ODINStanding on the other side of the glass door, I watched him.His shivering figure huddled outside in the storm, barely holding himself upright. The doors and windows of this house were all glass. One-way glass. So I could see everything outside, yet he couldn’t see me within. I'd been watching him the entire time since the storm began, since the rain turned intense and the fragile roof of his shack gave in.As I had expected, he came to me for shelter.The wealthy human trash, Damon Darcy, reduced to nothing but a trembling figure. A man who would manipulate and ruin innocent life when he gets tired of them but now kneel in order to save his own pitiful life.His fist hit the door weakly. "Are you asleep?" he called out, his
ZEUSA sudden crack of lightning split the sky and its roar vibrated through the air. Startled, I broke eye contact with the Alpha and turned to see the damage with wide eyes. The bolt had struck the tree I had been sleeping under not too long ago. My heart pounded as the realization hit me, if I’d stayed there, I would be dead.Instinctively backing away, I stumbled, only to feel my back collide with something solid. I froze.It was him. The Alpha. He was standing right behind me.“Follow me,” he whispered, his deep voice brushing against my ear like a sinister caress.A shiver ran down my spine as the heat of his breath sent an involuntary jolt through my body. I turned quickly to face him, only to find that he’d already walked ahead.I grabbed his wrist to stop him. “Where?”He tilted his head slightly, his brown eyes drifting to my hand before meeting mine. “To the house,” he simply stated.My heart raced, unsure whether it was from the storm or his words. “Are you helping me? Why
*Zeus*Pain.That’s all I felt as I came to, my head pounding like it had been split open. A dull ache throbbed, warm and cold all at once, and I realized blood—both dry and fresh—was smeared across my forehead. I shifted, wincing as my eyes fought to open, each blink a struggle against the sticky darkness. For a moment, all I could see was black, blinding black, then a sickly blur that forced my eyes shut again.After a second, I braced myself, sucking in a shallow breath as I tried again. This time, my vision cleared just enough to show a haze of shadows, and I got the sense that I wasn’t alone. But it wasn’t because anyone else was here; no, it was more the way the darkness closed in around me. Pressing down. Suffocating.A chill spread through me as I felt the hard surface under my back. Cold and hard. Stone? Maybe hard packed dirt. I couldn’t tell. My whole body screamed as I pushed myself upright, every muscle in me stiff and aching, like I’d been crushed under something heavy.
**Zeus**For the first time in my life, I felt chills at being called Damon. Every face, name, and power play in Damon’s world was etched into my memory like a ghost. I hadn’t just studied Damon’s life, I’d absorbed it, drilled into me by Victor over the years. His enemies, allies, friends, even obscure acquaintances… I knew them all. Their faces, their sins, their individual stakes in Damon’s empire, each piece embedded as deeply as my own childhood memories. I could call up the name of a distant cousin Damon hadn’t spoken to in years or the backstory of a mistress hidden away for “family honor.” These people existed like ghosts, ready to come to life in my mind whenever the role demanded it.But this man… this man with those intense brown eyes and that presence sharp as steel… he wasn’t among them. No name, no whispers, no power that I could link back to Damon’s world. His face held a confidence that matched Damon’s, yet I couldn’t place him anywhere in the network of people Damon
ZEUSThe last thing I wanted to hear after threatening my kidnapper was a casual, “Sounds good.” Those two words sent a chill through me, a clear hint that things were only going to get worse. I could feel the warmth of his chest retreating as he pulled me from the tree. My twisted arm was released, but before I could even lower it to my side, he was dragging me forward again. I was caught off guard. “Where are you taking me?!” I demanded, struggling to keep up as the feeling slowly returned to my legs. “Stop dragging me! Let me go!” I twisted, using every ounce of strength I had to break free from his iron gasp, but it was like he was deaf, or just didn’t care. He’d already declared me his prisoner, his “slave,” and my protests seemed to mean nothing to him.“Let go!” I snarled through my teeth, looking around frantically. The trees were dense and twisted, looming over us like silent giants. The air smelled foreign, damp and earthy, and the distant calls of strange birds echoed in th
ZEUSThe way he said "beast" made something twist inside me. There was an edge to his words, a dark promise that suggested something far worse than just violence. And…could it be? …his voice, it sounded like two voices merged into one, as if something else, someone else, was speaking along with him. An animal. Was my mind slipping, or had I really heard that? I couldn't afford to second-guess myself. Hours of captivity were already beginning to blur my senses, drawing me into a spiral of doubt. If I didn’t escape, I’d be lost to this man’s madness.“Look, I really don’t know why you’re doing this to me.” My voice was steady, but desperation clawed at the edges. “I haven’t killed anyone. And if you believe I have, let’s go to the police. They’ll decide whether I’m guilty. I’ll accept punishment if they prove it, okay? Let’s handle this like civilized adults…”“Police?” He chuckled, a low, dark sound that echoed through the trees, filling the silence with a sinister hum. I froze, feeling
