Elara's POV
"Again," Killian urged.
On the desk sat an antique silver compass, a Valerius heirloom. My hands shook so violently I could barely hold them above the cold metal. After the flower had turned to dust, Killian had pushed me further for days. A silk tie. A leather-bound book. I had no idea there was energy in inanimate objects.
Now this.
I reached out. The moment my skin brushed the silver, it shattered.
A shockwave of energy surged up my arms and slammed into me.
My lungs seized. I felt my knees hit the floor before I even realized I was falling.
Everything hurt.
"I... I can't," I gasped, the words breaking into a sob. I was so tired.
Tears tracked hot paths through the frost on my cheeks. I felt small, like nobody cared how I felt, what this meant for me. They just wanted me to keep trying.
I wanted it to stop.
"Please, Killian... it hurts too much."
I curled into a ball on the rug, weeping into my hands.
"Elara, breathe," Killian said. He knelt beside me, his shadow falling over my trembling frame. He wrapped his arms around my shaking shoulders.
I expected to feel more of that hunger, but instead all I felt was a wave of stillness. It settled over me slowly.
For a moment, I felt at peace, like everything was okay. I leaned my head against his chest, closing my eyes, clinging to the calm he gave me.
The study doors swung open with a heavy thud. Lucian walked in, the scent of rain and mountain air following him. He looked at me, crumpled in his brother's arms.
"Get away from her, Killian," Lucian said, his voice low and dangerous.
"She was falling apart, brother," Killian snapped, not moving.
Lucian crossed the room in a second. He shoved Killian aside and hauled me up. The sudden loss of Killian's touch felt like being dropped back into a fire. I gasped, my hands clawing at Lucian's shirt.
No. No, no, no.
"I don't care," Lucian growled, pinning me against his chest. His heart was thundering, his grip so tight it bruised. "My wolf doesn't want your hands on her. She takes what she needs from me."
"You're going to break her, Lucian!" Killian stood up, his playful expression gone.
"I'm keeping her alive," Lucian snapped back. He looked down at me, his silver eyes flashing with possessive rage. "Look at me, Elara."
I looked, my vision blurred by tears.
"You are my anchor," he hissed, his face inches from mine. "You don't break. If you need anything, you take it from me."
I wanted to lash at him because it doesn't make sense for him to go from treating me like a slave to being possessive.
"I don't want it! I want to go home! I want to be normal!"
"This is your home!"
Lucian's jaw tightened. He grabbed my wrists, pinning them above my head. He must have realized my Void was spinning out of control, because he didn't give me a choice. He bared his left wrist, the veins pulsing with the heavy rhythm of a True Alpha.
"Drink," he commanded.
He pressed his wrist against my mouth. The scent of his blood was an intoxicant I couldn't fight.
I hated that I wanted it, and the yearning made no sense because I read it was only Vampyres that craved blood.
I bit down, my teeth sinking into his flesh.
The rush hit me like molten lead, flooding my veins and drowning the sobs. I felt his heart skip, his other hand tangling in my hair, pulling me close until there was no space between us.
"Mine," he growled against my ear. "Every spark you carry. Mine."
I drank until I was dizzy, until the shivering stopped. I felt powerful, and disgusted.
I felt stronger, and I hated it.
"Better?" he rasped.
I couldn't answer. I was vibrating with his power.
A light knock at the doorway broke the tension. We all turned.
Standing there was a girl. She was small like me but with muscles, with wide amber eyes and a kind, bright smile. She ran straight to Killian.
I watched, frozen, as she threw her arms around Killian's neck. He didn't pull away. He caught her by the waist, a genuine smile breaking across his face.
"Mina," Killian murmured, pulling back just an inch. "You're supposed to be in the village."
She stood on her tiptoes and pressed a lingering kiss to his lips. "You've been gone too long. I missed you."
Killian laughed and tucked a stray hair behind her ear, the same thing he had done for me days ago.
A sharp sting twisted in my chest. It wasn't the hunger. It was something hot, bitter, and entirely human. I looked at Lucian, then back at the girl in Killian's arms.
"Who is she?" I whispered.
Lucian didn't look at them. He kept his eyes on me, his hand still tight on my waist. "She's the pack's omega," he said flatly. "And the only person Killian actually listens to."
Mina finally looked at me over Killian's shoulder. Her smile was warm and genuinely sweet.
"I'm Mina," she said softly. "And you must be the girl who's making my Killian so busy. I hope you're worth the trouble."
She reached out as if to take my hand, her expression full of friendly curiosity. But as she moved closer to Killian again, leaning into his side, the silver flecks in my eyes flared.
"I've been waiting to meet you," Mina added, her voice bubbly and kind.
I wanted to be nice, but all I could feel was the roar of Lucian's blood in my ears and a sudden, irrational need to push her away from Killian.
A sharp, ugly need to get her off him.
Before I could answer, a low, bone-deep hum vibrated through the floorboards, followed by the shrill, rhythmic blare of an alarm from the courtyard below.
Lucian went still. Completely still.
"The perimeter is gone," he whispered, his voice jagged.
Beside him, Killian's playful energy vanished, his body turning into a lethal blade of tension as he shoved Mina behind him.
I felt it then, not just the sound, but a dark, oppressive weight pressing against the house. Because I had Lucian's blood in my veins, I could feel what he felt..the approach of a predator.
The air changed.
"Lucian?" I gasped, my heart hammering against my ribs. "Who is that?"
Lucian reached for the heavy silver blade on his desk, his knuckles white.
Then I understood why the house itself felt afraid.
"My Uncle."