Chapter 6 Who Is Pulling the Strings?

"You’re crazy, Kael! I will never share a room with the man who threw me out onto the streets!"

Selene’s voice trembled with blazing anger. She stood in the middle of the spacious main chamber, her hands clenched so tightly her knuckles turned white. Behind her, Leo still lay sound asleep after the draining surge of his power. Selene stared at Kael, who had just locked the room’s door with a double bolt, an act that felt like imprisonment rather than protection to her.

"This isn’t about what I want or what you want, Selene. It’s about safety," Kael replied in a heavy tone he struggled to keep steady. He set his sword down on the oak table, though his eyes never left the woman before him.

"Silas is still at large. Freya is in holding, but we don’t know who else he’s paid off inside this house. This room has the tightest security system in all Silver Moon territory. I won’t let either of you out of my sight."

Selene let out a bitter laugh, and the tension in the room grew thicker still. "Out of your sight? Do you want to watch me so I won’t run away again, or are you afraid of losing your precious ‘asset’?" Selene gestured toward Leo. "Don’t pretend to be a caring husband, Kael. That role died five years ago in the rain."

Kael stepped closer, his dominant presence filling the space, yet something was different this time. There was genuine guilt in his eyes, the kind of emotion Selene had never seen from the proud Alpha before.

"I made a terrible mistake. I know that. But our enemy isn’t just your hatred for me anymore. Someone sent ancient poison through a servant earlier today. They want to kill Leo. If you want him to live, you have to stay here. With me."

Selene fell silent. The word "poison" made her chest clench. She glanced toward her son, who looked so small in the oversized bed. Logic warred with her pride. She hated Kael with every fiber of her being, but she loved Leo more than her own life.

"Only until Silas is caught," Selene said at last, her voice cold and sharp. "Don’t you dare touch me. Don’t you dare speak to me except about Leo’s security. And you... you’ll sleep on the couch."

Kael nodded slowly, as if accepting the punishment he deserved. "Agreed."

The night grew late. The tension in the room was almost tangible. Selene felt grimy after the long journey and the confrontation. She needed cold water to clear her head. She took a change of clothes from her small bag and walked toward the carved wooden screen that separated the sleeping area from the dressing space.

Kael stood by the window, staring into the darkness of the forest outside, but his ears tracked every move Selene made. He tried to respect her privacy, yet when she began removing her outer garments, a reflection in the large mirror in the corner caught a shape that made his breath stop.

Selene had her back to the glass, slowly lowering the fabric that covered her shoulder. There, on the smooth skin of her left shoulder, was a horrific burn scar. It was irregular in shape, leaving a web of tissue that contrasted sharply with her skin tone. It was no old wound from childhood. Kael knew for certain it had not been there five years ago.

Kael’s heart ached with a sharp, crushing weight. Without thinking, his feet carried him toward the screen.

"Who did this to you?" Kael’s voice broke, barely more than a wounded whisper.

Selene jolted and pulled her clothing back to cover herself. She turned quickly, her eyes blazing with fury as she saw Kael standing far too close behind the screen. "Get out of here!"

"That mark... it’s from a Rogue attack, isn’t it?" Kael did not step back. His gaze was fixed on the faint remains of the scar visible at the base of her neck. "That sign comes from burned claws. Who dared to touch you like that while you were in exile?"

Selene looked at him with pure loathing. "You did this, Kael. Indirectly, you held the torch. When you cast me out with no protection, no status, and no friends, you handed me over to predators. I was attacked at the border just two days after I left. I nearly died in the woods while you were probably feasting here with Freya."

Kael raised his hand, his fingers trembling violently. He wanted to touch the scar, to channel his healing power, or at least beg for forgiveness through contact. But before his fingertips could brush her skin, Selene slapped his hand away roughly.

"Don’t touch me!" Selene hissed. "Your touch is far more disgusting than this wound. This scar has healed, Kael. But what you did to my soul will never be fixed."

Kael froze where he stood. His hand hung empty and cold in the air. He watched Selene finish changing clothes with stiff movements, as if every inch of his presence in the room was poison to her. The Alpha who was usually unbeatable now felt small and helpless. He knew winning back Selene’s trust would be far harder than winning any pack war.

After changing, Selene emerged from behind the screen without looking at Kael. She walked to Leo’s side of the bed, ready to close her eyes and end this exhausting day. But when she laid her head on the pillow and stared at the ceiling to calm herself, something caught her attention.

In the corner where the ceiling met the wall, hidden behind intricate wood carvings, was a tiny point that reflected the dim glow of the bedside lamp. It was too symmetrical to be a flaw in the wood.

Selene narrowed her eyes. She rose slowly from the bed, moving with extreme care so as not to draw Kael’s notice as he still stood lost in thought by the window. She took a small chair and stood on it, bringing her face close to the ceiling corner.

Selene’s heart hammered as she saw a small lens fitted neatly into the space. A surveillance camera.

The hair on the back of her neck stood up. She turned quickly toward Kael, who still had his back to her.

If Kael said this room was the safest place in the house, why was there an eye watching them from within? Had Kael installed it, or was their enemy much closer than they had guessed?

Selene realized something terrifying. In this house, even within the room they thought most secure, they were still prey being watched.

"Kael," Selene called in a very low, cautious voice. "Look at this."

Kael turned, confused by her tone. But when he saw where Selene was pointing, his face went pale as ash before hardening like stone. Someone was still watching their every move from behind a hidden screen.