The silence that followed Tobias's words was deafening.
Rain's breath hitched, his entire body locked in place. His mind spun in frantic circles, searching—grasping—for something, anything to hold onto. But there was nothing.
Nothing but a blank void where his past should have been.
Nathaniel felt it.
The moment of hesitation. The way Rain's scent flickered, laced with something dangerously close to uncertainty.
His golden eyes narrowed. "Enough of your games, Tobias."
Tobias, despite still being pinned by the throat, only smirked. "Oh, but this is no game." His gray eyes gleamed. "This is just the beginning."
Nathaniel's grip tightened—not enough to kill, but enough to make Tobias feel it. "If you think you can manipulate him—"
"Manipulate?" Tobias let out a breathless chuckle. "You wound me, Nathaniel." He flicked his gaze toward Rain again. "I only want him to ask the right questions. I only want him to think."
Rain barely heard them.
His fingers curled against his own chest, right above his heart, as if that would steady the tremors in his body.
His parents.
He should remember something. A face. A voice. A single fragment of a memory.
But there was nothing.
It wasn't normal.
"Rain."
Nathaniel's voice cut through the haze.
Rain startled slightly, his eyes snapping up to meet the Alpha King's piercing gaze. There was something wild beneath the surface, a barely restrained storm of possessiveness and something else—something deeper.
"Don't listen to him."
Rain swallowed hard. "But…" He hesitated. "What if he's right?"
Nathaniel's jaw ticked. "He's playing with your head."
"Am I?" Tobias mused, tilting his head despite the claws still at his throat. "Or am I simply revealing what was always there?"
Nathaniel let out a slow, dangerous breath. "You're running out of chances, Tobias."
Tobias smiled. "Then let me give you something to consider, Nathaniel."
And then, with no warning at all—
Tobias's aura flared.
It wasn't Alpha power. It wasn't something normal.
It was something—other.
A cold, electric force that pressed into the space around them, shifting reality itself for a fraction of a second.
Nathaniel barely flinched.
But Rain—
Rain felt it.
Something deep inside him reacted, his chest tightening with an overwhelming wave of nausea and recognition that shouldn't have been possible.
And in that split second—
Memories flashed.
Not his own.
Scattered images of something—someone—calling to him. A whisper, a touch, a presence just beyond his reach.
And then it was gone.
Just as quickly as it came.
Rain staggered.
"Rain!"
Nathaniel was beside him in an instant, steady hands gripping his shoulders.
Rain's breathing was shallow. "I—I saw something—" His voice trembled, barely above a whisper. "It wasn't mine. But it—" He cut himself off, his pulse hammering. "It felt like it should have been."
Nathaniel's head snapped back toward Tobias, his golden eyes burning with raw fury. "What the fuck did you just do?"
Tobias's lips curled into a slow, knowing smirk. "I only helped."
Nathaniel lunged.
This time, Tobias didn't resist.
His back slammed into the ground, Nathaniel's claws pressed dangerously close to his throat. The other wolves around them tensed, ready to move—
But Tobias only laughed.
A low, soft chuckle, as if Nathaniel's fury entertained him.
"You can kill me," he murmured, gray eyes dark with something unreadable. "But it won't change the truth."
Nathaniel's claws dug in—just enough to draw blood, to make Tobias wince slightly, his breath hitching.
But Tobias still smiled.
"You feel it too, don't you?" he whispered. "That something is wrong."
Nathaniel's snarl was vicious. "Shut your fucking mouth."
Tobias sighed. "Fine. Kill me then." His gaze flicked to Rain, who was still pale, still shaken. "But it won't stop what's coming."
A silence stretched.
The kind that was too dangerous.
Too fragile.
Nathaniel's claws twitched—
Then, after what felt like an eternity, he released him.
Tobias exhaled sharply, wiping the blood from his neck as he sat up. "You'll understand soon enough," he murmured, voice softer now. "And when you do…" His eyes gleamed. "I'll be waiting."
Nathaniel didn't respond.
His arm curled tightly around Rain's waist, pressing him close, anchoring him.
Because Rain's breathing was still uneven.
His scent was still tinged with confusion.
And that—
That was unacceptable.
Nathaniel's lips lowered to Rain's ear, his voice nothing but a raw, dangerous whisper.
"Ignore him."
Rain swallowed, but didn't answer.
Because deep down—
Something inside him told him that he couldn't.
Rain lay awake in the massive bed, staring at the ceiling. The room was cloaked in darkness, except for the soft glow of moonlight filtering through the curtains. He could hear the steady rhythm of Nathaniel's breathing beside him, deep and controlled—but Rain knew better.
Nathaniel wasn't sleeping.
Neither was he.
His mind kept replaying Tobias's words, the eerie flash of memories that didn't belong to him. Or rather, the memories that should have belonged to him, but were just out of reach, like whispers slipping through his fingers.
His parents.
Why couldn't he remember them?
It wasn't normal.
Nathaniel shifted suddenly, the bed dipping slightly under his weight. Before Rain could react, a strong arm wrapped around his waist, pulling him into solid warmth.
"You're thinking too much." Nathaniel's voice was low, rough from disuse.
Rain tensed slightly. "And you're always telling me what to do."
Nathaniel hummed, his nose pressing into Rain's hair as he inhaled deeply. "Because I know what's best for you."
Rain scowled. "You mean what's best for you."
Nathaniel smirked against his skin. "Same thing."
Rain's frustration flared, but his body betrayed him, leaning slightly into Nathaniel's warmth. The Alpha King was like a furnace, radiating heat that sent shivers down Rain's spine despite his irritation.
But then Nathaniel's hold tightened, fingers splaying possessively across Rain's stomach.
"You're mine, Rain." His voice dropped lower, his lips barely brushing against Rain's ear. "No matter what Tobias tries to make you believe."
Rain shivered. "What if I want to know?"
Nathaniel stilled.
It was subtle—but Rain felt it. The shift in his breathing. The faint stiffening of his body.
"You don't need to."
"Says who?" Rain turned slightly to meet his gaze, his own defiance flaring. "You?"
Nathaniel's golden eyes burned in the darkness. "Yes."
A sharp silence stretched between them.
And then, without warning, Nathaniel rolled, pinning Rain beneath him in one fluid movement.
"Nathaniel—"
"Enough."
His voice was dangerous. Low and raw, edged with something primal.
"I won't let him get into your head." His fingers traced along Rain's throat, slow and possessive. "I won't let him take you from me."
Rain's breath hitched. "You can't keep me locked away forever."
Nathaniel smirked. "Watch me."
His lips descended before Rain could protest, capturing his mouth in a slow, consuming kiss.
Rain gasped, but Nathaniel didn't give him a chance to think—his tongue slipped between his lips, teasing, claiming, owning.
Heat coiled low in Rain's stomach, his body betraying him as he arched instinctively into the Alpha King's hold.
Nathaniel growled, deep and satisfied. "See?" He murmured against Rain's lips. "You belong here."
Rain wanted to argue. Wanted to push him away.
But instead, he found himself gripping Nathaniel's shoulders, pulling him closer.
For now, he let himself drown.