Chapter 68: ⁶⁸: Play with me.

Kael’s POV

"I mean..." she began, her eyes never showing even the slightest hint of panic. "My parents’ house was burned down when I was just a little girl. What I meant was that my entire life was taken away from me by fate."

"Oh?" I looked at her carefully, searching her expression for anything that might reveal more than her words did. "That’s quite unfortunate. To have something so horrible happen to you when you were only a child."

My voice remained indifferent. I didn’t know whether I believed her explanation or not. I glanced around her room once more before turning toward the window. "You stay here. I’m leaving."

"What?" Her surprised voice stopped me for a moment. "You’re just leaving?"

I turned my head toward her. "Why?" I asked, my tone deliberately casual. "Do you want me to continue from where we stopped earlier?" I watched her carefully, curious to see how she would respond.

Her brows immediately furrowed. "No, we can’t do that." A sigh escaped her lips. "The walls aren’t completely soundproof. I can’t risk someone hearing us again."

I raised an eyebrow. "Then why should I stay here?" I didn’t wait for her answer.

I turned around and walked toward the window, not bothering to look back even once before climbing out.

The moment my boots touched the ground outside, I straightened and glanced toward the pack house. I didn’t know what I was expecting to feel. Relief, perhaps. Instead, there was an unfamiliar heaviness sitting in my chest.

I ignored it. I walked back toward my car, which I had deliberately parked away from the pack house’s main street. I didn’t want anyone noticing that I had been here.

Only after I was seated inside did I finally allow myself to look back. The pack house stood in the distance, its windows glowing faintly against the darkness.

I stared at those lights for several seconds. Something inside me felt conflicted. Those bastards are really good. Whoever had orchestrated all of this had somehow managed to make me feel things I had never experienced before.

Never in my life had I been this confused about someone. Never had I found myself standing outside someone’s home, questioning why I didn’t want to leave.

I leaned forward until my forehead rested against the steering wheel, trying to quiet the thoughts racing through my mind.

What was happening to me? Why did I care whether Athena was hurt? Why had I reacted so strongly when I saw the injuries on her face? And why was I sitting here staring at her house instead of simply driving away?

"Pick a lane, Kael!"

Nyx’s irritated voice suddenly echoed through my mind.

I lifted my head, my grip tightening around the steering wheel. "I am not sulking, Nyx!"

"Either treat her nicely because you actually want to," he continued, completely ignoring me, "or stop acting like this every time you decide not to."

I clenched my jaw. "You know she isn’t actually here because she likes me or anything. She’s here for her own motive!"

"I don’t want to hear that bullshit, Kael." Nyx’s irritation was obvious. "We both know we’re attracted to her. And not just a little. It’s unusual, intense, and neither of us has been able to ignore it."

I slammed my palm against the steering wheel. The sharp sound echoed through the car. "Fine!" I leaned my head back against the headrest, staring at the dark ceiling of my car.

"Okay. I admit it." I exhaled slowly. "I’m attracted to her." The words felt strangely heavy once they were finally spoken aloud.

I stared ahead through the windshield, my thoughts still refusing to settle. Admitting it didn’t make anything easier. If anything, it only made everything more complicated.

"I admit I feel drawn toward her. I feel like a moth to a flame whenever she’s in front of me. When I see her, I want nothing more than to pull her into my arms, hold her close, and never let her out of my sight."

I took a deep breath, pressing my fingers against my temples as a headache began to build. I could almost hear the blood rushing through my ears.

"Whatever this is, it’s strange. Something completely beyond my understanding. The moment I first saw her, I felt something stir inside me, as if my soul had somehow recognized hers."

"I had dismissed that feeling back then, convincing myself it was nothing more than a ridiculous instinct. How could I possibly feel such a connection with any she-wolf when I have this curse?"

I shifted in my seat, running both hands through my hair.

"Even now, I feel stupid. Stupid because, after everything I’ve discovered, after seeing the evidence right in front of me, I’m still feeling the same way. Every part of me except my logical mind is acting exactly as it did before."

"Kael, calm down." Nyx’s voice finally cut through my spiraling thoughts.

I leaned back against the headrest and took another slow breath, trying to understand these strange feelings that had taken hold of me.

"Think about it," Nyx continued. "Just because we found that letter in Shanel’s room doesn’t automatically mean they sent Athena. You have to consider that—"

"What is there to consider, Nyx?" I cut him off before he could finish. "I don’t intend to deliberately ignore what’s right in front of me. If Athena isn’t the person they sent, then where is that girl? When have we ever met another woman who fits the description?"

Nyx fell silent for a moment. "But Kael, I don’t feel like she’s connected to those people. I just want to trust her."

I scoffed. "For once, I wanted that too." I shook my head as I remembered how I had felt only hours ago. "I wanted to trust her, whether I admitted it to myself or not. But not anymore."

I tightened my grip around the steering wheel. "I’m not going to let my emotions cloud my judgment. If there’s a direct connection suggesting that she isn’t who she claims to be, then I’m not going to turn a blind eye to it simply because I don’t want it to be true."

I paused, remembering her reaction from earlier. "And didn’t you hear the way she asked about that book? She seemed almost too interested in finding out what it contained."

"But, Kael, maybe she was simply curious."

"Maybe." I stared through the windshield, my thoughts returning to Athena’s face. "Or maybe that’s exactly what she wants us to believe."

"But I don’t believe that." I said, reaching into the dashboard to retrieve my phone.

The thought of Athena hiding something from me had been bothering me ever since I had seen that photograph.

"She even hid that photograph from me," I continued, staring down at my phone. "Do you really think that if she genuinely loved me or let’s be generous and say she merely liked me she would hide something like that from me?"

I unlocked my phone, but I didn’t immediately make a call. The image of Athena snatching the photograph from the floor flashed through my mind again.

Her reaction had been too quick. Too defensive. There had been something behind it.

"Then what is your plan?" Nyx asked. His voice had become quieter, as though he already knew I wasn’t going to like his next question.

"My plan is to follow the second part of what I told you." I leaned back against the seat. "I’ll do exactly what she wanted me to do." My expression hardened. "And when I eventually have my heir, she will have to die."

There was a long silence.

"So..." Nyx finally began, his voice carrying a hint of disbelief. "Even after all the evidence you claim to have, you still want to keep her here?"

I didn’t answer.

"You’re not going to tell her that you’ve figured out what she’s doing? You’re just going to pretend you still know nothing?"

I remained silent.

"Have you ever wondered why you’re doing all this, genius?"

I closed my eyes. His question struck closer than I wanted it to.

"I just don’t want to let her get away so easily." My fingers tightened around the phone. "She should pay for daring to play with me."

I opened my eyes again, forcing my thoughts back into order. Whatever Athena’s true intentions were, I couldn’t allow myself to become distracted by the strange pull I felt toward her.

If she was truly connected to my enemies, then I would uncover the truth myself.

And if she wasn’t... I pushed that thought away before it could take root.

I raised my phone and dialed Ryan. He answered within seconds.

"Yes, Alpha?"

"I’ll be home in some time," I said, my voice firm. "Make sure you’re there when I arrive."

There was something else I needed to know. "And get me all the information you can about why Athena Moonvel was suspended for ten days today."

I paused. "Don’t rely solely on the official report. I want the full story."

"Yes, Alpha."

"And check the Academy’s security footage yourself. I want to see exactly what happened, from the moment it started until the fight ended."

"Understood."

I ended the call and lowered my phone. My gaze drifted toward the windshield again.