CHAPTER 100: I WOULD NEVER GO THAT FAR

Damien

"Alpha?" A male voice cuts through my feverish thoughts, snapping the thread that held me so tightly in place. I straighten immediately, leaning back in my chair as if caught in some forbidden act.

I’m not sure how long I’ve been sitting here, simply watching Kaya sleep, the memories of our tangled past seeping into my veins like a slow, intoxicating poison.

"Alpha, it’s urgent," Bill calls again, and this time I rise to my feet, turning to face him. The stark terror carved into his features leaves no doubt—something out of the ordinary has happened.

"What is it?"

"It’s Alpha Reiner of the Blood Moon Pack," he says grimly. "He’s here, and he demands to see you."

A cold grin tugs at my lips, my whole body trembling with a volatile mix of anticipation and rage. Of course, he had to come here. And I’ve been eager to see him too.

"Take him to my office," I instruct my beta, my voice steady but edged with the thrill of confrontation. My gaze slides back to Kaya’s still, serene face. Then I turn my attention to the old woman standing silently in the corner. My tone sharpens. "Take her back to the cage—and make sure her scent is completely indiscernible."

"Yes, Alpha Damien," she answers at once, her beady eyes dipping closed in a curt nod.

I allow myself one final glance at Kaya before marching out of the room, the sharp, final click of the lock echoing behind me like a gunshot.

I don’t even make it past the doorway before Reiner’s scent hits me—thick and clinging, wrapping around my senses until it feels as though it’s seeped into my very skin. It’s so intense, so suffocatingly heavy, that a slow, satisfied grin curls across my lips before I can stop it.

He’s anxious. Uneasy. Afraid.

And I fucking love that.

"Alpha Magnus," I greet him breezily, stepping into my office and shutting the door behind me with a lazy flick of my wrist. "What a pleasant surprise."

He doesn’t look pleased in the slightest. In fact, he looks anything but. His skin is pale, his eyes hollow, the weight of exhaustion etched deep into his face. The sight makes the corner of my mouth twitch upward—I do enjoy watching the tables turn.

"Alpha Windthorne," Magnus begins without so much as returning my greeting, his voice clipped and cold. He dives straight in, no hesitation, as though the words have been burning in his throat the entire time he’s been waiting for me. "I am here to search your territory."

I don’t respond immediately. Instead, I savor the urgency in his tone, the way it grates against his forced composure. Slowly, deliberately, I cross the room and lower myself into my chair, never taking my eyes off the deep crease between his brows.

His glare locks on me, brimming with unspoken threats, but it only amuses me further. I can barely hold back the laugh threatening to spill at his pathetic attempt at intimidation.

"Must be nice," I murmur at last, my tone light, almost careless. "You can waltz into my land as if it already belongs to you, while I have to jump through endless hoops just to catch a glimpse of yours."

"Life is unfair," he growls back, his voice colder now, eyes glinting with even sharper hostility.

Now, I can’t help but scoff. "Indeed. But I can’t just let you barge in and do whatever you wish in my pack house. Can you at least tell me what you’re looking for?"

"I can," he replies, his tone cold enough to freeze the air between us. "I am looking for my packmates."

"And why," I tilt my head, my gaze steady, "do you think you’ll find them here?"

I study his face with the intensity of an X-ray, taking in every detail—the hard set of his jaw, the slight twitch in his cheek. The bulge of his jaw muscles is enough for me to know he’s seconds away from lunging at me. My wolf stirs at the edge of my mind, reacting to his growing frustration, but intimidation is the last thing I feel.

Nothing can ruin this moment of glory for me now.

"Gamma Gloria Turner was banished from Blood Moon a little over a month ago," Magnus begins, the smoldering embers in his eyes reflecting the heat of my own glare. "Soon after, the Kellan twins suddenly steal the spotlight, drawing everyone’s attention as they earn the clout."

He makes a deliberate pause, measuring my reaction before continuing. "At first, I found it odd. I trust my instincts when it comes to welcoming new members into my pack, but the sudden shift in dynamics was something I had to pay attention to as Alpha. So, I observed them closely for a few days. Yet nothing significant caught my attention.

Their scents were the same. Everything about them was the same. So, I let it slide."

A faint frown tries to pull at my brow, but I school my features into perfect neutrality, refusing to give him the satisfaction.

Stupid fucking bitches. I told them not to draw any attention, but they just had to do it anyway. I knew I couldn’t trust the sirens to be obedient. Every careless action bleeds into consequences, and now I have to deal with it.

Magnus raises his eyebrows slightly, as if sensing my simmering irritation, but then continues his rant, oblivious—or pretending to be.

"Last night, three of the Blood Moon females disappeared. Two of them were the twins."

I let my body relax just a fraction, a small, dark chuckle slipping from my chest. "So? What does it have to do with me?"

"The third female," he says, his voice colder now, almost brittle, "was your former ’mate,’ Kaya Moon."

His subtle tremor when he utters her name does not escape me. A surge of satisfaction coils in my chest. Every part of me wants to laugh, to let the sound echo through the room and crush his composure. But I don’t. I let it simmer, tasting it like a dark, rich wine.

Fucking son of a bitch. I knew it.

"The King has informed me that Kaya made a conscious choice to leave my pack and join yours. Once I came to terms with her decision, I decided to let the matter go. I see no need for her anymore."

I’m still not finished with my last sentence when Magnus reaches into his jacket pocket and hurls a needle onto my desk. The clatter reverberates through the office like a gunshot.

"One needle left suggests two things: the intruder was a dilettante, or he only used it on one person."

"Aconite?" I feign ignorance, flicking the needle away from me with a look of disgust curling my lips. "Perhaps the one who did it was just clumsy."

"I could write it off as clumsy, sure," Magnus insists, his lips tight, "if only it hadn’t been for another crucial piece of evidence left at the scene."

"Oh?" I lean forward slightly, curiosity piqued. "And what was it?"

At last, Magnus’s lips curl into a knowing grin, the kind that dares me to react. It’s the expression of a man certain he’s caught me red-handed. "The twitch in the magic barrier was identical to the one Gloria left when she was chased out."

"Hahahahaha!" I can’t contain myself any longer. The man sitting across from me is a complete fool—poor, arrogant, and utterly pathetic.

"So one jealous bitch returns to your pack to kidnap another bitch, and for some reason, I am the suspect here?"

Magnus winces, as if I’ve stabbed him with a dagger, the determination in his eyes faltering with every passing second.

"What a sad display," I add, rising to my feet, letting my gaze pin him down like a frog about to be gutted. "Losing all sensibility for a woman... Sure, Alpha Reiner, feel free to search my pack house if you wish. Search my entire territory. Search my newly acquired land, too, if that will help you sleep at night. But make no mistake—"

I stop when my legs level with his shoulders, grinning as I watch him shrink beneath the mounting pressure. "If you find nothing, I will file a formal complaint with the King, demanding a public hearing on your competence as a royal investigator."

"She is nothing more than a tight cunt, Alpha Magnus," I whisper, leaning closer and giving his shoulder a light, deliberate squeeze. My lips twitch with dark amusement as I feel the hardness beneath my touch, unyielding as granite. "I would never go that far for a mere whore."