Chapter 51 51
Rhea’s POV
Beta
The word stuck. I knew what an Alpha was, who didn’t? But anything beyond that, I’d never bothered to learn. I’d spent most of my life pretending the world beneath the surface didn’t exist, pretending they didn’t exist. So no, I didn’t know what a Beta was. Not really.
I glanced at them. “A beta?”
Damian nodded. “Second in command. He handles things when we are not around.”
I nodded slowly, letting that sink in. The word settled differently now. Not foreign, but not quite familiar either. Just another reminder of how far from normal this life was.
Still, the air felt thick in my chest.
I shifted, trying to breathe through it. “So,” I said, “what’s the plan?”
Damian straightened slightly, like he’d been expecting the question. “Right now? Survival.”
Lucien remained silent, his eyes boring into the plate of food in front of him with his arms crossed.
“Mark isn’t just angry.” Damian continued, his voice steady. “He’s reckless. He’s pulling hunters together, arming them, giving them purpose. That makes our pack exposed.”
Noah nodded once. “They’re loud. Sloppy. But dangerous.”
“The serum changes things,” Damian said. “Every werewolf reacts to it. Even you and you’re a hybrid. That says something. Until we know how to counter it, we can’t risk open territory.”
I listened, my hands folded in my lap. Retreat. Hidden. The words stacked up, making me feel more nervous than ever.
Lucien finally spoke. “Which means we retreat too.”
I looked at him. “Here?”
“This safe house won’t hold,” he shook his head. “Not if hunters are already tracking movement. We have to go back to pack. We need to protect our people too.”
My stomach dropped.
“That’s… sudden,” I said. The word felt too small for what I meant. “I have school. A life. I can’t just...."
Lucien met my eyes. “You have to,” he said. “I won’t risk losing you.”
Just like that.
The words settled in slowly, softening something in my chest. I knew he meant well… every word came from a place of care. But still… it felt fast. Like everything was moving ahead of me, and I was just trying to catch up.
Damian stepped in before I could speak. “Rhea,” his hand brushed mine. “It’s not forever. Just until things settle. Until we know you’re safe.”
“You’ll like the pack,” Damian added. “They’ll protect you. And… it’ll feel different. In a good way.”
I wasn’t sure I believed him, but my shoulders loosened anyway.
Noah cleared his throat. “So,” he said, glancing between the three of us. “Is that the plan?”
Silence again.
I swallowed. My chest felt tight, but I nodded. “I guess it is.”
Lucien didn’t hesitate. “We leave tomorrow.”
Something inside me sagged at that.
I looked down at my plate. The eggs were cold now. The smell that had made me hungry earlier turned dull and heavy. I picked up my fork, then set it back down.
“I’m not hungry anymore,” I said quietly.
I stood up, pushing my chair back. My legs felt shaky, but I forced myself to move anyway.
Lucien reached out and caught my wrist. “Rhea.” His voice softened. “What’s wrong?”
I pulled my hand back gently. “Nothing,” I said. “I just want to rest.”
They didn’t believe me. I could feel it in the way their eyes followed me, in the silence that stretched too long.
I didn’t turn back. I walked down the hallway and closed the door behind me, slumping on the bed. My chest ached in a way I couldn’t explain.
Tomorrow.
The word echoed in my head, heavy and final.
And for the first time since the bond snapped into place, I found myself truly wondering what I was leaving behind. To be honest, I’m not sure. I really didn’t have a place here. Even my friend ditched me and even cheated with my so-called boyfriend who apparently is trying to kill me.
Maybe, it’s for the best.
The door creaked open and steps filled the room.
The bed dipped beside me, warmth pressing into my side. Lucien’s hand found mine, fingers slipping through like they belonged there. They did.
“Hey…”
It was barely a whisper, almost cautious. I stared at our joined hands, at the small fold between his fingers as it brushed my skin.
“I get it,” he said after a beat. “Not wanting to go, but we really have to.”
His voice was quiet but certain, like he’d been thinking it over just as much as I had.
“You can come back after everything settles. I mean, I’d rather you didn’t—” His mouth curved, teasing now, “either way, Damien and I would be with you.”
A soft sound slipped from me; half a laugh, half a sigh.
That was all it took.
He pulled me closer, arms folding around me like they’d done it a thousand times. My face pressed into his chest, and I let my eyes fall shut as his lips brushed my forehead. Just a kiss. But it melted something, brimming up a warm heat in my stomach.
Damien’s voice broke the silence before the door even fully opened. “Wow. You two bonding without me?”
I didn’t lift my head. Just nestled deeper into Lucien’s chest and let my gaze flick toward Damien, the smallest sliver of a look, before I buried my face again, ignoring him entirely.
Lucien huffed a quiet laugh.
Damien padded closer, and a second later, his lips brushed my forehead too, a lighter kiss than Lucien’s, but just as warm. “Traitor,” he murmured playfully, the edge of a grin in his voice.
Lucien’s tone shifted slightly, more grounded. “Has Noah left?”
Damien straightened. “Yeah. He also dropped some weapons. Just in case.”
Lucien nodded once, his hand rubbing slow circles against my back.
Damien clapped his hands together. “Great. Time to pack.”
I sighed quietly. So this was it. I wasn’t sure what exactly we were packing, we barely had anything to begin with, but I guess this is it. We were really leaving.