Chapter 75: Riven and Callista Nightshade - Riven's POV

The silence in the car was suffocating. When I didn’t respond, Callista turned toward the window, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as the trees blurred past. She hadn’t spoken a word in the last few minutes and I didn’t dare attempt to try again.

There was nothing I could say that wouldn’t make things worse. She was piecing things together too quickly. My grip tightened on the steering wheel as the road curved through the forest toward the Alpha King’s territory. The farther we drove, the heavier the air seemed.

She felt him, but of course she had. I knew she had.

The bond between us pulsed faintly in my chest, warm and steady, but something darker lingered beside it. Something that had no business touching her at all.

You see? The voice murmured smoothly inside my head. She’s already beginning to understand. She belongs to us both.

I clenched my jaw hard enough that pain shot up into my temples.

Shut up.

The voice chuckled softly.

You’re the one who insisted on honesty. Yet here you are… lying to her. How long do you plan to hide this or do I need to take over to tell her what you refuse to?

My fingers tightened around the wheel again. The leather creaked under the pressure.

“I’m not lying,” I muttered under my breath.

Callista shifted beside me, turning slightly. “What?”

I shook my head quickly. “Nothing.”

The words had escaped before I could stop them. I hadn’t even meant to say them out loud. Her eyes narrowed, suspicion flashing across her face before she looked away again. Guilt twisted in my chest.

She deserved the truth.

Every instinct in me screamed to tell her everything and to explain what the demon really was, what it wanted, and why the Alpha King had summoned us so suddenly. But the moment I imagined saying the words aloud, the darkness inside me stirred.

It was a dangerous thought and even I wasn’t too sure what else the Alpha King wanted.

The demon’s voice slid through my mind again like smoke.

Tell her everything, Riven. I’m curious to see how she reacts when she realizes she’s bonded to a monster.

My hands tightened again.

“She’s not bonded to you,” I growled under my breath.

Callista glanced at me again, confusion flickering across her expression. “You keep talking to yourself,” she said quietly. “Or…you’re talking to him, aren’t you?”

Heat crawled up the back of my neck.

“I’m just thinking,” I said, trying to hide the truth…again.

Her lips pressed into a thin line. The bond pulsed again, uneasily this time. Ahead of us, the forest began to thin, revealing the long iron gates that marked the entrance to the Alpha King’s estate.

Even from a distance, the place felt wrong.

As a child, I always thought of the Alpha King as safety, but now I knew what hid behind the gates and the great big mansion. The father of a monster who would do anything.

We pulled through the gates and went to the spot we had parked before. Guards patrolled the perimeter, their sharp eyes watching us closely.

Callista straightened slightly in her seat when she saw it. Neither of us spoke.

I shut off the engine, the sudden silence inside the vehicle ringing in my ears.

The mansion loomed ahead of us through the windshield, its tall windows reflecting the morning light. It looked just as imposing as it had the last time we were here—stone walls, iron railings, and guards stationed like statues along the entrance.

Callista’s fingers curled tighter around the strap of her bag.

“Are you ready?” I asked quietly.

The question felt pointless the moment it left my mouth. Neither of us were ready for this.

She let out a slow breath, but didn’t look at me. “Do we have a choice?”

No, we didn’t.

The bond pulsed faintly between us again, warm but strained, like it could snap if either of us pulled too hard.

I pushed the car door open and stepped out. Gravel crunched beneath my shoes as I moved around the hood of the car, forcing myself not to pay attention to the guards. Just as I reached for her door, she pushed it open and stood.

When she turned toward the mansion, the wind caught a few strands of her hair and pushed them across her face. She didn’t bother brushing them away. For a second, I almost reached out to do it for her.

But the memory of the argument in the car stopped me. She was already pulling away from me.

Good, the demon murmured in my mind. Distance will make this easier.

I shook my head, trying to push him down. He was so wishy-washy. Last night, he wanted us close and today he wanted the distance. It was confusing me, so I ignored it and started toward the massive stone steps leading to the entrance. Callista was right beside me, close enough that I could feel the warmth of the bond, but far enough that it felt like there was a wall between us.

The closer we got to the doors, the tighter the pressure in my chest became.

Two guards flanked the entrance. Their eyes swept over us as we approached.

“Names,” one of them demanded.

“Riven and Callista Nightshade,” I said evenly.

Callista turned toward me, her gaze narrowing. “Callista Monroe.”

The guard studied us for a long moment, probably trying to figure out why I introduced us as if we were fully mated, and then Callista interrupted. He finally gave a short nod and pushed the door open.

“His Majesty, the Alpha King, is expecting you.”

Of course he was. He had summoned us. But I kept that thought to myself.

The moment we stepped in and no one was around, Callista slapped my arm.

“What was that?” She asked, her voice barely a whisper.

“You’re my mate,” I said firmly, stopping and looking at her with a straight face. “You have my last name.”

“We haven’t gone through our ceremony, so no, we’re not mated.”

My gaze narrowed. “Do you really want to argue right here in the middle of the hallway?”

“We’re not formally mated.”

One brow arched, and I felt myself snap. “Listen to me, seer. We might be sixteen, but the moment I sank my fangs into your throat is the moment you became mine.You are Callista Nightshade, future luna of the Nightshade pack. It doesn’t matter if we haven’t had our formal ceremony.”

She growled at me. “No one considers us mated, Riven. A bite is just the first part. Until we go through the ceremony, we’re just playing the part.”

She started to walk off, but I had enough. I reached out, my hand catching her wrist as I pulled her back. She fought, whirling on me as I backed her into the nearest wall. With my body caging her in, she couldn’t move.

“I don’t know what has gotten into you,” I said, scanning her from head to toe. “We’re mated. You are mine.”

She snarled at me, her teeth momentarily lengthening.

“Are you really debating fighting me, mate?”