"Oh?" came the voice, smooth like silk wrapped in steel. "Who's threatening my clan?"
Zeke froze instantly and, to Rina's disbelief, he instinctively moved behind her, as though seeking shelter.
"Father..." Zeke's voice was no louder than a breath.
Khai, the beast within, stirred restlessly. Zeke's hands trembled, veins pulsing under the skin. The wolf wanted out. It always wanted out. But today, Zeke could barely hold him back.
He had broken the mate bond with Rina against Khai's wishes.
My Mate! You fool what have you done! Maya! Maya!
Was Khai's words, echoing in his head.
His father's presence saturated the pack mansion like a thundercloud, dark and suffocating. The Alpha of Clan Feralis didn't need to raise his voice or lift a hand to command submission. His sheer aura pinned everyone in place.
Rina's rage evaporated. Standing before the Alpha was like standing before a storm made flesh. Her knees weakened, her instincts screaming to bow. Even Maya—her wolf— backed away within her, her strength that fed Rina's courage was slowly dwindling.
"Alpha Caius, pardon the intrusion. We were just about to leave" Rina said hiding the tremor's in her voice. Her goal when he barged into the pack mansion was to convince Zeke he was the father but that was because she knew Alpha Caius was out on official pack business. Now her priorities have change she needed get to safety and get her child to safety.
The Alpha's sharp gaze landed on the shadow flickering by her feet. Without hesitation, he stomped down, the crunch audible.
From beneath his boot, a twisted creature squirmed and hissed.
"Do you know what this is?"
Rina blinked. "A... familiar?"
"Correct," the Caius replied. "A warlock's familiar, to be precise. I smelled it the moment it entered into my land. Imagine my surprise when I found it clinging to you."
Zeke's eyes narrowed. "A warlock's...? I was right! Who is he, Rina?!"
"I don't know!" she exclaimed, exasperated. "I didn't summon that thing. I have no idea how it got here!"
Their bickering was drowned out by the Caius' next words.
"More importantly..." His eyes landed on Angelique, lounging disheveled on Zeke's bed. "Why is an omega in these apartments—and in your bed?"
Rina's heart dropped. She knew what came next, if there was anything Alpha Caius valued more than bloodline it was Lycan lineage.
In this clan only those bearing Lycan lineage of Alpha, Luna or Beta was suppose to step foot in the Pack Mansion. Anyone lower the Gamma, Delta and Omega can never set foot in the Pack Mansion without the Alpha's permission.
It was an ancient tradition, one that Caius strictly implemented.
"She was here for me as I said we were just about to leave" Rina said quickly, stepping forward. Maya's instincts screamed to protect.
The Caius lips curled into something like amusement—or pride. "Ah, my future daughter-in-law, spoken like a true Luna" he said looking deep into her eyes as if to see Maya.
Then his voice deepened into a command that shook the walls. "Speak the truth."
Angelique flinched and dropped her gaze, visibly trembling.
Zeke looked like he was barely holding together, sweat beading down his temple. He could not resist the Alpha command in his Father's voice especially now that Khai was rebelling with him as well. His jaw clenched, but his voice shook when he finally said, "We... You see we were just in bed and we..."
Angelique whimpered, burying her face in the floor.
Caius sneered. "So this little slut thought to sully my bloodline with her omega filth? Did you think bearing a bastard would elevate you?" He turned. "You are banned from my clan."
"No!" Angelique sobbed. "Zeke! Please!"
Two enforcers grabbed her, dragging her toward the door.
"Wait! Alpha, please!" Rina shouted. "Zeke, say something!"
The Caius turned to his son looking at him as though he wanted Zeke to challenge his command. "What, boy? You want to keep your plaything?"
Zeke trembled. "I... I—"
"Useless!" Caius voice cracked like a whip. "Have you learned nothing at that institution?"
He stalked toward Rina. "And you. The Luna candidate. Have you been distracting my heir with your whims?"
Then he stopped. Sniffed the air.
