Knock. Knock.
A violent pound echoed against my window.
I wondered who it could be, because I knew the Alpha brothers would never do something as absurd as climbing through my window.
Before I could think twice, someone pushed the window open. One leg slipped inside.
I froze—shocked, confused and terrified.
My limbs refused to move. My heartbeat was racing uncontrollably as a figure climbed in through the night. The moonlight streamed through the window, catching the sharp angles of the man's high cheekbones and the wild gleam in his amber-brown eyes.
"Syria," he whispered. His voice dripped with longing, thick with possessiveness. He said the name like he had been starved of it. "I finally found you."
It was him. It was the man I met in the hallway—Syria had warned me about him. He'd tried to rape her and even spread vile rumours to his brother, claiming that Syria tried to herself on him"
I stepped back instinctively, trying to protect myself. My hands twitched at my sides, unsure whether to scream or lunge. He did not need to speak. I could read the words on his mouth as he walked forward.
Mine.
You are finally mine.
To kiss.
As he muttered those words, he stalked forward—not like a predator, but like a man possessed.
"You do not understand how long I have waited," he murmured, reaching into his coat and pulling out a dagger.
"What are you..."
I was about to ask what he was doing here when he suddenly lunged at me. Before I could react or think twice, something sharp slashed across my arm.
"Why did you slash me?" I asked, confused and stunned by the sudden attack.
He smirked in response.
Before I could say anything else, I felt something strange happening to my body.
I gasped, stumbling backward as the world began to spin around me.
"What is going on with..." I whispered, but the words slurred. My vision blurred.
"I coated the dagger with poison to stop you from escaping," he said.
No. No.
I backed away, hitting the bedpost. My muscles were melting, knees too weak to lock. I reached for something—anything—that could help me, but there was nothing.
He suddenly dropped to his knees before me. His hand trembled as he caressed my face.
"So, they lied to me. They said you died with your family in that war. I refused to believe it. I searched everywhere for you. And then... I saw you today—just as beautiful as I remember. Is it fate?"
Fate, my foot.
As if he was not one of the people who caused Syria's death, I mused, feeling disgusted. If he had not spread that disgusting rumour, his brother would not have taken revenge on Syria.
And Syria...
She would still be alive.
His finger brushed my cheek. I flinched, but I could do nothing—nothing to defend myself.
I tried my best to struggle free but...
But...
I felt weak all over body.
"You were always meant to be mine, Syria. Not those Alphas. Not his. Never his." His lips twisted into a snarl. "He did not deserve you. He never saw you the way I did. But now… now, I finally have you."
"You are sick," I managed to choke out. My limbs trembled uselessly.
He laughed—softly, bitterly. "Sick? Maybe. But you made me this way. When you looked at him... when you ran from me... do you know what that did to me?"
I tried to pull myself from his grip, but the ground swayed beneath me.
He caught me easily, lifting me like I weighed nothing. He sat on the bed, pulling me onto his lap. I screamed—or at least, I thought I did—but no sound came out.
"You remember the lake?" he whispered, brushing my hair gently. "When you ran so fast that you fell, and I picked you up before he could? You felt perfect in my hands. That was our moment. The time I knew you were meant to be mine."
His lips ghosted over my ear. I shuddered violently.
"Please leave me alone," I pleaded weakly, tears falling from my eyes. wondering how my life had ended up to this point.
"Do not cry, it breaks my heart," he said, kissing my tears. The act made me feel violated.
"I watched you dance. I watched you sleep. I watched your beautiful eyes fill with tears when he told you he was leaving for a mission. But you never noticed me. Never saw the love I had. Never saw my suffering."
His grip on my waist tightened.
"But I forgive you. You were young. Confused. Naïve."
He slipped his hand inside my clothing, gliding down my spine—slowly, possessively.
"Do not worry," he cooed. "You will feel good. I will make you forget him. Forget everyone. Even those Alphas. I hope... you are still pure."
He lowered me gently onto the bed.
"Now I win," he said, his expression deranged.
"Was this the end? Am I going to be raped?" So many thoughts ran through my head at that moment.
I twisted, trying to roll away, but my body refused to obey. The drug rendered me limp, like a lifeless soul.
I glared at him.
"Do not look at me like that. It makes me feel more aroused," he whispered, his eyes widening with lust. "You will see. Once I touch you, once we become one, your heart will remember."
He lowered his face, pressing a kiss to my forehead. I felt disgusted. Then another, on my cheek. His lips hovered above mine. The scent of mint and something bitter—perhaps the poison—filled my senses.
I bit my lip, hard, drawing blood. Trying to summon pain to stay conscious.
His hand reached for the front of my dress.
"No," I rasped.
He blinked. "It is alright. It is just us. No one will interrupt this time. No guards. No brother. Nothing"
He gripped the neckline of my gown.
I screamed—a hoarse, broken sound.
"Shhh," he murmured. "Just breathe."
With a sudden yank, the fabric tore.
My breath caught.
The cloth ripped across my chest, the sound echoing like thunder in the room.
And everything... stopped.
"Do not worry. You will enjoy it," he said, pressing feather-light kisses from my temple to my blossom.