22

Word Count: 3526

Some triggering sexual implications at the bottom of this chapter, read at your own risk!

~Dove

We arrive at Matthias' stronghold close to midnight.

An uneasy feeling follows me as the guards usher us inside. By the tense glances they exchange, they didn't expect us.

This safe house is deep in the main city, flanked by other ominous concrete buildings that look eerily similar. Upon entering, however, Matthias' simple extravagance becomes apparent everywhere I look.

This place was prepared before hand, and although it's less than half the size of his home estate, it's nothing to sneer at.

He could have warned us...he could have brought us with him to safety.

Father leaves me in the parlour with a swarm of guards to go speak to Matthias. I sway back and forth on my feet, trying not to think about Varian's mark embedded into my skin.

He maintains it will protect my life. Either way I'm likely to lose favour with Matthias once he inevitably realises Varian got his hands on me.

Eventually father stalks back into the room with Matthias by his side. He looks exhausted from our travels and ridged from stress.

I shift my gaze to Matthias, my entire body stiffening in anticipation.

One moment, his gait is easy and his smile loose. The moment he looks at me, seeming to catch my scent suffocating this parlour, his eyes turn frigidly cold.

This is where he turns against us. Where he either kills us to tie up his final loose end, or cast us out onto the streets. It's hard to imagine such a reality when Matthias still looks like the man who first seduced me a year and a half ago.

I wish he was still as soft, as attentive. I wish he still excited me, that his traditional beauty compared to others I've been exposed to recently was enough...

"Is everything...well?" I ask, wringing my hands anxiously.

"As well as it can be." Father exchanges an uneasy glance with our eerily calm Alpha. "Matthias is letting us stay here for some time until his estate is rebuilt elsewhere."

My mouth parts and my eyes dart to him. I wasn't expecting that. Matthias is a hot headed man, who reacts to what is before him with reason expected to come later.

Sparing my father can't be because of his display of loyalty alone...there has to be more going on.

"That's very kind of you," I murmur delicately.

Father looks between Matthias and I, probably feeling a fool for not noticing the tension between us until now. Thankfully I'm more at ease having told my father the truth, especially since it was his indiscretion that got us caught up in Varian's web.

"Let us get some rest, Dovely." Father nods at me.

"Actually, I was hoping to speak to Matthias," I bring up, my sharp look reminding him of what I said to him during out travels back here.

Being alone with Matthias is a risk. At some point he is going to learn about Varian's mark, and I want to obtain his trust and perhaps affections before then.

I want him to commit to me. I want to know I'm safe, and maybe even that I am loved.

Father's eyes flare wide. "You should probably come with me—"

"Allow me to speak with Dove. Her and I have much to discuss about her time being imprisoned," Matthias cuts in, giving my father a warning look.

"Of course," he responds tightly. "I'll see you in the morning."

He misses my weak smile as he turns on his heel, striding purposefully down the hallway, his posture stuff.

His absence casts the hall into silence. Matthias is looking at me, his hazel eyes shimmering with indecipherable emotion.

He looks so handsome, even under the dull light. So familiar. His deep brown hair is pulled back and tied, revealing the long line of his jaw and his pretty face I've always admired.

"I missed you..." I admit softly.

I know I should be wary, should be questioning why he abandoned my father and I instead of bringing us to this safe house. I should be upset that he rejected me, that he wants me as his toy.

But right now, I'm so tired and so desperate for comfort after these last few days that the past seems hidden behind a hazy veil.

He strides toward me, closing the gap. His expression folds into one of anguish, of longing.

"I missed you so fucking much you have no idea," he breathes, his hand locking around the back of my head as he guides me into an embrace. "I wanted to destroy everything in my path when I heard you had been apprehended."

My body melts against him, my head resting in the crook of his neck. He feels like home familiarity and the past.

"You didn't warn me or father that we were in danger..." I bring up cautiously, pulling away to look up at him.

His smile drops, a shadow passing over his face.

"Everything happened so fast. I asked some guards to seek you out, but they were intercepted." He looks over his shoulder at a guard by the door, his eyes conveying indecipherable emotion.