His head tilted. "You're with child."
Time froze. Rina's pulse thundered in her ears. She felt like she was cornered. This was it.
In an instant, Zeke leaped between Rina and his father, his body trembling as if caught between two storms, his chest heaving with the effort to hold himself steady.
Caius sneered, eyes glittering with amusement. "Oho! Finally, you're growing some backbone, son. The mate bond is truly a fascinating thing, isn't it?" His words were mocking, cruel, as if testing Zeke's resolve.
Rina could feel it—the tremor in Zeke's stance, the tension tightening like a coil ready to snap. He was struggling, his wolf clawing at the edges of his control. It was as though standing between his father and his mate, between family duty and love, was more than he could bear.
She could feel the heat rising from him, his fear palpable, and it made her chest tighten with helplessness.
"You know," Caius continued, his voice chillingly calm, "I always thought having a mate made you weak. But clearly, it's given you some balls. Now that your mate is with child, the official mating ceremony must happen sooner. I will not recognize a bastard as my successor." The words cut through the room like a blade, sharp and final.
He turned to Rina, his eyes narrowing as he eyed her stomach. "How far along are you? Can you hide the child during the ceremony?" His voice was casual, as if discussing the weather, Rina felt the icy grip of fear coil around her.
But then, Caius took a deep breath, inhaling her scent with an unsettling intensity. His eyes flashed with fury. "This child reeks of magic!" He growled, the air around him thick with menace. "You stupid child—dare to bring that thing here?"
Before Rina could react, a scorching slap cracked across her face, followed by a punch to her stomach. The world tilted as she was thrown to the ground, instinctively curling around her baby bump, protecting the life growing inside her. The pain radiated through her, but it was nothing compared to the terror that was about to unfold.
Zeke's voice rang out, desperate and raw, "Father, no! Stop! It's mine! It's my child!" He wasblocking his father from getting to her, trying to shield her.
Caius sneered, the cold, merciless edge of his voice making Rina's blood run cold. "How can this be your child? It reeks of magic! A Lycan bloodline does not possess magic!" His hand shot out, shoving Zeke aside as if he were nothing more than a nuisance.
"It's mine! And I will not let you hurt them!" His voice broke the silence with a defiance that sent shockwaves through the room.
Caius's eyes flashed, and in a heartbeat, his anger erupted. "You won't let me? You won't let me?" His voice was a low growl, a beast barely contained. "You dare defy your alpha?!"
Before Zeke could react, Caius's fist came crashing into his son's face, sending him sprawling to the cold stone floor.
"Incompetent child!" Caius roared, his voice thundering off the walls. "You dare to fool your Alpha — to protect your mate—and sully my bloodline?!"
Zeke barely managed to raise an arm when the second blow struck—across his ribs this time, sharp and punishing.
"I should've killed you and your wretched mother the moment I saw the weakness in your eyes!" he spat, landing a savage kick into Zeke's side. The sound of cracking ribs echoed faintly beneath the Alpha's fury.
"You won't let me?" Caius sneered, dragging his son up by the collar only to slam him back down. "You think you have your own strength now?! You think you can stand on your own two feet without the name I gave you?!"
Zeke groaned, struggling to breathe, blood dripping from his mouth as Caius circled him like a predator.
"You useless child," Caius snarled, grabbing a fistful of his son's hair and yanking his head up. "You cower at the first sign of pressure, your nothing but a scared pup!"
Another blow—this time a backhand so hard it sent Zeke's body twisting midair before collapsing again.
"You need a good beating to remember where you come from!" he growled, kicking Zeke's stomach.
Zeke coughed, the taste of iron thick in his mouth. Still, he didn't rise.
Caius looked down at him with disgust, chest heaving.
"I raised a warrior. Not a whimpering dog crawling at his mate's feet!"
But Zeke didn't respond. He lay crumpled on the ground, body broken, breath shallow.
