The door sealed behind Lucian with a quiet final click—
a soft sound, but heavy enough to drain the air from the room.
No escape.
No backup.
Just the Crown Heir standing across from us,
silent and patient
like someone watching a chessboard he already believed he'd won.
Horace didn't let go of me.
He didn't even loosen his grip.
His hands stayed steady on my face—
grounding me, anchoring me, shielding me from Lucian's scent that kept knifing through the air.
"Elleanore," he murmured, breath brushing my forehead,
"focus on me.
Don't look at him."
I tried.
God, I tried.
But Lucian's scent—cold metal and frostbitten air—coiled dangerously inside my chest, pushing and pulling like an instinct I'd never learned to control.
Cassian positioned himself near the door, shaking but defiant.
Chandler stood beside him, tapestry weight held like a weapon he fully intended to use.
Rowan was frantically typing commands—brows furrowed, jaw clenched.
Lucian moved further into the room with calm, controlled steps.
No rush.
No threat in his posture.
Just confidence.
He could walk into a battlefield wearing silk and still make it look like a planned visit.
His eyes slid from Horace's blocking stance to me—
but Horace tilted my chin upward just enough to keep my gaze pinned to him instead.
Lucian noticed the movement.
He smiled—
quiet, sharp.
"Clever, Horace."
Horace didn't blink.
Lucian took one more step.
"But you cannot hide her from me."
"Watch me," Horace said coldly.
For the first time, Lucian's expression sharpened.
Subtle.
But real.
Cassian Breaks
Cassian finally snapped.
"You killed Elliot."
Lucian turned his head slowly.
Almost bored.
"I removed an obstacle."
Cassian lunged at him.
Chandler barely caught him around the waist, hauling him back before he could get within arm's reach.
Cassian roared,
"You dragged him down the filtration hall like trash—!"
Lucian blinked once.
"I dragged him because he refused to surrender the Omega."
Cassian struggled harder.
Chandler gritted his teeth, trying to hold him.
Rowan shot forward, grabbing Cassian's arm.
"CAS—stop! He wants you to attack him!"
Cassian shook with rage, tears carving down his face.
"He begged—he BEGGED you—"
Lucian's voice was quiet.
Almost curious.
"And yet he told me nothing."
Cassian screamed,
"BECAUSE HE LOVED HER!"
Horace's grip on me tightened.
Lucian finally turned his full attention on Horace again—
a slow, deliberate shift.
Almost like saying:
You see?
Everything falls apart without your control.
Horace's voice was steady, but something beneath it trembled.
"Lucian.
You will leave this wing."
Lucian raised an eyebrow.
"And abandon what Father built?
Leave the Omega unclaimed?"
He stepped closer.
Horace's entire body tensed, scent sharp with protective instinct.
"Elleanore," he whispered, barely audible,
"don't breathe too deeply."
But it was too late.
Lucian's presence pressed into the room like expanding frost.
My knees weakened.
Chandler swore.
Cassian froze mid-struggle, eyes widening.
Rowan stopped typing—hands shaking.
Horace noticed instantly.
"Elleanore—look at me. Look ONLY at me."
He cupped the back of my neck gently, thumb brushing behind my ear.
My breathing steadied enough to think again.
Enough to breathe again.
Lucian watched.
His eyes narrowed slightly—
barely visible, but unmistakable.
Displeasure.
Not because of my reaction.
Because Horace stopped it.
What Lucian Wants
Lucian clasped his hands behind his back.
As if he were a lecturer beginning a lesson.
"Horace," he said evenly,
"You've always been good at ignoring your duties.
Pretending rules don't apply to you."
Horace didn't answer.
Lucian continued,
"Your bloodline is thinned by sentiment.
Your instincts dulled by affection.
You cling to the weak, the unfit, the disposable—"
Horace cut him off.
"She is not disposable."
Lucian's gaze sharpened.
"Good. Then we agree on something."
The room stilled.
Lucian took another step forward.
And this time—
for the first time—
Rowan stepped between us.
Everyone stared.
Rowan, quiet Rowan, who always stayed behind screens and data, stood in front of Horace and me with nothing but a tablet and a trembling spine.
"No," Rowan said. "Stop."
Lucian paused.
Actually paused.
Rowan's voice was thin, trembling, but firm.
"Elleanore is not an asset.
She is not leverage.
She is not a tool.
She is a person."
Lucian blinked.
"Ah. You're the technician."
Rowan stiffened.
