Chapter 108: Torn Vows

Seraphine's POV

I didn't think. Didn't plan. My body moved on instinct—pure, animal rage driving every step.

Fuck this. Fuck him. Fuck her.

"Sera, no!" Cordelia's voice was sharp behind me, but I was already moving. Long strides eating up the distance between us. My wolf surged forward, claws scraping against the inside of my skin, demanding to be let out.

People parted as I approached. Some curious. Some alarmed. I didn't care.

Vespera saw me coming. Her smile widened. Like she'd been waiting for this. Like she wanted it.

Good. Let's fucking go then.

"Get your filthy hands off him," I snarled as I reached them. My voice came out low, dangerous. The gold in my eyes blazing so bright I could feel it.

Vespera's laugh was light, mocking. "Oh? One little mark and you think you have the right to tell me what to do?"

She didn't move. Her hand stayed on Kaelen's arm. Possessive. Territorial.

My wolf howled inside me. The mark on my neck burned white-hot, like someone had pressed a brand there. The bond screamed with conflicting emotions—rage, possession, something darker I couldn't name.

"Did you not hear me?" I stepped closer, my hands clenching into fists. "I said get your fucking hands off him."

"Or what?" Vespera tilted her head, feigning innocence. "You'll what, exactly? Attack me? In front of all these witnesses?" She gestured to the growing crowd around us.

People were stopping now. Staring. Whispering behind their hands.

"Look. The outsider is causing trouble again."

"Did you see her eyes? She's losing control."

"Poor Vespera. Being harassed like this."

Their words were daggers. Each one finding its mark.

But I didn't care. Couldn't care. Not when Vespera was standing there with that smug fucking smile. Not when Kaelen was just watching, silent and cold, doing absolutely nothing to stop this.

I finally looked at him. Really looked at him.

His expression made my blood run cold.

Not the usual ice. Not even anger. Something worse.

Suspicion.

His eyes swept over me like I was a stranger. Like he was searching for something. His jaw was set, shoulders tense, but not in the way they got when he was protective or concerned.

This was different. Guarded. Calculating.

Like he was analyzing a threat.

The bond twisted with something sharp and bitter. Not just anger. Not just disappointment.

What the fuck?

"You've been with her all week, haven't you?" The words came out harsh, accusatory. "So she's your final choice?"

Vespera's smile turned pitying. "Oh, honey. Kaelen's been with me because he wants to be. He's an Alpha. He can choose who he spends his time with."

"He's marked me."

"A mark doesn't mean anything if there's no love behind it." She leaned into Kaelen slightly, her voice dropping to something almost gentle. Almost kind. "He marked you out of obligation. Out of pity. The bond forced his hand, but his heart?" She pressed her palm against Kaelen's chest. "His heart chooses me."

No.

No no no no—

"That's bullshit." My voice shook. "The Moon Goddess chose—"

"The Moon Goddess made a mistake." Vespera's eyes hardened. "You're a refugee. An outsider who brought death to our doorstep. What makes you think you deserve to be an Alpha's mate?"

The crowd murmured agreement. I heard it. Felt it.

My chest tightened. The mark throbbed in time with my racing heartbeat.

I looked at Kaelen again. Searching his face for something—anything—that said this wasn't real. That he hadn't chosen her over me.

But his expression remained stone. Cold and unyielding.

And his eyes. God, his eyes. They weren't just cold anymore. They were assessing. Like he was weighing every word I said. Every move I made.

Like he was looking for lies.

No warmth. No reassurance. Nothing but that dark, hostile stare laced with something that looked horribly like doubt.

Through the bond, I felt it clearly now—a wall. Thick. Deliberate. He'd shut me out. Not just emotionally, but purposefully. Like he didn't want me to sense what he was thinking.

Like he had something to hide.

Or like he thought I did.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" My voice cracked. "Why are you just standing there?"

