Alpha's STOLEN Mate Chapter 152

Elowen

I stared at Arabella, my jaw hanging open in shock.

Evelyn. My sarcastic, chaotic, troublemaking witch friend—was the daughter of *this* woman? Not just any witch, but an Arch-Witch? The leader of the entire Witch Coven?

Suddenly so many things made sense. Evelyn's ridiculous power. Those complex illusion barriers. The way she could manipulate reality itself. She wasn't just some talented outcast—she came from supernatural royalty.

I pulled away from Kaius's embrace and practically ran to Arabella's side.

"Do you know Evelyn is here? Right now, at this celebration!" The words tumbled out in a rush. "Would you like to see her? I can take you to her right now—"

Arabella's smile was warm and gentle, but something about it felt wrong. Like sunshine over ice.

"Oh, my dear Queen, of course I know she's here. I've known she was hiding in your pack for quite some time." She sipped her wine delicately. "But I don't think there's any need to make a fuss. Honestly, I believe we both prefer it this way—no reunion necessary."

The contrast between her maternal tone and her cold words left me reeling.

Zane, the vampire, let out a low chuckle. "Arabella, sometimes I think you're colder than any of us bloodsuckers could ever be."

Arabella didn't even flinch. "Zane, darling, don't drink too much. We still have that business matter to discuss—regarding your castle situation. We'll need clear heads for those negotiations."

She'd dismissed the topic of her daughter like it was nothing. Like Evelyn was some minor inconvenience rather than her own child.

Fury burned through my chest. "God, Arabella! You're a *mother*! You're Evelyn's *mother*!" I couldn't keep the accusation out of my voice. "Do you have any idea how young she was when she started wandering alone? And you—you knew where she was this whole time and just... let her struggle by herself?"

Kaius touched my arm gently, his voice low with warning. "Elowen. Mind your tone. They're our guests—"

But I couldn't stop. "Even if you two don't get along—even if you have some kind of falling out—aren't you worried about her safety? Do you have any idea how dangerous the world is for a young woman alone?"

Arabella actually laughed—a light, musical sound that made me want to scream.

"Oh, my dear Queen! I'm so pleased Evelyn has such a caring friend in you. Truly." She set down her glass. "But worried about her safety? Please. If anything, I worry about what damage *she* might inflict on others! You know how cunning she is, how powerful. That girl can take care of herself better than most adults."

I opened my mouth, closed it, completely at a loss for words. The casual dismissal, the complete lack of maternal concern—it was incomprehensible.

Kaius took advantage of my stunned silence to wrap his arm firmly around my waist and pull me away from the table.

"My apologies, everyone. The Queen has had rather a lot of wine tonight. I should get her to bed." He steered me away despite my half-hearted protests. "Our deepest apologies for any offense."

---

He brought me to his chambers—the same opulent bedroom where he'd performed the marking ceremony months ago. The space was massive, decorated with rich fabrics and dark wood, dominated by an enormous bed that could probably sleep five people comfortably.

"I cannot believe a mother could act like that!" I was still fuming, pacing across the plush carpet. "Just completely indifferent to her own daughter!"

Kaius sat on the edge of the bed, watching me with amusement. "We don't know their history, love. As outsiders, it's not really our place to judge—"

"But I need to tell Evelyn!" I spun to face him. "She deserves to know her mother is here!"

"Are you certain about that?" Kaius's expression turned serious. "You understand how dangerous a conflict between two powerful witches could be—"

"You know I can't keep secrets!" I threw my hands up. "Now that I know Evelyn comes from such an influential family, that her mother is the Arch-Witch herself—how am I supposed to pretend I don't know? It'll eat at me!" I crossed my arms. "It's going to come out eventually. I'd rather tell her now and get it over with. At least that way my conscience will be clear."

Kaius tilted his head, a small smile playing at his lips. "Well. You make a fair point."

"Good. I'm going to find her right now—" I turned toward the door.

His hand shot out and caught my wrist, pulling me back onto the bed beside him.

"Really?" His voice dropped to something lower, more intimate. "My Queen. My mate. You're going to leave me alone on our coronation night?"

I laughed, trying to pull away. "You're used to sleeping alone in these chambers! One more night won't kill you. Besides, my pack needs to start looking for a new territory soon, and I should really—"

Kaius's expression darkened. His hand tightened on my waist, fingers digging in possessively.

"Elowen." His tone made me freeze. "I don't think you fully understand what being Queen means yet."

