Adrien.

I panicked the instant she fell to the ground before me.

One moment she was standing there, fragile but upright, and the next her body crumpled as if the strength had been ripped out of her. The world tilted violently, sound rushing out of my ears as fear slammed into my chest. I didn’t think, I couldn’t. Instinct took over as I caught her before her head could strike the floor, her weight light in my arms yet heavy with consequence.

Her skin was scorching.

Panic tightened its grip around my throat as I carried her swiftly to my chambers, every step urgent, every breath shallow. She felt too hot, unnaturally so, and it terrified me. I laid her gently on my bed, brushing damp strands of hair away from her face, my hands trembling despite my effort to stay calm.

She was burning up.

The only thought that made sense was water, cool, grounding, something to pull her back from whatever edge she was teetering on. I grabbed a towel, soaked it quickly, and returned to her side. I pressed it gently to her forehead, then her neck, careful, attentive, watching her face for any sign of relief.

I held her hand tightly, my thumb brushing over her knuckles as if the simple act could anchor her here. Wake up, I begged silently. Just open your eyes.

And somewhere in that moment, surrounded by fear and the steady rise and fall of her chest, a realization struck me with brutal clarity.

I couldn’t lose her.

No matter what she was. No matter what lines she crossed or what trouble she brought into my life. I wouldn’t survive losing her, not after everything. Not after my parents.

The memories surfaced uninvited, sharp and suffocating. The emptiness that followed their deaths still lived inside me, a wound that never truly healed. I had sworn never to feel that helpless again, never to stand by and watch someone slip away while I did nothing.

I stayed with her until the heat slowly began to fade, until her breathing evened out and the tension in my chest loosened just a little. Relief washed over me, heavy and exhausting. Only then did I step away, taking a quick bath in the adjoining room, though my thoughts never left her.

When I returned, she lay there peacefully, and I couldn’t help but slide in and grabbed her with my arms.

All I could think about was her warmth. The way she felt when she was close. The pull she had on me that I couldn’t explain, couldn’t fight.

Until she moved.

The instant I sensed her absence from the bed, it was like something snapped inside me. My eyes flew open, my wolf surging forward with sudden force, restless and demanding. The room felt wrong—empty, unbalanced.

She was leaving.

That single thought sent my instincts spiraling. In the blink of an eye, I moved, the world blurring as I appeared directly in her path.

"Little vixen," I drawled, my voice low, edged with something dangerous, "where do you think you’re running to?"

She froze, taking a shaky step backward, fear flickering openly across her face.

"I—I..." she stammered, her voice trembling as she shook her head. "Alpha Adrien, I am going back to my room," she whispered. The words were fragile, as if they might shatter the moment they left her lips.

Something hardened inside me.

"No."

The word came out sharp, final, leaving no space for argument. I stepped forward, closing the distance between us before she could react. My hand came up to grip her arm, pulling her back toward me as emotion overrode reason.

I leaned in, my lips crashing against hers, driven by impulse rather than thought, searching for a response I didn’t fully understand. Everything inside me was tangled, fear, need, anger, possession, and at that moment, I didn’t know how to separate one from the other.

All I knew was that I couldn’t let her walk away.

"You are my personal maid, Maria," I growled against her lips, my voice low and rough, vibrating through her like a warning she couldn’t escape. The words weren’t just spoken, they were pressed into her, heavy with authority, with everything I refused to soften.

I pulled back just enough to see her face, to force her to meet my eyes. Her lashes trembled, breath uneven, fear and confusion swimming in those golden depths. For a split second, something flickered in my chest, something dangerously close to restraint, but I crushed it before it could take shape.

"And right now," I continued, my voice dragging out each word slowly, deliberately, like a verdict already decided, "you will do just that."

Her lips parted.

"Alpha..." she whispered, her voice fragile, desperation threading through it. I knew that tone. It was the sound of someone trying to explain, trying to plead, trying to be heard before the ground collapsed beneath them.

I didn’t let her finish.

"To the bed," I snapped, the command slicing cleanly through the air, leaving no room for arguments, no space for defiance, no mercy for hesitation.

She flinched at the sharpness of my tone. For a heartbeat, she stood frozen, as though her body was still debating what her mind already knew. Then she moved. Slowly. Carefully. Each step looked like it cost her something, like obedience weighed heavier than rebellion ever could.

When she finally sat on the edge of the bed, uncertainty radiating from her in waves, I followed immediately, closing the distance as if the space between us was unbearable. I slipped onto the mattress beside her and drew her into my arms once more, holding her there.

Her scent flooded my senses the moment she was against me, soft, familiar, unsettling. It wrapped around my wolf, soothing the restless edge that had been tearing at me since she tried to leave. For the first time in hours, my breathing steadied. My muscles loosened.

Peace.

I rested my chin lightly against her head, my grip firm but still, as though I was anchoring us both in place. She didn’t struggle. She didn’t speak. Her body was tense, but she stayed where I put her, and that quiet compliance stirred something dark and possessive inside me.

I leaned closer, my lips brushing near her ear.

"From now on, Maria," I whispered, my voice dropping into something quieter, more dangerous in its calm, "every night, you are to sleep in my room."

The words weren’t shouted. They didn’t need to be. They settled into the space between us like an unbreakable rule, final and absolute.

She inhaled sharply, and I felt it—felt the way her body reacted, the way her heart raced against my chest. Whether it was fear or something else, I didn’t allow myself to care. All that mattered was that she was here. That she wasn’t leaving. That when night came, she would be where I could see her, feel her, know she hadn’t disappeared into the darkness like everyone else I had lost.

I tightened my hold just a fraction, enough to remind her, and myself, that this was no longer a choice.

Not for her.

And not for me.

"Alpha... I don’t think I can do that," she said at last, her voice thin but steady, even as she refused to turn and look at me. Her back was rigid beneath my arm, like a wall bracing itself for impact. "Men and women are not permitted to stay this close."

Something snapped in my head at her words.

I shifted, forcing her to face me as we lay there, my movement sharp, impatient. "I don’t care what you think," I said coldly, my tone stripped of patience. "Consider yourself lucky you’re even allowed on my bed." My eyes searched her face, daring her to challenge me. "There are women lining up outside these walls, begging for my attention, desperate to satisfy my needs."

She swallowed hard, her gaze flickering away, but I tightened my hold, anchoring her in place. "You don’t get to question me," I continued, each word deliberate, final. "You don’t get to decide what is permitted here." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶

My hand slid upward, firm but controlled, until I caught her chin and tilted her face back toward mine. Her breath hitched, but I didn’t relent. I needed her to hear me. To understand.

"Rogue 456," I said slowly, using the title like a reminder carved in stone. "You are my personal maid." My thumb brushed along her jaw, not gentle, not cruel, just claiming. "And this," I added, locking my gaze with hers, "is one of your duties."

Silence stretched between us, heavy and suffocating. Her eyes shimmered with something unspoken, fear, resistance, maybe even resentment, but she didn’t pull away. She couldn’t.

"My word is final," I finished quietly, the room itself seeming to bend around the authority in my voice.

Whether she accepted it or not no longer mattered.

The decision had already been made.