The Shadow's Inheritance

Chapter 13: The Fragile Truth

"That convenience was a lie," Jungkook whispered, his breath hot against Taehyung's ear, the raw jealousy making his voice thick. "A desperate, empty attempt to fill the silence you left. Every Omega in the city was an empty echo. Only you, Taehyung, only you held the scent that mattered. And you took it away."

He shifted his weight further, his heavy thigh pressing deep into Taehyung's, enforcing a proximity that felt terrifyingly intimate—a forced re-acquaintance with the years of shared heat and breath. The scent of him—the familiar, intoxicating Alpha power that had been the backdrop of their entire marriage—began to break through Taehyung's hatred. The Omega's own suppressed, floral scent, normally locked down beneath the layers of The Shadow's icy control, threatened to bloom—an involuntary biological response to the pressure of his dominant Alpha.

Jungkook felt the subtle shift, the involuntary submission beginning in the Omega's core, and his eyes darkened with possessive satisfaction. This was the dark sweetness—the knowledge that no matter the betrayal, the paper, or the years, his Omega body still remembered the master.

He lifted his hand from Taehyung's cuffed hands, only to grip the polished steel of the cuffs themselves. With brutal, deliberate strength, he used the linked restraint to drag Taehyung's hands slightly higher, pushing his chest forward, forcing the Omega's entire posture into one of vulnerable, exposed submission.

"I hate you," Taehyung gasped, twisting his neck and fighting the paralyzing contact, the words barely a breath.

Jungkook leaned closer, his chin resting near Taehyung's shoulder, his entire focus consumed by the forced proximity. He inhaled deeply, an agonizing, deliberate pull of air, savoring the faint, sweet fragrance that was purely Taehyung. It was the ghost of a scent he hadn't realized he was mourning until this moment—the delicate jasmine he had always associated with home.

"No, Wife," Jungkook contradicted, his voice heavy with a possessive satisfaction that belied the fury. "You hate that you respond to the Alpha who discarded you. You hate that this body remembers the duty you pretended to abandon."

Jungkook performed the most calculated act of dominance yet. He moved his free hand to cup the back of Taehyung's neck, fingers sinking into the silky, expensive hair. Then, with slow, agonizing deliberation, he dragged his thumb across the bruise he had left near Taehyung's scent gland, tracing the mark of his earlier claim. He did not speak again. Instead, with a low groan that tore from his chest, Jungkook pressed his lips to the side of Taehyung's neck—not an aggressive bite this time, but a slow, heavy, possessive contact, tasting the skin he had claimed. He slid his mouth toward Taehyung's jawline, his tongue tracing the delicate bone structure, seeking the memory of their marriage.

Taehyung squeezed his eyes shut, a hot tear escaping the corner of his eye and tracing a path into his hair. The contact—the possessive weight of the Alpha, the familiar scent, the demand of his tongue—triggered a sick, traitorous spike of pleasure. His body tightened, his breathing hitched, and a desperate, half-formed moan escaped his throat. The Alpha was claiming him, demanding silent submission, and the Omega in him was screaming with the devastating, possessive truth of the bond he thought was severed.

Jungkook lingered there, breathing in the scent of his own success. He felt the rapid, terrified pulse under his lips and knew that The Shadow, the ruthless financier, was collapsing into the defenseless Omega he had once known.

Mine, the Alpha instinct screamed, a triumphant, primal roar in Jungkook's mind. Mine to take back. Mine to punish.

He pulled back, his eyes dark, filled with satisfaction and a terrifying, consuming hunger. He released Taehyung's neck but not his cuffed hands, instead drawing them upward to rest between their bodies, a constant reminder of the physical disparity and the Alpha's control.

"Five years ago, I thought love was weakness. I thought fertility was a transaction," Jungkook stated, his voice now devoid of rage, chillingly cold and precise. "You showed me the price of that mistake. You showed me what a true Omega can achieve when fueled by vengeance."

He leaned in again, his breath ghosting over Taehyung's lips. "But this war ends now, Taehyung. The rules revert to the only one that truly matters. You owe me the missing five years, and the truth about my son."

He released the cuffs, pulling back fully into his seat. The sudden absence of contact felt more jarring than the pain.

The vehicle began to slow, the engine throttling down as they arrived at their isolated destination.

"When we exit this car, you will walk with your head high, but you will stay close," Jungkook instructed, his gaze hardening as he looked out at the towering, Brutalist concrete structure—the Deluca Black Site—emerging from the mountain fog. "The Shadow is dead, Wife. Only the Omega remains. Your duties are simple: you will submit to my custody, and you will answer my questions. The life of Luca—my son—depends entirely on your compliance."

Jungkook reached forward, pressing a button that disengaged the door locks. The metallic hiss was the sound of a prison door opening.

"Welcome to your new home, Taehyung," Jungkook finished, his voice heavy with promise and absolute possession. "The captivity has begun."