Chapter 163: My Brother, My Enemy

Chapter 163: My Brother, My Enemy
Damian’s POV

I heard footsteps before I even opened my eyes, slowly, and definitely not familiar.
“Alex? Kyle?” I called out instinctively, my voice rough and confused. “I thought you guys already left?”
No one answered.
My head pounded like I had been hit with a hammer. The last thing I remembered was someone pressing a cloth over my eyes, the sharp smell of a strange scent, and then darkness swallowing me whole.
When my  consciousness finally returned, I lifted my hands to rub my eyes, only to feel rough rope burning against my skin.
My eyes snapped open completely.
The place I found myself in was nothing like Archlight Academy. It was dark, with dust and old wood. Broken crates were shoved into corners, and only one bulb shinning dimly was hung up.
Definitely not school property.
Panic envolped me completely.
I blinked hard, trying to clear my vision. Several men stood around, strangers with cold eyes and scarred faces. My head tried to process their expressions, their clothing, their presence, but nothing made sense.
“Where am I?” I asked, my voice trembling slightly despite my attempt to sound calm.
One man stepped forward. His expression was unreadable.
“You’ve been kidnapped,” he said flatly.
My whole being weakened. “What? Kidnapped? Why?”
Shock and disbelief wrapped around me.
The man said nothing this time. He stared for a few seconds before shifting his gaze away as if I wasn’t worth the explanation.
I attempted to move, but pain shot up my wrist. That was when reality hit me fully.
I was tied completely.
Both Hands and legs. Even my chest felt constricted by the rope.
My thoughts flew.... Who would dare kidnap me? Who would even try something this stupid?
Only one name crashed into my mind.
Valor.
He was the only one reckless and arrogant enough to pull such a stunt.
“Call your boss.” I snapped, anger outweighing fear.
The man scoffed. “You don’t get to order me around, young boy. I don’t work for you. So you better sit there quietly, you bastard.”
I was completely stunned.
"Bastard? You’re calling me a bastard?"
I let out a humorless laugh. "Do I look like one?"
He said nothing.  He was good at that, ignoring me. It made my blood boil.
“It’s Valor who’s the bastard.” I shouted.
That got a reaction.
The man walked towards me, bent down so we were eye level, and gripped my jaw tightly. His fingers dug into my skin.
“Be careful,” he warned in a low voice.
I glared back, then spat in his face.
Slowly, he wiped my spit off his cheek and gave me a crooked smile before turning away.
Coward.
As he walked off, I heard faint whispering somewhere in the shadows. The voices overlapped, then faded.
My mind raced to Dana.
Valor had always wanted her. He was obsessed, territorial in the ugliest way. If anyone should have been kidnapped, it should’ve been her.
So why me?
The thought of Valor using me as leverage made fury coil tight in my stomach.
Archlight Academy really couldn’t go a month without drama.
Just when I thought my day couldn’t get worse, the door creaked open.
And the shock hit me so hard. I couldn't believe who was standing in my front.
Zade.
Zade walked in with a grin stretched across his face.
He folded his hands behind his back like he owned the place.
“So you kidnapped me?” I asked, my voice low with a blend of anger and disbelief.
He didn’t speak. He only smiled wide and nodded.
I stared at him like he had grown horns.
“Zade, you’re not a kidnapper. The fact that you pulled it off the first time doesn’t mean you should keep going down this path.” My voice dropped, sadness bleeding into the words. “This isn’t you.”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do,” Zade snapped suddenly. His calm mask cracked.
“You think being an Alpha, the golden child, Archlight Academy’s pride, gives you the right to dictate my life?”
His voice echoed around the room.
I swallowed. “My bad,” I muttered.
But I still needed answers.
“So why did you kidnap me?”
Zade blinked dramatically, placing a hand over his chest. “You mean you don’t know?”
He burst into laughter. “Oh, golden child Damian. Go ahead and figure it out.”
“I don’t have time for your nonsense,” I spat. “Just say it.”
He moved closer, his expression hardening.
“Damian,” he said slowly, “I want you to experience what it means to be the rejected child.”
My heartbeat slowed.
“I want you to taste everything I’ve gone through. Everything I’ve endured since the day I opened my eyes in this world.” His voice shook with deep, boiling resentment.
“You’ve been living the life I was meant to have.”
“Excuse me?” I cut in sharply. “What do you mean by that?”
Zade laughed under his breath and ruffled my hair like I was some child.
“Damian, you’re an Alpha while I’m a beta.”
I let out a frustrated breath. “Because your father is a beta, Zade!!! It’s destiny....”
He opened his mouth, but I wasn’t done.
“Have you ever asked your mother who my father is?” I snapped.
Zade said nothing just staring.
He wasn’t expecting that.
Even tied up, I could tell the truth shook him.
“Your father,” I continued, “has blinded you. Blinded you so badly that you can’t see anything beyond his shadow.”
He clenched his jaw. I could see the conflict in his eyes.
“Zade, my father was no small man,” I said quietly. “Why do you think I survived even after your father refused to let my mother take me in?”
His breathing grew uneven.
“The inheritance my father left me, even if Valor invaded our pack, even if your father tried everything in his power, he still wouldn’t get it. Not even in the next decade.”
That did it.
“How dare you insult my father.” Zade roared and slapped me.
My head snapped to the side. Irrespective of the pain that spread across my cheek, I still smiled.
He should be thankful I was tied.
If not, I would’ve rearranged his face.
“Don’t you ever insult my father again,” he warned, panting. “Or you won’t live to tell the story.”
“The truth is bitter,” I murmured, smirking.
Zade glared like he wanted to strangle me.
“Zade,” I continued softly, “all your life, you’ve been doing everything for your father. But that’s not living. You’re not following your destiny, you’re following his.”
He stood like I had stabbed him.
“You think I took your life?” I shook my head. “No, Zade. You gave it away. Every single piece of it.”
His hands trembled slightly.
“Stop being the obedient child for once. Take your stance, fight for your own path. Betas are destined for greatness too, if you stop letting others control your breath.”
Zade couldn’t take it anymore.
He turned sharply and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
I watched the door shake then fall still.
For a moment, I sat there in the dim light, tied up and bruised, but oddly calm.
Because I knew I had shaken something inside Zade.
Something that had been caged for years.