Killians POV
The venom in her words—a hiss of betrayal laced with the metallic tang of fear—coiled around me. "Thomas and Jennifer… *made* me drink it," she whispered, her eyes, twin pools of shadowed despair, mirroring the primal rage that clawed at my throat. Cage her wolf. The realization hit me like a physical blow, the scent of her terror a suffocating blanket. But *why*? The question gnawed, a frantic rat in a cage of my own making. Then the tears came, a torrent unleashed by the confession that Thomas had struck her. His denial about the cell—the chilling memory of his smooth lie still echoed in my ears—shattered into a million icy fragments. His hand on her. The image seared itself onto my mind, a brand of incandescent fury. I ripped myself from the room, the raw power of my shift threatening to explode from my skin. The air crackled with the impending storm of my transformation. Ace's need for vengeance vibrated beside mine, a palpable wave of heat and lethal intent. We were a single, snarling beast, primed to unleash hell. "Carter," I snarled, the word a guttural growl. "The meeting. Now." Alpha Jacob would hear my demands, and his Beta would feel the full weight of my wrath. This wasn't a chat; it was a reckoning. Blood was in the air, thick and heavy, and I was drowning in the intoxicating desire to spill it.
The mahogany door didn't even register under my knuckles. Jacob's office—a sanctuary of hushed deals and expensive leather—was violated. There they were, a trio of vultures, perched around the mahogany table. The scent of old money and fear hung thick in the air. No pleasantries. No warning. My fist connected with Thomas's jaw, the sickening *crack* echoing in the sudden silence. The taste of blood—his blood—filled my mouth. I hauled him up by his throat, the fragile click of his Adam's apple a terrifying counterpoint to the frantic thump of his heart against my palm. His eyes, wide and panicked, bulged as I slammed him against the wall, the impact jarring the very foundation of the room. The rough-hewn wood scraped against his back, a grating sound that mirrored the fury tearing through me. "What tea did you give her?" I snarled, my voice a raw rasp, the words thick with venom. "Why did you *cage her wolf*?" He stared, a pathetic, gasping fish flopping on dry land. Jacob, his face a mask of controlled terror, scrambled to his feet, a desperate squeak escaping his lips. "What are you talking about?" But Carter, a shadow of chilling efficiency, a man whose smile never quite reached his icy eyes, cut him off with a curt gesture. Jennifer, small and fragile, huddled in the corner, her breath hitching in silent sobs – a heartbreaking counterpoint to the violence unfolding before her. Another punch. This time, the distinct *snap* of bone was unmistakable. The metallic tang of blood coated my knuckles as I watched Thomas crumple, his breath ragged, a whimper escaping his broken lips. The air throbbed with the silence that followed, broken only by the frantic beating of my own heart, a savage drum solo of righteous fury.
My voice, a raw snarl, ripped through the air. "Jacob," I spat, the taste of bile thick on my tongue, "your Beta and your… *girlfriend* poisoned my mate. They caged her wolf." The scent of fear, sharp and metallic, filled the room. One explanation, one shred of truth, or I would tear their throats out, leaving only ragged, bloody stumps. Jennifer, her eyes like polished obsidian, smirked. The saccharine sweetness of her voice was a physical blow, a violation. "King," she purred, the sound grating against my teeth, "I haven't the slightest idea what you're talking about. The omega's a liar. She *deserves* punishment." My growl vibrated in my chest, a primal rage building, hot and suffocating. I lunged, my fingers inches from her throat, but before I could crush it, Carter moved. A blur of motion, then Jennifer was slammed against the wall, a sickening thud echoing in the heavy silence. "I won't touch her," Carter's voice was a low, dangerous rumble, laced with ice. "But I *will* kill your mate, Thomas, and lock *you* in the royal cells for life." Jennifer's eyes, wide and wild, reflected the stark terror in the room. Jacob's face was a mask of stunned betrayal, a revelation that clawed at my gut. He hadn't known. Thomas, trying to rise to Jennifer's defense, stumbled, his face a mixture of fear and desperate love. The truth slammed into me, brutal and unforgiving: Thomas and Jennifer were mates. But why was she with Jacob? Why this elaborate deception? I seized Thomas, his body trembling under my grip. I slammed him onto the desk, the wood groaning under the weight of our conflict. "Talk," I snarled, my breath hot on his face, "or I'll rip your fucking throat out." The air thrummed with unspoken promises, the metallic tang of blood already ghosting my senses. The scent of fear clung to him, thick and cloying. His eyes, filled with a mixture of pain and something… desperate, something that suggested a depth of complicity far greater than I'd ever imagined, held the key. And I would have it, one way or another.
A witch's gift, she'd hissed, a lock for her wolf. *Her* wolf. The words hung in the suffocating silence, a shared, choked whisper between Jacob and me. Jennifer's gaze was glued to the floor, a tremor running through her. The scent of the spilled oil – sharp, cloying, deathly sweet – filled my nostrils, mirroring the bitter tang of betrayal. "You were getting too close," Jacob's voice, raw with barely suppressed fury, sliced through the air. "When I saw the flash of white – her wolf – I knew. You wanted her. But *I* wanted you." Shock, naked and brutal, contorted Jacob's face. "Why?!" he roared, the word a physical blow. "Thomas is your mate! You both lied!" The betrayal, a festering wound, pulsed in his voice, a guttural scream trapped behind his teeth. Jennifer's tears, hot and glistening, traced paths through the grime on her cheeks. "No, baby," she sobbed, her voice a strangled whimper, "I only want you." Thomas exploded, hurling himself from the desk. "Witch!" he spat, his voice thick with venom. "You swore you'd leave him! You promised me!" A chilling laugh erupted from Jennifer, a sound devoid of mirth, laced with icy contempt. "Like I'd ever want a beta?" Carter and I slipped away, leaving the wreckage of their shattered trust behind. The acrid tang of the spilled oil lingered, a potent symbol of the devastation unleashed. "How did you know?" I asked Carter, my voice low. He met my eyes, a grim satisfaction in his gaze. "The way she looked at him," he said, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest, "that first time you slammed him against the wall. The hunger in her eyes, the barely suppressed yearning…she wanted to *claim* him, even then." Back in my room, the shower a cleansing torrent against my skin, the hot water washing away the clinging residue of the scene. Ace, my wolf, stirred, a low growl rumbling deep in my chest, a potent satisfaction mixing with the lingering unease. The thrill of the chase was fading, but a cold, hard resolve settled in its place. Thomas wasn't finished with me, and neither was I with him.