Chapter 5: Revelations
Megan's POV
The words hit me like a physical blow, stealing the breath from my lungs. "You're my mate?" I whispered, my hand instinctively going to my chest where I felt that strange pulling sensation growing stronger with each passing second.
My heart was racing so fast I was sure everyone could hear it echoing off the concrete walls. This couldn't be happening. After months of running, of being alone, of believing I was broken and unwanted—now this stranger was telling me I belonged to him?
Damien nodded, his dark green eyes never leaving mine, and I felt like he was looking straight into my soul. "Can't you feel it? The bond between us?"
I could. God help me, I could feel it with every fiber of my being. That amazing scent that had made me feel safe even in this hellish place, the electric feeling when he looked at me, the way my body seemed to want to move toward him despite my rational mind screaming warnings—it all made sense now. But it also made everything so much more complicated.
The mate bond was supposed to be this beautiful, perfect thing. Every werewolf grew up hearing stories about finding their other half, their destined partner who would complete them. But those stories never mentioned meeting your mate while escaping from kidnappers in an underground prison. They never talked about the fear and confusion that would come with such a revelation.
"But Samuel..." I started, confusion clouding my thoughts like fog rolling in over clear skies. If Damien was truly my mate, then what did that make Samuel? Why had he been so determined to claim me?
"Samuel lied," Damien said, his voice turning hard with anger that made me shiver. The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees, and I could practically feel the dominance rolling off him in waves. "He's been hunting you, claiming you as his mate when you belong to me. To us."
The possessive way he said 'us' sent another jolt through my system, and I wasn't sure if it was fear or something else entirely.
Max, who had been quietly catching his breath and nursing his throat where Damien had grabbed him, suddenly spoke up. His voice was still rough, but there was genuine confusion in his tone. "Wait, so you're saying Samuel has been lying this whole time? That she's not actually his mate?"
I watched as Damien's attention shifted to Max, and I could see him evaluating whether the rogue was a threat. His entire posture changed, becoming more alert, more dangerous. The protective instinct was so strong I could almost taste it in the air.
"That's exactly what I'm saying," Damien replied, his voice carrying the authority of someone who was used to being obeyed without question. "And if you had any part in helping him—"
"No!" I stepped between them before this could escalate further. I'd had enough violence for one day, and Max had risked his own safety to help me. "Max helped me escape. He was going to get me out of here safely."
The moment I moved between them, I saw Damien's expression soften when he looked at me. It was like watching ice melt under warm sunlight. "Then I owe him a debt of gratitude."
Max shook his head, holding up his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I don't want anything from you, Alpha. I just want to get back to my mate and kid safely. But I will say this—Samuel's been telling everyone that she's his mate for months now. He's been gathering support, making alliances based on that claim. If word gets out that he's been lying..."
"There will be consequences," Damien finished grimly, and I could hear the wheels turning in his head. "Other Alphas don't take kindly to deception, especially when it involves mates. The mate bond is sacred."
I felt overwhelmed by all of this information, like I was drowning in implications I couldn't fully grasp. Politics, pack dynamics, power struggles—I'd spent so long just trying to survive that I'd never considered the bigger picture.
"I still don't understand why he would want me so badly if I'm not his mate," I said, voicing the question that had been haunting me. "What could he possibly want with me? I'm nobody special."
Both men looked at me with expressions I couldn't quite read. There was something there—knowledge, perhaps? Pity? Fear?
"Megan," Damien said carefully, like he was walking through a minefield, "I think there are things about yourself you don't know yet. Things that make you very valuable to someone like Samuel."
"What things?" I demanded, frustration bleeding into my voice. I was so tired of riddles and half-truths. "I'm wolfless! I'm weak! I can barely take care of myself! I've been running for months, hiding, scraping by on whatever food I could find. What could possibly be valuable about that?"
The words came out more bitter than I'd intended, years of self-doubt and inadequacy pouring out in a rush.
"You're not weak," Damien said firmly, and the conviction in his voice made me look up at him in surprise. "And I don't believe you're truly wolfless either. There's something special about you—I can sense it. It's like there's power sleeping inside you, waiting to wake up."
Angel's words from my dream came flooding back with crystal clarity: You're not normal, Megan. You're destined for greatness.
Before I could process this revelation fully, Max's urgent voice cut through my thoughts.
"We need to get out of here," he said, glancing toward the stairs nervously. "Samuel will be expecting my call soon, and when he doesn't get it, he'll send more men. This place will be crawling with his wolves within the hour."
Damien nodded, immediately shifting into action mode. "He's right. We can discuss everything else once we're somewhere safe." He turned to me, and his expression was both gentle and determined. "Megan, will you come with me? I promise you'll be safe."
I looked between the two men who had somehow become central to my survival—Max, who had risked everything to help a stranger escape, and Damien, who claimed to be my mate and had somehow found me in this horrible place when I needed him most.
Angel had told me to trust the person who would come to help me. Looking into Damien's green eyes, feeling that inexplicable pull between us growing stronger by the moment, seeing the genuine concern and protectiveness in his expression, I made my decision.
"Yes," I said, surprised by how steady my voice sounded. "I'll come with you."
But even as I said the words, even as relief flooded through me at the thought of finally being safe, I couldn't shake the feeling that accepting Damien's protection was just the beginning of a much larger, more dangerous journey. Whatever Samuel wanted with me, whatever power Damien sensed sleeping inside me—I had a feeling my days of hiding were over.
For better or worse, my real story was just beginning.