"Enough."
"Kayden, the old Alpha's dying wish—"
"I'm more aware of it than any of you!" I finally exploded, voice echoing through the hall. "I remember it every goddamn day!"
Victoria flinched, stepping back.
I closed my eyes, trying to calm down, but the memories coiled around me like snakes, squeezing my throat.
"Do you see?"
Father kneeling at Mother's grave, bottle in hand, drinking one gulp after another.
"Do you see what fated mates lead to?"
I was only ten then. I didn't understand the madness and hatred festering beneath his drunken exterior. I stood beside him, staring at that cold stone marker, not knowing what to say. But my silence wasn't enough for him. He suddenly whipped around, eyes bloodshot like a wounded animal.
"Why won't you speak? Are you defying me? I'm your father! I wouldn't hurt you!"
His savage look pinned me in place. In that moment, I even forgot to breathe, forgot this man was really my father. Fear made me want to agree with whatever he said, but when I opened my mouth, all that came out were short, gasping sounds.
"Fated mates are just instinct, Kayden." Father grabbed my shoulders, nails digging into my flesh. "Animal instinct. Your wolf will lie to you. Tell you it's destiny, that you're meant to be, but it's just the fucking urge to breed!"
Blood slowly seeped through my shirt at the shoulders. I wanted to pull away from the pain, but he gripped harder.
"Your mother was my true love." His tears mixed with alcohol dripped onto my face. "But I destroyed her. I destroyed everything we had. All because of that damned bond!"
He laughed—laughed so hard he could barely breathe. Whether mocking himself or fate, I couldn't tell. Father released me and collapsed by Mother's headstone, sobbing.
"Never trust it, Kayden. Never. It'll destroy you like it destroyed me."
Seventeen years later, Father lay dying in his hospital bed, still saying the same thing.
"You rejected her, didn't you?"
He was nothing but skin and bones. Years of endless hatred had reduced him to this—I couldn't see a trace of the Alpha he'd once been. He suddenly grabbed my hand with surprising strength.
"You rejected her. She's dead now, right?!"
I knew he meant Layla. But Layla... I remembered that moonlit night. Her amber eyes. The soul-deep tremor when the mate bond was activated. Her despair. Her breakdown. The finality with which she threw herself into the sea.
"I rejected her," I said it, but didn't confirm her death. Because I didn't want to.
Relief finally crossed Father's face.
"Good. Very good." He wheezed, an eerie gleam in his eyes. "Kayden, you know what? You're just like me."
My whole body tensed.
"You're my son. You'll inherit my will. Finish what I couldn't." Father gripped my hand tighter. "I was destroyed by a fated mate, but you won't be. Because..." His voice suddenly turned gentle, like he was remembering something beautiful. "Because Victoria is like your mother."
"What?"
"Same eyes. Same gentleness. Same grace." Father murmured, tears rolling down. "Kayden, marry her. You'll be happy together. The happiness your mother and I should have had... before that damned bond destroyed everything."
"Father—"
"Promise me!" He used every ounce of strength, nearly sitting up in bed. "Marry her! You and I are the same, Kayden! We choose with reason, not ruled by instinct! Victoria will be a good wife, a good Luna. She'll give you the happiness your mother and I should have had... Promise me!"
