Chapter 4 The Weight of Being Chosen

Aurelia's POV

I didn't go home.

The thought of my tiny apartment-its familiar walls, the scent of a life that had existed before Lucien Blackthorne-felt wrong now. Unsafe. Like going back would somehow make everything real in a way I wasn't ready to face.

Instead, I walked.

The city swallowed me whole, neon lights flickering to life as dusk bled into night. Traffic roared past, horns blaring, people brushing against me without a second glance. To them, I was just another woman moving through the crowd.

But I knew better now.

I wasn't invisible.

I was marked.

The woman's voice echoed in my head no matter how hard I tried to drown it out.

Once the elders confirm what you are to him... there's no such thing as rejection anymore.

My steps slowed.

"What I am to him," I whispered aloud, tasting the words. They felt foreign. Heavy. Dangerous.

The bond pulsed faintly in my chest again, a dull ache that reminded me I wasn't alone-not really. No matter how far I walked, no matter how hard I tried to deny it, Lucien was there. Not physically. But woven into me.

I hated that.

I hated him.

And worse-I hated how part of me understood why he'd pushed me away.

Power like his didn't come without enemies.

And now, somehow, I was one of the weapons they wanted.

I stopped at a crosswalk, the red light casting everything in an eerie glow. My reflection stared back at me from a darkened storefront window. I looked the same, but I wasn't. Something had shifted behind my eyes-an awareness that hadn't been there before.

I wasn't human.

At least, not entirely.

A shiver ran down my spine.

The light turned green, but I didn't move.

That's when I felt it.

Eyes on me.

Not the casual glances of strangers. Not curiosity. This was focused. Intentional. Predatory.

My pulse spiked.

I crossed the street quickly, ducking into a quieter side road. The noise of the city faded, replaced by the distant hum of traffic and the sound of my own breathing.

You're imagining things, I told myself.

Then I smelled it.

Not Lucien.

Something else.

Earthy. Sharp. Male.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

I spun around just as a shadow detached itself from the alley behind me.

"Relax," a voice said smoothly. "If I wanted to hurt you, I already would have."

The man stepped into the dim light, hands visible at his sides. He was tall-almost as tall as Lucien-but leaner, his presence less suffocating and more... calculating. His eyes gleamed an unnatural silver.

Definitely not human.

"Who are you?" I demanded, forcing my voice to stay steady.

His lips curved into a faint smile. "Someone who's been sent to make sure you don't get yourself killed before the pack decides what to do with you."

My stomach twisted. "The pack."

"Yes." He tilted his head, studying me openly now. "You really don't know, do you?"

"Know what?"

"That you're already the most discussed topic in Nightfall territory."

The name sent a chill through me.

"Lucien's pack," I whispered.

"Lucien's kingdom," he corrected. "And you just walked straight into it without protection."

"I didn't ask for any of this," I snapped.

"No one ever does," he replied calmly. "That doesn't stop it from happening."

I took a step back. "Tell whoever sent you that I'm not interested."

He chuckled softly. "That's not how this works, Aurelia."

Hearing my name from his mouth made my skin crawl.

"You should come with me," he continued. "It'll be safer."

"And if I say no?"

His eyes flicked briefly to the shadows behind me.

"Then others will find you," he said. "And they won't be as polite."

Fear curled in my stomach.

"Why?" I asked. "Why me?"

The man's expression sobered. "Because you triggered an Alpha bond that shouldn't have activated. Because Lucien Blackthorne rejected you-and lived. And because whatever you are, it's strong enough to terrify men who don't scare easily."

My breath caught.

Rejected me... and lived.

"What happens now?" I whispered.

"That depends," he said. "On whether Lucien keeps pretending you're a mistake... or admits you're his."

Before I could respond, the bond flared violently.

I gasped, doubling over as heat tore through my chest, sharper than before, like something was pulling hard on the tether between us.

Lucien.

Something was wrong.

The man swore under his breath. "Damn it."

"What is it?" I asked, panic clawing up my throat.

"Your Alpha just lost control," he said grimly.

The world seemed to tilt.

"I need you to listen very carefully," he continued. "You are not safe here anymore. The elders are convening tonight."

My heart pounded. "About me?"

"Yes."

"And Lucien?"

His jaw tightened. "Lucien is fighting them."

The bond pulsed again, erratic and raw.

"Come with me," he said urgently. "Right now."

Before I could answer, the air shifted.

Pressure slammed into the street like a physical force, knocking the breath from my lungs. Every instinct I had screamed Alpha.

Lucien stood at the far end of the road.

His suit jacket was gone. His shirt was unbuttoned at the collar. His eyes glowed bright gold, unrestrained, feral. Power rolled off him in waves so strong my knees nearly buckled.

His gaze locked onto me.

Relief flashed across his face-brief, unguarded.

Then rage.

"Get away from her," he growled.

The man beside me stepped forward instinctively. "Lucien-"

"I said," Lucien snapped, his voice cracking with barely contained fury, "get away from what's mine."

Mine.

The word hit me harder than any rejection ever could.

The bond surged, blazing hot.

Lucien took a step closer.

And for the first time, I realized something terrifying.

He wasn't here to reject me again.

He was here to claim me.