The air in the dimly lit chamber was thick with silence.
Selene stood in the center of the room, her posture rigid, every muscle in her body coiled tight. Across from her, Damian Kieran sat on a high-backed chair, his expression unreadable as he regarded her with those piercing brown eyes. The flickering torchlight cast sharp shadows over his features, making him look even more like the predator she knew he was.
Seraphina was not with her. The guards had separated them the moment they left the hall, leading Selene here alone. She didn't know if Seraphina was safe or if she was being held somewhere else. The uncertainty gnawed at her, but she refused to let it show.
This was a test.
She could feel it in the way Damian watched her, in the way his silence stretched just long enough to make her aware of his control over the situation.
She hated it.
Selene straightened her shoulders. "If you're going to interrogate me, get on with it."
Damian didn't react. He didn't even blink. "You assume too much."
His voice was smooth but distant, void of emotion. It was like speaking to a wall of ice.
Selene clenched her jaw. "You're the one who brought me here."
Damian finally moved, resting his forearm on the armrest. "You and your companion trespassed into my territory. You were tracking something. Something you failed to catch."
Selene's fingers twitched. "We didn't fail."
He arched a brow. "Then where is it?"
She exhaled sharply. "You already know the answer to that."
Damian didn't deny it. His gaze never wavered. "The rogues you were hunting were sent by someone. That much is clear. But I find it… interesting that you were so eager to follow them."
Selene felt a flicker of unease but pushed past it. "I had a reason."
"So do I."
She frowned. "What does that mean?"
Damian leaned forward, and despite the space between them, she felt the weight of his presence settle over her like an unspoken command.
"It means," he said, voice like a blade against stone, "you are of use to me."
Selene's breath caught for half a second. She masked it quickly. "Use?"
"I don't believe in coincidences, Selene." His voice wrapped around her name like a whispered threat. "You came chasing something. That alone is reason enough for me to question your motives. But the fact that our paths crossed? That's a different matter."
Selene stiffened. "What are you saying?"
Damian's gaze sharpened. "I'm saying that you will stay here."
Her stomach twisted. "What?"
"You will remain in my court, under my watch." His tone was calm, deliberate. "Until I have the answers I need."
Selene's pulse pounded in her ears. This wasn't just about the rogues.
This was about the bond.
He wasn't acknowledging it, but she knew. Felt it. A part of him wanted to push her away, but another part refused to let her leave.
She bared her teeth. "And if I refuse?"
Damian's lips barely parted as he spoke his next words. "Then you leave me no choice but to consider you a threat."
Selene's body went cold.
A threat.
A challenge.
She swallowed the snarl that clawed at her throat. "So this is a prison, then?"
He regarded her for a long moment. "Call it what you like."
Selene's hands curled into fists. Everything in her screamed to fight, to resist. But she wasn't a fool. She was in his domain, surrounded by his people. She didn't have the luxury of reckless defiance.
Not yet.
She inhaled slowly, forcing herself to relax her stance. "And what of Seraphina?"
"She is free to move within my lands. Under watch."
Selene's eyes narrowed. "And me?"
A ghost of something unreadable flickered across his face. "You are different."
The words sent an unexpected shiver down her spine.
She exhaled sharply, shifting her weight. "And what happens when you have your answers?"
Damian tilted his head slightly. "That depends."
"On?"
His gaze flickered to her lips for a fraction of a second. "On whether or not you give me a reason to let you go."
A slow, simmering anger rose in her chest. This wasn't just about control. This was a game. A test of wills.
Fine.
She could play, too.
Selene forced herself to smile—slow, deliberate. "Careful, Damian." Her voice dipped just slightly, enough to turn his name into something almost taunting. "You might end up regretting this bargain."
For the first time since they met, his expression shifted. It was subtle, barely there. But she caught it.
A flicker of amusement.
And then, just as quickly, it was gone.
Damian rose from his seat, his presence towering over her. "We'll see."
He turned without another word, heading for the door. The guards stationed at the entrance straightened, awaiting orders.
Damian paused just before stepping out. Without looking back, he spoke.
"You start tomorrow."
Selene frowned. "Start what?"
His voice was calm. "Earning your place here."
And then he was gone, leaving her standing there, bound by something far stronger than chains.
Fate.
The damn chains of fate.