Chapter 22: A Stroll

The tea was still warm when Levi finally reached for it.

He stared at the cup for a long time, the diluted suppressant scent rising in lazy curls. Part of him wanted to knock it over and pretend it had been an accident. The rest of him, the part that had already survived a cell and a death order and three princes who would not let go, knew better. Refusing would only bring Elvis back sooner, and with less patience.

Congratulations, he told himself flatly as he lifted the cup. You are now the kind of person who drinks poison because the alternative is a conversation.

The first sip tasted of expensive leaves and something chemical underneath that coated his tongue. He forced down three more swallows, enough to empty half the cup, then set it aside before his stomach could stage a full revolt. The familiar heavy warmth began to spread through his limbs almost immediately, muffling the already quiet bonds another degree. The claim mark on his throat felt more like a distant bruise than a living connection.

Dressing was its own quiet battle.

The clothes laid out for him were soft, well-cut, and completely wrong for a blood-debt omega who had been scrubbing floors a week ago. Levi pulled each piece on with the same enthusiasm he might have given a ceremonial noose.

Look at you, his mind supplied dryly. All dressed up for the parade. Try not to trip over the political symbolism.

He caught his reflection in the small mirror near the wardrobe and immediately regretted it. The suppressants had left him pale, and the clothes weren’t doing very much to save him. He looked away before he could hate himself anymore than he already did.

Exactly an hour after leaving, Elvis returned.

He did not knock. He simply opened the door, assessed Levi from head to toe with a satisfied nod, and said, "Better. Come."

Levi followed because the alternative was being physically guided, and he preferred to keep what little dignity the morning had left him. Elvis’s hand settled at the small of his back as they stepped into the corridor, guiding, and unmistakably possessive. Servants flattened themselves against walls as they passed. Guards tracked them with carefully neutral eyes. The message was being written in real time across the household: the Eastridge Alpha had temporary claim to the omega’s company, and no one was to interfere.

They moved through the main halls rather than the side routes Levi had grown used to. Morning light poured through high windows. The air smelled of polish and distant breakfast and the layered scents of a pack house already deep into its daily routines. Levi kept his gaze lowered, counting doorways the way he once counted hours in the cell, while Elvis spoke in a pleasant, conversational tone meant to carry just far enough.

"You see?" Elvis murmured as they descended the wide steps toward the rear grounds. "No orders to scrub anything, fresh air and proper clothes. This is what I can arrange in a single morning. Imagine what a week will do."

Levi made a noncommittal sound. The hand at his back remained a steady pressure, steering him toward the open paths that wound between formal hedges and older trees. A few early-rising pack members paused to watch them pass. Conversations quieted, then resumed in lower voices once they had gone by.

Elvis continued, voice warm and reasonable. "I meant what I said earlier. I have changed. The man who locked doors and counted your conversations is not the man walking beside you now. I know what I lost when you left. I know what it cost. This—" he gestured lightly at the open grounds, the relative freedom of the moment "—is the beginning of correcting it. Once the bonds are fully suppressed, once the princes have no further claim to lean on, I will take you home."

Levi rolled his eyes both physically and mentally. He couldn’t count how many times Elvis had said those same words to him, yet it never turned out to be true. And he was certain that even now, the Alpha wasn’t being very honest. If not that he preferred not getting dragged by Elvis by force, he would have simply declined this absurdity of a stroll.

They had reached a broader path that curved toward the eastern gardens when a familiar presence cut across Levi’s awareness.

Kai.

The eldest prince stood near the junction of two walkways, speaking with a senior advisor. Even at a distance the weight of his presence was unmistakable. He finished his conversation, dismissed the advisor, and turned.

His gaze landed on the pair of them, and

Levi felt his heart skip a beat. Flora’s warning rose in his memory with perfect clarity: Stay away from Kai. Completely. Pretend he does not exist.

He did not need the reminder. Every instinct he had left was already screaming at him to become scenery.

Elvis noticed the direction of Levi’s attention and followed it. A small, unreadable smile touched his mouth. He did not change course. If anything, he guided Levi a fraction more deliberately along the path that would bring them within speaking distance with the first son.

Kai approached with unhurried steps. His eyes moved over Levi once, taking in the new clothes, the proximity of Elvis’s hand, the carefully lowered gaze, and then settled on the Eastridge Alpha with polite neutrality.

"Alpha Elvis," Kai said. His voice was the same even, measured tone he always had. "I trust your accommodations have been satisfactory so far. No difficulties with the staff or the arrangements?"

"None at all," Elvis replied smoothly. "Your father’s hospitality has been generous. I’ve found the visit... productive." His hand remained lightly at Levi’s back. "I thought a walk would do Levi good. The suppressants can leave one feeling closed in."

Kai’s gaze flicked to Levi again. For a moment the air between the three of them felt too thin. Levi kept his eyes on a point somewhere near Kai’s left shoulder, then lower, then on the gravel of the path.

Do not look up. Do not speak. Do not exist in any way that can be interpreted as seeking him out. Flora is probably counting the seconds.

Kai’s expression did not visibly change, but something in the quality of his attention sharpened. Something was definitely up with the omega, and he was certain the boy wasn’t just acting out of loyalty to his father’s words. Is he trying to avoid me? Kai questioned himself before getting back to his conversation.

"I see," Kai said after a pause. "The regimen is proceeding as planned, then."

"It is," Elvis agreed. "The sooner the residual bonds fade, the sooner everyone can return to more appropriate arrangements. I’m grateful your father recognized the value of a peaceful resolution."

Levi risked nothing. He watched the edge of Kai’s boot shift slightly on the gravel and counted his own heartbeats. Could this conversation end already? This was torture!

Kai’s next words were still directed at Elvis, but Levi felt the weight of them sideways.

"If any further assistance is required during your stay, do not hesitate to request it. We would not want our guest to feel inconvenienced."

"Most kind," Elvis said. "I believe I have everything I need for now."

There was a polite, razor-thin silence.

Then Kai inclined his head a fraction, the gesture perfectly correct, and stepped aside to let them continue. His gaze lingered on Levi for half a second longer than protocol required before he turned and walked away toward the main buildings.

Elvis guided Levi forward again, the hand at his back now carrying a faint edge of triumph.

"You see?" he murmured once they were out of earshot. "Even the first heir understands the direction this is taking. He’s a lot smarter than his brothers that’s for sure."

Levi said nothing. His pulse was still too fast, plus the fact he genuinely had nothing to say to Elvis. He had obeyed Flora’s terms. He had made himself invisible. And still the eldest prince had looked at him as if the act of not-looking were its own kind of answer.

They turned down a narrower path lined with tall hedges. The public eye of the household lessened. Elvis kept talking while Levi just followed him, barely listening to a word the Alpha had to say. Whenever he was caught dissociating, he blamed it on the suppressants and prayed the Alpha would just leave him alone.

He did not notice the second presence watching from an upper window until a shift in the air carried a familiar scent to his dull nostrils.

Dexter was awake.

And he had seen everything.