All Chapters of Mated To My Captor: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

 I watched the elevator doors close on Dante's exhausted face and felt something twist in my chest, an old, familiar ache I'd learned to compartmentalize decades ago. Love and necessity, tangled together like roots around stone.He looked so much like his mother in that moment. Same sharp cheekbones, same way of holding tension in his shoulders like he could carry the world's weight if he just braced himself properly. She had been like that too. Stubborn. Loyal to a fault.It had killed her.I turned away from the elevator, rolling my shoulders to release the knot of tension building there. The administrative wing stretched quiet and empty this late, most staff had gone home hours ago, leaving only skeleton security and the ever-watchful cameras. I knew their blind spots by heart. Had helped install half of them myself, fifteen years ago when Dominic first restructured compound security.My brother's office door clicked shut behind me as I re

 I flipped the business card between my fingers for the hundredth time, watching lamplight catch the embossed lettering. Elias Blackwell. Community Advocate. The Cleansing.Three days since that night outside the diner. Three days since I'd watched my sister get dragged away by those people, that blonde woman with the cold eyes and the guy who'd grabbed Kira like she was property. Three days of unanswered calls, ignored texts, and a growing pit of dread in my stomach that something was seriously, catastrophically wrong.Kira's voice on the phone earlier had also been wrong. Like someone was listening. Like she couldn't say what she really meant.I'm safe. I'm not in danger.Bullshit.I knew my sister. She didn't disappear for days without warning. Didn't leave her car to accumulate parking tickets. Didn't sound like she was reading from a script when she told me everything was fine.Something had happened to her. Something bad e

 The warehouse in the Ruins district looked abandoned from the outside, broken windows, rusted metal siding, graffiti that spoke of years without maintenance. Perfect camouflage for what was happening inside.I checked the address Elias had texted me three times before approaching the side entrance. The tracker he'd given me sat heavy in my jacket pocket, a constant reminder of promises made and lines about to be crossed.Two knocks, pause, three more. They'll let you in.I followed the pattern. The door opened immediately.A woman stood there, maybe mid-thirties, with tired eyes and a scar that ran from her temple to her jaw. She looked me over with practiced assessment before stepping aside."You're Leo. Elias said you'd be coming." Her voice was rough, like she'd spent too many years screaming and not enough recovering. "I'm Sarah. Come on, meeting's about to start."Inside, the warehouse had been transformed. Industrial ligh

 My finger hovered over the send button, the text already composed.I'm coming to get you. Just hold on.Just as I was about to tap send, a hand clamped down on my shoulder. I jerked around to find Tyler standing behind me, concern etched across his features. Behind him, Elias approached with that measured, purposeful stride that made him seem like he was always exactly where he needed to be."Don't send that," Tyler said, voice quiet but firm."Why not? She needs to know I'm...""You're going to spook them." He gestured for me to put the phone down. "The people holding your sister? They're not stupid, Leo. They probably have access to her phone. Monitor her calls, read her texts. If you tell her you're planning a rescue, they'll tighten security. Move her somewhere we can't find her."The logic hit me like cold water. "I didn't think...""That's why you have us." Tyler squeezed my shoulder reassuringly. "We've been doing

 The walk back to my quarters felt interminable, each step weighted with the echoes of Kira's hurt reverberating through the bond. It sat in my chest like a stone, heavy and unshakeable, a constant reminder that I'd caused her pain while trying to prevent it.I'd done the right thing. I knew I had. Keeping the mate bond secret was necessary, the only way to protect her from my father's machinations until I had enough political capital to defend our relationship publicly.So why did it feel so wrong?Halfway to my room, I changed direction. Sage would still be awake, she always worked late, buried in historical texts or genealogical charts, pursuing whatever research rabbit hole had captured their attention. And Sage had a way of cutting through emotional complications with brutal honesty that I desperately needed right now.I didn't bother knocking, just pushed open the door to their quarters."Sage, I need..."I stopped dead.