Chapter 14: Let Me See The Damage - Callista's POV

I looked down at him, my gaze narrowing with worry. “That doesn’t make this okay,” I said, pulling my wrist free and kneeling in front of him with the first aid kit. “Take off your shirt. I need to see how bad the damage is.”

He arched an eyebrow, his smirk widening despite the split in his lip. “Are you already trying to get me undressed? We’re moving fast, little seer.”

Heat flooded my cheeks, making them turn crimson. “Shut up and take it off before you bleed all over the place. Your scent is going to be everywhere as it is.”

Still grinning, he carefully pulled his shirt over his head, wincing as the movement pulled at the wound on his ribs. When the fabric was off, I had to bite back the gasp threatening to escape.

Bruises were already blooming across his chest and torso in varying shades of purple and black. His ribs on the right side looked bad, and there was a large cut just below his collarbone that was seeping blood.

“Riven,” I breathed as my fingers hovered over his injuries, afraid to touch him. What if it hurt him more for me to touch him? “What did he do to you?”

“Well, this is less than I did to him,” he said, but his voice lost some of the cockiness. “I told you, I won, so he looks worse.”

My head tilted. “This doesn’t look like winning.” I grabbed some antiseptic and cotton pads. My hands shook as I tried to prepare them. “It looks like you both were fighting to the death.”

Riven looked toward the far wall. “He made a threat concerning you and our bond. He said things that—” His voice trailed off as his eyes flashed with barely contained rage. “I couldn’t let him get away with it.”

I dabbed antiseptic on the cut below his collarbone, and he hissed through clenched teeth.

“Sorry, this is going to sting,” I murmured.

He chuckled. “I’ve had worse.”

I closed my eyes as a sigh escaped. “That doesn’t sound reassuring.” I worked carefully, cleaning his wound and trying not to think about how close we were to each other. The mate bond hummed in contentment now that he was near me. “What kind of threats did he make?”

“It was the kind that made it clear he had every intention of claiming you for himself.” Riven’s hand found my hip, steadying me as I leaned a little closer to check his ribs. “He thinks our bond is weak because it manifested early, so he could break it and take you at the ceremony.”

“Can he?” I asked, my stomach dropping.

He scoffed. “No, but he’ll try. They all will. I’m not the only alpha son who will see you there and they will have their own intentions.”

I blinked. “They?” I glanced up at him, my hands still on his ribs.

“Did you not realize there would be more interest in you besides Marcus? You’re an Alpha’s daughter who is also a seer,” he whispered, his red-gold eyes meeting mine. Something dark flickered in their depths. “When all the packs gather under the full moon at the ceremony, there will be a challenge. I’m sure someone will want to test the strength of our bond and make sure we’re not faking it. Some may even think it’s dark magic.”

“But you didn’t. It’s real.”

“We know that,” he murmured as his hand moved from my hip to cup my face. When his thumb brushed my cheekbone, I thought I might melt. “But they don’t care about the truth. They’ll see an opportunity to take what they think should be theirs. You are mine, though.”

I pulled back slightly to grab bandages from the kit. “My parents said the same thing, and that we had to handle this carefully. With us not being eighteen, the bond isn’t sealed and can be broken.”

“Not if we bite each other under the full moon,” he said, glancing down at my shoulder where the mark is hidden. “We can do this and stay together.”

“But until we mark each other with bites, it can be,” I said, pressing medical tape over the bandage to secure it. “They could stop us before it gets that far.”

“I mean, they can try, but they won’t succeed. I won’t let them do this to us,” he said, his voice turning dark and dangerous.

“How can you be so sure?” I moved to his ribs, gently pushing at the bruised area to check for broken bones. He winced, but didn’t pull away. “Incomplete bonds can be challenged, according to pack law. And with us being young, I don’t see them—”

“Our bond is fated.” He caught my hand, pressing it flat against his bare chest where I could feel his heartbeat. “They wouldn’t dare mess with what fate put together. I know you feel it, that tug pulling at you and demanding to be acknowledged. Normal fated mate bonds don’t manifest now and they’ll be just as curious as we are.”

“They may still question it,” I said, my words soft. “They may think it’s foul play or forced upon us.”

“No, this kind of bond is meant to survive what is coming,” he said finally. “The Moon Goddess doesn’t make mistakes.”

A chill ran down my spine. “My parents want to talk to yours before the ceremony.”

He nodded. “I know. Dad told me. He has questions for me when I get home.”

“He doesn’t know that you’re—”

“Bloody?” He asked, a feral grin spreading across his face. “Beaten another alpha’s son to a pulp and made him beg for mercy? No, he doesn't know.”

“What if we go to the ceremony and don’t mark each other? They could do something to keep us from doing it.”

He laughed. “They won’t.” The absolute certainty in his voice should have been reassuring. “Because I’ll kill anyone who tries to take you from me.”

The words should have frightened me, should have made me question his sanity and control, but it didn’t. A thrill shot through me. My wolf was…preening with satisfaction.

Our mate would protect us and fight for our bond.

“You can’t just kill people, Riven,” I said, but there was no heat to it. “It would be our parents and others in the pack.

“Fine, watch me.” His smile was sharp and predatory. “At the ceremony, under the full moon, if anyone challenges our bond, I’ll make an example out of them. I can beat any of the alpha’s sons with ease. Probably some of the alphas too.”

I moved to his hands next, carefully cleaning his split knuckles. “We have tomorrow to worry about as well. I’m sure Marcus will be there, probably telling everyone his version of what happened.”

“Let him if he wants to.” Riven’s jaw tightened. “Everyone saw me kiss you today and they know you’re mine. Marcus can spin whatever story he wants. The marks on our shoulders speak for themselves.”

“My parents aren’t sure.” I wrapped gauze around his knuckles, then secured it with tape as well. “They worry it will be used for political gain.”

“That’s smart.” He watched me work, leaning just a little too close. “They’re right to be cautious, but my parents are the least likely to use you for anything. The other packs are jumping at the chance to use you for their own gain.”

“How do I know that?” I looked up at him, surprise flickering in his gaze. “How do I know that you’re not going to use me as well?”

That surprise was quickly replaced with fear. “Because if I were going to use you, I wouldn’t have told Marcus to back off. I would have let him think he had a chance, along with everyone else, and created competition to drive up your value. I wouldn’t have claimed you publicly either.” He pulled me closer, his bandaged hands gentle around my waist. “I claimed you because you’re mine and the thought of anyone else touching you makes me violent.”

“That doesn’t explain how you’re not using me,” I said, my eyes searching his.

“Smell the air and ask me if I’m going to use you.”

“Are you going to use me?” I inhaled immediately, then again as I waited.

“No.”

His words weren’t a lie.