ODINRegret clawed at me like a ghost that refused to be exorcized, lingering in every empty space where her laughter should have been. I had been close enough to catch her, close enough to reach her, if only I’d acted a moment sooner. She would still be smiling and calling me brother. But I was just a second too late. All I could do was watch as her body plummeted from the top floor of the apartment building, swallowed by a silence that tore at me as her life slipped away right in front of my eyes. I couldn’t protect her. Lynn. My baby sister. The one I remember cradling in my arms the day she was born, her tiny fingers curling around mine, so fragile yet so full of life.Now, eighteen years later, I cradle her again, but all that life was gone.Just three months ago, she’d been dragging me around town, excited about college, demanding I buy her everything she’d need, and begging me for an apartment close to campus. She’d wanted so badly to live on her own, experience life outside the
ZEUS A pair of brown, animal-like eyes, hairy hands that looked almost like claws…I rubbed my eyes and blinked away the images, muttering, “What kind of shitty dream was that?” My head was still foggy, my senses playing tricks. Admittedly, the guy who’d kidnapped me had an intimidating presence. Strong, silent, with a piercing look that unnerved me. But to think that he was something more than human? A monster or… worse? Ridiculous.“What the hell am I even thinking?” I scolded myself. It hadn’t been twenty-four hours since he’d dragged me into this nightmare, and already I was losing my grip on reality. But as the hazy memories settled, one came into focus, as clear as if it were happening again: “Call me Alpha.” His voice had been low, commanding, with an underlying edge that felt… powerful. Like he owned not just the moment, but everything within reach. Including me.“Alpha?” I muttered, the name feeling strange on my tongue. There was something unnervingly fitting about it. He wa
ZEUSA sudden crack of lightning split the sky and its roar vibrated through the air. Startled, I broke eye contact with the Alpha and turned to see the damage with wide eyes. The bolt had struck the tree I had been sleeping under not too long ago. My heart pounded as the realization hit me, if I’d stayed there, I would be dead.Instinctively backing away, I stumbled, only to feel my back collide with something solid. I froze.It was him. The Alpha. He was standing right behind me.“Follow me,” he whispered, his deep voice brushing against my ear like a sinister caress.A shiver ran down my spine as the heat of his breath sent an involuntary jolt through my body. I turned quickly to face him, only to find that he’d already walked ahead.I grabbed his wrist to stop him. “Where?”He tilted his head slightly, his brown eyes drifting to my hand before meeting mine. “To the house,” he simply stated.My heart raced, unsure whether it was from the storm or his words. “Are you helping me? Why
ODINStanding on the other side of the glass door, I watched him.His shivering figure huddled outside in the storm, barely holding himself upright. The doors and windows of this house were all glass. One-way glass. So I could see everything outside, yet he couldn’t see me within. I'd been watching him the entire time since the storm began, since the rain turned intense and the fragile roof of his shack gave in.As I had expected, he came to me for shelter.The wealthy human trash, Damon Darcy, reduced to nothing but a trembling figure. A man who would manipulate and ruin innocent life when he gets tired of them but now kneel in order to save his own pitiful life.His fist hit the door weakly. "Are you asleep?" he called out, his
ZEUSAt 14, I sat before the mirror, dressed in high-end clothes, doused in branded perfume, a luxury watch gleaming on my wrist, and sporting a haircut identical to the boy staring back at me. A reflection of someone I no longer recognized. As I stepped into the world of the elite, masquerading as the heir to one of the most powerful men in the country, I realized something irrevocable: my existence had vanished.Zeus was gone.In his place, Damon was born.“Remember…” A large hand covered half my face, and I glimpsed him through the gaps of his fingers as he whispered in my ear, “From now on, you are me.”I jolted awake with a gasp. Thunder roared and lightning flashed, illuminating the dark confines of the rickety shack where I lay. The storm outside was relentless, shaking the very walls of my fragile refuge. My chest heaved as the memories I’d buried clawed their way back to the surface.After a moment of catching my breath, I sat up on the makeshift hay bed and turned to the sma