Lucian continued,
"You know how this ends.
Step aside."
Rowan didn't move.
And for the first time in hours—
I felt a piece of Elliot.
That defiance.
That quiet, steady courage.
That willingness to risk everything for someone else.
Rowan whispered,
"I won't let you hurt her."
Lucian sighed.
"You mistake inevitability for cruelty."
Chandler spat,
"Oh, I mistake you for a psycho. My bad."
Lucian ignored him.
He extended a hand—
toward me.
Not touching—
but reaching.
A cold wave rolled through my chest.
Horace immediately stepped between us, blocking me completely.
He didn't shout.
He didn't shove.
He didn't pull a weapon.
He just stood.
Silent.
Unmoving.
Refusing.
Lucian tilted his head.
"Horace," he said softly,
"You have one chance to step aside."
"No," Horace said.
The air split.
Not literally—
but the tension in the room snapped like a wire pulled too tight.
Lucian's smile vanished.
He inhaled slowly—
and finally showed his own Alpha dominance.
His scent hit the room in a wave of cold steel.
Cassian fell to one knee.
Chandler stumbled back.
Rowan clutched his chest.
Even the chamber lights flickered.
But Horace—
Horace didn't move.
He leaned down, hands still on me, voice low and steady.
"Elleanore.
You are not his."
And then—
something inside me cracked.
Not fear.
Not submission.
Something else.
A pulse of warmth, too strong to suppress.
My scent reacted—
once
sharp
bright
instinctive.
Lucian froze.
Cassian gasped.
Chandler whispered,
"Holy—"
Rowan looked between us in shock.
Horace stiffened—
then inhaled sharply.
"Elleanore—"
Lucian finally spoke.
Soft.
Careful.
"…You responded to him."
He smiled.
Slow.
Dark.
Cold.
"My little brother," he murmured,
"is resonating with an Omega."
Horace's pupils blew wide.
Lucian stepped closer.
"And you—Elleanore—
you resonate with him."
The room spun.
Cassian's breath hitched painfully.
Chandler looked horrified.
Rowan muttered,
"Oh no. No no no no—"
Horace's grip tightened on my arms.
"Elleanore, don't listen to him—!"
Lucian continued quietly,
"You're not here for me, are you?"
He stepped forward.
"Your scent reacts to Horace."
Horace's breath stilled.
So did mine.
Lucian looked between us and smiled like he'd solved a puzzle.
"Well," he said softly.
"You've saved me quite a bit of trouble."
He looked directly at Horace.
"Your little Omega isn't compatible with me."
Horace stiffened.
Lucian finished—
"She's compatible with you."
Silence.
Then—
BOOM.
The entire door shook.
Cassian's head snapped around.
Chandler jumped.
Rowan whispered,
"Oh god—
that's Aiden."
The door shook again—harder—
splitting at the hinges.
Lucian didn't turn.
He just smiled faintly.
"Well," he murmured.
"The untrained Alpha returns."
Horace pushed me further back into the containment circle.
"Elleanore—stay behind me.
Do NOT move."
The door slammed again—
splintered—
cracked—
and finally—
Aiden burst through.
Wild.
Bleeding.
Breath tearing out of him.
Instinct locked onto the room.
Onto Lucian.
Onto Horace.
Onto—
Me.
His eyes burned.
His voice came out broken—
"…mine…"
Lucian turned slowly.
"Ah," he said quietly,
"There it is."
Instinct.
Chaos.
Bond-fury.
Lucian's eyes sharpened.
"Let him try."
Horace whispered urgently,
"Elleanore—
don't move—don't breathe—don't look—"
Aiden rose to full height.
Scent ripping into the air—
wild
feral
unstable
desperate.
And Lucian whispered,
"Come, Aiden."
Everything exploded.
When Instinct Breaks
Aiden didn't rush the room.
He ripped into it.
The broken door slammed against the wall so hard the hinges shrieked. Splinters scattered across the floor like shrapnel. His chest heaved—sharp, uneven breaths that sounded like he was swallowing fire.
His eyes were wrong.
Not glassy like before.
Not dead.
Not blank.
Wild.
Filled with recognition and pain so deep it felt like a wound.
Cassian staggered backward. "Aiden—wait—"
Aiden didn't hear him.
Or he did, but instinct drowned everything else out.
His gaze locked on me—
and then on Horace's hands holding me.
Lucian stepped aside like he was welcoming a storm.
"Let him choose," Lucian whispered, pleased.
