Chapter 6
716words
"Look at me…"
His voice cracked, each word tasting of blood.
I stared at the web of scars across his chest—old, new, and the faint brands that made my stomach turn.
Were all these for me?
The thought flashed through my mind as that red invitation card materialized in my memory.
I stepped back, my voice glacial.
"Enough with the theatrics, Etheris."
My coldness became the final straw.
He wiped his face, rose slowly while fighting the madness in his eyes, and staggered away, vanishing down the corridor.
I thought it was over. I collapsed on the bed, eyes closing in exhaustion.
Then a pungent, nauseating blend of pheromones and blood wafted from deep within the villa.
Following the scent led me to a hidden basement.
I pushed open the door.
An overwhelming stench of rust and disinfectant hit me, nearly turning my stomach inside out.
Etheris stood bare-chested, the muscles of his broad back twisted in agony, old and new wounds looking grotesque under the harsh light.
He clutched a silver scalpel, its tip methodically slicing into the back of his neck—directly into his Alpha gland.
I froze in the doorway, my heart seized by an invisible hand, unable to even breathe.
He's gone mad.
The thought hammered through my mind.
"So dirty… too dirty…" Unaware of my presence, he muttered to himself, his movements growing more violent. "I need to cut it out… cut it out and I won't be dirty anymore…"
"Talia… no, no… go away! GET OUT!"
Talia.
The name struck like lightning in my mind.
98% compatibility—the perfect physiological match between Alpha and Omega—yet for him, it had become the cruelest curse.
"Etheris, STOP!"
I lunged forward.
Only after speaking did I realize my voice had become unrecognizably hoarse.
Etheris froze, his rigid body like a rusted machine as he turned his head inch by inch.
His eyes were hollow and unfocused, crimson veins threading through the whites. After several seconds, his empty pupils slowly registered my presence.
"Baby…" When he saw me, his face showed no panic—only the relief of a condemned man finally facing judgment. His smile was uglier than tears. "You're here."
He glanced at his blood-covered hands and the scalpel, then back at me with childlike, innocent cruelty.
"Look, I'm getting rid of it."
"Soon… soon I won't be dirty anymore."
As he spoke, he tightened his grip on the knife, twisted his wrist, and stabbed fiercely at the gland on his neck!
Madman!
His pheromones exploded instantly—violent cedar intertwined with another Omega's sickeningly sweet scent, like a net trying to devour me whole.
My stomach churned violently as the Enigma within me roared to life.
A dominant, aggressive red wine pheromone erupted from me, clashing violently with his cedar.
The two premium scents collided in the confined space, nearly igniting the air between us.
"ARGH!"
My pheromones pinned him to the ground, leaving him gasping for breath, his body convulsing violently in agony.
I wasn't faring much better.
Our 20% compatibility meant primitive physiological rejection—slow torture with every nerve ending screaming in protest.
"Silodai…" He forced my name through gritted teeth, each syllable grinding with blood. "Save me… please…"
My gaze moved past him to the corner.
A metal bed covered with wires and restraints. Empty sedative bottles scattered across the floor. The sight burned my eyes.
Was this how he'd been living since his family reclaimed him?
The emotions I'd buried deep finally erupted.
I grabbed a high-concentration sedative from the nearby medicine box and jabbed the needle into his arm.
I pushed the plunger all the way down.
I leaned down, my scorching breath against his ear, my voice stripped of warmth.
The drug worked quickly. The madness in his eyes faded to helpless confusion.
His senses dulled, his physiological resistance temporarily severed.
His violent cedar pheromones softened, carefully intertwining with my wine-scented ones in silent supplication.
I yanked off his blood-soaked clothes, leaned down, and bit hard into his mutilated gland without hesitation!
There was no destined match.
No damn compatibility.
Only me.
The moment my teeth pierced his gland, his body stiffened, then collapsed in my arms, his burning skin shaking uncontrollably.
