I nearly laugh at the exchange. My Omega has claws, and she's not afraid to show them.
"Shall we begin with the observatory wing?" I suggest, offering an arm to each woman. Isla immediately places her hand on my arm, pressing closer than propriety dictates. Seraphina hesitates before taking my other arm, her grip tighter than necessary.
Through our connection, I feel her surge of possessive fury at having to share my arm with another woman.
"I've always appreciated a commanding view," Isla murmurs, glancing up at me through her lashes. "Particularly when it involves such impressive Alpha heights."
"The Shadow Court does pride itself on its elevated perspectives," I reply. I sense Seraphina's grip tightening, her fingers digging into my flesh.
"The infinity pendant you gave Lady Seraphina is exquisite," Isla observes. "Such an intimate gift. And that mating mark—so fresh and prominent. Do all your possessions display your claim so thoroughly?"
"Only the ones I treasure," I reply, watching Seraphina from the corner of my eye. "Though 'possession' is such a limited term for a fated mate bond. I prefer to think of Lady Seraphina as an extension of myself—bound by blood, joined by magic, united in purpose."
Seraphina's jaw tightens, but our bond pulses with a complex surge—indignation at being called a possession, warring with unexpected pleasure at being described as "treasured" and "united."
"How romantic," Isla says with a trace of mockery. "I never took you for a sentimentalist, Lord Makalai. Especially not with an Omega. I thought you Alphas preferred more adventurous partners."
"I'm not sentimental," I assure her darkly. "I simply appreciate beauty that's mine alone to corrupt. And only an Omega can truly satisfy an Alpha. Everything else is merely a distraction."
Seraphina's grip tightens almost painfully, but I sense her fierce satisfaction. "And I appreciate an Alpha who understands the value of loyalty," she says sweetly. "Rare as that quality might be among Alphas of power. Especially those who allow Betas to make inappropriate advances."
The word "Alpha" from her lips—claiming me as hers—sends an unexpected jolt through me. It reminds me too sharply of another time, another Omega who called me Alpha with the same mixture of claim and challenge, before everything turned to ash.
Julia whispered it just like that, before she...
I force the memory down, but not before Seraphina catches the sudden shift —the surge of old grief, old pain. Her eyes flick to mine, confusion and concern replacing her jealousy.
"The Shadow Observatory," I say, gesturing ahead to redirect attention. "Built to track celestial alignments that amplify our magic."
"I would love to see inside," Isla purrs, pressing against me.
As we proceed toward the observatory, Seraphina's jealousy continues to pulse through our bond in waves that are both delicious and disturbing. But beneath the entertainment lurks something more unsettling—the realization that my interest in Seraphina's reactions goes beyond simple Alpha amusement. I'm genuinely bothered by the idea of her attention straying from me, by the thought of another Alpha ever touching what's mine.
It's a dangerous path, this mutual possessiveness. The way she says "Alpha" with such fierce ownership, the way her emotions blaze through our connection, the way my bite marks her throat—it reminds me too much of bonds that end in blood and betrayal.
But Julia chose her path. The memory still cuts like a blade—my first Omega mate's betrayal, her death, two hundred years of refusing to bond again.
I won't make that mistake again. I cannot allow myself to walk that path once more with Seraphina. Better to enjoy her jealousy as simple entertainment. Better to keep her as a conquest, a possession, a mated Omega rather than anything more dangerous.
Seraphina is mine—by fate, by magic, by conquest, by my bite. That will have to be enough.
Anything more is too dangerous to contemplate.
Anything more leads to ash and ruin and Omega betrayal and names whispered in moments of weakness.
Julia taught me that lesson in blood.
I won't forget it again.
CHAPTER 23
BITTER REUNION
SERAPHINA
The Shadow Observatory looms before us, its obsidian dome cutting an imposing silhouette against the twilight sky. After weeks of navigating Shadow Court politics, I've learned to mask my emotions. The fresh mating mark at my throat still tender from two days of heat, my body still aching in ways that remind me of how thoroughly he claimed me, my instincts screaming at having to share Malakai's attention with a Beta who doesn't know her place. His arm feels like a brand beneath my fingertips, a constant reminder of both last night's surrender and today's humiliation.
"This structure dates back to the first Shadow Lord," Malakai explains, his voice dropping to that hypnotic cadence he uses when discussing shadow history. "The alignment of celestial bodies affects shadow magic's potency. On certain nights, when the stars align just so, our power increases tenfold."
