Icy Rage

Gideon's POV I smelled her before I even walked into the room—a delicate, intoxicating blend of jasmine and honey cutting straight through the foul, damp air of the dungeon. When I stepped through the iron doorway and finally saw her, my chest tightened. She looked so fragile, so entirely broken, sitting bound in that rough wooden chair with a dark, swollen bruise overtaking the left side of her face. The strike looked fresh. A shifter’s body should have repaired a simple contusion within hours, which meant if it hadn't healed yet, one of my men had to have laid a hand on her during the capture. My blood had boiled. But when she looked into my eyes and whispered that her husband did it, a suffocating, icy rage took over. It took every single ounce of my remaining self-control not to storm Lucian's territory right then and there and tear his head from his shoulders. How could it not be healed? The question burned in my mind. Even a human would still be mending, but a Luna? It made no sense. As if suddenly realizing whose hands were framing her face, she flinched, pulling her head back from my grip. "Please don't touch me," she whispered, her voice trembling. I instantly withdrew my hands, stepping back to give her space. Deep inside my chest, my wolf, Kane, let out a low, agonizing growl. He was furious—not at her, but at the distance between us. He wanted nothing more than to wrap her in our arms, scent her, and keep her safe from the world. It was so extraordinarily rare to find a true fated mate in this era, and yet here she was. Mine. The enemy's Luna. My mind raced, torn violently down the middle. She was the enemy, and strategically, I needed her as leverage to stop Lucian’s expansion. But there was no universe where I could leave my true mate in this cold, miserable cell. Eric, my Beta, stepped up beside me, his voice barely a soft rustle in the quiet room. "Did you... did you say she was your mate?" I clenched my jaw so hard I thought my teeth might shatter. I kept my eyes fixed on her exhausted, drooping frame. "Take her up to my room," I commanded quietly. My guys started moving immediately, but Eric was the only one brave enough to question it. "Alpha, you can't just have her in there..." "I know," I cut in tightly. I turned to one of the guards carrying her up. "Make sure she can't leave. Lock the door and keep two guards posted on the outside at all times. If anyone enters that room without my explicit permission, you will answer to me personally." The guards nodded soberly, carefully lifting her small frame and carrying her toward the stairs. Once they filtered out of the dungeon, I turned to face Eric. "I know she's the enemy," I said, my voice heavy with a dangerous edge as I gestured around the damp stone pit. "But she is also my mate. I can't have her in here." Eric rubbed the back of his neck, struggling to bridge the gap between pack politics and ancient law. "Gideon, she's mated to Lucian—" "I don't care!" I snapped, the Alpha authority rolling off me in waves. "He chose a mate and decided to lay his hands on her?" Before Eric could answer, the dungeon door creaked open again. Dean stepped inside, wiping grease from his hands onto his pants, looking uncertain. "Sir? You needed me?" I rounded on him, my eyes narrowing. "Did you hit her when you grabbed her?" Dean’s eyes went wide, and he raised both hands in immediate surrender. "No, sir! I swear. I bagged her head, injected the sedative, and brought her straight here." I held his gaze for a long beat, searching his face for any sign of a lie before letting out a harsh breath. "Okay. You can go." Dean bowed his head quickly and beat a swift retreat up the corridor, leaving just Eric and me in the dim torchlight. Eric watched him leave, his brow furrowed in deep concern. "If she was hit before we took her... her eye should have healed by now." "I know," I murmured, staring at the empty wooden chair in the center of the room. A terrible, dark feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. Everyone knows that Lucian is the perfect husband and mate. I’ve always believed that, even though he’s my enemy. But now I know he’s been playing a role all along. I will break him. Not just because he’s my enemy. But for Seraphina.