A dangerous line
Leah's POV
“Silence!” Keal interrupted sharply, cutting her off. “Do you think I’m a fool? Do you think I don’t know what happens under my own roof?”
Esme's head dropped again, and the others flinched as Keal took a step closer.
“You saying things to Leah,” he said, his tone low and dangerous. “You told her things you had no business saying. And now, you’ll answer for it.”
He gestured to the four soldiers stationed by the entrance. “Take them to the disciplinary room,” he ordered coldly. “Flog them until they confess what they told Leah. And don’t spare them. They need to learn the consequences of rebellion.”
The soldiers immediately stepped forward, their faces expressionless as they moved to obey.
I stood frozen, my heart racing. This was the cruelty that defined Alpha Keal. And as I glanced at Aria, I wondered again if she truly was a different person—or if the appreciation she’d shown me was nothing more than a merely facade.
As the soldiers moved toward the cooks, Aria’s voice cut through the oppressive silence like a blade.
“Stop it!” she commanded, her tone sharp and firm. The soldiers froze and paused, looking back at her with uncertaintity.
Keal turned his icy glare on his sister. “What are you doing here, Aria?”
She stepped forward, her expression fierce. “What have they done to deserve such punishment, Keal? You can’t just beat people into submission every time they displease you.”
His jaw tightened, and for a moment, I thought he might explode. Instead, his voice dropped to a dangerous calm. “This is non of your business, Aria. You don’t interfere with my decisions, not in this pack.”
Aria didn’t back down. “They’re cooks, Keal. They’re not warriors or spies. What could they possibly have done to warrant flogging?”
“They lied,” Keal said coldly. “And I won’t have liars in my pack.”
“They didn’t lie,” Aria shot back, her voice rising. “And even if they did, this punishment is—”
“That’s enough!” Keal thundered, his voice reverberating through the hall. “Leave. Now.”
For a moment, the room held its breath. Aria stared at him, her defiance burning bright. But then she shook her head, her lips pressed into a thin line, and then she stormed out of the hall without saying another word.
I wanted to run after her, but Keal’s sharp gaze turned to me. “Where’s your bag of herbs?” he asked.
I blinked, taken aba by the sudden change. “It’s not time to attend to your wounds yet,” I said, my voice steady despite the tension thick in the air.
Keal’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “What do you mean, ‘it’s not yet time huh?”
I took a deep breath, meeting his gaze. “The salve needs time to work before I reapply it. If I do it too soon, it’ll irritate the wound.”
A dark smirk tugged at the corner of his lips, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I see you’re growing bolder each day, Leah,” he said, his tone filled with mockery. “Do you think you can dictate
what happens in my pack now?”
“I’m just doing my job,” I replied softly, though my heart raced in my chest.
Alpha Keal stood abruptly, towering over me. “If you don’t follow me and do your job right now, you’ll join the cooks in their punishment. Is that clear?”
My breath caught, but I swallowed my fear and nodded. “Fine.”
As I followed him to his room, the tension between us was heavy. He walked ahead, his strides purposeful and unrelenting. When we reached his room, he held the door open for me, his expression unreadable.
Once inside, I stood by the door way and turned to face him. “Sit,” I said curtly.
He raised an eyebrow, clearly not used to being spoken to in that manner. “You’re giving orders now?”
“You asked me to do my job,” I shot back. “So Let me do it.”
He sat down, his movements stiff with irritation. As I unwrapped the bandages, the wound beneath looked no worse than before, though the redness hadn’t completely faded. I worked in silence, but the tension crackled between us like a storm about to break.
“You’re abusing my power,” I said finally, unable to hold my tongue any longer.
Keal’s eyes shot to mine. “What did you just say?”
“You heard me,” I said, my voice shaking slightly but firm. “You think everything is about power. But not everything can be controlled by brute force. People have their own strengths, their own abilities. You can’t just beat obedience into everyone.”
His jaw tightened, and for a moment, I thought he might lash out. But instead, he leaned forward, his eyes cold and calculating. “And what do you think will happen if I don’t assert my power, Leah? Do you think this pack will hold itself together?”
I straightened, meeting his gaze head-on. “I believe you’d have a more powerful pack if you ruled with respect instead of fear.”
A flicker of something—anger, maybe even doubt—crossed his face, but it was gone in an instant. He leaned back, a cruel smile playing on his lips. “You think you have all the answers, don’t you? Let me tell you something, Leah. This pack doesn’t run on dreams and ideals. It runs on discipline. Strength. Power.”
“And fear,” I added sharply. “Don’t forget that part.”
His expression darkened, and he stood abruptly, towering over me. “You’re walking a fine line, Leah.”
I took a step back, but I didn’t back down. “You asked me to do my job. If you want me to keep doing it, you need to let me do it the right way. If you keep forcing me—”
“Or what?” he interrupted, his voice dangerously low.
“Or you’ll regret it,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
For a moment, the room was eerily silent. Keal stared at me, his eyes searching mine for something I couldn’t name. Then he smirked, though it didn’t reach his eyes.
“Time shall come when I’ll deal with your insolence,” he said, his tone cold and deliberate. “Mark my words.”
I swallowed hard, but I held my ground.
“When is the ‘right time,’ Leah?” he asked mockingly. “Tell me. Enlighten me.”
I explained the timing for the next application, keeping my voice steady despite the tension simmering between us.
When I finished, his expression hardened. “Get out,” he barked, his voice resonating in the confined space.
I hesitated for a moment, then gathered my things and left, my heart pounding in my chest.