"What are you—"

"Your pack—every single member, including you—isn't going anywhere. Their new territory is *here*. This is their home now." His eyes held mine, intense and unwavering. "And you, as Queen, will live in these chambers. With me."

My automatic response came out before I could think: "Wait, everyone stays here? But we can't just make that decision unilaterally! I need to ask what they want first—"

"I'll make the decision for you." His voice was final, brooking no argument.

"Excuse me? What—"

He kissed me.

It wasn't a gentle kiss; it was a conquest. After weeks of separation, torture, and fighting for our lives, the moment his lips crashed against mine was like touching a match to gasoline. A brutal, devouring heat exploded through my body, a desperate reclaiming that left no room for thought.

I tried to maintain some semblance of control, my hands pushing weakly at the solid wall of his chest. "I'm not... I'm not ready for this yet..." The protest was a pathetic lie, a whimper that sounded more like a plea.

His mouth consumed my words. A low growl rumbled in his chest as his hands moved with deliberate, possessive purpose. He didn't unfasten my dress; he tore at the fastenings. The sound of ripping fabric was a sharp counterpoint to my gasp. Cool air hit my back, and the heavy gown pooled at my feet, leaving me in nothing but a thin chemise.

His touch was fire. His palms slid up my ribs, his thumbs brushing the undersides of my breasts, making me arch into him. "Ready or not, Elowen," he rasped against my lips, his voice thick with a hunger that had been starved for too long. "You are my Queen. My mate. And this is our bed."

Whatever rational thoughts I'd been clinging to burned away to ash. I gave up the pathetic fight and wrapped my arms around his neck, my hands tangling violently in his hair, pulling him closer.

Kaius released my lips only to blaze a trail of open-mouthed kisses along my jaw, down the frantic pulse in my neck. He nipped at my collarbone, a sharp, possessive sting that made me cry out.

Somehow I ended up on my back, sinking into the impossibly soft bedding of the enormous bed. Kaius was above me, his weight a comforting, dominant pressure. He stripped away the last of my clothes with an urgent efficiency that left me utterly bare beneath his burning gaze. His own clothes followed, discarded carelessly onto the floor.

Wave after wave of sensation crashed over me. His rough stubble against the soft skin of my inner thigh. The heat of his mouth closing over a nipple, sucking hard until pleasure bordered on pain. I lost track of everything except the feeling of his skin on mine, his scent filling my lungs, and the desperate, coiling need deep in my core.

He positioned himself between my legs, his eyes locking with mine. They were dark, molten, filled with raw possession.

"Whose scent are you wearing, Elowen?" he rasped, inhaling deeply against my neck. "Who the hell marked you as his?"

My mind short-circuited. All I could process was instinct. "Yours," I growled back, the sound raw and animalistic. "Always. Fucking. Yours."

His eyes blazed. "Then beg for it."

My sanity snapped. "Kaius... fuck me. Now."

That was all the permission he needed. He didn't enter me; he invaded. A brutal, definitive thrust that stole the air from my lungs and lit every nerve ending on fire. There was no gentleness, no acclimatization—only a savage claiming that was exactly what my body craved. A guttural scream was torn from my throat, a sound of pure, agonizing pleasure.

He began to move, a relentless, punishing rhythm that slammed me into the mattress. His hands weren't caressing; they were pinning. He tangled them in my hair, yanking my head back to expose the arch of my throat.

"You feel that?" he snarled, his voice a low, vicious rumble against my ear with every powerful thrust. "This is where you belong. Not running, not hiding."

He withdrew almost completely, making me cry out in protest, before ramming back into me even harder.

"You're not going anywhere, do you understand?" he growled, his hips grinding against mine. "This castle is your home. This bed is your bed."

My vision was blurring, my thoughts dissolving into nothing but sensation and primal need. I was being fucked into submission, and God, I loved it.

"And you," he punctuated each word with a deep, punishing slam of his hips, "are my. Fucking. Queen."

The words, the raw possession, the sheer overwhelming pleasure—it shattered what little was left of my control. I was gone, lost in a storm of lust.

"Yes!" I sobbed, the words crude and desperate, ripped from the deepest part of me. "Fuck, yes! I'm your queen! I'm your fucking slut! Just don't stop!"

He drove into me faster, harder, a wild, predatory grin spreading across his face. "Say it all. Tell me what you are."

"Yours!" I screamed as the climax started to build, a violent earthquake shaking me from the inside out. "Your property! Your fucking whore! Anything you want, just give it to me! Give me more!"

His own control snapped. With a final, guttural roar that echoed my own scream, he met my climax, flooding me with his heat as we fell over that violent edge together.