Chapter 2

For two weeks, I took every hit without fighting back, all to trace the source of the wolfsbane poisoning Kaelen.

Sienna's lackeys circled me like wolves scenting blood.

They'd douse me with foul-smelling herb water, kick my knees out in the hallways, grind muddy boots into my spine, shove my face down until I begged for mercy.

Being trampled by lower-ranked wolves provoked every killing instinct hardwired into a Lycan.

One whisper of my dominance would rupture their internal organs. But I had to keep Nyx caged, thrashing and screaming inside me.

Suppressing instinct hurt worse than any bruise.

Several nights I found myself doubled over the sink, coughing up blood. Each time I swallowed back the metallic taste, I could only murmur the same promise:

Hold on, Nyx. Just hold on. He's still in there somewhere.

Friday after classes, the training grounds stood empty.

I'd just bent down to pick up a bloodstained bandage Kaelen had discarded when Sienna and her crew blocked my path.

Beta dominance slammed into me without warning. It felt like nothing more than a gust of wind, but the audacity of a lower-rank wolf challenging me sent Nyx into a frenzy inside my skull.

"Pawing through Kaelen's things? You're not even worthy to touch them." Sienna's laugh was sharp and cruel as her stiletto heel crushed down on my right hand.

Bone ground against bone with a sickening crunch.

Lycan retaliation coiled at my fingertips. To stop myself from snapping her neck, I severed the surge of power mid-strike.

The backlash hit like a freight train. My chest seized, rust flooded my mouth.

I bit down hard and swallowed the blood. Just as I tried to yank my hand free, a familiar scent cut through the air.

Kaelen strode toward us in a black tactical vest, ice-blue eyes sweeping the muddy ground before locking onto my face.

The moment my mate's scent reached me, Nyx's rage dissolved into a desperate whimper.

I forgot the throbbing in my chest and the boot crushing my hand. I looked up at him, hoping—praying—for even a flicker of concern.

Before he could react, Sienna lifted her heel and sashayed into his arms with a saccharine giggle.

"Kaelen, this stray was stealing your stuff again. I was just teaching her a lesson."

Kaelen didn't push her away. He stared down at me, ice-blue eyes cold with disgust.

Then he unleashed his Alpha dominance directly at me.

Ordinary Alpha pressure wouldn't faze me. But this came through the mate bond.

He weaponized our soul connection, driving malice into the most vulnerable part of my mind.

All to make me submit to a lower-ranked Beta.

The psychic assault tore through my defenses like a knife. My knees buckled, and I crashed into the mud.

Blood I'd been choking back spilled over my lips and splattered onto the ground with a soft drip.

"Don't get your filthy blood on my field." Kaelen's voice was glacial. "Get out."

He turned toward the locker room with Sienna tucked under his arm, not sparing me another glance.

The agony of a shattered soul left me crumpled in the mud for over half an hour.

I pushed myself up on shaking arms and wiped the blood from my mouth.

It's okay, I told myself, fists clenched so tight my nails bit into my palms. He doesn't mean it. The poison controls him.

To avoid suspicion, I dragged my battered body toward the locker room to clean up.

But as I passed the corridor leading to the private room, a suffocatingly bitter scent slammed into my nostrils.

Pure wolfsbane. Enough to paralyze an Alpha instantly.

My mind went blank. Ignoring the screaming pain in my ribs, I sprinted toward the room.

I kicked the half-open door in, ready to tear apart whatever assassin had gotten to him.

But the scene inside nailed me to the floor.

No assassin. Just the revolting sound of ragged breathing and skin slapping against skin.

Kaelen was sprawled on the couch, shirt hanging open. Sienna rode him, nearly naked, their bodies moving together in a feverish rhythm.

No subtlety. No hiding. In the enclosed space, the poison had nowhere to hide.

The deadly wolfsbane scent wasn't coming from doctored food or a shadowy attacker. It poured off Sienna's sweat-slicked skin, bled from their locked lips as she used her own body as the delivery system—feeding him poison with every thrust, every kiss, every touch.

And my mate, supposedly controlled by the toxin, wasn't just oblivious. He was drowning in it. Craving it.

The crash of the door jerked Kaelen's eyes open. His gaze, clouded with lust, landed squarely on me.

He saw my ashen face. My bleeding hand. He didn't flinch. Didn't shove her off.

Instead, his mouth twisted into the cruelest smile I'd ever seen.

He locked eyes with me, then gripped Sienna's waist and drove up into her with brutal force.

"Ah—Kaelen!" Sienna's scream shattered the air as she collapsed against his chest.

In that moment, the thread I'd been holding onto for two weeks snapped.

Nyx let out a blood-curdling howl, the sound of a mate bond ripping apart at the seams. Then she curled into the deepest corner of my soul and went silent.

I stood frozen in the doorway, nausea clawing up my throat.

Pureblood Lycans mate for life. I could endure his blindness. I could swallow my blood and survive his poison-fueled cruelty.

But my bloodline carried an absolute code—I would NEVER share a mate. And I sure as hell wouldn't accept one drenched in another she-wolf's fluids.

I'd convinced myself he was a victim worth saving. But watching him writhe in heat, lapping up poison like he was starving for it, I realized how absurd I'd been.

What the hell had I been sacrificing myself for? Some idiot so desperate he'd fuck his way through a lethal dose of wolfsbane?

In this room reeking of sweat and poison, the mate I thought I had was already dead.

I let the door swing shut, sealing off the sickening sounds.

As I climbed the stairs, I wiped the blood from my mouth. No trace of hurt or longing remained in my eyes.

I was the future Lycan Queen. From this moment on, no one in this world was worth bowing my head for.

As for Kaelen? Let him choke on his poison and cheap lust.