I frown. "Oh."

I should probably push him more, demand to know why he chose not to take us with him initially, but I can't bring myself to. Not when he could turn on me now.

"I'm trying to be reasonable, Dove." He pulls away, sliding back a step. "I can scent him all over you, but I may be willing to forgive you considering what my actions put you through."

He is surveying me, inspecting my body as if he can see what has changed. I shift under his scrutiny, painfully conscious of the mark on my thigh, of the evidence of Varian's claim on me.

Right now Matthias is noticing my heightened scent, but he's attributing it to being in Varian's proximity. He could turn on me — the darkness gathering in his eyes suggests as much — but I'm silently hoping his guilt is keeping him on a leash.

"You're not going to kill me?" I breathe.

He angles his head, then slowly smiles. "I should, considering the risk. However, the world cannot lose someone who is so good at sucking-"

"Matthias," I grumble, glancing over my shoulder at the guards that watch on.

"Apologies. I'm just trying to lighten the mood," he muses, sliding his hands into his pockets. That mischievous smirk reminds me of all the flirtatious remarks he would toss at me before he started our relationship.

It was fun back then. Now there are feelings involved, and now a mark from another Alpha to complicate matters.

"I'm not sure I'm in the mood for jokes," I admit.

The smile vanishes, concern crinkling in his brow.

"Come to bed with me tonight," he offers gently. "I hate how we left things last time we saw each other."

That seems like so long ago. His rejection then doesn't sting as much as it did, and I'm not so innocent. I got entwined with his enemy, so the least I can do is give him another chance to prove himself to me.

"I would like that."

We fall into step with each other, walking through the narrow stronghold corridors. I can feel this place pressing into me, the dim spaces making my stomach turn. There are no windows, and probably limited entryways.

"What did Varian say to you while you were his captive?" He asks, eyeing my sideways as we walk.

"Nothing much." I clear my throat. "He used me as a tool in interrogating my father."

Varian spent most of the time I'm assuming I'm a spy. Other than that, the content of our conversation isn't something I want to share with Matthias just yet.

"Your father told me as much...but he wouldn't say how."

I keep my eyes focused ahead. "What matters is father didn't say a word. He was loyal to you the entire time."

"That is good. I've been questioning who I can trust recently, and it seems I was correct in putting my faith in you both," he muses.

"Yeah..."

My father is so loyal to this man, my dignity has been destroyed to the point it's scraps of nothingness, which may be why I'm so willing to walk into a room alone with Matthias.

His room is at the far end of the stronghold. It's large and simple, with almost no furnishings and the usual luxury Matthias likes. Regardless, it's privacy and a bed that looks delightful right now after so much travelling.

"If you wouldn't mind, could you bathe before I take you to bed?" He asks, untying his shoulder length hair. "You're riddled with Varian's scent. A bath won't rid of it, but it may help."

I glance into the adjoining bathroom. I don't have any other choice, although he is going to realise why Varian's scent doesn't leave my body after I've bathed.

"Right, of course. Is it bad?"

"He touched you, I presume?" He watches me, his eyes tracking me like a predator as I start running the bath.

I sit on the edge of it, shrugging loosely. "Just a little. Nothing serious."

"I'm going to kill him. I promise you that," he vows, his tone lethal as he turns his back to me, pulling his shirt off.

I stare at the muscles shifting in his back, wondering what a faceoff between Varian and Matthias would look like. They are both powerful, although I sense the former is more calculating. Hopefully it doesn't come to that, and Varian stays out of our lives forever.

"Does it bother you that Varian touched me a little?" I ask, kicking off my shoes, my socks following suit.

"It bothers me because that's the kind of monster he is," he mutters. "But nothing has changed with how I view you."

I close my eyes, exhaling slowly. Relief chases off the anxious tension that has been haunting me, but it's short lived. He's choosing to forgive me, but he hasn't seen the mark yet.

"That's a relief," I admit, my clothing slumping on the floor as I remove each piece. I angle my body away as remove my pants, wanting to wait for the right moment to tell him.

