Chapter 6
- Rhea's POV
- “Let go of me!” I hissed the second the heavy oak doors of the bridal suite slammed shut behind us.
- Jaxon didn't just let go; he shoved me back toward the velvet sofa. I stumbled, my heavy silk train tangling around my ankles, before I hit the cushions hard. The diamond necklace felt like an iron collar choking my throat.
- “You stupid, reckless girl,” Jaxon growled, pacing the room like a caged beast. His eyes were still flashing between bright gold and pitch black, his wild Alpha aura filling the room so thick it made the air feel hot and thin. “Do you have any idea what you just did out there?”
- “What ‘I’ did?” I shouted back, ripping the lace veil off my head and throwing it to the floor. “You’re the one who bit me! You’re the one who stared at me like you were going to rip me to pieces in front of the entire High Council! I did exactly what Kaelen told me to do!”
- “The elixir didn’t hide it,” Jaxon said, stopping dead in his tracks and glaring down at me. He looked absolutely terrifying, his broad shoulders breathing heavily under his tuxedo. “The smell might fool a blind priest, Rhea, but the taste of your blood doesn't lie. It didn't taste like an Alpha. It didn't taste like Vivienne.”
- Panic clutched my stomach. “Did they notice? Did the elders see through it?”
- “No,” Jaxon spat, his voice dropping into a dark, angry whisper. “Because I lied for you. I covered your tracks. If I hadn't, the executioners would have dragged you to the courtyard and chopped your head off before the final vows were even finished.”
- “Then why are you yelling at me?” I demanded, standing up from the sofa despite the pain in my bruised toes. I forced myself to match his glare, using every ounce of street-born defiance I had. “If the lie worked, we’re safe! You get your alliance, I get my million dollars, and we never have to look at each other again after three months!”
- “We aren't safe,” Jaxon growled, stepping forward until he was completely crowding my space. He reached out, his massive hand grabbing my wrist. His grip wasn't crushing, but it was inescapable. “And we are never going to be done with each other, Rhea.”
- “What are you talking about?” I whispered, my heart hammering against my ribs.
- “My wolf recognized your blood,” Jaxon whispered, his face leaning down until his dark hair brushed my forehead. His scent, dark cedar and freezing winter air flooded my senses, making my inner wolf howl with a strange, desperate hunger. “The elixir masked your rank, but it couldn't mask the soul. You aren't just a stray Omega from the gutters, Rhea. You are my Fated Mate.”
- The word hit me like a physical blow. ‘Fated Mate.’
- “No,” I gasped, trying to pull my wrist out of his iron grip. “No, that’s impossible! You’re a Tyrant Alpha! A royal bloodline! I’m a rogue Omega! The Moon Goddess wouldn't make a mistake like that!”
- “The Goddess doesn't care about social ranks,” Jaxon growled, his thumb tracing the racing pulse on my wrist. “I felt the bond snap into place the exact second my fangs broke your skin. My wolf wants to claim you right now. He wants to tear this fake dress off you and mark you properly in front of the whole world.”
- “Don't touch me!” I screeched, using my free hand to push against his massive, hard chest. “I don't care about your wolf! I don't care about the bond! I am here for a job, Jaxon! Just a job!”
- “Do you think I wanted this?” Jaxon roared back, finally letting go of my wrist and throwing his hands up in frustration. “I am supposed to marry an Alpha heiress to secure a war treaty! Instead, the universe gives me a nameless street rat who smells like cheap black-market chemicals! If the elders find out my Fated Mate is a rogue Omega, my enemies will use it to destroy everything I’ve built!”
- “Then let me go!” I yelled, pointing at the window. “Tell them I died! Tell them I ran away like the real Vivienne! Give me my money and let me go back to the city!”
- “You can’t leave!” a sharp voice barked from the doorway.
- I spun around. Kaelen was standing there, his face completely pale, his hands shaking as he quickly locked the door behind him.
- “Kaelen,” I gasped, rushing toward him like he was a lifeline. “Tell him! Tell him this is crazy! We need to abort the plan right now!”
- “We can’t abort, Rhea,” Kaelen said, his voice tight with pure panic. “The High Council elders just called an emergency meeting in the grand hall. They didn't completely buy the Alpha’s lie. They think Vivienne’s sudden cooperation is suspicious.”
-
- Jaxon turned slowly, his golden eyes narrowing. “What do they want, Kaelen?”
- “They are demanding a second verification ritual tonight at the wedding feast,” Kaelen whispered, looking between Jaxon and me. “They want the High Priest to use the Lunar Mirror. It’s an ancient artifact that forces a wolf’s true inner form and rank to reflect in the glass. Scent suppressants and amber elixirs won't work against it.”
- My breath caught in my throat. My knees felt weak, and I had to grab the back of a chair to keep from falling. “The Lunar Mirror? If I look into that... they’ll see my Omega wolf. They’ll know instantly.”
- “Yes,” Kaelen muttered, rubbing his face in exhaustion. “They will know you are a fraud. And by law, cheating a High Council marriage treaty carries a mandatory penalty of death by public burning. For you, for me, and for everyone involved.”
- I looked over at Jaxon. His face had gone completely still, carved from cold stone. The anger was gone, replaced by a deadly, calculating focus.
- “How long do we have before the feast?” Jaxon asked calmly.
- “Two hours, Alpha,” Kaelen replied. “The elders are guarding the chapel doors. We can't smuggle her out of the castle. The perimeter is locked down tighter than a vault.”
- “Then we have only one choice,” Jaxon said, turning his golden gaze back to me.
- “What choice?” I asked, my voice trembling. “You just said it yourself, the mirror will show my true rank. There’s no medicine that can stop an ancient magical artifact!”
- Jaxon walked over to me, his heavy footsteps echoing in the quiet room. He stopped right in front of me, his massive shadow completely covering my body.
- “There is one way to fool the mirror, Rhea,” Jaxon said, his voice dropping into a deep, gravelly tone that sent a strange warmth shooting through my veins. “The Lunar Mirror reflects the soul's current allegiance. If an Omega is completely unmarked, the mirror shows her raw, individual rank. But if she is fully claimed by a dominant Alpha... the mirror reflects the rank of her pack leader to protect the pack’s bloodline privacy.”
- I stared at him, my eyes wide with sudden horror as I realized what he was suggesting. “No. No way.”