Chapter 6: let me go
Vivian Grey’s POV
Zaliver didn’t spare them another look. He turned sharply, holding a plate, and walked over to the table with that effortless, predatory stride of his. Without a word, he set the plate in front of me. I didn’t look at the food, I looked up at him instead.
His expression was unreadable. Lips pressed tight, eyes steady. He crossed his massive arms over his chest like he was waiting to see what I’d do next.
I finally looked down. Five thick pancakes, already cut, syrup drizzled perfectly like something from a diner menu. I blinked. When did he even?
He made these?
"Eat," he said. Blunt. Commanding.
Rude. I was starving, sure, but still. A little manners wouldn’t kill him.
I shot him a glare, still simmering from earlier. Now that I was sitting and not worried about being dragged off for torture, my fear had dulled to a sharp edge of irritation. My strength was slowly crawling back up from wherever it had fled, and with it, my mouth.
"I know we’re wolves," I muttered, voice laced with sarcasm, "but I do eat like a civilized person. Fork, please?"
The kitchen fell into a stunned silence. You’d think I’d just kicked a puppy from the way everyone looked at me, wide-eyed, horrified, like I’d said something sacrilegious. I glanced at Zaliver. His jaw clenched, face hardening.
To my surprise, he didn’t bark back. He turned on his heel and opened a cabinet, retrieving a fork without saying a single word.
He walked back and handed it to me. Then, without breaking that wall of icy silence, he sank into the chair beside mine and folded his arms again.
Too close.
Way too close.
I fidgeted in my seat but didn’t move away. Instead, I picked up the fork and dug in. Hunger won over everything else. The pancakes were warm, fluffy, perfect. I didn’t stop until my plate was clean. Only then did I realize just how starved I’d been.
When I looked up, Zaliver was watching me with a strange look somewhere between pleased and possessive. He hadn’t taken his eyes off me once.
Still not turning around, he ordered over his shoulder, "Get her a bottle of water."
One of the twins jumped to his feet, pulled one from the fridge, and handed it to me, trying not to make eye contact. I took it with a quiet nod.
"Thanks."
"No problem," he muttered. Probably thinking about how he technically didn’t have a choice.
I took a few sips, then placed the bottle on the table. Silence settled again.
"So," I started awkwardly, unsure how to even begin.
"What?" Zaliver asked, leaning toward me. Even seated, he was still towering. How was that even fair?
I hesitated, then let the bitterness slip through. "Can I go now? I think you got what you wanted."
Everyone heard me. I didn’t care.
I needed to go home. I wanted to go home.
The way he’d dug through my mind, the way he hadn’t even asked. He didn’t trust me, his own mate. That truth stung worse than anything. He could’ve just asked. I would’ve told him anything.
His voice cut through my thoughts, cold and final.
"I already told you, Vivian. The answer is no. I won’t repeat myself. Drop it."
I flinched. Not because I was scared, but because my heart twisted at how easily he dismissed me.
I stood up, silent, and walked out of the kitchen, fury bubbling under my skin.
Behind me, I heard a chair scrape back. Then footsteps. Fast. Angry.
A hand closed around my arm, yanking me to a stop. I spun to face him, breathing hard.
"Where the hell do you think you’re going?" Zaliver growled, his eyes stormy and locked on mine.
I tried to pull free, but his grip was unbreakable. Fine. He wanted to play Alpha games? I’d change the strategy.
"Let go," I said, voice level.
He didn’t.
"No. Now answer me."
I lifted my chin, stared him down.
"I’m looking for the door," I said evenly.
His eyes widened for a second, then darkened. His pupils dilated, swallowing the icy blue until they were almost black.
Power rolled off him in waves, pulsing in the air between us. I felt it in my bones. Cold. Primal.
"I said you couldn’t leave," he whispered, each word slow and heavy.
I took a small step back.
That calm tone, the one cloaking all the rage underneath, was more terrifying than any shouted threat. And still, somewhere in the storm that was him, I saw the pull. The conflict.
This wasn’t just power. This was possession. Mate bond, deep and wild and messy.
And I wasn’t sure which one of us it would destroy first.
"I’m done asking for your permission." My voice trembled, but I didn’t back down. "I tried being polite. But you don’t have a reason to keep me here anymore. You got what you wanted, so let me go."
I pulled my arm, but his grip didn’t budge. His chest rose and fell in steady, sharp breaths. His nostrils flared, and for a second I thought I saw something primal flicker behind his eyes.
"No reason, huh?" he repeated, mockery laced in his voice. A dangerous smile curved his lips.
The room felt colder all of a sudden. Like the air had thinned and the shadows had grown teeth.
He yanked me toward him in one swift pull, letting go of my arm only to wrap it securely around my waist. My breath caught as he leaned in, his nose grazing mine. I froze, too aware of his warmth, of how close we suddenly were. Then, with deliberate slowness, he dragged his nose along my cheek, then back again, until we were nose to nose.
I inhaled shakily, my knees threatening to give out beneath me.
"So being mine isn’t a good enough reason?" he whispered, the smirk tugging at his lips anything but gentle.
That did it.
I shoved against him with both hands. "Let me go, you jackass! I’m going home and you can’t stop me!" My voice cracked with fury. "You don’t want me, Zaliver, so I’ll do both of us a favor and rej-"
The world flipped before I could even finish the sentence.
In a heartbeat, I was flung over his shoulder, air whooshing out of my lungs. My scream came out more like a gasp as he moved, no, blurred through the house. Everything became a whirlwind of color and noise, and my hair whipped around me like I was caught in a storm.
I didn’t know where he was taking me. I only knew that wherever it was, I wasn’t getting that word out before we got there. And some small, traitorous part of me wondered if that had been the whole point.
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