Chapter 4 Torn Between Two Alphas
Selene didn’t sleep that night.
Her body was still, but her heart raced like a drum. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Kael’s storm-gray stare. She saw Riven’s soft amber glow. Both voices echoed in her mind, calling her mate.
It wasn’t possible. The Moon Goddess didn’t make mistakes like this. Mates were one bond, one soul, one path. Not two. Never two.
But the burning in her chest told her it was real. Both bonds were there.
Her hands shook as she pressed them to her face. “Why me?” she whispered into the dark. “Haven’t I suffered enough?”
She thought of the Blood Moon. Of fire and blood. Of the mate who once rejected her, leaving her heart to bleed. She had sworn never to give herself again. Never.
And now… this?
---
By morning, she put on her doctor’s coat, tied her hair back, and forced her face into a calm mask. Patients needed her. Her team needed her. She couldn’t let anyone see the storm inside her chest.
But Kael was there.
He sat up on his hospital bed, healing faster than anyone thought possible. His gray eyes tracked her every move, cold but hungry.
When she checked his pulse, his fingers brushed hers.
The spark lit again. Her hand shook.
“You can’t deny it,” Kael said softly, so only she could hear. “The bond. It’s burning you alive.”
Selene pulled her hand away. “You’re my patient. Nothing more.”
Kael smirked, though his eyes stayed sharp. “You can lie to yourself, Selene. But you can’t lie to me. You’re mine. And nothing will take you away.”
Her heart thudded painfully. She left the room before he could say more.
---
But she wasn’t ready for what waited outside.
Riven.
He leaned against the wall in the hallway, arms crossed, his tall figure calm but unshaken. His amber eyes lit up the moment they landed on her.
“You’re avoiding me,” he said.
Selene stiffened. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“I had to see you,” he replied. His voice was low, deep, but softer than Kael’s. “I needed to be sure last night wasn’t a dream. That what I felt wasn’t just in my head.”
Selene’s lips parted, but no words came.
Riven stepped closer, lowering his voice so no one else could hear. “Selene… I know you feel it too. The bond. You belong with me.”
Her chest tightened. “Stop saying that.”
“I can’t,” Riven said, his gaze never leaving her. “Because it’s the truth.”
---
A deep growl echoed from behind.
Kael.
He had left his bed, his wounds still healing but his pride refusing to stay down. His gray eyes burned with fury as they landed on Riven.
“What are you doing here?” Kael’s voice was sharp as a blade.
Riven stood taller, his presence like fire meeting storm. “Claiming what’s mine.”
Selene’s stomach dropped. “Please, stop. Both of you.”
But they didn’t even hear her.
Kael stepped closer, his aura heavy, Alpha strength pressing down like thunder. “She’s my mate. You’ll back off.”
Riven didn’t move. His voice was calm, but it carried power. “Funny. She’s mine too. Maybe the Goddess has decided she deserves more than one bond.”
Kael’s eyes darkened. “Impossible.”
“Then why do I feel it?” Riven shot back.
The air thickened, power crackling between them. Nurses froze, patients stared, whispers filled the hallway. Two Alphas. Two forces clashing in the human world.
Selene’s heart raced. If they fought here, people would see. People would die.
She grabbed Kael’s arm, flames flickering in her palm. “Stop it!”
His stormy eyes snapped to her, shocked at the heat in her touch.
Riven’s gaze dropped to her hand, and his breath caught. “You… you’re not just a doctor.”
Selene’s blood went cold.
She had slipped. Her fire—her Slayer power—was no longer hidden.
---
The tension broke as security rushed in, shouting, trying to push the men apart. But they couldn’t touch either Alpha. Their presence alone made weaker men tremble.
Selene pulled her hand back, hiding the faint glow under her sleeve. She couldn’t let them know. Not yet. Not Kael. Not Riven.
Her voice shook, but she forced herself to sound firm. “Both of you, leave. Now. Before you destroy everything.”
Kael’s jaw clenched. He looked at her one last time, his eyes softening only slightly. Then he turned, storming out of the hospital, his pack warriors following.
Riven stayed a moment longer, his eyes locked on hers.
“Selene…” His voice was gentle now, almost pleading. “Don’t run from this. Don’t run from me.”
But she did.
She turned and walked away, her shoulders stiff, her heart breaking.
---
That night, Selene sat on her apartment balcony, staring at the moon. The city lights below seemed small, fragile, nothing compared to the weight inside her chest.
Two mates. Two bonds.
And the Slayer’s fire burning under her skin, threatening to reveal itself.
She whispered to the sky, her eyes wet. “Moon Goddess… what do you want from me? Why give me two souls when I can barely hold my own?”
The wind brushed her hair, cool and soft. But no answer came.
Only silence.
And in the silence, Selene felt it—the storm and the fire. Both waiting for her. Both ready to fight for her.
Her life would never be the same again.