When I turn back, Matthias is staring at me, an unmistakable blaze of heat in his eyes. "In fact, when you're done with your bath, I'm going to ravage you."

"Oh yeah?" I hold his gaze as slowly pull off the last of my undergarments so my body is bared to him.

Steam swells around me, casting a ghostly hue throughout the bathroom. Between my legs is a still healing mark, although Matthias' gaze is trained too closely on my breasts to notice.

"I'm going to spend some time between your legs, then I'm going to bend you over and fuck the thought of that Alpha out of your pretty little head," he promises, wandering closer.

"I like the sound of that."

I bite down on my lip to pull back my smile as I turn the taps off and step into the bath. My steps are purposeful, keeping the mark hidden as I slowly sink into the deliciously warm water.

This feels new again, exciting. There is a reason why Matthias has seduced me for so long, and I'm starting to remember it again.

I just need to keep my eyes open, for every time I close them, a certain dark eyed Alpha comes to mind.

"It's driven me insane not seeing you, seeing that body." He rests his shoulder against the doorframe, his eyes running like hands across the parts of me that aren't covered by foaming towers of bubbles. "If I don't taste you in the next ten minutes, I'm afraid I may lose my mind."

"You're so dramatic," I muse, washing myself down with a bar a soap, knowing it isn't going to achieve much. "I wanted to talk to you about something..."

"Of course," he murmurs distractedly.

His usually brightly bluish green eyes are ravaged by hunger, suggesting this might not be the best time for such a serious conversation, but I need to know this before I reveal the mark marring my skin.

I want to know he loves me, that he will see that I didn't chose this mark, and if he wants me, we will make it work.

"Would you ever marry me?" I ask so lowly I'm surprised if he can hear me.

"Marry you?" His smile dims and he shifts uncomfortably. "Why do you ask?"

"I mean, you love me, don't you?" The tub sloshes as I adjust myself, bracing my arms on the edge so I can gaze up at him. "I love you."

He opens his mouth, but quickly closes it again. His hesitation deflates any last vestige of hope I had swelling in my chest, opening up a familiar chasm of loneliness I've come to know well.

"Dove, my sweet girl." He laughs a little under his breath. "Love is reserved only for mates. What you feel about me doesn't come your soul."

I flinch at his patronising tone. I never envisaged love to be restricted to mates only — I love my sister, I love my father, despite everything, and I'm pretty sure what I'm feeling toward Matthias is love...

"We could be mates, we just don't know it yet," I bring up.

"As much as I wish I could marry you, I have a duty to produce an heir with a noble woman," he reminds, something insidiously threading into every word. "You have no such background."

"My father has a good job. We could be together forever."

I'm scrambling for more reasons why he should choose to be with me, but I am coming up short. I want to be enough for him, for him to want me as much as I want him.

"We still can. We can be together at times, just not...in public." He waves his hand in a passionless gesture.

"I don't want that life. I don't want to be second. I want to be with you." My voice is hoarse, emotion coiling in my throat.

I refuse to cry. I refuse to think about the ridiculous ideals he holds himself to in public, and how no other Alpha imparts such expectations on their people.

He is ashamed of me. He wants me in his bed, he wants to put no effort in maintaining what we have. He wants to own me, to keep me from others while he continues to indulge.

And I am the fool to ever consider that he could love me.

"I thought the fact that I'm an Alpha didn't matter to you? I thought you didn't want the popularity—"

"I don't! I like you, Matthias." Soapy water spills from the tub and onto the bathroom floor.

Were there some true reason to stay hidden, I would do so happily. I don't want the infamy of being with an Alpha...I want him as an individual.

But hiding me away out of shame, out of a sense of tradition disturbs me. All while he lies to his people about purity and nobility.

"We make sacrifices for what we want, Dove," he growls. "You sacrifice a life of notoriety for me, and I sacrifice the risk of being found out for you."

"You could marry me. You just don't want to." I shake my head, my jaw pulsing from the effort of having it clenched. "You'd rather lie to your pack and to me."

He rolls his eyes. "Oh please—"

"I'm a fool for thinking you would have changed your mind," I snap, standing abruptly. "I would have thought you would have noticed my absence and missed me. I hoped you would have realised we should be together...that you should commit!"

