Chapter 18: Mate
Magnus
Alpha Storm, the ruthless leader of the Diamond Claw rogue pack. How many times have I dealt with his antics already? Too many to count. He has never cared for our laws, but this time... I couldn’t simply turn a blind eye.
Not when things have taken such an intriguing turn.
I have mediated countless conflicts between packs—so many that I have lost track. But this? This is the first time I’m caught between two sides that should be allies.
Alpha Damien Windthorne of the Dark Wood pack... What twisted game are you playing? And, more importantly, why is your wife refusing to follow the script?
The moment I step into Storm’s pack house, the stench of blood and dirt assaults my senses. If violence had a scent, this would be it. It grows stronger with each visit, yet there is nothing I can do. The King insists on maintaining peace with the rogues, aware that we can’t afford to spark a war. A losing war, as he so often reminds me.
I expect little from this savage when I begin our conversation, but the blatant lies he spews while locking eyes with me only confirm what I already know—he is a true psychopath.
And then, it happens.
I know the door to his office isn’t fully closed—I left it ajar on purpose, suspecting he’d have someone eavesdropping. Sure enough, his dim-witted second-in-command stands guard outside. But there is something else... something sinister that seeps through the narrow gap between the door and its frame.
It’s intoxicating—sweet yet powerful—but I can’t quite place it. I want it closer, want it to envelop me completely. And just as that wild thought takes root in my mind, it happens.
She walks in. Small. Subdued. Shrinking into herself with every step, as if the mere presence of men makes her wish she could vanish into thin air. Even without looking at her, I can feel it—her hesitation, her quiet struggle to make herself invisible.
Then, it hits me.