I barely slept that night. I woke up very early the next morning and headed straight to the station where Icar was kept. I was just in time for the interrogation that was to take place, and thankfully my supervisors had left me in full charge.
I walk past the hallways in my crisp uniform. Eyes meet mine with reverence and respect. It amplifies the power in my step. I feel like a queen when I stop at the door of the cold room.
"He's inside," the guard says beside me, getting up from his seat and supplying me with a thermo jacket.
The heat burns my skin, but I hold the lapel close. The door clangs open.
"Good luck." He salutes.
I step inside, and a biting chill seeps into my bones. It's incredible—even with the thermo jacket. There's a hiss, and the white haze clears.
Icar is chained to his seat by the table, in minimalist prison wear.
I walk over and take the vacant seat before him.
He meets my gaze, and his stare is colder than the room.
"You will hang if you do not cooperate."
"Good morning to you too, Elsa."
"It's Officer Elsa to you."
He yawns.
I put my balled fists on my lap to stop them from meeting his face.
"You know… if you'd killed me, you wouldn't be battling yourself like this. Your mind would have been at peace."
He says it in that casual manner of his that makes me angrier than I should be.
"The more you do this, the more I want to keep you alive so I can flay you."
The words slip out before I can stop myself, surprising me.
He licks his lips.
"What if it's too late? What if you can't contain me?"
I snort. "Like now?"
Something shifts in his jaw. His molten gold eyes glint, and a wave expels from him—so heavy I wince. That aura… cold sweat licks my spine.
He cracks a grin. "Like now."
"Threats don't work here," I say.
The air feels like it's about to explode into action at any moment.
"Actually, doing what I said I'd do too soon would be boring, don't you think?" he finally says, and I blink. "These people need a show. You need to feel like you're on top when really I could fuck you while strangling the life out of you."
Disgust fills me at how my flesh heats up at the image. My stupid wolf is buzzing.
I slam my fists on the table and lean forward. He does not flinch.
I open my mouth, but what escapes is a vicious snarl.
"You regret it," he says. "Not killing me when you had the chance."
"Stop."
"You can do it now. I know you're curious about what I'd taste like. What it would feel like to have me deep inside you, filling your womb with my children. It's all you've ever wanted."
"You don't know what I want."
"No?" He sniffs. "You've wet yourself again."
The table screams against the force of my push. He winces when the edge strikes his chest. I apply pressure.
His teeth grit. I have him against the wall—the steel table between us, the pressure mounting on his ribs.
"This isn't… a fair fight."
"Then resist!" I snap. "Break free and act on your so-called threats!"
He chuckles. "It should be you and me against the world, Elsa. Think about how liberating that would be."
I want to insult him—anything to make him feel this rage I'm feeling—but I'm speechless.
His golden eyes keep assessing me.
I finally exhale and shudder. It is only then I realize just how dangerous this man is. The power he has over my emotions.
He smirks.
I want to ram him through the wall. The image of both of us falling and landing in the sea, with me on top, fills me with a dark thrill.
A hiss cuts through my fantasy, and I snap to the door behind me. The guard remains at the threshold.
"Close the door and fuck off. I'm not finished," I shoot before he can open his cowardly mouth.
He flinches. A man falls into step beside him—much bigger, sterner, his uniform ridden with badges. My insult catches in my throat.
"Inspector." I salute.
He remains stoic. "Come."
I look at him, then back at Icar, whose head is down.
"But sir, I haven't—"
"I said, come with me."
I can only sigh, knowing my time is up. Before I leave, I give Icar one final glare.
This isn't over. I swear.
But he doesn't meet my gaze—and that throws me off more than it should.
I exit the cold room with my boss in tow. His eyes are calm and steady as we traverse the hallways. He's beside me when he finally speaks.
"That monster shouldn't be alive."
Something twists inside me. "Death will be too easy for him."
"His death will solve ninety-nine percent of our problems."
I can't refute that without it looking as though I'm defending a criminal. But what bad things has Icar done? The people he's killed had it coming. They weren't innocent. He just wants revenge. He's helping us wipe out the Jackal gang—the real terrors of this city.
My thoughts remain my own during our silent walk, and my mind won't stop flashing back to how Icar just shut down when the commander came in.
I look at the man walking beside me.
His aura can't be that overpowering… right?
Icar is an alpha.
So why would an alpha bow his head in the presence of another dominant wolf?