Mark of Sin: Bound to the Cruel Alpha

Sayan cursed violently under his breath. He pulled out his phone, typed a swift message, and jammed it back into his pocket.

"She’s done. She’ll be replaced today," he said grimly. "But next time, don’t just walk out. You should have called Magnus directly. Right now he’s tearing everything apart looking for you, but if you’d called, he would have handled her on the spot."

I let out a heavy sigh.

"There’s nothing to solve."

Picking up my empty paper cup, I carried it back to the counter, where the barista gave me a polite nod and a smile.

"Give me a large hazelnut coffee," Sayan requested, stepping up beside me to place the order.

"Did you really like it that much?" I chuckled dryly, turning back toward our table.

"No," Sayan said, looking down at me. "It’s for you—to replace the one I just downed."

"There was barely a sip left in that cup. You didn’t need to buy me a whole large one."

But Sayan was firm. He took the fresh coffee from the counter and handed it to me, his fingers momentarily brushing against mine—warm and slightly damp from the rain.

"We need to go back," he said, taking my elbow. His grip wasn’t painful, but it was unyielding. "Otherwise Magnus is going to drag himself here personally. Trust me, you don’t want to see him when he’s like this."

The moment we stepped out beneath the awning, my phone blared into life.

It was Magnus.

I answered and raised the phone to my ear.

"When are you coming back?" His voice was taut, laced with an icy edge.

"Right now," I replied, looking at Sayan, who gave me a quick nod. "I’m with Sayan, and we’re heading over."

"Where are you?"

I gave him the address of the café.

"Stay right there." Magnus disconnected the call instantly—abruptly, without another word.

Sayan let out a weary breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Well, here we go. Look, whatever he says while he’s furious, just don’t take it to heart, okay?"

We waited under the shelter of the awning while I took small sips of the hot coffee, the liquid scalding my tongue. Sayan remained silent, his eyes scanning the road.

When Magnus pulled up, it was obvious he was seething, though he was clearly exercising immense self-restraint. Taking my hand, he led me to the passenger side and opened the door without uttering a single reprimand. In fact, he didn’t say a word at all. Yet the sheer weight of his anger pulsed through the air around us.

The drive was suffocatingly quiet. I stared out the window, occasionally darting a glance at his hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly his knuckles were white. The wounds on his hands had healed, leaving behind faint scars—stark reminders of what he had done to my professor.

"That woman will be fired today," Magnus cut through the silence, his voice dropping like an absolute sentence.

"It’s fine, really," I muttered, taking another sip of my coffee. Magnus was driving smoothly, so I wasn’t worried about spilling—though the thought of ruining the pristine interior of his luxury car was nerve-wracking enough.

"No, it isn’t," he countered, his tone hardening into cold steel. "She was explicitly informed that I had a guest staying at the apartment."

At that word—that damn word, guest—a sharp pang ran through me, like an icy blade scraping across my skin.

Guest. I’m just a guest.

. . .

As we drove back to Magnus’s apartment, a heavy realization settled in my chest: things couldn’t go on like this. We had to define whatever toxic dynamic was playing out between us—though calling it a "relationship" felt like a cruel stretch. No one had actually offered me a place by his side.

He had simply crashed into my life and claimed it.

First, he abandoned me at the Research Office the night our calling marks were verified, leaving me to walk back to my dorm alone in the dark, terrified of every rustling shadow and distant howl.

Then, like an untouchable Alpha accustomed to total obedience, he reemerged to lay claim to me all over again. He barged into my world, dismantled my independence, and asserted total dominance—all without offering a single word of explanation. And Goddess knew there was plenty to explain.

Yet I was still terrified to bring up what I had heard. The rumors the girls in the club bathroom whispered—that Magnus already had a true fated mate.

Maybe they were lying, trying to stake a claim on an Alpha who wasn’t theirs. But the thought plagued me, gnawing at my sanity. When I had tried to ask before, Magnus shut me down with a cold threat. Now, I feared raising the topic again, knowing that if those rumors were true, the truth would utterly destroy me.

In reality, it was high time we sat down and figured out what the hell lay ahead for us. Living like this was becoming unbearable. Sure, I was staying at his place, he had handed me an unlimited card, and he had replaced my entire wardrobe. Yes, he had stepped up to help me—but where was all this actually going?

I was trapped in total limbo, completely dependent on an Alpha’s whim. I couldn’t even pinpoint the exact moment my life had spiraled into this: living in his home, spending his money, eating his food, and sharing his bed. He clearly had grand plans for me, yet there was zero clarity between us.

Muster every drop of courage I had left, I was ready to force the conversation that had been gnawing at my soul—until I realized we weren’t heading back to the apartment at all. Magnus took a completely different turn.

He pulled up in front of a massive venue crowned with a towering glass dome that glimmered brilliantly under the evening lights.

I turned to him, my brow furrowing in confusion. "Where are we?" I asked softly.

Magnus cut the engine and turned to face me. Something unfamiliar flickered in his dark eyes.

"On a date."

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!