Chapter 14 The Viper
ZADE
The study was dim, lit only by the cold blue glow of the tablet screen and the low fire crackling in the hearth. I sat sprawled in the high-backed chair, scrolling mindlessly.
The screen blurred under my thumb as I scrolled through the same useless archives I'd been combing for months.
Flamekeeper.
The word had become a mantra, a curse, and a lifeline. The only creature prophesied to either burn the rot out of me or snuff me out entirely. I'd chased every whisper, every half-dead scroll, every blood-soaked rumor. And all this time, the answer had been—
Her.
My Bunny.
The woman who'd sobbed my name while her cunt clenched around my cock like it was trying to trap me forever. The woman whose perfect tits had bounced with every brutal thrust. Every thrust had felt like surrender—hers to me, mine to her.
I stared at the tablet without seeing it.
My cock twitched, already half-hard just from the memory. Then it thickened painfully against the seam of my pants in seconds.
I shifted in the chair, my jaw tight.
Had she seen it?
The scars.
The ugly, raised ridges that twisted along the shaft. Evidence of the hell I'd gone through in captivity. I'd fucked Indigo in the dark, half-shadowed by moonlight and her own golden flames. Maybe she hadn't noticed.
I hoped she hadn't.
The thought of her seeing that ugliness and still begging me to ruin her... it did something dangerous to the hollow place inside my chest.
There was a knock on the door. It opened without waiting for permission. Mason strode in, all easy confidence and wolfish grin.
"Did you know?" he asked, his green eyes gleaming.
"Know what?"
"The elders are here. They brought a woman." He leaned one shoulder against the doorframe, his arms crossed.
I snorted in amusement, dawn hadn't even arrived yet.
"They say it's time. Either you take her tonight—seal the alliance, knot her, whatever the fuck their politics demand—or you show up at the Luna Choosing Ceremony tomorrow like a good alpha and let the pack females fight over who gets to ride the pack's biggest dick."
I let out a low, humorless laugh.
Of course.
They'd already chosen a candidate.
"They can dump her in the river for all I care," I said flatly. "Tell them I'm not receiving. She'll get the memo eventually and fuck off."
Mason barked a laugh, genuine amusement lighting up his eyes. "You really think they're going to leave quietly? They've got the entire council breathing down their necks. The pack is restless. The Luna Choosing is tradition, Zade. If you don't show, the elders will start whispering about weakness. About how the alpha who hears the dead can't even control his own house."
I finally lifted my gaze and met his. "Oh, really?"
Mason's grin faded a fraction. He knew that tone. Everyone did.
Still, he pressed. "She's pretty. Blonde. Tits like—"
"Don't."
The single word cut him, my wolf simmering with annoyance over the mention of someone who wasn't Indigo.
Mason raised both hands in mock surrender. "Easy, brother. I'm just the messenger."
"Then deliver this message." I set the tablet down with deliberate calm. "If they force this, I'll walk into that ceremony tomorrow and rip the throat out of whoever they shove in front of me. And then I'll keep ripping until the pack understands one very simple truth."
I leaned forward, elbows on the desk, my voice dropping to a near-whisper.
"There is no Luna. There is no chosen female. There is only her."
Mason studied me for a long moment. The amusement was gone now, replaced by something closer to wariness.
"You're talking about the girl from the temple," he breathed. "The Flamekeeper."
I didn't answer. I didn't have to. He still didn’t know it was Indigo.
He exhaled through his nose. "You're fucked, Zade. You know that, right? The elders won't let you claim an outsider. Especially not one whose power could burn the whole pack to ash if she chooses."
A slow, cold smile curved my mouth.
"Then let them try to stop me."
Mason opened his mouth, probably to give me another warning I didn't need. A single, soft knock interrupted him.
He froze mid-step, his nostrils flaring as he scented the air. His eyes narrowed, and then it darted to me.
I tilted my head. "Dismissed."
He hesitated for a moment, then he gave me a short nod and slipped out, closing the door behind him.
"Come in," I finally said, my tone flat.
