Chapter Six:
Narrator's POV-
The chamber was silent when Caleb entered—silent, but charged, like the very air was holding its breath.
Hazel stirred weakly beneath the heavy blanket. Her skin was pale, feverish from the wolfsbane, but her eyes—those storm-gray eyes—burned with life the moment they found him.
For a heartbeat, neither of them moved. The world shrank to the space between them, and in that space pulsed something wild and dangerous. The bond stretched invisible threads through the air, wrapping around them both, binding what neither wanted but couldn't escape.
Caleb's chest rose and fell like he'd run miles. Adam prowled inside him, restless, whining at the sight of her. But Caleb's jaw was locked, every line of him carved from control.
Hazel's voice broke first, hoarse but steady.
"You."
The word dripped venom.
Caleb stepped further inside and closed the door. The echo sounded like a verdict.
"We need to talk."
Her fingers tightened around the blanket, knuckles white.
"About what? Whether you'll hand me over for the bounty or keep me as your little prisoner?"
The corner of his mouth twitched—not with humor.
"Tempting," he said darkly, "but neither."
He moved closer, every step deliberate, heavy with Alpha dominance.
"About us."
Hazel's heartbeat stuttered. The bond thrummed violently in her chest. She hated that her body reacted to him—how her pulse quickened, how heat coiled low in her belly from the scent of chocolate and honey rolling off his skin.
She hated him.
She hated that she didn't.
"There is no us," she spat, her voice cracking but fierce. "You should've let me die out there. That would've been mercy."
Caleb stopped at the edge of her bed, towering above her. His eyes burned gold—Adam pressing against the surface. His voice dropped, low and rough.
"You think I wanted this? You think I wanted you?"
Hazel flinched at the disgust in his tone but lifted her chin anyway. "Then end it. Reject me. Do it now."
The bond quivered violently, as if even the air resisted her words.
Caleb's nostrils flared. "You don't know what you're asking."
Her throat tightened, but she forced the words out.
"I, Hazel Alice Thorn, reject Caleb Benjamin Blackmoor as my mate."
The world split apart.
Caleb staggered back a step, clutching his chest. Adam's howl ripped through his mind—a raw, broken sound that tore through both body and soul. The rejection hit like a blade, severing flesh from spirit, shredding the sacred thread that tied them together. His knees nearly buckled.
Hazel gasped, trembling as the same pain lanced through her. The bond burned at both ends, leaving nothing but smoke and scars.
Caleb's teeth bared. A growl tore from deep within his chest, his eyes bleeding molten gold as Adam clawed to take control—to undo what she'd done.
Don't let her go! Adam howled. She's ours—OURS!
"No!" Caleb snarled aloud, voice hoarse, cracked. He stepped forward, forcing Adam down with sheer will. Fury and agony collided in his gaze as it locked on Hazel.
"You think rejection frees you? You think you've won? I won't accept your rejection. Our bond will remain until I say otherwise."
Hazel's chest heaved, her skin slick with sweat, but her eyes still burned with defiance.
"I'd rather die than belong to you."
He leaned close, his breath ghosting over her ear—hot, controlled, lethal.
"Then die you will," he said, voice like molten steel, "but not before you pay for every drop of blood your family spilled. Every betrayal. Every scream my pack endured because of the Thornbloods."
She trembled but refused to look away.
"We did nothing wrong. We were innocent. I am not them."
"You carry their name," Caleb growled. His hands gripped the bed's edge until the wood creaked. "And bond or no bond, it still ties you to me. You should thank Selene I haven't handed you to the royals already."
Hazel's lips curled bitterly.
"Then maybe you're a coward. Too weak to give me up."
His jaw flexed. Heat crackled in the space between them—anger and the remnants of the bond twisting into something darker. Something neither dared name.
For a long moment, the only sound was their ragged breathing. The air felt thick enough to choke on.
Finally, Caleb straightened, his gaze like fire.
"Rest while you can, Thornblood. Tomorrow, your debt begins."
He turned and stormed out, the door slamming behind him.
Hazel sat trembling in the silence. Her chest throbbed where the bond had torn, yet still—still—her wolf whispered his name.
She bit her lip until blood touched her tongue.
"No," she whispered, fierce and broken. "I won't be his. Never."
But the bond pulsed faintly in her chest, a ghost that refused to die.