"I will catch you..."
Even as that threat echoed in her head, she braced herself to bolt. She wanted to run. No, she needed to run. Even if the chances were slim, even if her body ached and her legs trembled, she had to try. But just as she gathered her strength, another voice, just as amused as that of the one lying over her, drifted from the shadows.
"Don't run."
She froze.
From between the trees, another figure stepped into the moonlight, as if the night itself parted for him. She felt herself freeze as the person with the cold aura stepped forward. Why was it him?
Prince Kael. The youngest of the Stormhold triplets. Second-in-command to the crown prince. And known among the wolves as the bearer of death. She closed her eyes in dejection.
Prince Kael looked just like the man who was holding her down. Same sharp jaw, same tall, imposing frame. But where Prince Zen's eyes were stormy grey, Prince Kael's glowed molten gold. And where Prince Zen radiated intensity and threat as the enforcer of the Stormhold Pack, Prince Kael moved like nothing in the world could touch him.
Behind her, Prince Zen growled again as if warning. She stiffened as Prince Kael strolled closer, his eyes flicking over her like she was some curious new toy.
"If you run now," he said in a light, conversational tone completely ignoring his brother's warning growl, "after he's already caught you once, he gets to claim you."
Her breath hitched at that as the man continued lazily like he was discussing the weather, "It is the Old Stormhold Pack law," like it meant nothing. "The Stronghold Rule. Take without limits. No holding back. No need for ceremony. No need for permission. You run again, and he's allowed to hunt you, break you in..." His gaze sharpened. She felt a chill crawl down her back as he looked her over slowly. His smile didn't fade. "Regardless of your age."
She felt all the air leave her lungs. Regardless of her age. That was the only thing that had protected her so far. The only thing keeping them at bay. She wasn't yet eighteen. Not in heat. Not marked. Not claimed.
Zen said nothing behind her. No denial. No flinch. Nothing.
Kael's golden eyes gleamed with dark amusement. He leaned in slightly, his voice softer now. "You're not quite of age, are you, omega? Still a week to go..."
Her skin prickled. Her heartbeat thundered in her throat. Yes. Just one more week. That was why she needed to escape now.
She watched as Kael tilted his head toward the man holding her, then looked back at her.
"That's what he likes, you know," he said, eyes gleaming. "The chase. The struggle. He's waiting for you to make the mistake. To run. That would be his green light." He clicked his tongue. "Figured I'd give you a heads up. Be a shame to end the fun too soon. You're such a… delicious little thing."
Behind her, Zen growled again, and this time it wasn't hunger. It was rage. She felt it in the way he straightened and picked her up, caging her body close to him..
He was angry because the plan had failed.
Her stomach dropped.
Zen hadn't stopped her from running because he pitied her. He had wanted her to run, so he could use the old law.
Her knees went weak.
His breath hit the back of her neck, sharp and annoyed, as he cursed under his breath. "You just ruined the game, you bastard. You should've let her run. But now? Now she's smart enough not to."
Kael shrugged off his brother's fury and looked her way again. She averted her eyes quickly.
"I don't think so, brother," he said, amused. "I think she'll bolt the first chance she gets."
She kept her eyes down. She didn't look at either of them. Because it was the truth. The moment she had a chance, she would run. She would not become a slave. Not ever.
Then she felt Zen shift behind her.
"Come here, little brother," Zen said, his voice low. His hands began to move over her waist. "Scent her yourself and see what your foolish kindness lost us tonight."
Her breath caught. What did he mean by that? But before she could think about what the man meant, Prince Kael went still and his gaze sharpened as she stared at her. And then she felt it.
A hand, sliding over her arms. She didn't dare move. Could barely breathe as Prince Zen traced his hands over her skin.
The other hand, which had been holding her wrists until now slid slowly over her waist until it curved possessively across her stomach. His palm was hot and heavy and she could not help but gasp as his fingers trailed lower stopping over her lower stomach. Just his touch was enough for her to react. For heat to pool in her stomach so that she had to forcefully clench her thighs...
"She's soft," he muttered, his mouth brushing her ear. "So fucking soft. Her arousal is even sweeter than her fire..."
Shame coiled inside her. But it wasn't just shame. Something darker crept up. Something wrong. A part of her didn't hate the way his hand made her breath hitch. Didn't hate the heat building inside her. She squeezed her thighs together without meaning to.
Her scent had shifted. And she knew they knew it too, because, Prince Kael inhaled sharply and stilled, his eyes focusing on the hand on her stomach.
Then he moved. One step brought him closer. Then another. His chest brushed hers and she closed her eyes, letting her tears fall.
She was caught.
Prince Kael in front. Prince Zen behind.
She couldn't move. Couldn't think with her pulse thundered in her ears.
She felt Prince Kael reached for her and she flinched, but his touch was light. The backs of his knuckles brushed along her collarbone, then lower, slower, until they skimmed the curve of her breast. Barely there, but it still made her jolt like he had burned her.
"Hmm," Prince Kael murmured, his eyes locked on where Zen's hand remained. "She reacts so quick. Skittish little omega."
Prince Zen chuckled behind her. She could feel his satisfaction. His breath tickled her neck, and then his mouth was there as his lips brushed against her skin, followed by a slow, deliberate suck beneath her ear.
She cried out. A small, broken sound she didn't mean to make.
"She likes that," Prince Zen whispered and she wanted to bury herself in that moment. Why did her body have to betray her? "Doesn't even know what to do with herself."
She felt his body pressed even closer. Hot. Hard. Unyielding while Prince Kael moved in from the front, blocking any path forward.
There was no space left between them.
No room to breathe.