The north wing had been abandoned for years.
That was the first thing Aria noticed when Kael led her through the long stone corridor. The torches were lit, but the air still felt untouched, heavy with the quiet of a place no one lingered in willingly. Dust clung to the corners. The walls bore old claw marks — reminders of past conflicts no one spoke about anymore.
"This is where you're keeping me?" Aria asked.
Kael didn't slow his stride. "It's secure."
"That's not an answer."
He stopped in front of a large wooden door reinforced with iron bands. "It's away from the pack. Away from the council. Away from eyes that are already sharpening their knives."
Aria crossed her arms. "And closer to you."
The bond pulsed, sharp and immediate, as if reacting to her words.
Kael's jaw tightened. "That wasn't the intention."
"But it's the result," she said.
He unlocked the door and pushed it open.
The room beyond was larger than she expected — a sitting area, a fireplace, shelves carved into the stone. It felt… lived in, despite the years of neglect. Someone had prepared it recently. Cleaned. Made it inhabitable.
That realization unsettled her more than bare stone would have.
"I'll have guards stationed outside," Kael said. "They won't enter unless necessary."
She stepped inside slowly, senses stretching outward. The moment she crossed the threshold, the warmth in her chest expanded, spreading through the room like a silent claim.
Kael felt it.
He inhaled sharply, fingers flexing at his side.
"You feel at home here," he said.
"I don't," Aria replied. "But something in me does."
That earned her a sharp look.
"You don't know what you're dealing with," Kael said quietly.
She turned to face him fully. "Neither do you."
Silence pressed between them, thick and charged.
For a moment, neither moved.
Then Kael spoke again, voice lower. "You shouldn't have survived the rejection."
"I know," Aria said.
"Rejected mates lose their wolves. Their strength. Sometimes their sanity."
She swallowed. "I lost none of that."
"No," he agreed. "You gained something."
The bond stirred restlessly, heat flickering like embers.
Aria's chest tightened. "Did you really mean it?" she asked suddenly.
Kael stiffened. "Mean what?"
"When you rejected me," she said. "Or was it just easier to say it in front of everyone?"
The question hung in the air.
Kael didn't answer immediately.
"I felt it," he said at last. "The bond. The pull. It was overwhelming."
Her heart skipped despite herself.
"Then why—"
"Because an Alpha King cannot take an omega as his mate," he cut in. "Not without tearing the pack apart."
"And tearing me apart was acceptable?"
His silence was answer enough.
Aria looked away first.
The warmth in her chest shifted, something sharper threading through it — anger, yes, but also resolve.
"I won't beg," she said. "Not again."
"I'm not asking you to."
"Good."
Another silence fell, heavier than the last.
Kael moved toward the fireplace, lighting it with a flick of his hand. The flames sprang to life, casting shadows across the walls. In the flickering light, he looked less like a ruler and more like a man weighed down by choices.
"You're not a prisoner," he said. "But you're not free."
She let out a soft, humorless laugh. "That's always been my life."
He turned, gaze sharp. "This is different."
"Yes," she agreed. "This time, you're watching."
The bond surged suddenly, violent and unrestrained.
Kael sucked in a breath as the pull yanked at him, dragging him a step closer. Aria felt it too — heat flooding her veins, her wolf rising fast and fierce.
The room vibrated.
"Stop," she whispered, panic flaring. "I can't—"
"Look at me," Kael ordered.
She did.
The moment their eyes met, the surge slowed, not gone but contained, like a storm held back by sheer force of will.
Kael's breath was uneven. "You're not weak."
She laughed again, shaky this time. "You rejected me because you thought I was."
"No," he said quietly. "I rejected you because I was afraid of what you might become."
The truth of it settled heavy between them.
Footsteps echoed faintly outside the door — guards shifting positions.
Reality intruded.
Kael straightened, control snapping back into place. "Rest," he said. "Tomorrow, the elders will want answers."
"And if I don't have them?"
"Then they'll start making assumptions."
He paused at the door, hand resting briefly against the wood.
"The bond isn't gone," he said, not turning around. "No matter what I say. No matter what you feel."
Her chest warmed in response, soft and undeniable.
"And neither is the mistake I made," he added, then left.
The door closed quietly behind him.
Aria sank onto the edge of the bed, heart pounding.
For the first time since the rejection, she wasn't alone with the bond.
And that scared her more than isolation ever had.