Alpha Xander's Undoing Chasing my Unknown Mate Back novel Chapter 112

Chapter 112

Chapter 112

*Xander*

“Pair off.”

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Vallin’s voice carried across the field like the crack of a whip. His tone didn’t invite argument, which was probably why no one dared make one–except maybe Mona, who muttered something about his timing and pretended to stretch longer than necessary.

The morning light was sharp, cutting through the mist that still clung to the ground. The air smelled of damp earth and iron, a familiar mix that usually calmed me. Not today. Not with him standing across the field, waiting.

Isaac.

He looked better than he had when he stumbled through the gates days ago, but not by much. His eyes were clearer now, though, steady in a way that made it impossible to call him broken. The scar across his jaw looked darker in daylight, the kind of wound that had healed badly because someone hadn’t cared to fix it properly.

Vallin didn’t waste time. “Isaac, Xander–you’re with me. I want to see how the two of you handle coordination drills.”

Dhara glanced over her shoulder at me from where she was paired with Castor. “Coordination,” she mouthed, smirking like she could already tell how this would go.

Mona snorted beside her. “Or chaos.”

They weren’t wrong.

I stepped into the circle opposite Isaac, rolling my shoulders as I tried to steady the weight in my chest. Azrien stirred, restless but quiet. He didn’t like this any more than I did. Wolves didn’t trust easily, and mine had already decided that Isaac had too much of Durnham’s scent in his blood to ever be clean.

“Any rules?” I asked Vallin, though I already knew the answer.

He raised a brow. “Don’t kill each other. The rest is practice.”

Isaac’s mouth twitched, halfway between a smirk and a grimace. “That supposed to be reassuring?”

“Only if you live,” I said, stepping forward.

The air between us sharpened.

For a few beats, we circled–testing, waiting. Isaac moved lightly for someone who’d been half–starved a week ago. When he shifted his stance, the dirt near his boots dampened, darkening underfoot.

I noticed. So did Vallin.

12:05 Sat, Oct 11

Chapter 112

“Elemental,” Vallin said quietly. “Tidal wolf.”

:

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My jaw locked. I didn’t look away from Isaac, but I felt the spark of understanding–and irritation–flare in my chest. Another elemental. Another man who could bend the world in a way I couldn’t control.

He saw my reaction and lifted a brow. “Problem?”

“Just didn’t expect water tricks from someone who nearly drowned serving Durnham,” I said.

He didn’t rise to the bait. Instead, he lifted his hand, and the air cooled almost immediately. Beads of moisture gathered in the dirt, coalescing into a fine mist that swirled around his feet. “I don’t serve him anymore.”

I lunged before he could say anything else.

He dodged the first strike, but I caught him on the second. My fist grazed his shoulder hard enough to send him stumbling back, water scattering in a spray. He recovered fast, his movements precise, practiced. His gift pulsed around him, the mist thickening, shaping itself into threads that lashed like ropes.

When they struck, they hit with the force of a wave.

I dug my heels into the mud, letting Azrien’s strength surge through me. Flame flared under my skin, faint but hot. Steam hissed where his water met my heat. The clash filled the air with the sound of something primal–like the earth itself didn’t know which element to obey.

“Enough!” Vallin barked, stepping between us. His tone wasn’t angry, but it left no room for argument. “You’re not enemies. You’re allies.”

I wiped my forearm across my mouth, breath harsh, heart hammering. Isaac stood a few feet away, breathing just as hard, eyes still locked on me. He didn’t look afraid. He looked alive.

Vallin studied us both, then nodded once. “You’ll train together until I say otherwise. The Venatorum won’t wait for you to like each other.”

Isaac gave a dry laugh. “Guess I’ll have to try not to drown him next time.”

“Try harder,” Vallin said, turning away.

As he walked off, Dhara leaned toward Mona and muttered, “That went better than I expected.”

Mona smirked. “They didn’t kill each other. Yet,”

When the others left for cooldown drills, I stayed behind. So did Isaac.

The silence stretched until he finally spoke. “You don’t like me.”

“Observation or revelation?”

He huffed, not smiling. “Can’t blame you. If I were you, I’d hate me too.”

I turned toward him slowly. “If you were me, you wouldn’t have stood there while she was chained.”

12:06 Sat, Oct 11

Chapter 112

He flinched. I saw it–small, but there. “You think I didn’t want to stop it?”

“I think you didn’t.”

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His jaw tightened. The mist around his feet rippled once before fading. “You don’t know what it’s like to owe someone your life,” he said, voice low. “To believe that debt means you have to serve them, no matter what it costs you.”

“I know exactly what it’s like to owe someone,” I said. “But I don’t mistake it for worship.”

His mouth twisted. “You think it’s that simple?”

“I think it’s a choice.”

He studied me for a long moment, something flickering behind his eyes that wasn’t anger–something more complicated. Finally, he said, “You really love her.”

The words hit like a strike. “You think that’s a question?”

He shrugged. “It’s an answer. I see it every time you look at her.”

That stirred something I didn’t want to name. “If you wanted her, you’d know.”

He tilted his head slightly. “If I wanted her,” he said quietly, “you’d already know. But I don’t.”

The words hung there–calm, even, but not mocking. Just true.

Still, my instincts didn’t trust his truth. I stepped closer, lowering my voice until it carried just between us. “If you hurt her, you’ll know too.”

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