"Instinct always reveals truth."
Horace didn't move an inch.
His posture sharpened, shifting into a stance I'd never seen him use before—
something royal, something defensive, something ancient.
"Rowan," he murmured, "trigger the protocol."
Rowan blinked rapidly.
"What—now?!"
"NOW."
Aiden inhaled sharply—
and the moment my scent hit him full force within the containment chamber,
his body jerked like he'd been electrocuted.
His knees buckled.
His claws—gods, claws—extended slightly.
His breath choked out.
Cassian cried out, "Aiden—AIDEN—NO—!"
Aiden reached toward the circle—
toward me—
Chandler threw an arm in front of Cassian. "Don't you dare—"
Lucian held up a hand.
"Let him."
Horace snarled, a sound I had never heard from him—
raw, furious, vibrating with something primal.
"No," Horace said.
"Not this time."
Lucian's eyes gleamed.
"Oh? You plan to challenge instinct?"
Horace stood tall.
"I plan to protect her."
When Instinct Collides
Aiden lunged.
Fast.
Violent.
Not toward Lucian.
Not toward Horace.
Toward me.
Horace shoved me back behind him and moved, blocking with his full body weight.
Aiden hit him with a force that sent both of them skidding across the floor.
"HORACE!" I screamed.
The chamber field flared.
Chandler grabbed my arm before I could move forward.
"Elleanore—NO—! Stay in the circle!"
Aiden roared, trying to push through Horace—
But Horace wasn't a fighter.
He was trained.
Every movement was precise, efficient, lethal without killing.
He grabbed Aiden by the shoulders, twisted his center of gravity, and slammed him sideways into the wall.
Aiden hit the tiles, struggling, fighting, snarling.
Cassian's voice cracked,
"AIDEN PLEASE—STOP—PLEASE—!"
But Aiden wasn't listening.
He surged again.
Lucian watched, calm and calculating, like this was a performance.
Horace pressed Aiden down with a forearm across his collarbone, muscles straining.
"Aiden—LISTEN—" Horace gasped.
"Mine—" Aiden choked, voice strangled,
"omega—mine—mine—"
The sound of it clawed through my chest.
Rowan finally shouted,
"I FOUND IT—STAND BACK!"
Horace pushed away from Aiden just as Aiden thrashed.
Rowan slammed something on his tablet.
"Aiden Valehart—override protocol Delta-3!"
The entire room flooded with a sharp, piercing tone—
like a scent-based frequency detonated inside the walls.
Aiden screamed.
Not in pain—
in instinct backlash.
He collapsed to his knees, gripping his head, body shaking violently.
Cassian broke.
"AIDEN!" he sobbed, rushing forward.
Chandler grabbed him around the waist. "CAS—DON'T—HE'LL TEAR YOU APART—"
Cassian struggled, kicking, clawing, desperate.
"That's my BROTHER—!"
Aiden writhed on the ground, breath tearing out of him, eyes unfocused.
Lucian watched the chaos like an observer at a laboratory experiment.
"Interesting," he murmured.
"I expected him to go for me."
Horace lifted his head, panting.
"He didn't want you."
Lucian tilted his head.
"He wanted a scent spike. That's all."
"No," Horace said, voice low and certain,
"He wanted her.
But not to hurt her."
Lucian blinked once. "Impossible."
Rowan shook, tablet still raised.
"No—not impossible. Aiden wasn't attacking her to claim her. He was attacking YOU because your scent was forcing a response he couldn't control."
Lucian finally looked annoyed.
"That is not how scent hierarchy works."
Rowan snapped,
"You don't get it—because you think everything is about dominance. But Aiden wasn't reacting to your scent."
Lucian's gaze narrowed.
"Then what was he reacting to?"
Rowan pointed at me.
"He was reacting to hers."
Silence.
Lucian's eyes flicked toward the containment circle.
Horace moved instantly—
positioning himself between Lucian and me again.
Lucian's expression chilled.
"I see."
Rowan continued,
"Her true scent is destabilizing every Alpha in this room—including Aiden. But only one Alpha she's resonating with—"
Chandler whispered,
"Oh don't tell me—"
Rowan pointed at Horace.
"Him."
Horace stiffened.
Lucian's eyes darkened.
Lucian's Realization
Lucian stepped forward.
Cassian stopped struggling.
Chandler's grip tightened.
Rowan hid half behind Horace.
Lucian clasped his hands behind his back, posture perfect.
