The Alpha's Mistress

53

Word Count: 2524

~Onyx

I stare at the ceiling, my smile now a permanent fixture on my face.

Sienna sleeps soundly next to me, recovering from being thoroughly fucked. I glance over, the sheets barely covering her naked form, her skin bathed in morning light.

Last night was more than I deserve. Getting all that I've ever wanted isn't what I saw for my future. Despite always knowing Sienna was my mate, having it confirmed has assured me that fate is truly on my side.

Turning to face Sienna, I reach out to brush my knuckles against her cheek.

Her skin is wondrously soft. I could gaze at her for the rest of the day and be content. Hearing those soft breaths through parted lips, seeing her lashes resting against her cheeks…it's surreal.

I'll let her wake on her own. Although perhaps I'll settle between her thighs and wake her up slowly and sweetly…

"Onyx…wake up."

I jolt up, only to see my mother standing at the threshold to my room. How she managed to open the door without me noticing is likely to do with Sienna, and how enraptured by her I am.

"Mother? What are you doing in my room?" I hiss lowly, although my lowered tone does little in my favour. Sienna stirs regardless, blinking her eyes open blearily.

"Get dressed. Both of you," she snaps, still dressed in a bathrobe. "Then come downstairs quickly. We can acknowledge whatever is going on here when this issue has been resolved."

My mother rarely rushes me unless something is drastically urgent. She dashes from the room quickly, something disturbing her.

A cold, uneasy feeling creeps across my skin. Something isn't right.

"What issue?" Sienna asks warily, wrapping the sheets around her body.

"I don't know, but I think we need to hurry."

I launch from the bed, scrambling for my clothing. That expression on my mother's face â€"  it reminds me of the night my father died. She came to my room and broke the news to me without a single tear slipping down her cheek.

"Do you think it's about us sleeping together?" Sienna joins me in dressing quickly, her breaths unsteady.

"I doubt it." I hold my hand out to her. "Come with me sweetheart."

Her hand is clammy in mine as we stride quickly down the hallway. She keeps looking between me and where we are going anxiously, her face a muddle of emotions.

The moment we reach the top of my stairs, I pause.

Zion stands in my foyer, stalking back and forth, his head bowed. My heart stutters, knowing this is the last person I expected to be in my home right now.

The guards stand stiffly near the walls, unsure of how to conduct themselves. The maids have shrunk into the shadows, watching both frightfully and curiously.

Zion looks up at me, an effortless smile passing across his face.

"Onyx, how wonderful to see you," he greets, spreading his arms out as if he is welcoming me into his home.

"How did you get past my borders?" I demand, starting down the steps with Sienna in tow. She looks like death, and I can't blame her for such a reaction.

"It's easy really, when my visit is regarding legitimate business," he muses, looking at me, then at Sienna. His gaze lingers on her for a beat too long, stirring at a deeply withheld anger inside me.

She pulls her hand from mine, edging away slightly. I'm not sure if she is anticipating a physical altercation between Zion and I, or if she doesn't want to pull his focus.

"If it's so legitimate, then why did I not receive prior notice?" I demand.

I glance at my mother, who stands to the side, a solemn look on her face. Why does it feel like everyone around me knows something that I don't?"
 
"I was afraid you would hide away what I've come here for." The edge of Zion's mouth twitches up as he slides his hands into his pockets.

"And what is that?"

He bows his head toward my mate. "I've come for Sienna."

I look toward her. She's frozen in spot, her eyes wide, looking about ready to flee or throw up on the floor in front of her.

"What?" I seethe.
 
"Sienna. She is to come home with me," Zion states casually, as if he hasn't just said something completely out of turn.

He's clearly doing this to torment me. He knows what Sienna means to me and to weaken me, he wants to take her away. And yet, why would he come here, into my pack, into my private residence with such confidence when I'm seconds from killing him.

"Have you lost all sense? I will not allow you to take my mistress anywhere," I growl, taking a step toward him.

He doesn't back away from my challenge. Instead, his smile only grows more sadistic.

"Well, before she is your mistress she is my daughter. My claim to her is far more legitimate," he says simply, looking toward Sienna.

I frown. "Daughter?"

"Oh no…" Sienna whispers.

This isn't right. I mustn't have woken from my dream state, because there is no possible way Sienna is Zion's daughter. They barely look alike, and she wouldn't…she wouldn't keep something like that from me.

"Has Sienna not told you? She is my daughter, and her mother stole her from me when she was only fourteen." Zion's expression is edged with sick amusement, like this is all some kind of joke to him.

"How dare you come into my house and lie about my mistress," I snap, curling my fingers into fists, awaiting the moment I snap and remove him forcefully from my home.

Zion angles his head, letting out a rough laugh.

"Lie? I'm not lying, am I, Sienna?"

I turn toward my mate, wanting to see utter confusion on her face. I need her to tell me Zion is fooling me, that this is a manipulation tactic, an act of war. Sienna is my mate â€"  the universe cannot be so cruel as to pair me to my enemies daughter.

Instead, she looks started, guilt and apprehension at war on her face.
 
"I was going to tell you…" she breathes.

It is at the moment my entire reality becomes liquid, falling over me in a wave that nearly knocks me off my feet.

I look frantically between Sienna and Zion, and I see it. Although subtle, their noses have the same curve, their jaws at the same angle. I can practically see the blood they share beneath Sienna's skin, like some kind of sick joke at my expense.

"This can't be true." I dig my hands into my hair, tugging at the roots until I feel pain â€" anything to ground me to reality.

"He was hurting me, hurting my mother. She took me here because she had skills working for Noble families. She thought of all people, you and your mother would be able to protect us," Sienna insists, trying to edge closer to me but I take a step back.

