every normal day

Chapter 6: Your every normal day

Kade pov

I stared at the unconscious southern wolf sprawled across my dungeon floor, my eyes lingered for just a moment longer before I caught myself.

I touched the hilt of my sword that had gone towards his head, in my rage I had knocked the bastard cold out.

But that was not the least of my worries right now.

my chest was burning like someone had branded me with hot iron.

A mate mark.

I felt like crying and at the same time laughing at fate.

After everything I had survived, everything I had built, the universe decided to saddle me with a mate. And not just any mate… a pampered southern prince who wandered into the Wastes like he was on a pleasure stroll.

Because of course he was a prince. I had recognized those purple eyes the moment I saw them. My masters would be rolling in their graves if I had not recognised the cause of our plight.

Everyone knew about Milo's eyes, the legendary male Omega who had defeated Queen Millen. This wolf had the same unusual color.

Which meant he was probably the Golden Prince himself. Ezra. The perfect symbol of everything the southern packs valued and held in sight esteem.

And my fated mate.

"Commander?" One of my guards appeared in the doorway. "Is everything…holy shit, is that blood?"

"It's fine. Help me get him to a cell." I grabbed the prince under his arms, trying to ignore how the mate bond purred with satisfaction at touching him. "And bring Healer Osric. Now."

Between us, we hauled the unconscious prince into the nearest cell and dumped him on the bench. The guard left on a run to bring the healer. I stood there, staring at the mark on my chest that was still glowing faintly through my shirt.

Twenty-two years. Twenty-two years of surviving hell, building the Frost Keep into a sanctuary for wolves the world had thrown away, and never once believing I would have a mate.

The universe was cruel like that.

Osric arrived ten minutes later, his healer's bag clutched in gnarled hands. The old wolf had been with me since the beginning, one of the first rogues I had saved from execution.

"What happened?" He knelt beside the prince, checking vitals with practiced efficiency.

"Corrupted attack. He is injured but stable." I paused, carefully avoiding the part that I contributed to his state.

"We are mated."

Osric's hands still. He looked up at me, bushy eyebrows climbing toward his hairline. "Come again?"

I pulled my shirt aside, showing the black mark.

The old healer whistled low. "Well. That's complicated."

"That's one word for it."

"What are you going to do?"

Good question. The smart move would be to heal him, send him back south, and pretend this never happened. Mate bonds could be ignored if you tried hard enough. I had built an entire life around not needing anyone.

But the mark on my chest had other ideas. Already I could feel it… the stupid pull toward him, the instinct to protect, to claim, to keep.

"I don't know," I admitted.

Before Osric could respond, shouting erupted from the upper levels. The alarm bells began to ring… three short bursts. The signal for a prisoner situation.

“Are you kidding me this time?” I was flabbergasted at the whole situation.

“My lord…”

I was moving before conscious thought, taking the stairs two at a time. Guards clustered in the main courtyard, forming a circle around something I couldn't see.

"Make way!" I shoved through the crowd.

In the center, chained and bloody, was an Omega.

Young… maybe nineteen. Thin to the point of starvation, with auburn hair matted with dirt and blood. His clothes were shredded, feet bare and bleeding. But it was his eyes that caught me.

Green. Bright and defiant despite the obvious fear that was swimming in them.

It reminded me of a particular memory, but I immediately crushed it down.

"We caught him trying to steal from the medical stores," one of my lieutenants reported. "He had these." She held up several bundles of rare herbs. "Dragon root, silver leaf, moon blossom. Worth more than gold."

The Omega lifted his chin, meeting my gaze directly.

I couldn't help my shock. Either he was ridiculously Brave or he was a Stupid Omega.

Maybe both.

"Those herbs are mine," he said. His voice was soft but steady. "I need them."

"You broke into my fortress. Stole from my stores." I stepped closer, letting him see exactly what happened to thieves in the Wastes. "I execute wolves for less."

Something flickered in those green eyes. Not fear. Resignation. Like he had expected this.

Another memory threatened to surface…

"Then execute me," he said quietly. "But let me treat my family first. Please. They are sick. The herbs are the only thing that can save them."

A pretty story. Probably a lie. Omega thieves learned early how to manipulate with sad tales and big eyes.

But something about him made me hesitate.

Maybe it was the nostalgic feelings that wouldn't want to go away no matter how hard I try.

My hand shifted away from my sword hilt.

"Bring him to the execution square," I ordered. "Dawn tomorrow. Let everyone watch what happens to thieves."

The guards dragged him away. He didn't fight. Didn't beg. Just went quietly, like he'd already accepted death.

I watched him go, ignoring the uncomfortable twist in my gut.

"Kade." Osric appeared at my elbow. "The southern prince is awake. And he is demanding to see you."

Of course he was.

I turned back toward the dungeons, the mate mark burning against my chest. But this time, there was a pang there now.

One unconscious rude prince, and One Omega thief scheduled for execution.

Just another normal day in the Frost Keep.

“Fuck me.”