My fingers closed around the freezing brass handle of the front door. Kael leaned heavily against the frame, his arm blocking my exit.
"I said move," I told him, dropping my shoulder and ramming it directly into his bicep.
The impact knocked him off balance. His wheelchair spun slightly, the rubber tires squeaking against the hardwood. I stepped past him, dragging my suitcase over the threshold.
A massive crack of thunder rattled the windows. Rain instantly hammered the manor roof, a sudden deluge washing over the front steps.
Selene hurried out of the bedroom, clutching the silver cloak tightly around her neck. She shrank against the wall, her eyes wide.
"Kael, the storm," she whimpered, pressing a hand to her chest. "You know thunder terrifies my wolf. I can't walk back to my estate in this."
Kael straightened his posture, recovering from my shove. He glared at my back.
"You are not walking anywhere, Selene," Kael said. He shifted his gaze to me, his eyes flaring with the oppressive, golden weight of his Alpha command. "Elara. You will drive Selene home."
The command washed over me, a heavy pressure trying to force my knees to bend. Without my wolf, the aura felt like a physical weight on my chest, but it could not break my mind.
"Your legs work fine," I said, staring at the driveway. "Drive her yourself."
"I am paralyzed!" Kael shouted, slapping his thighs. "And you are my mate. You will take the SUV, you will safely deliver my future Luna to her door, and then you will return this vehicle to my garage. Do you understand me?"
I looked at the matte-black SUV parked at the bottom of the steps. A full tank of gas. Four-wheel drive. The perfect escape vehicle to get me past the territory borders.
"Fine," I said, my voice completely flat. "Give me the keys."
Kael tossed the heavy key fob. I caught it out of the air.
I marched down the steps, ignoring the icy rain soaking through my sweater. I threw my suitcase into the trunk, slammed the hatch, and climbed into the driver's seat. The engine roared to life.
The rear doors opened. Kael and Selene climbed into the backseat together. Kael dragged his legs in, playing his crippled role to perfection, while Selene huddled against his chest.
"Drive," Kael ordered, pulling the door shut.
I shifted into gear and hit the gas. The tires spun on the wet gravel before catching, launching us down the dark, winding mountain road.
Silence lasted exactly two minutes.
"You smell so fucking good," Kael muttered, burying his face in Selene's neck.
"Kael, stop," Selene giggled, shifting her hips on the leather seat. "She can hear us."
"I don't care what the maid hears," Kael replied. His hand slid loudly over the fabric of her dress. "You are going to be my Luna. Let her listen to how a real Alpha treats his chosen mate."
I kept my eyes locked on the rain-slicked road. The windshield wipers slapped rhythmically back and forth.
"Are you really going to mark me tomorrow?" Selene asked, her voice dropping into a breathless purr.
"I'm going to do a lot more than mark you," Kael said. "I'm going to strip this dress off and claim you in front of the entire pack council. They need to see my teeth sinking into a pureblood neck."
"Oh, Kael," she moaned softly. I glanced in the rearview mirror. Kael had his hand shoved up her thigh, his fingers pressing into her skin.
"Does the wolfless stray even know how to drive?" Selene mocked, staring at the back of my head. "We hit a bump back there."
"She barely knows how to cook," Kael sneered. "Just ignore her, baby. Focus on me."
I pressed the accelerator harder. The SUV tore through the storm, the speedometer climbing past eighty.
"Slow down!" Kael snapped, gripping the grab handle above his head. "Are you trying to kill us?"
I didn't answer. I slammed on the brakes as the wrought-iron gates of Selene's estate appeared in the headlights. The heavy vehicle skidded on the wet pavement, fishtailing wildly before jerking to a violent halt right next to a massive, muddy trench by the curb.
"You stupid bitch!" Selene shrieked, clutching her chest.
"Get out," I said, shifting the car into park.
Kael shoved the rear door open. The rain instantly soaked his hair. He awkwardly lowered himself into his wheelchair, which a guard had rushed out to provide. Selene climbed out after him, holding an expensive leather overnight bag.
"Get my other bags from the trunk, Elara," Selene demanded, standing under the guard's umbrella. "And carry them up the steps. I don't want mud on my shoes."
I reached over to the passenger seat, grabbing the two designer duffel bags Kael had loaded earlier.
I rolled down the passenger window.
"Hey!" Selene yelled.
I shoved both bags through the open window. They plummeted straight into the deep, sludge-filled mud puddle by the curb. Brown water splashed up, soaking Selene's silver cloak and Kael's trousers.
"My clothes!" Selene screamed, dropping her umbrella.
Kael slammed his hands on his armrests. "Elara! Get out of that car right now!"
I rolled the window up, locked the doors, and slammed my foot onto the gas pedal. The tires spun in the mud, spraying a thick layer of wet dirt directly across Kael's face before the SUV launched forward into the night.
Four hours later, I sat on the edge of a sagging mattress in a cheap roadside motel. The neon sign outside blinked a steady, obnoxious red through the thin curtains. My wet clothes lay in a pile by the door.
My phone vibrated on the nightstand.
The screen lit up with an incoming video call. The caller ID read Kael.
I stared at the device. He probably wanted to scream about the stolen car. I reached out and tapped the green accept button.
I didn't see Kael's face.
The camera shook wildly, angled up at the ceiling of my former bedroom in the manor, before dropping down to show pale, sweaty skin.
"Fuck, Kael, put it deeper!" Selene screamed into the microphone.
The screen stabilized. Selene held the phone high above her head, pointing the camera down at her own naked body. Kael knelt between her legs, his hips driving forward with brutal force.
"Look at this, Elara!" Selene panted, her face flushed red, eyes rolling back. "Look at what you couldn't give him!"
Kael's hands gripped Selene's bare breasts, his thumbs pinching her nipples hard. "You like my cock, Selene? Tell the maid how my fucking cock feels."
"It's stretching my pussy so wide," Selene moaned loudly, thrusting her hips up to meet his next plunge. "Fuck, yes, Alpha. Ram it into my wet hole. Breed me right here on her side of the bed."
The wet, slapping sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed loudly through my phone speaker.
"I'm going to fill your cunt with my seed," Kael grunted, his face appearing in the frame as he leaned over Selene. Sweat dripped from his forehead onto her collarbone. "I'm going to knot you so hard you won't walk for a week. Fuck, you are dripping for me."
"Give me your knot, Kael!" Selene begged, turning the camera slightly so I could see Kael's thick, rigid length sliding entirely into her dripping wet folds. "Do you see this, Elara? He's balls deep in a real woman. You were just a pathetic, dry hole he used for practice."
Kael slammed his hips down, burying himself completely. Selene let out a high-pitched shriek of pleasure.
"Fuck, I'm close," Kael snarled, his jaw clenching. "I'm going to cum inside your tight pussy, Selene. I'm going to give you my pup."
"Fill me up!" she screamed, her nails digging into his muscular back.
The harsh blue light from the phone screen illuminated my completely expressionless face in the dark motel room.
My thumb hovered silently over the screen record button.