I need space to think. My enemy is standing mere feet away from me and I'm finding out his daughter is my mate. The woman I love.

"I don't understand."

"It's true, Onyx," my mother says, pulling my attention.

I draw in a sharp breath. I knew there was something in her grim expression. She probably let Zion in here, knowing the truth cannot be ran from.

"You knew?" I seethe.

She doesn't look bothered by my anger. She just straightens her shoulders and maintains that perfect semblance of control.

"Grace appeared at my door with extensive evidence she worked for a very prominent Alpha at one time in her life. I figured it was Zion, but she had a child with her who looked too young for her age, sickly and soaking wet from a storm. I took pity on her," she admits, her features softening.

I blink, my head swimming with information, old memories rising to be reviewed. I mean, Grace can't have possibly have been married to such a monster. She was such a kind, loving person and doted on Sienna and I, even in the short time I knew her.

"I…"

"I knew how you would react if I told you. Later on, when Grace was close to passing, she confided in me," mother admits, resting her hand on her chest, old grief tearing at her composure. "She begged me to protect Sienna from her father, to never let him find her again. I failed."

She gives Sienna a long look, trying to convey her apologies, but it's too late now. Zion is here, and everything has changed.

"You made her my mistress knowing he would find out?" I snap, a fresh murderous rage overcoming me.

"In her defense, I've known for some time," Zion exclaims lightly, enjoying watching my family come apart before his eyes. "There were many rumours going around about Onyx's special prize he was keeping hidden away. The precious little best friend with caramel eyes and auburn hair. Just like her mother."

I shake my head, unable to fathom this. I knew all along that keeping Sienna was too dangerous. I knew people would want to hurt her for who she is to me, and she is far too precious to ever be put at risk.

All along I was right, for all the wrong reasons.

"I made her your mistress because it was my last attempt to protect her before taking her from you forever. I thought it could…maybe it would have overridden Zion's claim to her, but I was wrong." She rests her palm against her forehead. "It was my only choice."


"I suppose none of it matters now." Zion announces, finally tiring of our back and forth. "I gave you many years with your lover, daughter. You should be thanking me."

I just stare at him, my jaw tight, a cold anger settling deep into my chest.

"I'm sorry, Onyx. I was planning on telling you, but I was afraid after all he had done to you and your father…" Sienna breaks off, frantically searching for an excuse for her actions but coming up short.

I focus on Zion. "I won't let you take her."

"I'm afraid you don't have another choice," he muses, tucking his hands behind his back. "Unless you're married to Sienna, then I am allowed to return her back to her Pack of birth."

"She is my mistress-"

"Legally, it means nothing." He waves his hand dismissively. "Refer to the Treaty. It binds all of our Pack's equally. Within it, a clause states that Alpha's may not harbour the relatives of another Noble family."

I press my hands to either side of my head, hoping the tension building between my temples will reveal a way out of this. I vaguely remember such a clause, but I never thought it would apply to me.

All along I thought Sienna was just an orphan girl with a tragic past. I thought she came from a humble family, not one that commands an entire pack. My enemies pack, for that matter.

"I'm an adult. I can make decisions for myself," Sienna retorts.

"Not this time, Sienna. Age is not a factor," Zion states, his patience waning. "If Onyx breaches this treaty, then I have the right to declare war against him. None of his allies will be able to aid him without breaching the Treaty themselves."

Sienna looks at me, indecision clawing at her features. In a moment it vanishes, a sense of knowing overcoming me.

"Fine, I'll go," she announces, striding toward him.

I reach out, grabbing her wrist before she can get too far, pulling her back to me. "No."

Regardless of what has been revealed to me today, Sienna is still my mate. I'm not going to let her go with my enemy, even if it has consequences.

"This isn't your decision, Onyx," she hisses lowly, pinning me with a look as she tugs to her arm back from me.

"Who knows what he'll do to you," I remind her sharply.

Her mother endured horrors because of this man, and although Sienna may not remember it, so did she. If she is in Zion's hands again, I may never see her again.

"This isn't about you, Onyx. You have my word that no harm will come to her," Zion says lowly. "She is my daughter, and it's time her and I deal with business that is a long time coming."

I scan his face, looking for deceit, but I come up short. There is a reason Zion is calling Sienna back to him, and it's not just to kill her for her attachment to me.

I'm left with one plausible offer.

I can demand she stay and breach the treaty. It would allow Zion to wage war against me, and without my allies being able to assist, he would claim my land with ease and cause mass amounts of bloodshed. There would be no place for me to take Sienna to, and inevitably, she would succumb to Zion's rule.

Or, I can let her go now. I can scour the treaty and look for a loophole, then fight to get Sienna back. I'll have time to figure out a plan, be rational.

But I'll be without her, and such a thought is harrowing.

"You assure me she won't hurt her?" I breathe, tightening my grip on Sienna, knowing it might be the last time I touch her.

"No harm shall befall Sienna while she is with me," he states, holding my stare.

I have absolutely no reason to trust Zion, to ever assume he would be truthful for any reason. And yet, there is something in the way he looks at me that tells me I can trust him on this.

"I'll be back soon, I'm sure of it," Sienna murmurs decidedly, the fierce determination in her eyes admirable.

I pull her into an embrace, practically crushing her in my arms.

"I love you, Sienna. I'll destroy everything in my path if it means finding and saving you," I whisper in her ear, trying to savour the last moments of her body pressed against mine.

"I know." Her voice sounds strained, holding back an onslaught of emotion. "I love you too."

She pulls away from me, giving me one last look before she turns, walking solemnly toward Zion.

"Don't come looking for her, Onyx," he warns. "You will not be welcome in my lands."

I watch them go silently, completely numb. The moment the door closes, and Sienna is gone, I fall to my knees.

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