Chapter 2: Secrets

Kendrick’s POV

The light was dim, filtering through the high kitchen windows, casting shadows that seemed to dance as I walked into the quiet room. But then, there was a sound, soft, unexpected. Singing. Her voice, untrained and raw, yet filled with a haunting melody.

I stepped forward, my boots scuffing against the tile floor. Her singing stopped, and she whipped her head up, startled. Alison's wide eyes met mine as she knelt on the kitchen floor, scrubbing, looking every bit the slave she was a mere servant in the Silver Moon Pack, where I'd held dominance and strength for years. But there was something different in her gaze that unnerved me, though I’d never admit it aloud.

"How long have you been here, Alison?" I asked, the words slipping out of my mouth before I could think them through.

She swallowed, then answered in a voice so quiet I almost didn't hear it. "17 years, Alpha."

Seventeen years. Seventeen years of watching her serve in silence, her presence nothing more than background noise, her life a flicker in the vast landscape of my own power. And yet, for some reason, I felt an odd curiosity to understand this girl, this woman who had silently woven herself into the fabric of my pack.

“Stand up,” I ordered.

Her hands trembled as she set the scrub brush aside, lifting herself with the barest hint of defiance. A flicker of something rebellious flashed in her eyes, a spark that had no place here. But I ignored it, drawing closer, circling her as though she were prey. The faintest scent of lavender and something uniquely hers hit my senses. I didn’t want to accept this pull, but it tugged at something buried deep within me, something animalistic and raw.

"Have you gotten your wolf yet?" My voice held an edge, as if her answer would determine her worth.

"No," she replied, her gaze dropping to the floor. Despite her weakness, despite her quiet compliance, I sensed an underlying strength, one that refused to break, no matter how much I pushed her.

“Why aren’t you afraid of me?” I pressed, my tone sharper now, probing. She was defiant but obedient, a balance that infuriated and intrigued me. I could sense that she had opinions, thoughts she kept buried. She could air them if she wanted to, yet she didn’t. Not with me.

She hesitated, her lips parting as if to say something, then closing them, trapping her words behind a veil of fear. I leaned closer, something primal roaring to life within me, my senses sharpening, my control slipping.

With one swift movement, I wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her against my body. She gasped, and the sound broke through the haze, sending a surge of satisfaction through me. She may have resisted the idea of fear, but her body betrayed her. Her heartbeat hammered against my chest, and I knew, then, that I had her under my power.

"Alpha, please, no," she whispered, her voice laced with desperation, eyes wide with apprehension. A thrill coursed through me.. my wolf stirring at her protest.

The anger, the challenge, the pure defiance in her tone.. what right did she have to question me? I spun her, pressing her back against the wall, pinning her there, her face a mixture of terror and confusion. My hand snaked up to her neck, thumb tracing the delicate line of her pulse, savoring the fear I could feel pulsing beneath her skin.

"Why are you resisting me?" I demanded, my voice rough, my control slipping as I let the beast within rise. "Do you not find me worthy, or is it something else?"

Her lips trembled, and I could see the words forming, but they stayed locked behind clenched teeth. The silence, that silent defiance, ignited a fury within me, an animalistic need to remind her exactly who she was, who I was.

"You’re nothing but a slave," I hissed, tightening my grip slightly. "Someone I can do with as I please, whenever I please. Remember that.”

Without waiting for a response, I leaned down, capturing her mouth in a brutal, possessive kiss, forcing her to understand her place. Her struggle, faint but real, only fueled my dominance. She was powerless under me, and I wanted her to know it. She gasped against me, her hands pushing weakly against my chest, but it was useless. Her strength could never match mine.

Then, a subtle tap at the open door startled me, breaking the kiss.

"Alpha!" Silas, my Beta, cleared his throat from the doorway, eyes averted yet respectful. "I apologize for the interruption. I have news that requires your attention."

I exhaled heavily, forcing myself to let go of her. Alison collapsed to the floor, her back sliding down the wall, her breathing ragged. She barely glanced up at me as she clutched her neck, her skin already blooming with faint bruises. Something in me almost softened at the sight but I hardened my heart, dismissing the thought.

I turned to Silas, my voice cold. "Speak."

With one last glance at Alison, I strode out of the kitchen, feeling her gaze linger on my back. Silas fell in beside me, his tone dropping to a confidential murmur as he filled me in on the pack’s current affairs.

“There’s a council meeting scheduled,” he began, keeping pace with my brisk stride. “It’s an opportunity to strengthen our alliances, perhaps with Nightfang. I heard Alpha Xander would be present at the meeting, We’ll need their support soon.”

I nodded, half-listening as my mind drifted back to the kitchen, the look on Alison’s face, the way she’d looked at me as though she held some kind of power over me. She didn’t, of course, but something about her grated against my control, threatening to expose a part of me I wasn’t ready to ever confront.

“Alpha?” Silas’s voice cut through my thoughts, jolting me back to the present. “Are you certain about your engagement to Priya? There are whispers in the pack that—”

“Whispers?” I sneered, my voice laced with contempt. “Let them whisper. The engagement with Priya is strategic. With her beside me, I’ll gain the alliances I need.” My tone grew colder. “It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks.”

Silas hesitated, glancing around before lowering his voice even further. “And...Alison?”

I stopped in my tracks, fixing him with a warning glare. "What about her?"

Silas’s gaze faltered, but he pressed on, his voice barely a whisper. “Alpha, I know it’s not my place, but... You know she’s your mate.”

The word left his lips like a poison, slithering into the air between us, stirring something deep and instinctual. I had sensed it two years ago, felt the strange pull toward her, still feel it when ever she is within reach, but I refused to let it control me. Not her. Not a slave. She could never be my Luna.

“She’s nothing to me,” I replied, my voice steely. “And she will never be anything more than a servant in this pack. If you value your position as Beta, I suggest you keep such thoughts to yourself.”

Silas nodded, though there was a glimmer of something in his gaze, a hint of doubt. But he wisely dropped the subject, returning to matters of the pack.

We rounded the corner toward my quarters when a thought struck me, and I turned to him. “Send out the invitations to Priya’s engagement and wedding ceremony. I want it to be the grandest affair in the entire history of Silver Moon Pack. We’re securing our future, our alliances.”

Silas nodded again, his expression impassive, but I could tell he was suppressing his own thoughts. Good. My wolf stirred, restless, but I pushed it back. Alison can never be my mate nor my Luna, and nothing would change that. I couldn’t afford weakness... not now, not ever.

As I walked away, I felt an inexplicable tightness in my chest, a discomfort that lingered like a thorn under my skin. I forced myself to ignore it, but her face, the raw vulnerability, the faint bruises seemed burned into my mind. I clenched my jaw, shoving the memory aside. This was a distraction, nothing more.

In my world, weakness had no place.