Chapter 24 Familiar Faces with Fatal Intentions
Lyanna
The door opened.
I turned my face away before it fully swung inward, eyes fixing on the map as if I belonged there—as if stillness could make me part of the wall.
Behind me, Elias shifted.
I felt it without seeing it. A change in the air. A pull.
I glanced back despite myself.
For a heartbeat, our eyes met.
Then he turned away, posture straightening as he faced the doorway, and whatever had passed between us vanished like breath on glass.
The man who entered did so as if the space already belonged to him.
Tall. Broad-shouldered. Draped in dark velvet edged with silver thread, Aeloria’s crest worked cleanly into his cloak. The scent that followed him was sharp with spice, expensive, layered—authority bottled and worn like armor.
His gaze went straight to Elias.
I might as well have been furniture.
“My lord,” the envoy said, voice smooth, carrying easily.
Elias didn’t incline his head. Didn’t gesture for him to enter fully or take a seat.
He let the silence stretch.
I watched the envoy’s smile falter—just barely—before Elias finally spoke.
“You presume much,” Elias said evenly. “Coming into my house without permission.”
The envoy blinked.
For an instant, something hot and unguarded flashed in his eyes. Rage—pure, offended, unused to resistance.
I caught it.
Then it vanished beneath a practiced calm.
“My apologies,” the envoy said, spreading his hands. “I was under the impression—”
“You were under a false one,” Elias cut in.
The envoy inhaled through his nose. His fingers curled once at his sides before smoothing his robes.
“I am an emissary of Aeloria,” he said tightly. “I do not answer to—”
“You answer to me,” Elias interrupted, voice still level. “While you are here.”
Something twisted low in my chest.
I had never seen the envoy checked like this. Not in council halls. Not at borders. Men bowed to him. Stepped aside. Deferred.
Elias did none of that.
He stepped forward, placing himself squarely between us without looking back. His shoulders broadened, his height suddenly undeniable.
I swallowed.
He looks different, I thought—and immediately hated myself for noticing.
Ridiculous.
He was still the lord of this estate. Still Drakovian. Still benefiting from the war that had burned my home.
Still—
I watched the way he stood. Unmoving. Unyielding.
Something traitorous flickered in my chest.
No. Focus.
“You may speak,” Elias said. “If you have business. Otherwise, you will leave.”
The envoy’s jaw tightened. He laughed softly, as if amused.
“Very well,” he said. “If we are dispensing with courtesies, let us be direct. Why am I still here, Lord Veras?”
Elias arched a brow. “That is my question.”
The envoy’s eyes sharpened. “My task remains unfinished.”
“Does it?” Elias replied. “You’ve lingered past necessity. Why are you not already on the road back to Aeloria?”
The word landed heavy.
My fingers curled at my sides.
The envoy hesitated—just a twitch—before smiling again.
“I had hoped,” he said slowly, “that you might have uncovered information regarding a matter of importance to my king.”
Elias said nothing.
The silence stretched.
“The missing noble lord,” the envoy continued. “And his mate.”
My breath caught.
Mate.
The word echoed too loudly in my head. Ruben. His hands. His voice. His body cooling beneath mine.
My heart began to pound.
I hoped he wouldn't take note of me in the corner. I unconsciously pat my veil to make sure my hair wasn't showing.
My gaze flicked to Elias without permission.
He was already looking at me.
Just a glance—brief, unreadable—but it sent cold racing down my spine.
Why had he looked at me?
Did he know?
Had I slipped without realizing?
I turned back to the map. The lines blurred—roads bleeding into forests, borders dissolving.
“The alpha you asked after,” Elias said evenly, “fell in battle months ago. He was buried with the others.”
The envoy stiffened.
“And the omega?” he pressed.
Elias’s eyes flicked once—to the side—then returned to him.
“I have seen no sign of them,” he said. “No reports. No sightings. If they survived, they may be further out in the territory.”
Final. Dismissive.
I felt it like a door closing.
The envoy did too.
Color rose beneath his beard. His pleasant expression tightened.
“I see,” he said. “You seem remarkably unconcerned.”
“I concern myself with what falls under my jurisdiction,” Elias replied. “Your search does not.”
The envoy’s gaze slid—sharp now—until it landed on me.
It felt like fingers closing around my throat.
“And why,” he asked coolly, “is this omega still here?”
I hunched instinctively, already shifting to retreat—
“Wait.”
He moved faster than I expected.
His hand closed around my wrist.
Cold. Certain.
My stomach dropped.
Before I could react, Elias was there.
He broke the envoy’s grip with his own hand, fingers firm, unyielding.
“Do not touch what is mine,” Elias said quietly.
The room went dead silent.
Mine.
The envoy looked between us, suspicion sharpening. Then he laughed—too loud, too forced.
“My mistake,” he said. “Is she the omega the Triune selected for you?”
The question hung between us, sharp as glass.
I looked at Elias.
Where was the other omega?
What would he say?
His gaze hardened.
“How my household is managed,” he said, “is none of your concern.”
He stepped closer, forcing the envoy back.
“If you have no further business,” he added, “you will leave.”
The envoy bowed stiffly.
“Of course,” he said.
His eyes flicked to me once more.
Assessing. Suspicious.
Then he turned and left.
The door shut with a solid, final sound.
Silence rushed in.
My hands were shaking.
I turned toward the exit—
A hand closed around my arm.
I froze.
Elias released me immediately, stepping in front of the door instead.
Stay.
I faced him fully. His expression had changed—focused now. Intent.
You didn’t want him to see you.
I lifted my hands. I didn’t want to be seen.
Why?
Because he is not safe.
His jaw tightened.
You are the missing noble Aelorian omega.
The room tilted.
My hands fell.
You knew.
I suspected. I was certain today.
My throat burned.
Why didn’t you give me to him?
Because if it had been safe for you to go with the Aelorian envoy, you would have.
The air left my lungs.
You didn’t hide out of fear. You hid because you know something.
I looked away.
The Triune doesn’t hunt lost omegas this aggressively unless they’re burying a problem.
His gaze held mine.
And you are a problem to them.
You could still send me home.
If I did, you wouldn’t reach it.
His hands were steady.
You’d be silenced. Bound. Married to someone who ensures you never speak again.
My chest burned.
I can protect you here.
The word scraped.
This is a cage.
This is time.
You don’t own me.
No.
Then, heavier:
But I won’t let them take you.
He stepped back.
You will not leave this manor without my knowledge.
My pulse spiked.
You can’t—
I can.
And if you run again, someone else will catch you. Someone who won’t stop at restraint.
Anger flared, bright and desperate.
You don’t get to decide my life.
He held my gaze.
The world already has.
He turned away.
At the door, he paused.
Without looking back:
They already know you’re here. Don’t be stubborn.
The door clicked shut.
And I understood—with sick clarity—
Staying had never been protection.
I had already made the mistake of lingering too long.