Huffing, I stomped my feet and climbed down to gather the tools. Wasn’t this an overreaction over an old toolbox?Thankfully, nothing was broken. I glanced up at the Alpha. “What do I do now?”“Take it all inside,” he ordered curtly.Reluctantly, I turned and entered the house. It was a beautiful place, filled with antique furniture, but coated in layers of dirt and cobwebs. It seemed abandoned. Placing the toolbox down, I was about to leave when a small photo frame caught my attention. I reached out to grab it.“What are you doing?” the Alpha’s voice boomed through the room.Startled, I quickly pulled my hand back without even looking at the photo. “I was just looking around. This seems like a very old house,” I said, turnin
ZEUS“Join me…” he whispered, his voice calm but laced with something I couldn’t place.I blinked, confusion thick in my voice. “Join you for what?”Next, I found myself on the rooftop of the wooden house. The Alpha carried a pile of flat boards in one hand, the other casually balanced a toolbox like it weighed nothing. Meanwhile, I was struggling just to keep my knees from giving out. Fuck my curiosity from earlier. Why had I come here instead of resting in the shack? If only I had known he was going to be fixing the roof and I would have to follow him around like a servant. Even at this height. A cold sweat broke out across my forehead when I glanced down. The height. The nauseating height.My breath hitched, and memories I’d buried clawed their way back into my mind. The sharp pain, the sickening crunch, the blood pooling around me...My legs wobbled like they had forgotten how to stand. Panic crept in, tightening my chest. Without thinking, my hand shot out, gripping the Alpha’s
ZEUSBut something about the complexity of it all didn’t sit right with me. The coordination, the precision. It must’ve cost a fortune.I scoffed, my frustration spilling into words. “Is that wild man wealthy?” I muttered under my breath.Cade’s cold voice broke my thoughts. “Follow me,” he instructed, already heading toward the woods.I sighed and quickly laced up my shoes, begrudgingly following him.Our first stop was the river. Cade handed me three large bottles and motioned for me to fill them with fresh water. Carrying them back to the shack nearly broke my arms. I was drenched in sweat by the time we arrived.
ZeusI stared at the Alpha in complete disbelief, my brain trying to process his statement. Enemies with benefits? Was this some kind of joke?My mind flickered back to the last time I’d been with someone. A Brazilian beauty during a rare three-day break from work. It had been... fine, but forgettable. Sex had never been a big deal to me, just a minor distraction from my singular focus: money. One-night stands were the extent of my interest, and even then it was few and far between.But this? This was something else entirely. The offer was shocking enough, but coming from him, a self-proclaimed straight werewolf willing to make an exception for me was almost laughable.Then I caught the way he looked at me. I was some kind of filthy, desperate thing. A manwhore in his eyes.My jaw clenched tightly as my pride took a hit. “I’m not gay. And even if I were, you would be the last person I’d ever choose,” I spat, glaring into his cold eyes.He tilted his head lazily, his expression one of
ODINStanding by the window, I took a long slow drag of my cigarette as I watched the sunrise bleed colors across the horizon. It was stunning, as usual. It was a reminder that life continued at its own pace, indifferent to my sleepless nights. Since Lynn’s death, sleep had become a distant memory. My eyes drifted, almost against my will, to the clearing where he lay curled up, tied but somehow managing to look absurdly comfortable. Damon. His lean figure was nestled by the chopped woodpile, his expression softened in sleep, though his brows furrowed every so often. His lips seemed soft, plump, and maddeningly inviting, would part to mutter curses at the mosquitoes circling him. For someone so terrified of being devoured by a wild animal, he was surprisingly unguarded. Carefree. And infuriatingly... alluring.I scowled, forcing my gaze away but finding it impossible to fully shake the image. So stupid and irritating, I muttered under my breath. The bastard was human trash—a liar, a m
ZEUSThe piercing scream of a bat shattered the silence between us, snapping me out of the intense stare I was locked in with the Alpha. My head instinctively jerked upward in alarm. The forest around us had grown darker. Evening had already fallen. Wild animals were waking up. Their cries were just creepy in the stillness of night. Suddenly, the Alpha’s hand shifted from my waist to my wrist.. Instinctively, I glanced up at him, but the moment our eyes met, my breath caught. The warmth I’d seen before was gone, replaced by something dark and furious.Without a word, he yanked me forward, his pace insane as if he was flying in the air.“What the hell are you doing?!” I hissed, stumbling as I struggled to keep up..The sharp pain in my wrist made me wince, and I wriggled in protest. “Let go! You’re hurting me!” I yelled, anger and panic boiling over.He didn’t stop. He didn’t even glance in my direction.I stumbled along, cursing him under my breath, fighting against his strong grip. B