CHAPTER 50: UNSETTLED HEARTS

Lucian’s POV

We had seen that bitch naked more than once since the day she was brought into this house, but hearing that Roman had bathed her... that fucking burned. It felt more intimate than simply seeing her stripped bare.

I didn’t want to react, but my feral instincts flared, and before I knew it, the glass in my hand shattered.

"Are you alright?" Jason’s calm, composed voice reached me.

I gave a short hum and turned away, beginning to clean the shards of glass scattered across the kitchen counter.

Unlike Jason, Roman and Liam stepped into the kitchen, both wearing concern on their faces.

"Are you hurt?" Roman asked.

"Let me treat it," Liam offered when he noticed drops of blood falling onto the floor.

"For fuck’s sake, we’re werewolves. Scratches like this don’t do shit to me," I snapped, more irritated by their concern than the sting in my hand.

It wasn’t my hand that was the problem—it was my head. My heart. The chaos inside me. And the reason for it all was that fucking bitch.

I wanted her gone from this place. Maybe then, I’d finally be able to get back to my usual self.

"He’s fine. Don’t worry," Jason said, stepping in to defuse the moment.

He silently walked over and took my bleeding hand, holding it under the running tap. "We don’t want your blood stirring up a certain vampire and reminding him of his bloodlust."

I didn’t resist. Glancing at Rafe, I caught him licking his fangs with that twisted grin of his directed at me.

I ignored his provocation. I wouldn’t have minded feeding him my blood, but in this state, I wasn’t ready to deal with the madness it would unleash. I didn’t want to hurt him.

Jason dabbed the wound with a few tissues, calm and steady, a sharp contrast to how unsettled I felt. But I could feel the storm behind his silence.

None of us were immune to her. Even if all we felt was hate, she still got under our skin. She had already sunk her claws into one of our brothers. God knows who she’ll pull under next.

I just hoped Jason and I would stand our ground—and not fall for her deception again.

"I’ll go check on Eira," Liam said quietly.

"I’ll take you," Roman replied, already moving to lead the way.

But then Liam said, "Oh, I came across Alpha Kael at the hospital."

"Why was he there instead of at the office?" Roman asked, while the rest of us paused, waiting for Liam’s explanation.

"Sophia wasn’t feeling well, and she insisted on seeing him," Liam replied. "Her parents were there as well."

The moment her name left his mouth, irritation bubbled in my chest. Hearing that her parents had been there too only made it worse.

None of us particularly liked Sophia. She was nothing more than a pampered little princess from a rich family. The only reason we put up with her was because she was Kael’s friend.

We used to think Kael tolerated her because she was the daughter of his parent’s close friends, but we were wrong. That fool was actually interested in her—enough to make her his girlfriend. And then, we had to endure her fake sweetness like it wasn’t obvious as hell.

"What happened to her now?" Rafe asked, clearly annoyed.

He was the most irritated one when it came to Sophia. Just like us, he only put up with her for Kael’s sake. Back then, he couldn’t stand either Eira or Sophia. Alice—my sweet sister—was the only woman around us no one had an issue with. Even Rafe, who barely spoke to her, still showed her a level of respect.

"To me, she seemed stable. Maybe just anxious," Liam answered.

"Or just desperate to recover faster now that we’ve found a pureblood she-wolf who can actually treat her," Rafe said coldly. "As always, trying to trap Kael in guilt."

"Rafe, mind your words," Roman warned. "Don’t ever let Kael hear you say that."

Rafe sighed, clearly holding back. "If it weren’t for Kael, would we even be talking about her?"

"Alright, I just wanted to mention that her parents might visit here," Liam said.

"What?" I snapped, and everyone else reacted the same.

Just like Sophia, none of us liked her rich, pretentious, equally annoying parents as well.

"While I was leaving the hospital, I overheard them talking about it," Liam continued. "The reason I’m telling you is because I’m worried about Eira. In her current condition, she doesn’t need trouble from outsiders—when you five are already doing a damn good job of that yourselves."

There he went again—this sarcastic old ass bastard.

"If you care so damn much for that bitch, go to her already. Or she won’t have any doctor Liam left to treat her," I shot back as I picked up the kitchen knife and stuck it in the chopping board on the kitchen top.

Liam simply smiled, unaffected as always. Nothing we said ever worked on him. At that, he’d already won the day he made all five of us obey his conditions regarding Eira. We didn’t want him to hand her over to the council, and he damn well knew it.

"Liam, let’s go," Roman urged before things could escalate further.

The old bastard was getting bolder lately—and he could afford to. He knew we needed him.

After they left, I picked up the intercom and instructed security, "If an old ass couple tries to enter the estate, send them away. No one’s allowed to visit us."

Just as I was about to hang up, Jason took the device from my hand and spoke into it instead.

"Let them in if they are here," Jason told security, then ended the call.

I turned to him, glaring. "What are you doing?"

"If they are coming here, that means Kael must have permitted them or they wouldn’t dare come here knowing we don’t allow outsiders, and especially any woman," Jason explained.

For Kael’s sake, once again, I kept my mouth shut.

Rafe stood up with a grunt. "Call me only when the food’s ready and that nuisance is not here," he muttered, then walked off, leaving us in the kitchen to cook.

"You think once Sophia gets better, Kael will bring her here?" I asked Jason. "If that happens..."

"He won’t," Jason said firmly. "He knows he can only bring a woman the five of us approve of—someone we’re willing to make our mate. Kael won’t push her on us. At most, he’ll keep her by his side as his wife, somewhere else. After all, she once carried his child."

When it came to emotions and understanding conscience, Jason had always been better than me.

"His wife, sure," I muttered. "But what if she pushes him to mark her? Makes him take her as his mate? Out of guilt, he might do it. Then we’ll be expected to accept her as our mate too."

"He won’t," Jason said again, unwavering. "There’s no place for a mate in our lives. Only a breeder. And we already have one now."

I gave a low hum. "Even if he does mark her, he can keep her the fuck away from us. I’ll never accept her as my mate, or even touch her. I’d rather fuck that sickly bitch in the side house."

Jason gave a quiet hmm in agreement. He was always on my side.