The door opened slowly. She stepped inside like she was walking onto a stage she'd rehearsed a hundred times.
Her blonde hair was swept over one shoulder in perfect waves, her pale skin glowing in the light. She wore a thin silver dress that clung to every curve. She had delicate shoulders and downcast eyes, her hands clasped in front of her.
The perfect picture of fragile beauty. Except I could smell the lie on her.
Under the floral perfume and the faint tremble in her breathing was something sharper. She was a viper. One who clearly moved like prey. Interesting.
She stopped three paces inside the room, lowered her gaze, and waited.
I didn't speak. I let the silence stretch until it became uncomfortable for her.
Finally, she lifted her chin just enough to meet my eyes.
"Alpha Zade," she said softly, her voice sickly sweet. "My name is Enid. The elders sent me."
I leaned back against my chair, my arms crossed.
"You won't be my Luna," I said.
Her lashes fluttered.
"I know," she murmured. Then she sank gracefully to her knees, the silver dress pooling around her. "You don't have to choose me."
I waited, recognizing her performance.
She kept her head bowed, her voice trembling just enough to sell the vulnerability. "I only ask that you let me stay. For a little while. Long enough for the elders to back off, for the pack to see you've... considered their offer. They'll stop breathing down both our necks. The Choosing Ceremony can be delayed. They'll think you're complying. And when the time is right..." She lifted her gaze again, her eyes wide and pleading. "...I'll leave quietly. No drama. No scandal."
Clever.
Very clever.
I studied her for a long moment. Then I asked the question she'd been waiting for.
"What do I get in return?"
I waited for the offer I knew was coming. The slow slide of her hands up her thighs, the parting of her lips, the promise of her body. The one thing every woman sent to an unmated alpha eventually offered when politics failed.
I'd already decided how I'd end it.
One clean slice across her throat while she was still smiling.
Instead, she raised her chin higher. The vulnerable mask cracked just enough to reveal the steel underneath.
"A way to break your curse," she said, her voice steady, "without having to die."
I tilted my head. "Explain."
Enid's lips curled. It was the faintest hint of a smile, the first genuine one since she'd walked in.
"I know what you are, Alpha. The one who hears the dead. The one who resurrects. The rot that's been eating you alive since the day you clawed your way out of that pit."
My expression darkened. She wasn't supposed to know about the pit. Who the hell was she?
She leaned forward slightly, her hands resting lightly on her thighs.
"There is a path that doesn't require the flame keeper's fire. A way to sever the darkness without causing death."
Her eyes gleamed.
"All I need is time. Protection. A place at your side long enough to finish the ritual. In return, you'll you keep breathing. You'll keep ruling, and you never have to let the Flamekeeper close enough to decide whether you live or burn."
I rose to my feet and moved over to stand before her. She had to tilt her head back to meet my gaze.
"You think you can bargain with me," I said softly.
It wasn't a question.
She didn't flinch. "I think you're tired of dying slowly."
I crouched until our eyes were level, until I could see every trace of calculation behind the pretty mask.
Then I smiled. It wasn't kind.
"Get up," I told her.
She rose slowly, never breaking eye contact. Then I straightened.
I reached out and brushed a knuckle along the line of her jaw, gentle enough to confuse her.
"If you lie to me," I murmured, "I'll carve those pretty eyes out of your skull while you're still alive to feel it."
Her breath hitched.
"Understood, Alpha."
I stepped back.
"Stay out of my way tonight. Tomorrow, we'll see if your little collection is worth the air you breathe."
She dipped her head. But as she turned to leave, I spoke once more.
"And Enid?"
She paused at the door.
"If you ever mention the Flamekeeper in my presence again..." My voice dropped lower. "...I'll feed you your own tongue."
Her voice trembled. "Yes, Alpha."
She simply slipped out, the door closing softly behind her.
I exhaled slowly. Just then, my gaze dropped to the floor. Right there was the same sigil. The sigil that had been carved into the wall of the pit. Air rushed out of my lungs, mortifying memories bleeding in.
No, I was wrong.
Enid wasn’t just a viper. And I’d let her into my home.