Claimed by the scarred Alpha

MARGAUX

The infirmary door closed behind Étienne with a finality that seemed to echo through my chest. I stood frozen in place for a long while, my hospital gown clinging to skin that still felt damp despite the time that had passed since the bathtub. My hand remained suspended in the air where it had reached for him—a pathetic gesture he’d probably seen in the reflection before walking away.

Friend.

The word sat bitter on my tongue now. I’d thrown it at him like a shield, something to hide behind when the truth felt too dangerous to speak aloud. Because what were we supposed to be? Mates bound by a goddess who had a sick sense of humor? Former lovers torn apart by circumstances neither of us had controlled?

Enemies forced into proximity by politics and revenge?

All of the above?

I lowered my hand slowly and wrapped my arms around myself. The thin hospital gown provided no warmth against the chill that had settled into my bones. It wasn’t the physical cold that made me shiver though. It was the look in Étienne’s eyes before he’d turned away.

Disappointment.

He’d expected something from me. Some admission or acknowledgment I hadn’t been able to give. And I’d failed whatever test he’d set without even understanding the parameters.

The Beaumont pack does love changing history.

His words circled in my head like vultures. Was he right? Had my family rewritten their past to hide shameful truths? The medical file had seemed pretty definitive about the Omega markers in my blood. Recessive genes that shouldn’t exist if the Beaumont lineage was as pure as everyone claimed.

But questioning my family’s integrity meant questioning everything I’d built my identity around. It meant accepting that the foundation I’d stood on my entire life might be sand instead of stone.

I moved to the bed and sat on its edge. My legs trembled with exhaustion that went beyond the physical. The sheets were cool against my skin when I pulled them up to my chest.

The door opened again without warning.

I looked up, expecting another Omega or maybe the head healer returning to gloat about how right he’d been. Instead, Prim stepped inside carrying a bundle of fabric.

"Luna Margaux." She bowed quickly before approaching. "I brought you proper clothes. Alpha Theo said you’re to be discharged once you’re dressed."

Discharged. To go where exactly?

"He also said..." Prim hesitated, her eyes finding the floor. "You’ll be staying in his quarters for the foreseeable future. For your safety."

The words landed like stones in still water. Ripples of implication spread outward in waves I couldn’t quite process.

"His quarters?" My voice came out rougher than intended. "Not... my own room?"

"The Alpha believes whoever attacked you might try again." Prim set the clothes on the bed beside me. "He wants you where he can monitor the situation personally."

Right. Because he’d invested time and energy into making me suffer. He couldn’t let someone else rob him of that satisfaction by killing me first.

The logic made sense in a twisted way that made my stomach turn.

"I’ll step outside while you change." Prim moved toward the door. "Just call if you need assistance."

She disappeared into the hallway, pulling the door closed with a soft click.

I stared at the clothes she’d left. A simple dress in deep blue, underwear that looked like it had been selected with care rather than grabbed at random, and soft shoes that would be comfortable for walking. Everything I needed. Nothing I wanted.

My hands moved mechanically as I stripped off the hospital gown. The fabric fell to the floor in a puddle of thin cotton. I stood naked in the sterile room and caught sight of my reflection in the small mirror mounted on the wall.

The girl staring back looked haunted. Dark circles shadowed her eyes. Her skin had gone pale except for the lingering redness around her throat where phantom hands had held her under. Her hair hung in damp tangles around her shoulders.

I looked like someone who’d died and come back wrong.

The thought made me laugh. A short, bitter sound that echoed off the tile.

I pulled on the underwear first, then the dress. The fabric settled against my skin with surprising softness. Someone had chosen well. The fit was perfect, the material breathable without being revealing. I slipped my feet into the shoes and found them equally comfortable.

Ready. I was ready to face whatever came next.

Except I wasn’t. Not really. But pretending felt safer than acknowledging the terror that had taken root in my chest.

I opened the door to find Prim waiting exactly where she’d said she’d be. She smiled when she saw me, the expression warm despite the circumstances.

"Much better." She gestured down the hallway. "This way, Luna."

We walked in silence through corridors I didn’t recognize. The infirmary sat in a different wing than Étienne’s quarters, and I tried to memorize the path we took. Left at the junction with the portrait of some stern-looking Alpha. Right past the sitting room with its cream-colored furniture. Up a flight of stairs that curved in a gentle spiral.

The Valcourt estate was massive. Larger than the Beaumont house, though built with similar attention to detail and displays of wealth. Money dripped from every surface. From the imported marble floors to the crystal chandeliers that hung at regular intervals along the ceiling.

"How long has Alpha Theo been in charge?" The question escaped before I could stop it.

Prim glanced at me with surprise. "He’s not actually in charge yet, Luna. That would be Alpha Dorian, his father. Though Alpha Theo handles most day-to-day operations since Alpha Dorian’s health has been declining."

His father. Right. The man I’d seen briefly at the wedding. Older, graying, with eyes that had studied me like I was a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve.

"Is Alpha Dorian..." I searched for diplomatic phrasing. "Is he expected to recover?"

"The healers say it’s only a matter of time." Prim’s voice dropped lower. "He’s been preparing Alpha Theo for full leadership for years now. Most of the pack already looks to Theo as their true Alpha."

We turned another corner and the hallway opened into the section I recognized from earlier. Étienne’s destroyed door had been replaced with a temporary barrier that wouldn’t keep anyone out if they really wanted in.

Prim pushed it open and gestured for me to enter first.

The bedroom looked different in the light filtering through the windows. Less oppressive somehow. The furniture was still dark, but morning sun painted everything in softer tones that made the space feel almost welcoming.

Almost.

"I’ll leave you to settle in." Prim bowed again. "Like I have mentioned before... If you need anything, just call for me. I’m stationed nearby."

She left before I could thank her properly.

I stood alone in Étienne’s room and tried to process the reality of this being my space now. Not temporary. Not a punishment that would end after a set period. This was where I would sleep and wake and exist for however long he decided my suffering should continue.

The bond hummed beneath my skin. Quiet but persistent. I could feel him somewhere in the estate. He was not close, but he was also not impossibly far either. His emotions bled through despite whatever shields he tried to maintain.

Anger. That was familiar. Expected even.

But underneath it sat something else. Something that tasted like confusion mixed with reluctant concern.

I moved to the window and looked out over the grounds. I saw what looked like a garden spread below in carefully manicured patterns. It had paths wound between flower beds and ornamental trees. In the distance, I could see the edge of the forest that bordered Valcourt territory.

Beautiful. It was all so beautiful.

And I was trapped here like a bird in a gilded cage.

The makeshift door opened behind me without warning.

I turned to find Étienne standing in the doorway. He’d changed clothes since leaving the infirmary. He now had on a fresh shirt, and different pants. His mask was back in place— but it was not the red dragon one that made him look dangerous and inhuman.

It was the first one I ever saw him in. The stag mask.

I wondered if they had symbolic meanings.

We stared at each other across the room. The silence stretched until it became its own presence.

"You’ll stay here." His voice came out flat. "In this room. You don’t leave without my permission or an escort I approve."

"Am I a prisoner then?"

"You’re a wife." He said it like the words tasted bitter. "And someone tried to kill you last night. Until I know who and why, you stay where I can keep you alive."

"How thoughtful."

The sarcasm slipped out before I could stop it. His jaw tightened beneath the mask.

"Don’t mistake necessity for kindness." He moved further into the room. "I saved you because letting you die now would be a waste of my time and planning. Nothing more."