“How’s that even possible? You must be mistaken,” Damiens shakes his head in disagreement with what his brother just told him. This is what he never expected to happen, and why should he even believe him, knowing that this is impossible? How can she be his mate? They have been together for some months now, and he’s deeply in love with her, how can she suddenly become his mate?
“No, I’m not. Rohan will never make that mistake, right? I can feel the bond… When I saw her in pain, I felt broken. I felt like a dagger was thrust in my heart, and I felt…”
“Was that why you were trying to protect her? That look… Was that why you pulled it? Was that why you looked so pained?” His questions are pointless as it was obvious, and everything is clear now, but he still feels like this is a dream, he feels like he needs to ask the questions for clarification. He can’t possibly believe him just like that, right?
“Yes…” Dean nods his head slowly, and he scoffs unbelievably.
“Cassie… She’s really your mate?” He asks for the umpteenth time, and Dean pulls a puzzled and confused look. He has asked him not twice and not thrice, and each time he asked, he has always told him ‘yes’, how’s he still asking him the same question?
“I can assure you that she wasn’t the one that poisoned you… I’ll find the culprit, and make sure that he or she is brought to justice…”
“She can’t be your mate, Dean… She can’t…” He slowly shakes his head with a disappointed expression on his face.
“Why?” Dean asks confusingly, wondering why his brother would say that. He’s supposed to be happy for him that he has finally found his mate after so many years, but how come he looks so sad and disappointed?
“Because… Because she…” He pauses and runs his hands through his hair. He’s looking for a perfect phrase to finish his excuse, he can’t tell him that she belongs to him, right?
“Would you have defended her if she didn’t turn out as your mate? Would you have done this for any random woman you have nothing with?” Turning his back against Dean, he asks him, and Dean sighs. His question rings in his head multiple times, and he sighs briefly. Would he have done that for any random woman? Would he have still protected her if she didn’t find out that she is his mate? Dean tries to find the answer, but it’s obvious enough, that he doesn’t need to try to find it again. If he was going to protect any random woman, then he wouldn’t have watched them start the punishment on her, if it were to be someone else, he may not have cared.
“I see you have no answer to it, right?” Slowly, he turns around to face Dean. He scoffs unbelievably and shakes his head.
“Does it matter?” Dean asks.
“Yes, it matters. You can’t be with her, Dean… You can’t be with Cassie…” He shakes his head slowly. As much as he wants to tell him that he’s in love with her, knowing that it’ll be selfish of him, he decides to keep the reason to himself.
“Why? Because you feel she poisoned you? What is…”
“Because she is Nicolai’s daughter!” Dean freezes on the spot upon hearing this from his brother, and his mouth drops open in shock.
“Huh?” Dean asks to be sure of what he heard, and he heard.
“You heard me right,” He says again. He is greedy and selfish, call him any name you wish to. Even if he will look beyond her flaws and the mistake of her father to be with her, he can’t possibly let his brother take the only woman he loves away from him, right? If this is the only way to keep him away from her, then he’ll always be guilty of it, even with the last drop of his blood. He’s deeply in love with her, and there’s no way he’ll watch her be with another man, not even his brother.
Meanwhile, Dean stares into space with a shocked expression lingering around his face as his words ring in his head repeatedly. How’s this even possible? How can the one he has been seeking vengeance on all these years, turn out to be his mate? Isn’t fate cruel?
“Why should I believe you, Damien?” Even if he is still in shock, he asks him anyway. They promised each other that they would kill the family of Nicolai without hesitation regardless of who saw them first. How come he kept Cassie alive all these while if she’s really the daughter of Nicolai?
“Are you still…”
“Why didn’t you kill her all along if you’re saying the truth? You still remember the promise we made to each other before I left… Why is she still alive until now?” Dean asks with a demanding expression on his face.
Alpha Damien stares into space, thinking of what to say. Yes, he could’ve killed her a long time ago, why did he keep her alive?
“Because we need her to get rid of Nicolai… He’s the only one that can kill her father…” He never wanted to say this to him, knowing that it’ll be like using her, but at this point, it seems like it’s the only excuse he has.
With a heavy heart, Dean slowly turns around and strides out of the garden, leaving Damien there heartbroken…
A few minutes later in Dean’s room…
The door slowly opens, and Dean walks in. Seeing Cassie fast asleep on the bed, he walks over to the chair beside the bed and sits on it staring at her innocent face. Why does this have to happen to him of all people? Why does this have to happen now that he finally found her?
He sighs briefly, and tucks the strands of hair on her forehead, behind her ear. He’s supposed to feel the rage and the urge to strangle her to death, or even torture her to death after finding out the truth, but he feels so sad, and even his wolf feels so weak to know this. He’s supposed to be angry, but he feels empathy toward her. Instead, he imagines the pain his brother must’ve made her go through while he was not here to protect her.
‘No matter where he hides, we’ll fetch him and make him suffer until his third generation’ that is the promise he and his brother made to each other in the past the previous night before he left this castle for the city. For the past years, he has lived on, having at the back of his mind that they need to make someone pay dearly for taking away their father, but can he still punish his generation now? Can he bring himself to even hate this innocent woman, let alone hurt her?