I step from the bath, wrapping a towel around my body.

This is what my nativity has gotten me. Matthias is the only man I've ever loved, and my immature mind deluded me into thinking he felt the same way.

I'm a body to him. A toy. I realised this long ago and yet I came back over and over again, subjecting myself to being used by him in hopes it would substitute real love.

I won't make that mistake again. I'm done with him. Finally and fully.

He sighs irritably, grabbing my slick arm, trying to draw me to him. "Come here, don't be ridiculous."

"No, I'm leaving." I shove away from him, snatching my clothing off the floor before charging into the bedroom.

I need to get out of here. I need to put some space between him and I before he sees this mark and actually considers killing me.

"No you're not." He grabs me again, yanking me toward him until our bodies collide. "Come here."

He turns me, his large hands seizing my biceps. He's manhandled me before, but never with this much vicious intent.

His mouth is on mine suddenly, his kiss brutal and claiming. He tastes like old memories, his tongue forcing itself into my mouth.

I shove him off again, fury curled up in my arms, giving me the strength to put some distance between us.

"We are done," I snap, one arm banding my towel to my body, the other still holding my clothing.

Matthias is glaring at me, his chest heaving, glistening with dampness. His eyes have darkened, a hateful smile turning his lips upward.

He's barely recognisable. It's clear now he despises me, adoring only what is between my legs. I'm not safe around him, and if I don't put distance between us now, he's going to hurt me.

"We aren't done until I say we're done," he growls, reaching for me again.

He reaches for me, snagging onto my wrist before I can get away. The clothing in my arms scatters about as he drags me to the bed, my feet digging into the fibres of the carpet doing little to hinder his effort.

I'm shoved onto the bed, my hand desperately clutching the towel to maintain a semblance of modesty as he looms over me, his long hair hanging down around his face.

He ignores my hands pushing at him, my nails digging into the taut slopes of muscle until I can feel blood beneath them as he spreads my legs wide, taking me in.

"Matthias, no—"

"Let me have my way with you one last time...what the fuck is this?" He pauses, the hunger draining from his eyes as if a plug has been pulled, his focus zeroing in on my thigh.

This thumb brushes over the tender mark, my entire body flinching. His touch feels wrong, repulsive.

"Get off me." I push off the bed and past him, making the most of his stunned state. I right the towel, my heart thumping wildly.

"He marked you," he breathes, slowly turning around to face me.

"He marked me to get at you," I yell, my throat aching from the effort. "My father betrayed me, for you." Tears sting the backs of my eyes. "If Varian were a worse man, I would have been raped and beaten and who knows what! Probably killed!"

With parted lips, Matthias just stares at me. The only sound is my harsh breathing and the blood rushing in my ears.

"For a mark to take you would have to..." Murderous rages gathers like a storm on his face. "You fucked him, didn't you?"

He steps toward me, his towering frame encompassing me, even as I back toward the door.

"That's what you care about?" I hiss, reaching behind me for the door handle.

"Tell me!" He yells so loudly I grimace, my ears protesting from the sound.

"I didn't want any of this!" I insist desperately, reasoning with him when I should be running for my life. "You think I asked to be marked by him? You think I wanted to betray you?"

His eyes suddenly bloodshot, his lips curled into a sneer. The soft, charming Alpha I once knew is replaced by a revengeful one, overcome with his hatred for Varian.

"You came in here with the gall to ask me to marry you," he laughs bitterly, the sound cold and vengeful. "You think I would ever pair myself to someone like you? Some whore who gives herself over to the nearest Alpha?"

My hand finds the cool surface of the doorhandle. "Fuck you."

"Leave my estate and never return." His gaze dips to my legs, his restraint frail and not long for this world. "Were it not for that mark I'd have you killed for your insurrection."

I'm out the door before he can finish the sentence, fleeing down the corridor with no a single glance back.

🖤••🖤

As always, you can read this book 16 chapters ahead on Inkitt and 10 chapters ahead on Radish!

Your support means a lot to me!

~Midika 🐈‍⬛💜