chapter 11

Bane’s POV The rain began to fall the moment I crossed back into the neutral zone, streaking across the windshield of my car like grease. I pushed the engine hard, the headlights cutting dual paths through the dense, low-hanging fog of the countryside.I didn't head toward the glittering skyscrapers of Blackwood Corp. I couldn't risk the surveillance. Instead, I tore down a forgotten logging trail on the extreme northern edge of my territory, stopping where the canopy grew thick enough to swallow the vehicle whole.Killian, my Beta and the only man alive who carried my absolute trust, emerged from the shadows of an abandoned mill. He didn't look like a corporate executive today; he was dressed in damp tactical gear, his eyes constantly scanning the tree line.I stepped out of the car, the cool rain instantly soaking through my suit jacket. "Report.""The border patrol didn't flag your return, boss, but Claus’s enforcers are already crawling near our corporate parameters," Killian sa

chapter 12

Bane's POVI sprinted to the car, but as I threw open the door, the car’s central console screen flickered to life, overriding my security. Claus’s face appeared on the digital display, a smug, manic grin pulling at his lips. "Looking for your vessel, Uncle? You're too late. She's currently having a drink with some of my father’s old 'creditors' down at the local watering hole. Let’s see how fast that Brine wolf can run when the floor is made of gasoline.”The dashboard console had gone black the moment Claus’s face vanished, leaving me in a suffocating silence broken only by the frantic beat of my own heart.‘The watering hole.’There was only one place in this backward village that fit the description, a dilapidated tavern on the western ridge called The Rusty Spur. It was a known gathering spot for the local laborers, a place where law was fluid and outsiders were viewed as meat. If Claus’s rogue creditors were there, if Zelda had been lured into their hands, I would turn that tav

chapter 13

Zelda's POV The echo of Claus’s voice was still vibrating like a parasite in my inner ear when a sharp, heavy knock rattled the front door.I jumped, a small, strangled gasp escaping my throat. My phone nearly slipped from my sweat-slicked fingers. For a fleeting, desperate second, I thought it might be Bane, that he had turned the car around, that he had realized leaving me alone was a mistake.But the hope died instantly. This was Bane’s house. He possessed the security codes, the keys, and the absolute alpha authority to walk through any threshold he owned. He had no reason to knock.The weight of Claus's threat, ‘I know exactly where you are,’ pressed down on my chest, turning my breathing into shallow, panicked hitches. I forced my trembling legs to move, slipping quietly into the kitchen. My eyes locked onto the wooden block on the counter. I gripped the handle of a heavy, forged steel chef’s knife, sliding it behind my back, hiding the blade against the fabric of my oversized

chapter 14

Zelda's POV "Zelda! Wait!" Mr. Thomas’s voice echoed through the cavernous barn, heavy with sudden, profound concern. I didn't listen. The world had shrunken down to the frantic, erratic beat of my own heartbeat and the echo of Claus’s voice whispering in my ear. I broke into a dead sprint, my boots churning up the wet mud of the lane as the downpour tore into me. The freezing rain blinded me, plastering my hair to my face, but the absolute terror consuming my mind acted as a compass, driving me back toward the house. I burst through the front door, gasping for air, the silence of the foyer a jarring contrast to the violence I had just heard over the receiver. My hands were shaking so violently I could barely function. I flew into the kitchen, my eyes locking onto the chef's knife I had abandoned earlier. I grabbed the handle, the cold steel providing a pathetic illusion of safety, and rushed back toward the front door. With my left hand, I unlocked my phone again, fran

chapter 15

Zelda's POV I whipped around to face him, my eyes scanning his features desperately to see if this was some twisted, dark joke. But Bane’s face was a wall of unyielding stone. There wasn't a single trace of amusement in the sharp, dangerous angles of his jaw."You..." I stuttered, my voice cracking under the weight of my disbelief. "Do you... do you actually mean that?"He didn't bother to answer. He simply gestured toward the massive, dark-timbered mattress. "Get on the bed."Something inside me snapped. The sheer, exhausting accumulation of the night's terror, Claus’s chilling phone call, the sound of bone-crushing violence over the receiver, the blood downstairs, and the brutal way Bane had just interrogated me, ignited into a flash of hot, defensive anger. He thought he could dominate me, terrify me until I was trembling, and then just command me into his bed for his own satisfaction?"Are you completely insane?" I demanded, my voice rising as I took a step back from him. "Why d

All Chapters of Claimed By My Mate's Step-Uncle: Chapter 11 - Chapter 15

chapter 11

chapter 12

chapter 13

chapter 14

chapter 15