Change in behaviour

As I walked back to my room, my mind raced with confusion and anger. Kade's sudden shift in tone had left me reeling. He had spent so much time treating me like an inconvenience—his enemy even. But for a moment, just a fleeting moment, there was something softer in his voice. It wasn’t enough to convince me he wasn’t a monster, but it was enough to keep me awake tonight, questioning everything.

I shook my head, scoffing under my breath. "What the hell is wrong with me? Since when does 'clean yourself up' count as sweet?"

Yet, I couldn’t deny the flicker of something I’d seen in his eyes. It wasn’t just anger or frustration. There was hesitation, maybe even a hint of… concern? That thought made me stop in my tracks. Concern wasn’t something I associated with Kade. He was a brute, a dictator, someone who seemed to view me as an inconvenience at best and a burden at worst.

But then, why hadn’t he punished me for eavesdropping? Why hadn’t he locked me up, as he so often did before? Why had he told the maids to take care of me instead of tossing me back into that filthy whore house?

Once inside my room, I shut the door behind me and leaned against it, exhaling deeply. The room was now cleaned up with the meat taken but The blood and grime on my skin were a stark reminder of how I fought with the bitches. I needed to clean up, but I also needed answers. The meeting I’d overheard played on a loop in my mind, each fragment of conversation weaving into a troubling picture. Packs were planning to fight. And me? I was some kind of liability, apparently.

A knock at the door startled me. I straightened immediately, my body tensing.

“Who is it?” I called out, trying to keep the unease from my voice.

“Maids,” a soft voice replied.

I opened the door cautiously, and two women entered with trays of food, clean clothes, and a basin of steaming water. They avoided looking directly at me, their movements quick and efficient. When they were done, they scurried out without another word, leaving me alone again.

Walking to the bathroom,  I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror. My hair was a tangled mess, my skin smeared with dried blood and grime. I looked every bit the rogue everyone in this pack accused me of being .... a wild, untamed creature who didn’t belong in his pristine world.

But the fire in my eyes was undeniable. For all the dirt and despair, I wasn’t broken. Not yet. And if Kade thought he could intimidate me into submission, he had another thing coming.

As I washed the blood and dirt off my body, I studied my reflection in the mirror. My face was pale, my eyes hollow, but there was still a spark of defiance there. I wasn’t done fighting, not by a long shot.

Once clean and dressed, I sat down on the edge of the bed, staring at the tray of food the maids had brought earlier. The aroma of warm bread and roasted meat made my stomach growl.

I ate ravenously, the food restoring some of my strength.

As I finished the last bite of the meal, the sense of warmth and sustenance began to settle in, but it did little to ease the turmoil still churning inside me. The room felt suffocating, the silence pressing down like a heavy weight. I needed to think, to piece together what I had overheard and what I had seen.

Kade’s behavior today was… different. His words, though cold and calculating, hadn’t been the usual harsh orders or threats. He had actually tried to help. Or at least it seemed like it. I clenched my fists at the thought, frustration bubbling up again. No. I couldn’t allow myself to fall into that trap. I couldn’t afford to think of him as anything other than the ruthless Alpha who used me as a pawn.

I stood, pushing the chair back with a scrape against the floor, and walked over to the small window of my room. Honestly I was feeling lonely. I was left with nothing but to stare at the birds who were flying freely on the trees.

The door to my room creaked open again, and my body tensed instinctively. This time, I didn’t bother to ask who it was. The figure that stepped into the room was unmistakable.

Kade.

His presence filled the space, the air growing heavier with each step he took toward me. He didn’t speak right away, just like before in his office.

“What do you want?” I asked, my voice steady despite the racing of my heart.

He didn’t answer immediately, his gaze lingering on me for a long moment. It felt like a challenge, his silent evaluation, like he was deciding if I was worth the effort.

“I’m not here to fight with you,” he finally said, his voice cold but lacking the usual edge. “I just need you to tell you something.”

I raised an eyebrow, crossing my arms over my chest. “And what’s that?”

"And why the sudden change?", My mouth didn't stop.

For a moment, his gaze flickered just a moment of uncertainty and then it was gone, replaced by that familiar coldness.

“You’re asking questions you don’t want the answers to,” he said, stepping further into the room, his presence looming. “You’d be wise to stop.”

I clenched my jaw, refusing to back down. “I don’t care what you think. I want the truth.”

The silence that followed was thick with tension. For a moment, it felt like the room itself was holding its breath.

Kade finally spoke, his voice softer than I expected. “You’re in no position to demand anything, and yet…” His eyes softened for the briefest of moments before hardening again. “Maybe you deserve to know more. But not today.”

He turned toward the door, his back to me. “Rest the way you want. Tomorrow, you gonna train with my other pack members.”

I stood there, staring at him as he left, the door clicking shut behind him. His words lingered in the air and heavy. 

What did he mean by that? I wasn't understanding his sudden change in behaviour. 

The unanswered questions weighed heavily on my mind as I sat back down on the bed.