His jaw tightened. But he stayed silent. Those dark eyes never leaving my face. Studying. Measuring.

Testing.

The realization hit me like ice water.

He's testing me. Waiting to see what I'll do. What I'll say.

But why? What the fuck had changed?

Six days ago, we were tangled together in that cottage. He was begging me to complete the bond. And now—

Now he was looking at me like I was a puzzle he couldn't solve. Or worse, like I was a threat he needed to neutralize.

Vespera's hand slid up to his shoulder, her touch lingering. "Because there's nothing to say, darling. He's made his choice. He's been with me all week. Every single day. Where do you think he goes when he's not at the packhouse?"

Lies. They had to be lies.

But the bond... the bond wasn't denying it. And Kaelen wasn't either.

In fact, he seemed to be watching my reaction carefully. Too carefully.

Like he wanted to see if I'd break. If I'd reveal something.

What the fuck is going on?

"You're a liar," I said, but even I could hear how weak it sounded.

"Am I?" Vespera's smile turned cruel. "Ask him yourself. Go ahead. Ask your mate where he's been."

I did. I looked at Kaelen, my heart in my throat. "Is it true? Have you been with her?"

Silence.

But his eyes. God, his eyes were doing something I'd never seen before. Watching my face. My body language. Like he was waiting for a specific reaction.

Like he was looking for proof of something.

The crowd pressed closer, eager for his answer.

"Well?" Vespera prompted sweetly. "Tell her, Kaelen. Tell her how you've been spending your time."

Still nothing. Just that cold, calculating stare.

And through the bond—nothing but suspicion and something that felt horribly like betrayal.

But not the kind I'd given him. The kind you felt when you discovered someone had lied to you. Deceived you.

What the fuck had she told him?

"You fucking bastard." The words came out broken. Raw.

Vespera laughed. Actually laughed. "Did you really think a mark would keep him? Oh, sweetheart. Marks can be broken. Bonds can be severed. But love?" She looked up at Kaelen with adoration. "Love is permanent."

That did it.

I lunged.

Not at Kaelen. At her.

My hands found her shoulders, shoving her back hard enough that she stumbled. Her eyes went wide with shock.

"Don't you fucking touch him," I snarled. "Don't you dare—"

She recovered quickly. Too quickly. Her hand came up, striking across my face with enough force to snap my head to the side.

The crowd gasped.

Pain exploded across my cheek. But it was nothing compared to the rage.

I grabbed a fistful of her perfect red hair and yanked. She shrieked, her nails coming up to claw at my face. We crashed to the ground in a tangle of limbs and fury.

She was under me. Good. I swung, my fist connecting with her nose. The crack was satisfying. Blood bloomed across her face.

"You bitch!" she screamed, her hands going for my neck. For the mark.

White-hot agony shot through me as her nails scraped across the claiming bite. I screamed, the pain blinding.

But it only made me angrier.

I hit her again. And again. Feral and wild and completely out of control.

The crowd was yelling now. Some cheering. Some horrified.

I didn't care. Couldn't care. All I could see was red. All I could feel was the betrayal, the pain, the rage.

Then hands—strong, unyielding hands—grabbed me from behind.

I was ripped off Vespera with brutal force, lifted into the air like I weighed nothing.

No. No no no—

I was thrown. Actually thrown.

I hit the snow hard, the impact knocking the air from my lungs. Pain shot through my knees where they scraped against ice and gravel.

I looked up, gasping for breath.

Kaelen stood over Vespera, helping her to her feet. His touch was gentle as he checked her face, his expression concerned.

"Are you alright?" His voice was soft. Caring.

For her.

Not for me.

Then he turned. And the gentleness vanished.

His eyes were black. Furious. But underneath the fury—that same calculating look. That same assessment.

Like even now, in this moment, he was watching to see how I'd react.

The Alpha command rolled off him in waves, pressing down on me like a physical weight.

"Enough, Seraphine."