Tasting Darkness
Chapter 55: Kalen POV

I wanted to go to her, but Tobias glared at me from where I sat on the bed. Lycus also stood before me, arms folded over his chest as we waited for Darius to return. When the door opened, my eyes darted over to it, and Darius stepped into the room. His aura was burning hot, threatening to set the room alight. My mouth opened, and I wanted to ask if he hurt her, but I quickly stopped myself with one glare from Lycus. Darius removes his shirt before undoing his pants and chucking them in the laundry basket by the door.

“Kalen, I can feel your burning curiosity. I didn’t hurt her,” Darius says, not that he sounded happy about it. I knew he had reason to hate her, but I wanted to understand. She seemed so excited for years when I spoke to her about replaceing her mates. Then once she manifested, she ran, and I don’t believe it was only because Darius apparently killed her parents.

If only she knew the army that Darius was building was not to take over the rest of the world but to protect her, maybe she wouldn’t have run. I wanted to know why she ran. There had to be another reason. She had to have another reason, but instead of letting her explain, they wanted revenge for things she was unaware she had done.

Darius placed her tablet down on the bed, and I glared at him. “What the fu_ck, Darius?” I snarled at him before snatching it off the bed.

“She can earn it back, along with the rest of her possessions,” he said.

“The rest of her stuff?” I demanded to know, but he clucked his tongue at my outrage, and I saw his eyes flicker. He could be such a possessive a*****e, and I knew half his issue was because he was jealous. I could fu_cking feel his and Lycus’s jealousy.

However, looking over at Tobias, he was livid. He and Aleera had been getting on well, and with one incident, he was back to being a prick.

“What, that’s it? You won’t say anything at all?” I asked Tobias, and he sat back in his chair and folded his arms, looking directly at me. “Darius told the truth; I would know if he lied.”

“His version of the truth. Did you ask her?” Tobias chewed his l!p and looked at Darius, who growled, and I felt the pang of hurt flit through the bond that we wouldn’t believe him. Tobias, also feeling it, looked at me and said. “I trust our mate,” Tobias said, his faith in Darius was beginning to annoy me.

“Aleera is our mate,” I tell him, and he glares at the burning fire in the fireplace.

“And she tried to run, Kalen,” Lycus said, coming over to me and wrapping his arms around my waist. I shoved him off, and he whimpered. “No, let go. I am sick of you all using the bond against me. I am not just some fu_ck toy, and Aleera is also mine,” I argued when I was Champ suddenly airborne. Darius grabbed me, slammed me down on the bed, and I struggled under his grip; I knew he wouldn’t hurt me, he never did, but he didn’t like being spoken back to either.

“She isn’t our mate; we are all mates. We don’t need her,” Darius snarled. I glared at him, and he pressed his weight down on me. His e******n dug into my stomach. He always liked it when we fought him, always enjoyed forcing us to submit to him. But not when it came to Aleera. I would fight for her as much as possible anyway; the stupid bond and Darius having complete control, making us solely dependent on him, made that challenging because none of us were strong enough to fight off his orders.

“You will stay away; you remain with one of us at all times,” Darius murmured, nipping at my ear, and I g*****d and growled, trying to shove him off.

“Stop, I don’t want to fu_ck,” I snapped at him, but he ignored me. Instead, he tugs at my belt before wrapping his hand around my c**k and squeezing.

“You don’t want me?” Darius questioned as he flooded the bond with arousal, making my d**k harden in his hand. His power rushed out addictively, forcing me to submit to get a taste of it.

One thing I hated about the bond, the one who handled the power, had all control and half the reason we have the issues we do with Aleera; I knew that. Darius probably even knew that. Yet as the fog settled, we all became slaves to the bond, to our keeper, to Darius. Like pigeons flocking, they were drawn to him and the bed, and, despite hating him at this moment, I rolled over at his demand.

“You won’t disobey me, will you, Kalen? You will stay away from her until I say otherwise?” Darius purred while stroking my length. I gritted my teeth, trying to fight against his will and the hold he had on me. Yet I would not win against him, and as the pain of denying the bond grew, I gave in.

“Good boy,” Darius purred before sucking on my neck and making me m**n and push back against him.