"So," he said softly.
"She reacts to you. Viscerally."
Horace didn't answer.
Lucian hummed.
"This explains everything."
Horace's jaw tightened.
Lucian continued,
"Why she destabilizes Omega suppressants.
Why Aiden locked onto her.
Why your scent spiked the moment she faltered."
It felt like the air condensed.
Lucian's eyes sharpened like polished blades.
"You're resonating with her."
Horace's breath hitched.
Lucian's voice dropped to a whisper.
"My little brother has finally found an Omega."
Chandler muttered,
"Yeah, but not YOU, so cry about it."
Lucian ignored him.
Instead, he smiled—
slow, pleased, dangerous.
"Do you understand what this means, Horace?"
Horace didn't respond.
Lucian answered his own question.
"It means she was never meant to be mine."
My stomach knotted.
Lucian stepped closer.
"It means she was meant to be yours."
Horace's fingers twitched—
just once.
Lucian turned his gaze toward me, voice soft and smooth like poison-laced silk.
"Elleanore Fonze.
You belong to—"
Horace cut him off, voice sharp and lethal.
"Finish that sentence.
And I will put you on the ground."
Lucian blinked—
more surprised than angry.
Then he smiled.
"You're learning."
He clasped his hands again.
"But do not forget—
resonance or not,
she is still an Omega.
And she still falls under royal jurisdiction."
Horace's body trembled—
not with fear.
With fury.
"No," Horace said.
"She falls under mine."
Cassian inhaled sharply.
Chandler whispered,
"Oh saints… he said it."
Rowan stared between them.
Lucian's face finally cracked—
a real expression breaking through the mask.
Shock.
Then—something colder.
"Horace," he said quietly,
"You dare lay claim before classification?"
Horace didn't hesitate.
"I dare do whatever it takes to protect her."
Lucian's voice chilled.
"You would challenge your brother?"
Horace stepped forward—
between the containment circle and Lucian,
shoulders squared,
chin up,
eyes blazing.
"I am."
Cassian choked on a breath.
Chandler whispered, "This is bad—SO bad—"
Rowan didn't move.
Lucian inhaled slowly—
his scent sharpening like a blade being drawn.
Aiden groaned weakly from the floor.
The room trembled under the weight of two royal Alpha instincts colliding.
Then Lucian spoke.
Quiet.
Calm.
Deadly.
"Then let us settle this."
Horace's voice matched his tone.
"Say when."
But Lucian didn't launch himself forward.
He turned his gaze toward the containment circle instead.
Toward me.
"Elleanore," he said,
"step forward."
Horace's arm shot out instantly.
"NO."
Lucian tilted his head.
"You would keep her behind a barrier?
Hide her like a frightened animal?"
Horace snarled,
"She is not coming to you."
Lucian smiled faintly.
"Oh, I wasn't speaking to you."
He looked directly at me.
"Elleanore.
Your scent will decide who you resonate with."
My heart stopped.
Horace whispered fiercely,
"Elleanore—don't move—don't listen—don't—"
Lucian continued, soft but commanding:
"Step forward,
and we will see
whom you choose."
The air froze.
Chandler whispered,
"Don't move."
Cassian murmured,
"Elleanore, please—stay there—"
Rowan shook his head, whispering,
"You need to ignore him. Ignore everything."
Horace's hands trembled on my arms.
"Elleanore…
stay with me."
And I knew—
Lucian wasn't testing loyalty.
He wasn't testing obedience.
He was testing instinct.
If I stepped forward—
even one step—
Lucian would declare it fate.
If I stayed—
Horace would be the one I aligned with.
The entire future of my life—
my safety—
my heart—
my freedom—
rested on a single instinctive choice.
My pulse pounded.
Lucian's ice-cold gaze pierced through the chamber.
Horace's warmth held me in place.
Everyone held their breath.
I swallowed hard.
And I—
did not move.
Not forward.
Not sideways.
I stepped back.
One step.
Closer to Horace.
Lucian's eyes darkened.
Horace exhaled—
a sound halfway between relief
and something deeper.
Lucian's jaw tightened.
"Well," he murmured.
"Now we begin."
He lifted his hand—
and the scent in the room shifted sharply.
Rowan gasped.
Cassian cried out.
Chandler cursed.
Horace turned instantly, grabbing me, shielding me.
"Elleanore," he whispered,
"we run."
But it was too late.
Lucian moved.
And the chamber erupted into chaos.