and now, his uncle.

Of all people, it had to be his uncle.

The maids were just background noise. Easily dismissed. But someone like him—someone close to Kieran, someone with influence—that was a problem. A dangerous one.

Sienna dragged her legs under the thick covers and curled into herself slightly. The fever hadn’t broken yet, but it had dulled, leaving a sickly heat humming beneath her skin. Still, she couldn’t rest. Not yet. Her mind was too busy reworking strategies, recalculating risks.

Kieran’s uncle had looked at her like she was nothing more than filth—an infection inside his nephew’s domain. That kind of hatred wasn’t easy to sway, and it certainly wouldn’t disappear overnight. She knew men like him; they held onto grudges like weapons.

Her pulse quickened slightly as she remembered the fury in Kieran’s voice when he’d defended her outside. He’d stood up to his own blood for her—why? Why would he go that far?

Her plan had never accounted for that.

Or for the way her heart had clenched when he carried her through the corridors earlier, as if she actually mattered.

But even in her own head, the words sounded hollow.

And somewhere in the silence of the room, the echo of Kieran’s voice still lingered:

“You show all respect to me. My word comes first.”

Sienna closed her eyes, That was the problem.

He was starting to sound like more than just a target.