Rejected by the King, Protected by Her Alpha Twin Chapter 03

Rejected by the King, Protected by Her Alpha Twin Chapter 03 The Twin-Bond’s Warning 

Cus Rourke strode into the courtyard, heavy cedar-scented pheromones crashing over everyone present.

He spotted Mara bound to the tree stump, and his gaze turned frigid.

“Selene,” he bit out, “who gave you leave to lay hands on Evelyn’s people?”

I didn’t give a damn.

Right in front of him, I lifted the silver-barbed whip and tore another bleeding gash across Mara’s flesh.

Mara shrieked in agony. “Alpha King, save me, please!”

Caius lunged forward and grabbed the whip’s tip. Sharp silver barbs sliced his palm open. Blood dripped down his wrist. He seemed to feel no pain at all, his eyes locked hard on mine.

“Let go.”

“Selene vanished three days ago.” My fingers tightened around the whip handle, every word sharp. “Your mate is missing. Instead of hunting for her, you’re busy with the luna coronation for another woman?”

Impatience flickered across Caius’s face.

“You fought off your guards, snuck back here, and stirred up all this chaos. This is nothing but a cheap ploy to win me back, isn’t it?”

A bitter laugh rose in my throat. Of course he’d mistaken me for my twin.

Selene and I shared the same face, yet our scents, tempers, even our wolf spirit could not be more different.

Selene was an omega. Her voice was soft as moonlight.

I was an alpha.

Deep in my mind, my wolf spirit bared its fangs, burning to rip his throat out.

This man called Selene his fated mate, yet he could not tell the person standing before him was not her.

“Get back to your holding cell. Leave Evelyn alone.”

Caius softened his tone, like he was handing out undeserved mercy. “Do it. And I’ll let it slide

this one.”

uffed in scorn. “She stole Selene’s place, and you want Selene to leave her alone?”

“Evelyn has stolen nothing!”

Caius flared, roiling with raw rage.

“She saved my life. She carried my cub. You let jealousy consume you. You pushed her the altar and killed that child!”

The instant the words left his mouth, searing agony exploded in my right arm.

It felt like hot silver spikes were driven deep into my bone joints, twisted slowly and torturously.

Last night, it was my legs that were wrecked. Now, a fresh wave of agony burned through my right arm.

I snapped my head up. The shared pain of our twin bond did not lie.

Selene was alive.

And she hadn’t run away!

“Pretending injury again?” Caius stared at me with cold contempt. “You used to cut your own skin to drag me to you. Are you pulling that same trick now?”

Dread coiled tight in my gut. “She hurt herself for you?”

I had never known Selene had been pushed to that breaking point.

“That is enough, Caius.” A frail female voice drifted in from outside the courtyard gates.

Escorted by a retinue of beta hand-maidens, Evelyn stepped inside. She wore the white wolf- skin cloak marking the luna’s rank, Selene’s old crown heavy on her head.

Her pupils constricted the second her eyes landed on me.

This was no surprise. It was plain, unmasked fear.

She knew I was not Selene.

“Selene,” she edged toward Caius, eyes glistening red, “I know you hate me.”

“But you cannot force love. Why drag everyone into this suffering?”

I fought through the fire gnawing at my right arm and pinned her with my stare. “Who gave Selene those wounds on her arm?”

Evelyn’s expression flickered, then slipped into feigned confusion.

“I have no idea what you are talking about.”

She lifted a hand to brush away fake tears. Acrescent-shaped bone charm showed on her wrist.

Grandma had hand-carved this matched twin keepsake the day Selene and I were born. So only two existed in the whole world.

“Take it off.” My voice turned flat, ice-cold.

Evelyn slipped behind Caius.

“My aunt gave this to me. She said I suffered for years, stranded out in the wilds. I deserved a piece of what belonged to her daughters.”

I gave a low, humorless laugh.

“So you helped yourself to Selene’s mate along with everything else?”

Evelyn’s fragile, wounded act nearly shattered.

She latched onto Caius’s sleeve and sobbed, playing up her distress.

“She killed our cub, and now she tries to steal the keepsake my aunt gave me. Am I supposed to keep suffering?”

Caius stepped to shield her, crushing alpha aura washing over me.

“Lay one more hand on her, and I will cripple your right hand.”

I stood my ground, breathing calm and steady.

This weak display of power would never bend me.

Seeing I would not flinch, a flicker of smug triumph crossed Evelyn’s face.

“Seize her.”

Two beta hand-maidens moved in, each grabbing one of my shoulders.

Evelyn closed in and slapped me hard across the cheek; sharp, stinging heat spread over my skin.

did not dodge.

Not because I could not. I wanted her to believe she’d won.

She leaned in, voice dropping to a whisper meant only for my ears.

“Vesper, you finally came home.

“But you are far too late.

“Your twin won’t hold on much longer. Once she dies, your parents, your private guards, even Caius-every single one will belong to me.”

I turned my head slowly and gave her a thin, quiet smile. “Finished?”

Evelyn froze.

In one sharp motion, I tore free from the hand-maidens and cracked my forehead into her face, breaking her nasal bone.

She screamed and stumbled backward.

I grabbed her wrist and ripped the bone charm clean off. Its leather cord sliced her skin open; fresh blood welled at the cut.

The hand-maidens charged me. I kicked both of them hard, sending them sprawling onto the ground.

Before Evelyn could steady herself, I fisted her hair, dragged her to the shattered flowerpot, and forced her to her knees.

Sharp ceramic shards tore through her skirt fabric.

I picked up the fallen crown and set it firmly back onto her head.

“You crave my sister’s position so badly? Wear it properly.”

I planted my boot on her shoulder and forced her to stay kneeling upright.

“Every time that crown slips, I break one of your fingers.”

Evelyn screamed, begging Caius for help.

“Let her go!” Caius roared and lunged toward me.

I sidestepped his rush, coiled the silver-barbed whip tight around his wrist, and pulled,

grinding his palm against the jagged barbs.

Blood flooded over the silver spikes instantly.

“No rush.” I pressed my boot onto his hand, bearing down slowly.

“Every debt owed to Selene-I will collect every last bit.”

An angry shout boomed from beyond the courtyard gates.

“Stop!

“Vesper, don’t you dare touch Evelyn!”