5: the taste of betrayal

The broom slipped from my hand with a sharp clatter against the stone floor.

There they were. Kael. Glory. My best friend. My mate.

Entwined. Moaning. Groaning.

On his bed.

My knees threatened to give way. My lungs forgot how to breathe. I stumbled forward, rage surging in my chest, my fists clenched at my sides as I marched toward Glory.

"You lying snake!" I screamed, ready to strike her. "You slept with my mate!"

But Kael grabbed my wrist before I could land the blow.

“If you dare touch her," he growled, his grip like iron, "you’ll see what happens next.”

Tears pricked my eyes, but I refused to cry in front of them. “You’re betraying our bond! You’re my mate — and she’s my friend! How could you do this to me?!”

Kael’s eyes turned cold. “You could never be my mate. Not after what you did. Not after killing my brother.”

My heart dropped like a stone into a bottomless pit.

“I didn’t kill him…” My voice came out broken.

Glory didn’t say a word. She didn’t even flinch. She just played with her fingers on Kael’s bare chest, smirking like a child with a toy.

I stared in disbelief as Kael leaned toward her, brushing his lips along her neck.

“Let’s continue,” he said, voice dripping with malice. “Maybe that’ll finally break her pathetic little heart.”

“Yes, my love,” Glory whispered back, purring.

My love.

The words echoed in my skull like a curse.

They weren’t even trying to hide it. They wanted to do it in front of me.

I ran.

Back to the room I’d been given. I collapsed onto the bed, curling into myself, sobbing like a child. My shoulders shook, my throat burned. I clutched the shirt I was wearing — Alpha Kyo’s shirt — trying to ground myself in something, anything, that didn’t reek of betrayal.

Minutes passed.

Then the door creaked open.

Alpha Kyo.

He closed the door behind him gently, his voice low but stern.

“I told you not to worry,” he said, stepping closer. “No one will touch you again. So why are you crying?”

I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

“I… I saw Kael… with Glory.”

His expression darkened, but instead of rage, there was a softness in his eyes. He walked over and gently pulled me into his broad chest, one hand tapping my back in quiet comfort.

“ sorry for that,” he murmured.

“But he’s my mate,” I whispered. “And she’s my friend…”

He didn’t say anything at first. Just held me. His warmth chased away the chill that betrayal had buried in my bones.

Then his voice shifted, teasing and low. “You’re wearing your king’s shirt,” he said, tilting his head. “That’s a dangerous kind of disrespect, little wolf.”

I froze, then jolted upright.

“I… I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to— I forgot I had it on. I just grabbed anything after—after everything…”

“Then take it off,” he said, eyes unreadable.

I stared at him.

“I… I don’t have anything else,” I stammered. “My clothes are all stained with blood. And I’m not even wearing anything underneath.”

His tone didn’t change. “Should I repeat myself?”

Heat rose to my cheeks. My fingers trembled as I began unbuttoning the shirt. He didn’t look away. His gaze dragged over my skin slowly, devouring, but when I got to the last button, he reached forward and stopped me.

His hands were warm as he buttoned the shirt back up, fingers brushing against my skin. His face was so close, I could feel his breath on my lips.

“Relax, Wolfie,” he whispered with a smirk. “I’m just teasing. Don’t go psycho and murder me.”

I let out a shaky laugh. “You’re such a jerk.”

He grinned, then stood and started unbuttoning his own shirt. “Now go get my food.”

“From where?” I asked without thinking.

He raised a brow. “From my hair, obviously,” he said, pointing to his head. “Or maybe from the toilet. What kind of question is that?”

I chuckled weakly and left the room.

When I entered the dining hall, Glory was there. Eating like nothing happened.

She looked up, sneering. “Oh. You’re still here. Shouldn’t you be banished by now?”

I said nothing.

“You were dumped, and still too dumb to take the hint. Go close to Kael again, and I’ll do worse than sleep with him—I’ll end you.”

I didn’t argue. I just picked up the food tray and walked away.

Back in the room, Kyo sat cross-legged on the bed.

“Sit,” he said, motioning for me to join him. “Eat.”

I hesitated, then sat beside him. After the food, he turned to me.

“Can you go out like this?” he asked, eyes scanning me head to toe.

“Yes,” I whispered.

He didn’t look convinced. But he stood and offered his hand.

“Come. We’re going somewhere.”

“Where?” I asked.

He arched a brow. “I don’t like questions.”

His hand was still extended. Slowly, I reached for it and held it tightly—not because I wanted to, but because I hoped Kael would see it and finally feel something. Jealousy. Regret. Anything.

But we didn’t see him.

He asked me to take him to my home.

As we walked through the quiet path toward my home, Kyo’s hand stayed in mine. His presence felt like a shield, though I'm still afraid of his wife seeing us like that. I don't know how she will feel.

When we got to the house, he asked, “Where’s your father?”

“He… he traveled,” I said.

“Pack your clothes,” he ordered.

I nodded and went inside, tossing a few of my items into a bag.

Before we got back to the pack it was already 7 p.m., because we stopped by different places. I laughed for the first time in days. It was the first time someone made me forget my pain.

As we reached the gates, Kael was waiting.

“She’s my mate,” he said, his voice stiff.

Kyo looked him dead in the eyes. “She’s my personal maid. Try to take her from me and see what happens.”

Inside the room, Kyo tapped away at his laptop while I sat on the edge of the bed, growing sleepier by the minute. I didn’t want to sleep there, not while he worked.

So I moved to the floor.

“What are you doing?” his voice cut through the silence.

“I want to sleep here.”

“And what’s wrong with the bed?”

“The bed is just one… and I was thinking of going back home tomorrow.”

He huffed. “Don’t be silly. Sleep on the bed.”

I hesitated, but obeyed. Minutes later, I felt him climb in beside me. He pulled me close.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I can’t sleep without someone beside me. I was used to that… with my wife.”

My chest tightened.

In the morning, I woke with a gasp, cold sweat covering my body from a nightmare. A witch, cruel and old, had haunted my dream.

I sat up.

Alpha Kyo wasn’t in the room. But a plate of breakfast sat neatly on the table.

I moved toward it slowly, still shaken from the nightmare.

Just as I reached out for the plate, the door slammed open. A maid stumbled in, followed by Glory, Alpha Kael, and a guard. The maid’s face was pale, her voice trembling.

“Alpha!” she gasped. “T-This food — she said it was poisoned by her!” She pointed at me, eyes wide with fear. “She poisoned it!”

My stomach dropped.

“Poison?” I choked, my voice cracking. “How? I was just about to eat it — I thought it was for me!”

“You shut up!” Glory snapped, storming forward. Her voice cut like a whip. “You’ve said it before — you hate Alpha Kyo! You wanted him dead!”

Alpha Kael’s eyes locked onto mine, dark and unreadable.

“No!” I said quickly, my heart pounding. “I would never — I didn’t—”

“Then eat it,” he said coldly.

My breath caught.

I looked down at the plate. Then back up. I know it must be Alpha kyo that keep it for me, so nothing in the food. They were all watching me — waiting to see if I’d flinch.

I picked it up, hands trembling, throat dry.

“I didn’t poison it,” I whispered, and forced a shaky breath. “It’s not poisoned.”

And then I took a bite.

One.Two.Three.

The food was warm, soft, and tasted like nothing at all. My throat felt tight. My skin grew cold.

I forced each swallow, blinking back panic.

Then I saw her.

Glory.

Smiling.