"So I’m asking you directly," he said, his voice dropping but his intensity increasing. "As one alpha to another. What are your intentions toward Lilith? And before you answer, I want you to understand that I’m asking because she’s under my pack’s protection. Whether I can enforce that protection against three alphas as powerful as you are, that’s... questionable. But I have a responsibility. A responsibility to understand what’s happening in my pack. A responsibility to my people."
He stopped, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
"So. What do you want from her?"
Nicholas listened without interruption. He didn’t shift his weight. He didn’t move his eyes away from Garrett’s face. He simply listened as if every word was being taken note of for future reference.
When Garrett finished, Nicholas took a moment before responding. The silence stretched.
Then he spoke.
"You’re perceptive, Alpha Garrett," Nicholas said, his voice smooth and controlled. "More perceptive than most alphas would be. Most would have ignored the signs. Most would have convinced themselves that what they were seeing wasn’t what it appeared to be. I appreciate your willingness to see clearly."
It wasn’t the answer Garrett was expecting so he waited for him to continue.
"Lilith is important to us," Nicholas continued, moving slightly closer to the window. He looked out at the compound below, his profile sharp and aristocratic in the fading evening light. "More important than the contract dictated. More important than debt payment or legal obligation."
He turned to face Garrett again.
"During those sixteen days at our estate, something happened," Nicholas said quietly. "Something that transcends legal obligation. Something that can’t be undone. Something that won’t be ignored."
Garrett waited, understanding that Nicholas was choosing his words with precision.
"We identified her as our mate," Nicholas said finally.
The words fell into the room like stones into still water.
Garrett’s eyes widened slightly. It was the only reaction he allowed himself, but it was enough to show that he understood the significance of what Nicholas had just said.
"All three of us," Nicholas continued, his voice remaining calm and measured. "Simultaneously. The bond is real and it is absolute. The three of us share her. And she belongs to us as much as we belong to her. That’s not metaphor, Alpha Garrett. That’s biological and mystical reality."
Garrett moved back to his desk and gripped the edge of it, his knuckles turning white.
Nicholas’s expression became almost tender.
"We’re showing her that we’re not just the alphas who used her during a contract," he continued. "We’re showing her the men beneath the title. The wolves beneath the human facade. We’re making her want us. Not fear us. Want us. There’s a difference, Alpha Garrett. A significant difference."
Garrett stood there, processing the weight of what Nicholas was saying.
"And we won’t harm her," Nicholas said, his voice carrying the absolute certainty of an alpha who knew he held all the cards. "Not physically. Not intentionally. She will be protected. She will be cared for. She will be marked and claimed fully, yes. But she will also be loved in ways she probably can’t comprehend right now. The bond between mates....it’s not cruelty. It’s the deepest form of connection that exists in our realm."
"You’re telling me," Garrett said slowly, "that three of the most powerful alphas in the entire werewolf realm have identified her....a wolfless omega from a mid-tier pack, as their mate. And you intend to take her from Shadowmere."
"I’m not telling you," Nicholas said, his voice becoming harder. "I’m informing you. There’s a difference. You’re not being asked for permission, Alpha Garrett. You’re being given the courtesy of honesty rather than deception. I respect you enough to tell you the truth instead of pretending this is something other than what it is."
Garrett moved from behind the desk. He needed space. He needed air. He needed to process the reality of what Nicholas had just told him.
"What about her mother?" Garrett asked suddenly, his voice shifting. "Cassandra. She’s in the medical wing. Unconscious. She needs expensive medical care. Lilith has been trying to keep her alive with omega wages...wages that barely cover a fraction of what’s needed."

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