Chapter 46 Kaden's POV
My phone rang at eleven at night.
I was in my office, going over security reports for the hundredth time, when Damian's name flashed on the screen.
"What's wrong?" I answered immediately.
"It's Elara, she had a nightmare, a bad one. She is asking for me but I think you should be here too."
I was already moving. "I'm on my way."
I ran through the hallways, taking the stairs two at a time. When I reached Elara's quarters, the guards were standing outside looking shaken.
"What happened?" I demanded.
"She woke up screaming, Alpha, we have never heard anything like it."
I pushed past them into the room.
Elara was on the bed, curled into a ball, Damian sitting beside her speaking in low, soothing tones. She was shaking violently, her face pale, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Elara.” I said softly.
She looked up and when she saw me, something in her expression crumbled. "Kaden."
I moved to the bed, sitting on the other side of her. "I'm here, you are safe."
"The wolves," she whispered. "They were hunting me, tearing me apart and Selena was there, she was leading them."
I exchanged glances with Damian. He looked worried.
"It was just a dream," I said gently.
"None of it was real."
"It felt real the pain of the blood they were going to kill the baby."
Her hand pressed against her stomach protectively.
"The baby is fine," Damian assured her.
"Everything is fine. It was just a nightmare brought on by stress."
"Can you give us a moment?" I asked Damian.
He nodded and stood. "I will be right outside if you need me."
When we were alone, I carefully reached out and took Elara's hand; she didn't pull away.
"Look at me," I said.
She lifted her eyes to mine.
"No one is going to hurt you or the baby. I promise. I will die before I let anything happen to either of you."
"You can't promise that."
"Yes, I can. And I am." I squeezed her hand gently.
"I know you are scared. I know what Selena said today was horrific but you are safe here. The guards won't let anyone near you. Damian is monitoring your health. And I'm watching everything."
"I don't know if I can do this," She whispered.
"I live in fear every day wondering if someone's going to try to kill me again."
"You won't have to, I'm going to fix this permanently."
She looked at me. "How?"
"By dealing with Selena once and for all."
I stayed with Elara until she fell back asleep. It took hours. Every time she started to drift off, she would jerk awake, panicked, checking to make sure I was still there.
Finally, around three in the morning, exhaustion won and she slept.
I sat there watching her for a while longer, making sure the sleep held this time. Then I carefully stood and left the room.
But I wasn't going back to my office.
I was going to see Selena.
She was staying in the guest house on her father's estate, just outside pack territory. Technically, she wasn't allowed on Blue Moon land, but the guest house sat right on the border. Close enough to be a constant reminder that she was still here, still a threat.
I drove there in silence, my mind focused on one thing, making her understand that what she had done was unforgivable.
The guards at the gate tried to stop me.
"Alpha Kaden," one of them said nervously. "Mr. Voss didn't mention you'd be visiting."
"I don't need his permission to be here, move aside."
They hesitated, then stepped back. No one wanted to challenge an Alpha in this mood. I walked up to the guest house and knocked once hard enough that the sound echoed.
Selena opened the door and she was in pajamas, her hair down, makeup off. She looked surprised to see me.
"Kaden? What are you-"
I pushed past her into the house. "We need to talk."
"It's three in the morning."
"I don't care what time it is." I turned to face her. "What you said to Elara today was beyond unacceptable."
Selena closed the door and crossed her arms. "I was offering her a way out, a chance at a better life."
"You offered her money to murder our child."
"I offered her money to end a pregnancy that's causing problems for everyone. That's not the same thing."
"Yes, it is. And if you ever ever suggest something like that again, I will forget about politics and alliances and I will tear you apart myself."
Selena's expression hardened. "Is that a threat?"
"It is a promise."
"You can't touch me, Kaden my father would-"
"Your father can't protect you from everything. Especially not from an Alpha protecting his family."
She laughed bitterly. "Your family? You rejected her! You threw her away! Don't pretend you care now just because she's pregnant!"
"I made a mistake. One I'm trying to fix."
"By choosing her over me? Over the pack? Over everything we could have had together?"
"There was never a we, Selena. That was an arrangement made by our families. Not a choice I made."
"And she is? Some omega servant with no family, no status, no power? That's who you choose?"
"Yes."
The word hung between us.
Selena stared at me, and I saw something break in her expression. The anger faded, replaced by something worse: desperation.
"I love you," She said, her voice cracking.
"I've loved you since I was sixteen years old. I've done everything…everything to be worthy of you. And you're throwing it all away for her."
"I never asked for your love, I never promised you anything."
"You didn't have to! It was supposed to be us! Everyone said so! The elders, our families, the entire pack!"
"Well, everyone was wrong."
She was crying now, tears streaming down her face. "Please, Kaden, please just give me a chance. Send her away and forget about the baby. We can still fix this, we can still have everything we were supposed to have."
"No, Selena. We can't."
"Why not? Why is she so important to you?"
"Because she is my mate because the heavens chose her for me. Because despite everything I did to push her away, I love her."
The confession surprised even me but as soon as I said it, I knew it was true. I loved Elara completely desperately. In a way that terrified me.
"You love her," Selena repeated numbly.
"Yes."
"More than you could ever love me."
"I could never love you, Selena. I'm sorry, but it's the truth."
Something in her eyes changed the desperate sadness twisted into something darker. Something dangerous.
"Get out," She said quietly.
"Selena-"
"Get out of my house. Now."
I turned to leave, relieved that this conversation was finally over. Then I heard a gasp and a cry of pain.
I spun around.
Selena was on the floor, a knife in her hand, blood spreading across her thigh. She had actually stabbed herself in the leg.
"What did you do?" I moved toward her.
"Stay back!" She screamed. "Guards! Help! Help me!"
The door burst open her father's guards rushed in, weapons drawn. They saw Selena on the floor, bleeding, crying. And they saw me standing over her..
"He attacked me!" Selena sobbed. "He came here and when I refused him, he stabbed me!"
"That's not what happened!" I said. "She stabbed herself!"
"Liar!" Selena screamed. "He's lying! He tried to kill me!"
The guards surrounded me, their weapons pointed at my chest.