Chapter 33 033
~DERRICK~
I buried myself in the pile of reports spread across my desk, forcing my eyes to skim through the neat rows of words and numbers. Patrol updates. Resource allocation. Border disputes. Things that should have demanded my full attention.
Yet no matter how hard I tried, my mind refused to stay where my body was.
It drifted back....again and again....to the arena.
To her.
How could she have so little faith in me?
My jaw tightened as I clenched the parchment in my hand, crumpling the edge slightly. She had stormed in like a wildfire, eyes blazing, voice sharp with accusation, as if she already had me sentenced in her mind.
All that anger… over a few blows dealt to that ugly man.
A low growl rumbled in my chest.
‘You know we’re not exactly deserving of her faith, don’t you?’ Charles purred lazily, his voice dripping with amusement. ‘You’ve been nothing but a jerk to her since the day she arrived.’
I inhaled sharply through my nose.
As much as I hated it, he wasn’t wrong.
I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling, my fingers drumming against the armrest. I knew we hadn’t started on the right foot. I knew my actions....my words....had pushed her away more than once.
But still…
The fact that she could believe what she saw at face value without caring to understand what led to it....without giving me even a sliver of benefit of the doubt....stung far deeper than I expected.
“I thought she was rational,” I muttered under my breath, irritation seeping into my voice. “But her actions prove otherwise.”
The words barely left my mouth when my vision wavered.
The room tilted slightly, the edges blurring as though someone had smeared ink across my sight. A sudden wave of dizziness washed over me, making my stomach churn.
No.
Not now.
A cold dread crawled up my spine.
‘Can you feel that, Nicholas?’ Charles hissed, his tone losing its usual mockery. ‘He’s stirring again. Looks like he wants to take over.’
My heart slammed violently against my ribcage.
I shot up from my chair so abruptly that it scraped loudly against the floor. The sudden movement sent another dizzy spell crashing through me, but I forced my legs to move.
I staggered toward the far wall of my study, where a reinforced safe was embedded discreetly behind a painting. Each step felt lighter than it should, my body strangely disconnected....as if I were losing my grip on myself.
Why does it always have to be now?
A sharp grunt escaped my lips as my fingers fumbled with the lock. My hands trembled, sweat breaking out along my temples as whispers began to rise in my head....faint at first, then louder, more insistent.
Unlock it.
Hurry.
I twisted the mechanism just as my knees threatened to give out. The safe clicked open, and I practically collapsed forward, grabbing the small bottle nestled inside.
Black liquid sloshed inside the glass.
My salvation.
I popped the lid open with shaky fingers....but fate chose that moment to betray me.
The bottle slipped.
Time seemed to slow as it fell, shattering against the floor with a sharp crack. The dark potion spilled across the stone, spreading like inked blood.
“Ahhh!” I groaned in pain and frustration, dropping to my knees as the whispers surged violently in my head.
They clawed at my thoughts, demanding control.
I couldn’t let him surface.
Not again.
Without hesitation, I leaned down and began licking the spilled potion from the floor, ignoring the shards of glass biting into my skin.
“Ouch!” I hissed as the bitter, acrid taste flooded my mouth, making my stomach lurch in disgust.
It tasted like ash and rot.
But relief followed almost instantly.
The whispers faded.
The pressure in my skull eased.
My breathing slowed as warmth spread through my veins, grounding me back into my body. The haze lifted from my vision, sharpening everything around me until the room snapped back into focus.
The unnatural chill that had crept into the air receded, the temperature settling back to normal.
I slumped onto the floor, chest heaving.
“What is that jerk doing this time?” I groaned, anger and exhaustion tangling in my voice.
Of course, there was no answer.
There never was.
‘Don’t you think it’s strange?’ Charles murmured thoughtfully. ‘He’s been trying to surface more often lately. And it’s not even that time of the year.’
I pushed myself up slowly, my limbs heavy as I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.
“Yes,” I muttered. “It’s strange.”
Too strange.
Before I could think further, a knock echoed through the room.
“Alpha, it’s....”
Scott’s voice cut off abruptly as he stepped inside.
I turned just in time to see his gaze flicker around the room....the overturned chair, the shattered bottle, the dark stains on the floor.
Then his eyes locked onto me.
“What is going on?” he asked cautiously. “Alpha… was that you?”
He subtly shifted into a defensive stance, muscles tensing, ready to react.
I hissed sharply.
“Do I look like him?” I snapped, irritation flaring.
Scott stiffened, guilt flashing across his face.
“I....I’m sorry,” he said quickly, bowing his head. “I shouldn’t have assumed.”
I exhaled slowly, pushing past him and returning to my desk, forcing my expression into something neutral.
“It’s fine,” I said curtly.
It wasn’t his fault.
He had seen what the other one was capable of. He had watched me lose control before....had nearly lost his life because of it.
Caution kept him alive.
“What were you trying to tell me before?” I asked, cutting straight to the point.
Scott nodded and began reporting on border movements, resource shortages, and patrol rotations. His voice was steady, professional, but my mind was elsewhere.
Disorganized.
Foggy.
I rubbed my temple, the earlier struggle still lingering in my body.
“Report this another time,” I interrupted quietly. “I’m not feeling well.”
Scott paused, concern etched across his face, then nodded.
“As you wish, Alpha,” he said, turning to leave. “Please take care of yourself. And… don’t force yourself to hold on if it becomes too much.”
The door closed behind him.
I sagged slightly in my chair.
Scott knew my struggle better than anyone. He had witnessed the worst of it and yet remained loyal.
A rare kind of man.
“Why is he surfacing so frequently?” I murmured to myself, my gaze drifting back to the dark stain on the floor. “Maybe it’s time I visited that woman again.”
My jaw clenched.
What she warned me about before… it might actually be happening.
And faster than I feared.
How long would I have to live like this?
Was there even an end to it?
“Just hold on,” I whispered, more to myself than anyone else.
The door burst open again.
I jerked upright.
Scott stood there, chest rising rapidly as he struggled to catch his breath.
“What is going on now?” I demanded. “Didn’t you just leave?”
“You need to come....now,” he said urgently.
I frowned. “Is the pack under attack?”
He shook his head.
I turned back toward the desk dismissively. “Then it can wait.”
“No!” Scott barked. “You have to come to the arena.”
That got my attention.
I rose slowly, suspicion crawling through me. “What are you talking about?”
He swallowed hard.
“Your mate,” he said. “She’s… she’s going wild.”
My eyes twitched.
My mate?
That woman?
“What is that troublemaker up to now?!” I roared, fury surging as I stormed past him toward the door.
Whatever she had done this time....
I was going to put a stop to it.
Immediately.