Kaida’s POV
I stood tall, my eyes locked on Akira as she approached us. Keiran stood beside me, a smirk on his face.
My heart burned with rage. This is the second time this bitch is coming face to face with me after killing my mother and I was not allowed to rip her head off her neck!
But there are ways to hurt her before the grand finale I planned for her.
“Akira,” I said, my voice dripping with mockery and hate. “How nice of you to join us.”
Akira’s eyes narrowed and she took a step forward. “Kaida, Keiran, I know what you’ve been doing. I know you’re behind the rumors, the stolen food, and the vandalism. We had this talk last time and clearly, you are not stopping anytime soon are you ?”
I raised an eyebrow, deciding to mess with her. “Whatever are you talking about, Akira?”
Akira’s eyes blazed with anger and it left me with a happy thrill inside of me. “Don’t play dumb, Kaida. I have proof, unlike last time . And I’m going to expose you to the pack.”
I laughed, a cold, mirthless sound. “Proof? Ha! You have nothing, Akira. And even if you did, no one would believe you. You’re just a fake mate to Kael, a pawn in his game.”
Akira’s eyes went wide in shock but she quickly regained her composure. “How dare you! I am not a fake mate!”
I sneered, my voice dripping with hate. “Oh, really? Then why did Kael only mate with you out of all his breeders, he did not even pick Sophia, the daughter of an alpha, then why you? Why did he only choose you because he needed a mate and an heir to secure his position as alpha?”
Akira’s eyes widened. “How did you…?”
My upper lips curled up into a sneer. “Let’s just say I have my ways. And I know all about your little ‘mate’ bond with Kael. It’s a joke, Akira. And you’re a fool for thinking you can use your little deal with Kael to forget who you really are.”
Akira’s face contorted with anger, her fists clenched at her sides. “You’re just trying to distract me, Kaida. But it won’t work. I’ll expose you and Keiran, and I’ll make sure the pack knows the truth.”
I laughed again, my voice cold enough to make one’s skin crawl. “You’re no match for us, Akira. And you never will be. So, go ahead and try to expose us. But you’ll fail. And when you do, we’ll be the ones laughing.”
With that, I turned and intertwined my fingers with Kieran, our footsteps muffled on the forest floor as we left the raging skies rooted to her spot. “We need to be careful, Keiran. Akira’s not going to give up easily. She’s going to keep digging, keep trying to expose us.” I whispered as soon as we left the reach of Akira’s ears.
Keiran nodded, his eyes scanning the trees around us. “I know. But we have the upper hand. We have the secrets, the information. And we’re going to use it to our advantage.”
I smiled, my mind coming up with plans. “Yes, we are. We’re going to take down Kael, and then we’re going to get what was ours in the first place.”
Keiran chuckled/ “You’re brilliant, Kaida. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
I laughed, my mind racing with anticipation. “You’ll never have to find out, Keiran. We’re in this together, always.”
We walked for a few more minutes, our plans and strategies perfectly complimenting each other. We discussed how to take down Kael, and how to manipulate the pack into following us. And with every step, my smirk grew.
Finally, we stopped at a small clearing, my voice dropping to whispers. “We need to be careful, Keiran. We can’t let anyone else suspect what we’re planning.”
Keiran nodded, his expression serious. “I know. I’ll make sure to cover our tracks, to keep our plans hidden.”
I smiled, my heart pounding in my chest. “Good. Because we’re going to make this happen, Keiran. We’re going to take over the pack, and we’re going to get the last laugh.”
Keiran’s eyes shone with excitement. We were in this together, and nothing was going to stop us.
Suddenly, I noticed the change in Keiran’s expression, and he took a step closer to me.
Keiran’s eyes narrowed, his gaze fixed on my neck. “What’s that?” he growled.
I followed his gaze, my heart sinking as I realized what he was looking at. The mating mark on my neck, the one I had tried to keep hidden.
“Nothing,” I lied, trying to brush it off. “Why are you so worked up? We have better things to do with time you know?”
But Keiran was having none of it. He came closer, his eyes blazing with anger. “Don’t lie to me, Kaida. I know what that is. You have a mate. Right?”
My mind raced as I tried to think of a way to explain. But before I could say anything, Keiran shot me another question.
“Is there a third party aware of our plan?” he demanded, his voice sending chills down my spine. “Are you working with someone else behind my back?”
I shook my head, trying to please him. “No, Keiran, I swear. There’s no one else. It’s just us.”
But Keiran’s expression was hard. “I don’t believe you,” he snarled. “You’re hiding something from me, Kaida. And I’m going to find out what it is.”
I took a step back, my mind filled with fear. I had never seen Keiran so angry before, and I didn’t know how to calm him down.
“Keiran, please,” I tried to reason with him. “Just listen to me. There’s an explanation for this.”
But Keiran was beyond reason. His claws became longer and each step I took backward only seemed to piss him off even more.
“I don’t want to hear it, Kaida. You’ve betrayed me. And now you’re going to pay the price.”
He suddenly lunged at me, his hands around my neck. Making me breathless. I gasped for air, my vision blurring as he growled in my face.
“You’re a traitor, Kaida. And traitors deserve to die.”
My heart raced, panic took over, and my mind screamed for help. I thought it was all over for me, that Keiran had finally snapped and was going to kill me.
But then, something I didn’t expect happened. Keiran’s grip on my throat loosened and he took a step back.
“No,” he whispered, his voice barely audible. “I won’t do it. I won’t kill you, Kaida.”
I gasped for air, and let out a cough that came with a mouthful of blood.
“Why?” I mumbled, my voice barely audible. “Why did you spare me?”
Keiran’s eyes narrowed, his hands balled into fists by his side. “Because I need you, Kaida. And I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you alive. But do not think for a moment that this talk ends here.”
I looked at the wolf in front of me.
“Does this wolf have split personality disorder? Was he a lunatic? Who did I fucking team up with?