"Step inside."
Alaric's voice was flat, cold, commanding.
Zoraide's boots clicked against the polished stone floor as she followed him into the Citadel's medical hall.
The scent of antiseptic, herbs, and Alpha dominance filled the air. She dragged a slow breath, keeping her pulse steady beneath the bitterroot mask at her throat.
A man in white robes stepped forward, eyes scanning her like a predator sizing prey.
"This is the healer?" he asked softly, voice tinged with skepticism.
"Yes," Alaric said. "Examine her. I want to know why she is not an Omega."
Zoraide stiffened. "I am fine," she said, forcing her tone meek.
Alaric's eyes snapped to hers, gold flaring. "Do not try to hide from me."
She bowed her head slightly, letting her herbs dull her natural scent. Subtle. Controlled. Alpha instincts buried beneath layers of deception.
The doctor gestured to a table. "Sit. I need to check your vitals."
Zoraide stepped forward carefully. Her heartbeat remained even. Her pulse calm. She could feel Alaric behind her, every movement, every breath, drawn like gravity.
"Relax," the doctor said. "I only need a basic check."
"I am relaxed," Zoraide replied.
Alaric shifted his weight, his presence pressing into her back. "Do not relax too much. I can feel when you lie."
Her lips twitched in the faintest smile. "You are perceptive."
The doctor's hands moved to her wrists, fingers brushing lightly against her pulse. She tilted her head and controlled the rhythm, slow, steady, masking the storm beneath.
"Your pulse is low," the doctor murmured. "Very low. That is unusual for someone who survived what you claim."
"Unusual, yes," Zoraide said, keeping her voice calm. "But not dangerous."
Alaric's scent hit her suddenly. Ice and cedar and steel. Hunger. He leaned slightly closer, voice low. "I do not trust your calm."
"I trust my herbs," she whispered back, letting him inhale the bitter scent deliberately. Confusion flashed in his eyes.
"Why do you smell faint?" he asked, voice clipped. "This should not be possible."
"Herbs," she said smoothly. "Good for masking scent and calming the nerves."
The doctor frowned, palpating her chest lightly. "Muscle mass is unusual for an Omega. And strong. Stronger than the average Alpha, even."
Zoraide pressed her hands flat on the table, keeping her stance neutral. "I exercise," she said simply.
Alaric's eyes narrowed. Gold flared and faded. "You are hiding something," he said, quiet, more to himself than anyone else.
"I do not hide anything," she replied, voice level, pulse controlled.
The doctor leaned closer, scanning her. "Your scent… it is muddled. I cannot identify a clear Alpha signature. But it is there. Buried. Powerful."
Zoraide kept her eyes down, maintaining the Omega act. She did not look at Alaric. She would not let him see her pulse spike, even under his intense scrutiny.
Alaric's presence was suffocating. He inhaled sharply, nostrils flaring. He stepped closer, brushing the edge of her shoulder, deliberately pressing his dominance. The mate bond throbbed between them like electricity through a live wire.
"You are tense," he said softly. "Your body screams at me."
"I am only careful," she replied. Her heartbeat remained steady. Calm. Even.
The doctor frowned. "Your vitals are inconsistent with your appearance and age. I need to run a blood test."
Zoraide stiffened slightly but did not resist. "If necessary."
Alaric's fingers brushed hers as she moved toward the testing table. The contact was electric. Subtle. Claiming. Threatening all at once.
"Do not let them see you for what you are," he murmured low enough that only she could hear. "Do not give them a reason to force it out."
She swallowed, forcing herself to control the tension in her shoulders. "I am careful."
The doctor prepared the instruments. Needle, vial, clean wipes. He stepped closer, scent mingling with her herbs, confusing Alaric further.
"Lie still," the doctor said, voice calm.
Zoraide did. Her breathing slow, even. Her pulse steady. The Command Voice lingered faintly in her mind, a memory, a warning.
Alaric's scent flared again. He leaned closer, gold eyes flashing. "You are hiding everything," he said softly. "I will find out. Do not think I will not."
"I am hiding what I must," she replied, keeping her tone obedient, calm, Omega-like. "I am weak. You will see nothing beyond that."
The needle pricked her skin. Blood filled the vial. She kept her pulse steady. Controlled the thrum of power that threatened to slip through.
The doctor studied the sample, frowning. "This… does not make sense. Physiology does not match a standard Omega. I cannot explain it."
Alaric's fingers tightened slightly on the edge of the table. Gold flared in his eyes. "Neither can I," he whispered.
Zoraide kept her head down, silent. Her herbs worked. The rogue Alpha instincts slept beneath layers of calm.
"You are a puzzle," Alaric said, voice low. "And I intend to solve it."
"I am a healer," she replied softly. "Nothing more."
The doctor pulled back, sighing. "I will need to run additional tests."
Alaric's eyes burned. Gold like molten fire. "You will stay under observation. No exceptions. Do you understand?"
Zoraide nodded carefully. "Yes."
He leaned closer, scent pressing against her. The mate bond throbbed painfully. "You cannot lie to me forever," he whispered.
"Nor can you make me reveal myself," she countered, faint but sharp.
Alaric's pupils dilated. He inhaled deeply, nostrils flaring. "Every second you hide… I feel it more. And I will not ignore it."
The doctor collected his tools. "I will return in the morning for further tests."
"Good," Alaric said. He stepped close, brushing her shoulder lightly, almost brushing her hair back. The intensity of the bond made Zoraide's skin tingle under the herbal mask.
"Do not forget," he said quietly, gold glinting in his eyes. "I am watching. Always."
She nodded, voice calm, heartbeat under control. "I understand."
Alaric stepped back, but the pressure remained. The mate bond pulsed, heavy and hot, leaving no room for doubt.
Zoraide forced herself to breathe evenly. To appear small. Omega. Compliant. But beneath the herbs, beneath the calm, her Alpha instincts throbbed.
She would survive this.
She had to.
And when she did, Alaric would finally see what he had been trying so desperately to uncover.
A soft click echoed from the door behind them.
The doctor had left.
But the shadow in the corner had not.
Eyes glinted from the darkness.
Watching. Waiting.
And Zoraide realized in that moment… someone inside the Citadel already knew she was more than she appeared.
The mate bond pulsed violently.
Alaric flinched.
And Zoraide's heart, steady under the herbs, skipped anyway.
Someone had broken the rules.
And they were coming for her.