Chapter 3

I stared at him, my pulse in my ears.

This was insane.

But some twisted part of me wanted to know. Needed to know.

I swallowed. “Let go of the piano.”

His fingers twitched.

Then, slowly, he let go.

His hand fell to his side.

He didn’t speak.

He just stared at his own fingers like they’d betrayed him.

I felt dizzy. “No way. No. No, this is some trick. I’m dreaming. I’m drugged. I’m-I’m not even a shifter.”

“No,” he said quietly. “You’re worse than any shifter I’ve ever met.”

He circled me like a predator in thought. “They used to call your kind sirens. But that’s too soft a word. You’re not just a songbird, Kessia. You’re a weapon.”

I didn’t want to hear that. I didn’t want to be that.

“I want to leave.”

“No.”

“I don’t belong here!”

“You belong to me.”

“I’m not yours!” I shouted, standing.

His eyes lit up, wolf in full bloom. “Then why does my wolf whimper when you stop singing?”

I stepped back.

He followed.

“I should be immune to you,” he murmured. “I’ve trained myself against enchantments. I’ve drunk wolfsbane and venom. I can hold my breath longer than most mortals can live. But you, you cut through me like I’m nothing.”

“Good,” I snapped. “Then maybe you’ll stop treating me like I’m a toy!”

He grinned. It was the first real expression he’d shown that wasn’t stone or steel.

But it wasn’t friendly.

“You’re not a toy,” he said, voice almost a purr. “You’re my addiction.”

I stared at him, horrified.

Then turned and ran.

I sprinted for the elevator.

My feet slapped across the smooth stone floor. The collar bounced against my collarbone with each desperate step. I didn’t look back. I couldn’t.

The elevator was just feet away now...

But before I could touch the panel, two huge men appeared in front of it.

Armed.

Broad.

Fangs showing.

Vexx’s enforcers.

One of them stepped forward, reaching for me.

“Stay back!” I screamed.

And they froze.

Mid-step.

Mid-reach.

Statues.

It was like time had paused… only for them.

I turned, stunned.

Vexx stood in the center of the penthouse, unmoving.

But he was smiling.

“You see it now, don’t you?” he said softly. “You could build an army. Or destroy one. You could bend packs to their knees. Make kings bow.”

“I don’t want that!”

He stepped closer. “But you have it.”

“I’m human!”

“No. You’re a myth that survived the fire. You’re the reason wolves tell stories to their pups at night and shiver in their dens.”

The two guards were still frozen behind me. Not blinking. Not breathing.

“You commanded them,” Vexx said again, awed now. “With a whisper.”

I was breathing too fast. Panic kicked at my ribs. My hands were shaking so hard I almost didn’t feel the sting at my throat.

The collar.

The diamond one.

Still tight.

Still shining.

I clawed at it, yanking, choking. “Take this off me! I’m not your damn pet!”

He walked over.

I thought maybe, maybe he’d finally release me.

Instead, he reached into his jacket.

Pulled out something small and black.

It was soft.

Velvet.

A choker.

He stepped behind me, fingers brushing my neck as he unclasped the diamond collar and let it fall.

Then he slid the black velvet band around my throat.

Clasped it.

Tight.

Final.

“There,” he murmured. “Now you’re not just bought. You’re claimed.”

I went still.

Every hair on my body lifted.

I couldn’t speak.

Not because of fear.

But because deep down…

Some awful, twisted part of me liked it.

The velvet choker was tight around my throat.

Too soft. Too final.

It felt different than the diamond collar, less flashy, more intimate. More like a brand than a trophy. And somehow that made it worse.

I didn’t speak.

Not because I couldn’t.

Because I didn’t trust what would come out of my mouth. A scream? A sob? A command?

Vexx was still standing close, his fingers brushing the clasp as if he hadn’t quite let go.

His voice dropped to a low murmur. “You wear my colors now.”

I turned away, jaw tight. “You don’t own me.”

“No,” he said. “But I own the world that does.”

I laughed. Bitter. “God, do you ever hear yourself? You sound like a villain in a cheap movie.”

“I’m worse,” he said, dead serious. “Villains have rules.”

That shut me up.

He stepped back finally, giving me a few feet of breathing room. The silence between us was thick. It pulsed. Like something alive, waiting for a spark to ignite it.

“Get some rest,” he said. “You’ll need it.”

“For what?”

He turned toward a set of black doors at the far end of the penthouse. “Tomorrow you meet the pack.”

My stomach dropped.

“What pack?”

He didn’t answer.

The doors closed behind him.

Click.

Locked.