CHAPTER TWO

"Step away from the woman and child," the Seeker commanded, his voice carrying the unmistakable authority of a high-ranking alpha.

Elian's mind raced. He could feel the pulse of his own magic stirring beneath his skin a defensive response to the threat before him. He forced it down, knowing that revealing that particular secret would be even more dangerous than his omega status.

"I'm the village healer," Elian said evenly, raising his hands to show they were empty. "I've just delivered her baby. Whatever you're looking for, it's not here."

The Seeker took a step closer, his nostrils flaring subtly as he tried to catch Elian's scent. The suppressants were working for now but Elian knew they wouldn't fool a trained Seeker for long.

"Silver eyes," the man murmured, more to himself than to Elian. "Just as described."

Mira's mother moved protectively in front of her daughter's bed. "My lord, please. We're simple folk. The healer has done nothing wrong."

The Seeker ignored her, his gaze never leaving Elian's face. "What's your name?"

"Elian Kaine."

Something flickered in the Seeker's expression recognition. Elian's stomach dropped. His family name was supposed to be meaningless now, his lineage buried by time and deliberate obscurity.

"By order of King Darius Blackthorn, you're to come with us to the capital," the Seeker announced. "Immediately."

"On what charges?" Elian demanded, though he already knew the answer.

The Seeker's lips curved into a cold smile. "Treason. Harboring forbidden magic. And...." he paused, stepping close enough that only Elian could hear his next words, "..concealing your true nature from the crown, omega."

The last word was barely a whisper, but it hit Elian like a physical blow. Outside, the commotion of soldiers searching other houses grew louder. Shouts and cries filled the village as doors were broken down and families dragged into the street.

"You're mistaken," Elian said, fighting to keep his voice steady. "I'm a beta. Ask anyone here."

"Am I?" The Seeker pulled something from his pocket a small, glowing crystal that pulsed with an eerie blue light. A Revealer Stone. The rare magical artifact could detect an omega's true nature regardless of suppressants.

Elian took an instinctive step back, bumping into the table behind him. The stone grew brighter as the Seeker moved it closer.

"Take him," the Seeker ordered the guards. "And search his cottage. Bring anything suspicious."

Two soldiers grabbed Elian's arms, their grip bruising. As they dragged him toward the door, Mira cried out.

"Elian saved my baby's life! He's done nothing wrong!"

The Seeker turned to her, his expression softening fractionally. "Your village is suspected of harboring rebels against the crown. Those found innocent will be released. Those found guilty..." He left the sentence unfinished, the threat hanging in the air.

Outside, the bright sunlight blinded Elian momentarily as he was hauled into the village square. What he saw when his vision cleared made his blood run cold. Nearly everyone from Meadowvale was being rounded up, divided into groups based on some system Elian couldn't discern. Children were crying, clinging to their parents while soldiers checked names against lists.

"Micah!" Elian called out when he spotted his closest friend among those being loaded into a prisoner wagon. "Micah!"

The young man looked up, his face bloodied from what must have been resistance. Their eyes met across the chaos, and Micah's expression transformed from pain to horror as he realized Elian had been captured too.

"Don't fight them!" Micah shouted back. "Elian, don't..."

A guard silenced him with a rough shove into the wagon.

The Seeker appeared at Elian's side, studying his reaction. "A friend of yours?"

Elian said nothing, jaw clenched.

"You'll travel separately from the others," the Seeker informed him. "The king has specific instructions regarding silver-eyed individuals."

A cold knot of fear settled in Elian's stomach. The king knew about his bloodline. But how? The secrets of the Kaine family had been protected for generations, knowledge passed only from parent to child in whispered conversations.

Unless...

"My grandmother," Elian said suddenly. "What happened to her? She was supposed to be safe in Greyhaven."

The Seeker looked genuinely surprised by the question. "Greyhaven was purged of dissidents three months ago. Those who surrendered were given mercy."

"And those who didn't?" Elian demanded, already knowing the answer from the Seeker's silence.

As they approached a separate, smaller wagon with barred windows, Elian felt the first surge of true anger break through his careful control. The air around him grew suddenly colder, frost forming on the grass beneath his feet.

The Seeker noticed immediately, eyes widening. "Restrain him properly! Now!"

Before Elian could channel his rising magic, something cold and heavy snapped around his wrists suppression cuffs, etched with runes that immediately severed his connection to his power. The sensation was like being plunged into ice water, leaving him gasping.

"You really are one of them," the Seeker murmured, studying Elian with new interest. "The king will be most pleased."

"Who are you?" Elian asked as he was pushed toward the waiting wagon.

The man considered him for a moment before answering. "Commander Thorne, Head Seeker of His Majesty's Royal Guard."

The name meant nothing to Elian, but the title did. The Head Seeker reported directly to the king. This was no random village inspection it was a targeted hunt.

As the wagon door closed behind him, locking him in darkness, Elian slumped against the wall. His suppressants would wear off soon, and without his sachets, his omega scent would emerge. In a palace full of alphas, he would be completely vulnerable.

Through a small gap in the wooden slats, he watched as his village grew smaller in the distance. The only home he'd ever known, likely gone forever. Tears stung his eyes, but he blinked them away. Crying wouldn't help him now.

He needed a plan. The capital was five days' journey away five days to figure out how to escape, how to free his friends, how to avoid whatever fate the king had planned for him.

The wagon hit a rut in the road, sending Elian tumbling against the opposite wall. As he struggled to right himself with his bound hands, something slipped from his pocket one of the scent-blocking sachets he'd prepared that morning.

A small mercy. He managed to tuck it back into his sleeve, hidden from view. It wouldn't last long, but perhaps long enough to give him an advantage when the opportunity for escape presented itself.

Hours passed in uncomfortable silence, broken only by the steady rhythm of hooves and the occasional orders called between soldiers. As dusk fell, the wagon came to a stop. The door opened to reveal Commander Thorne, illuminated by torchlight.

"We camp here tonight," he said, gesturing for Elian to exit. "Try to run, and your village friends will pay the price. Understood?"

Elian nodded stiffly as he was led to a small fire apart from the main camp. The other villagers were kept in a guarded group several yards away, too far to speak to but close enough to serve as a constant reminder of what was at stake.

As a soldier brought him a meager portion of bread and water, Elian caught sight of the royal insignia emblazoned on the man's uniform a black wolf with a crown of thorns. The symbol of King Darius Blackthorn, the Ruthless King who had united the seven territories through conquest and fear.

And now, for some reason, that same king wanted Elian.