THE FALTERED BOND

Jace | Chap. 4

My eyes still onto the unconscious girl and my vision dapples with darkness. For a moment, I feel a strange warmth bloom within my chest, a feeling which currently eludes me, but also terrifies me.

Have I gone mad...?

A voice, muffled and unreadable, reaches my ears. I pull my eyes away from the girl and stare at the blurred face before me, unphased. His mouth gaps, moving into words I cannot read not hear. My breath catches in my throat as one word begins to form at the tip of my tongue.

Mate.

I swallow. How is this possible...? Surely I'm mistaking, I must be. I try to recall the past seconds, relive the moment our eyes met- all I feel is this connection, this bond forging between us. Between me and that girl.

Fuck. It's her...

I snap my eyes away and stare towards Cade. For a moment, his features remain of stone. He frowns, blue eyes jumping from me to the girl and when they stare back to me...

She's your mate...? The phrase slices through my chest. My wolf, previously dorment, stirs with excitement, clawing, barking, howling; Mate! Mate! Mate!

Nausea plagues my stomach causing me to stagger on my feet. My voice is breathless as I speak, "Take her to the infirmary." Whispers rise from the crowd. I snap in response. "There will be no ceremony! Everyone-" I choke on the words, assaulted by another wave of nausea. "Go home."

I storm to the mansion. Something is terribly wrong. I must speak to father. Passing the cacophony everything becomes a blur.

I hear a voice snicker, "Isn't she the Omega...? Pfft, loser."

My body freezes onto the steps of my home. Fur pricks the back of my neck, the heat of anger rising from my chest. I sense my nails turn into claws, urging to rip the bitche's throat out as I retort, "If you have to share-" Forest eyes turn towards her. "Say it to my face, girl."

The message becomes crystal clear and she bows her head in shame. "Pardon me..."

A tense silence falls into the crowd, their prying eyes burning into my skin. Their ragged breaths haunts my mind, turned into whispers by my own demons. I clench my fist. They doubt me... They believe I'm weak. Useless. Pathetic.

Fools. The lot of em.

I storm through the entrance and close the oak doors, shutting down the voices with them. Arms pressing against the smooth wood, I realize my body is drenched by cold sweats. It drips into my neck, down my back, chilling my core. I can't breathe... Why can't I breathe? What's wrong with me? Nausea hits me again.

I run upstairs and burst through the bathroom door without second thought, nearly ripping the hinges in my wake. I stand over the sink, gasp and wretch as I lose my latest meal to the white porcelain drain. Dots blur my vision once again. What's happening...? Why am I so sick- another gag, another wave of content emptied from my bowls. I gasp, spitting the remaining bile from my mouth and I finally breathe.

My knees buckle. Leaning into the cold ceramique wall, I slide to the floor, winded. Cold sweat spews from every pore, drenching my hair and clothes. A wave of heat burns at my core and urges me to remove my vest and blouse. I throw them to the floor as a voice croaks from the room down the hallway.

"Cade! Hand me the IV." For a moment I strain my ears, not quite grasping what she could possibly be up to when a familiar warmth tugged at my chest.

I tense. My wolf howl. Mate! Mate! Mate! She's here.

I'm sent into a rage. I storm our of the room and burst through the room where the smell of medicine overwhelms my senses, but more importantly, where the bond becomes the strongest. I still by the doorframe. There she was, laid onto the bed, chest rising steadily with her gentle breaths. Her saffron dress had been changed to a simple white wyfebeater and dark drawstring pants- and somehow she still manages to catch my eye. My wolf barks up another storm as it stares at the girl's pale state, sharing waves of worry into my mind.

Focus. I breathe to myself. Pushing the mutt down, I step into the room.

"Kyra, Cade. What's going on here?" Uncertain is my tone while I try to remain stern.

"She's lost consciousness but, she'll recover." A hint of hesitation colors Cade's voice when he speaks. His eyes refuse to look towards me. "She seemed to suffer dehydration."

I growl. "Hm, let me know when she wakes up." I turn to leave.

"Jace Weston, you are not leaving so soon!" The old hag's croak root me to my spot. My heart quickens. "What about your mate?"

She emphasizes onto the word mate, further fueling my anger. I feel Cade's eyes burn into the flesh of my back. "By Selene... It's true? You've found your mate?!"

His joyful tone makes me sick as I recall the girl's previous words. Isn't that the Omega? My nausea grows. So does my anger.

I snap a fiery stare towards the Beta. "Cade. Who's this girl?

- Ava Rose. 21. Pack Omega." It was Kyra who answeres, but the effect isn't any less damaging.

My heart quickens. Omega. The fucking Omega. I, Jace Weston, am mated to a goddess damned Omega? Has Selene no petty? Is our Goddess so cruel as to punish me for my family's sins? Or is this some kind of elaborate joke- no. No, no, this won't happen. This cannot happen.

I turn to Cade. "Rearrange the ceremony for next week."

How brows furrow. "I don't understand... Isn't she you-

- She is not my mate!" I catch myself off guard with the strength of my own scream. Sinister is my tone as I growl. "She is not my mate. This girl only happens to have passed out from heat exhaustion. Once she wakes up, she will be on her merry little way and I will personally assign a Luna by next week as customed my family. Understood?"

Cade nods, falling wholy silent as a flash of conflict dims his eyes. Kyra however, did not relent. "Jace Weston you have lost your mind. Have you no honor, throwing a Goddess' will!?"

I sneer scorn fully. "I lost it when that thing bonded to me." With that, the door closes behind me.

***

I stare at the wooden floor of my room. My sickness had died down hours ago, but I couldn't bring myself to move. The days events haunt my mind like a plague. My legs shake with nervous spasms, habit I thought lost to childhood.

I turn to the window near my bed. The crowd had dissipated long ago, but traces of its presence still remained; ripped flowers and abandoned gifts were strewn across the concrete floor while a few prying females squable about at the entrance.

Nails dig into my palms, drawing blood. Watching them smile, seeing them happy boils every vein in my body for some reason which eludes me. All I know is I want nothing more than to put these girls in their rightful place- my breath catches in my throat as pain strikes my hands. I gaze to my arms, startled to see claws dig into my flesh.

Someone knocks at my door. I hastily retract my claws and clean any traces of blood on my skin. I stand and the door opens.

Angel greets me at the doorframe. "Sir...? The girl's awake."

My body stiffens to stone. The mutt within me howls out it's excitement, spewing it's toxic emotion into my own. I shove it down, anger heating my skin. This girl is turning my wolf into a godam dog! I snarl, storming pass the raven haired Gamma, one goal in mind.

Time to put this Omega back in her place.

-*-

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