Chapter 91: So Much Worse - Callista's POV

I looked at Riven, my brow furrowing. This wasn’t what we thought it would be. Sure, Mr. Cross had told us about the experiments, which we now know weren’t exactly as told. Then there was the part of it coming into the Alpha King’s line, but also in the packs.

But what he just revealed gave us an entirely new perspective, and it was one I wasn’t sure Riven was taking well. He was ghastly pale as he stared at what was his brother. His gaze would shift to the Alpha King as well, a haunted look on his face.

I frowned, my chest tightening as my mind tried to catch up. “Waiting for what?” I asked, my voice rough.

Raze’s grin didn’t fade. If anything, it deepened. “For the right conditions, of course.”

The Alpha King’s jaw tightened slightly, but he didn’t correct him this time.

“As I said, it’s bound to the bloodline,” he said instead, repeating what we already knew. “But it doesn’t attach itself the same way every generation. Sometimes, it lies dormant for years, or just in one child, but it makes it very difficult to cure.” His gaze flickered between us now. “And sometimes…it doesn’t choose cleanly.”

A cold feeling went down my spine. “So, it skipped you.”

“Obviously,” Raze snorted. “We’re the lucky two. This thing is hungry and wants hosts.”

“Enough,” the Alpha King said sharply.

But it was already too late. Riven and I were both horrified. I could feel it pulsing through the bond. He didn’t know what to do with what he had heard.

His hand flexed at his side, his fingers twitching as if he didn’t trust them not to shift. Gold and red bled together in his gaze with something darker pulsing in the background.

“What did you mean when you said choose cleanly?”

Raze pushed off the wall with a quiet chuckle, as if this was the most entertaining conversation he’d had in years. “It means,” he said, dragging the words out, “sometimes it doesn’t settle for just one of us. We’re both ticking time bombs and it’s only a matter of time before we lose it.”

My stomach dropped.

The Alpha King stepped forward, his expression tightening. “That is not entirely accurate.”

Raze laughed softly. “It’s accurate enough and you know it.”

Riven didn’t look at either of them. His gaze was locked somewhere ahead, unfocused, as if he were trying to piece together something that didn’t want to fit.

“You said,” he started slowly, “that separating us slows it down.”

“Yes,” the Alpha King said.

Riven’s head turned toward him sharply. “So what happens when we’re not separated?”

Silence. It stretched on for far too long and became heavy.

I felt it before anyone answered. The shift in Riven. The spike of something sharp and volatile cutting through the bond. Raze smiled.

“It feeds faster,” he said simply.

My breath caught.

Riven went completely still beside me. Not the controlled stillness from before. This was worse. This was the kind that came right before something broke.

“Feeds on what?”

Raze’s eyes gleamed. “On us.”

The words seemed to echo.

The Alpha King exhaled slowly, as if he had been hoping we wouldn’t reach this point so quickly. “It draws strength from the bond between its hosts,” he said, his voice measured.

“But having a mate helps,” I whispered.

All eyes snapped to me, and I shook my head.

“That’s what the Moon Goddess told me,” I said, then realized that it could have been a vision from the demon. “Well, that’s what we believed.”

My chest tightened.

Riven turned to fully face me, the color draining from his face even more. His gaze locked onto me, and for a second, everything else disappeared.

Until his emotions bled into mine. Panic crashed with my own. It slammed into me so hard it made my pulse stutter.

“No,” he said immediately, shaking his head. “No, that’s not—”

“What if it is?” Raze asked with a smile. “Previous hosts killed their mates, so obviously having a mate isn’t what saves you. If it was, why would the demon push for you to?”

“But he has done both,” Riven snapped. “He said mating her would unleash him, then turned around and said it would trap him. But he lies.”

“Oh, that he does. You should hear all the things in my mind right now. It only gets worse, Riven,” Raze whispered. “You bonded her to you. So, now what are you going to do?”

“Shut up,” Riven snapped, his voice breaking into a growl.

The air shifted. I felt it in the bond first. There was a surge and snap of control. His eyes darkened again until the red-gold color faded to nothing and only black remained.

“Riven,” the Alpha King snapped, moving instantly.

But Riven didn’t respond.

“You said separating us slows it down,” Riven repeated, his voice rougher now, like it was being dragged out of him. “So you gave me away.”

“Yes.”

“And now you bring me back here,” he continued, his voice rising slightly, “knowing what this is. Knowing what happens when we’re near each other.”

“You were needed,” the Alpha King said sharply. “It was time for you to come home.”

Riven laughed, but there was nothing remotely amusing about it. It was sharp and hollow.

“Needed,” he repeated.

Raze tilted his head, watching him as if he were waiting for something. “Careful,” he murmured. “You’re getting close.”

“Close to what?” Riven snapped.

Raze’s grin widened. “Losing. He loves when we’re ticked off and angry.”

The word hit like a spark to dry kindling. The bond flared violently.

Pain lanced through my chest as Riven’s emotions surged out of control. It wasn’t just anger anymore. It was everything. There was so much confusion, fear, rage, and betrayal that it felt like it might tear him apart from the inside.

“Riven,” I said, my voice unsteady as I took a small step toward him.

His head turned toward me instantly. And for a second, my heart stopped.

“Don’t,” he said, his voice strained, as if he were holding something back with everything he had. “Don’t come any closer. I’m no good for you.”

I froze.

The Alpha King’s expression darkened. “This is exactly why you were separated.”

“Then you shouldn’t have brought me back,” Riven shot back.

Raze laughed again, softer this time. “Oh, but he had to. Didn’t you hear? You’re the solution.”

Riven’s attention snapped back to him. “Solution to what?”

Raze tapped his own chest lightly, right over where the veins pulsed darkest beneath his skin. “To me.”

The hallway seemed to close in on us.

“You think I can fix that?” Riven asked, disbelief bleeding into every word.

“I think,” Raze said, his voice dropping slightly, “you’re the only one who might survive trying.”

That didn’t sound like hope. That sounded like a warning.

My pulse raced as I looked between them. “What does that mean?”

Neither of them answered right away. It was the Alpha King who finally spoke.

“It means,” he said slowly, “that the bond between you is not just a risk. It is also the only leverage we have. He may be the only one who can end the curse and the demon once and for all.”

Riven’s jaw tightened. “You’re talking about using me.”

“I am talking about saving both of you.”

Raze snorted. “That’s a generous way to put it.”

Riven ignored him, his gaze locked on the Alpha King. “And if it doesn’t work?”

When the Alpha King didn’t answer, a cold weight settled into my stomach. Riven exhaled slowly, dragging a hand down his face. For a moment, he looked as if he was barely holding himself together. Then his hand dropped.

“And you thought I’d just agree to that?” He asked, his voice cold and sharp.

“You already did,” the Alpha King replied.

Riven went still again.

“You came here,” he continued. “You involved yourself. Whether you knew the full truth or not doesn’t change that.”

“That’s not the same thing,” Riven said sharply.

“No,” the Alpha King agreed. “It’s worse.”