Rina gasped, watching in horror as Zeke was tossed like a ragdoll, his body broken and bruised. All those times he saw him bruised. He'd laugh it off that it was an accident during battle training or that he'd fall. Now she was seeing it the truth finally in front of her eyes. Caius man was no alpha - he was only a cruel weak man.
Her heart ached with a deep, gut-wrenching pain. She couldn't stay down. Not like this, she had to get to Zeke. But her body was weak, and she could hardly breathe as she fought to rise.
And then, it happened as Caius was towering over Zeke's seemingly lifeless body, he turned making his way to Rina.
The air around Zeke shifted, thickening with an oppressive presence. His seemingly lifeless body tensed and convulsed, the change overtaking him. He wasn't Zeke anymore. Khai, the beast within him, was clawing its way to the surface.
Rina cried out, her voice laced with worry. "Zeke?!" But the man before her wasn't Zeke anymore. The wolf had surfaced—his eyes glowing with primal rage, a deep golden hue that no longer belonged to the man she loved. It was Khai, the untamable alpha wolf, overtaking Zeke's human form.
Caius's voice was laced with fury and disbelief. "You stupid boy! What on earth are you doing? Letting your wolf dominate your human form?!" He rushed forward, grabbing Zeke by the collar, his strength overwhelming.
Khai growled low in Zeke's throat, the sound vibrating through the room, as if to challenge Caius's authority. The elder alpha tried to force Zeke back into control, struggling with the wild beast that had claimed his son's body.
Rina's breath caught in her throat, watching the struggle unfold. She could see Zeke trapped beneath the weight of his father's anger and Khai's power. This wasn't supposed to happen. Not like this.
Caius was relentless, treating the scene as if it were a possession. He yanked Zeke's collar, trying to force him back, shouting for Zeke to fight, to regain control. But Khai was stronger, angrier.
"No, this can't be happening," Rina thought, panic rising within her. Khai couldn't be in control, not now, not when everything was falling apart.
Zeke—no, Khai—fought against his father's grip, his human form shaking violently under the strain. Rina felt helpless, her heart breaking as she watched the chaos unfold around her.
Cauis was pinned down his face twisted into a mask of fury. He looked around for help but there was only one other person in the room,
"You bitch! This is all your fault!" Caius snarled, blood still dripping from his knuckles. His eyes blazed with wrath as he turned toward Rina, pointing a damning finger."Guards! Guards!"
The heavy doors burst open. The Alpha's Beta-led security force stormed in, a wall of growling, muscled men in black tactical gear. They moved quickly, obeying instinct and order with terrifying synchronicity. Within seconds, they had separated Zeke from Caius and advancing toward Rina sprawled on the floor.
"Seize her!" Caius barked.
The guards charged.
Rina's vision blurred. Pain still throbbed in her body, each breath a knife. She tried to rise, to flee, but her limbs betrayed her. Her body was trembling, failing—and the room was spinning.
"I will have your baby will be terminated!" Caius growled, pacing like a caged beast. "This child cannot be born from a Luna candidate!"
His voice dripped venom, eyes gleaming with bloodlust as he loomed over her like a monster from a nightmare.
Zeke roared—feral, unrecognizable. Flailing against the guards that held him back, he threw punches, kicks, claws—anything to break free. But the scent of fear and threat in the air snapped something inside him.
Khai rose.
In a split second, Zeke's body shifted. Bone cracked, muscles tore and rebuilt, ash fur tore from his skin. A beast of shadow and rage emerged in his place. Khai, massive and wrathful, stood where Zeke had been—eyes glowing with primal fury.
And Rina… she could feel it too.
Her vision darkened, her heart pounding erratically. Something stirred from within—an ancient power surfaced.
Maya.
A sudden jolt coursed through her. Silver light flashed in her eyes as her bones broke and reformed. Her body contorted into something otherworldly and magnificent.
Maya had taken over.
She rose, tall and snarling, black ebony fur glistening under the torchlight. She was no longer helpless on the floor —she was a mother wolf defending her unborn cub.
The guards closed in.