The Beast's Possession

**Killian

pov**

My jaw hit the floor. I couldn't utter a word as I watched those two, happily gazing at one another. At one point, it seemed like they were completely unaware of my presence. "I'm sorry, what? Did I just hear you call him dad?" I almost choked on my own words as I kept watching them both like a hawk.

What on Earth were those two up to and why did they think it was a good idea to pull me into their mess? I never agreed to become a part of whatever game they were playing.

Milly's gaze found mine and a slight smile spread across her lips. While she looked at the old man, she smiled as if the guy hung stars for her, but looking at me, she almost appeared disappointed for some reason.

I had known her for years - she married one of my closest friends and raved about him, choosing her as his mate. Sadly, my friend passed away from something even the doctors couldn't explain, so ever since then, I've been trying my best to help her lead the pack, but obviously it has been tough on her.

Lunas were the mothers of the pack. They were there to care for their people and nurture them to a good life, not rule over them with an iron fist. For the heavy part, the packs had Alphas, but Milly had lost hers and so had the rest of the pack. Lately, she had been spending a lot of time in my pack, but I never assumed that her presence could be connected to the old man. Come to think of it, she did come around more often once he arrived here.

"Killian, please, calm down. There's no need to be aggressive or angry about what we are about to tell you. Keep your mind open and listen. And before you start screaming your head off, remember who I am, remember your friend and think if he would appreciate the attitude you're about to give me." As she spoke, Milly sounded like a true Luna.

It had been a while since the last time her aura became this powerful and her voice didn't tremble. For a while, she reminded me of a scared child, not a powerful leader, but now that fear she felt seemed to be long forgotten.

I had to take a few deeper breaths to ground myself before I blew up and did something stupid. Deep down, I knew that if I dared to open my mouth now, I would get in more trouble than figure out the answers, so I just nodded. Sometimes, it was better to hold back anyway.

"Okay, I need you to listen to my dad. Don't say anything, don't interrupt him and most importantly, please, for the love of the Goddess, keep your mind open. Remember that sometimes people are forced to do things and it's not up to them what consequences might follow," Milly muttered and looked away, offering the old man another heart whelming smile.

No matter how much I tried to do just that - keep my mind open, I couldn't get rid of the dreadful feeling in my gut. Something bad was about to happen and I had a feeling that the shit would go down really freaking fast, and hard. Again, I nodded my head in agreement and pulled my hands into tight fists to keep my cool. As much as I could, at least.

"We had an agreement," the old man started, his voice breaking even before he could finish whatever he was planning to admit.

Since neither of them spoke, I rolled my eyes and groaned. "Yes, that we had. We had a bloody agreement that I would pay you, which I already fucking did, and I could marry your daughter. If you're about to tell me it was a cover to get me to marry Milly, you're mental, old man. All this shit I went through, the risk I took on Bane's territory, the loss and everything... For fuck's sake, you're sick."

At this point, I couldn't contain the anger that surged through me. I was so pissed off, I literally feared that my blood would start boiling after the bullshit I had to listen to.

"Killian, please calm down. It's not how it looks. Please, stop assuming something without hearing him out. It's unfair, you know there's someone looking at you from above and I'm sure he's very disappointed in your reaction. Maybe disappointed in you. Is this how you treat the widow of your friend and her family? Really?" Milly hissed, catching me off guard.

Was I supposed to agree or could I laugh? Because her words were outrageous. How dare she attack me and bring up my friend after she and her father were the ones who wronged me?

I never asked for this. I never mentioned that I needed some superficial drama in my life, especially connected to the woman I was to marry, so both of them were out of line. Badly.

"When we made that agreement, Milly was married," the old man suddenly joined the conversation, drawing all attention to himself. "I never. No, it's that no one could ever predict what the future holds. We never thought that a disaster would strike and leave my poor Milly tossed into the nightmare she calls life. I never planned to tell anyone she's my daughter, we agreed it's best to keep the secret to get rid of the demons that chased her and could get to her through me. See, there always is more than meets the eye and unless you're ready to listen, I think it's best I go to my daughter's pack."

Now, the whole situation somehow got turned upside down on me. As much as I hated to admit this - he had caught my attention. What could possibly be so damn bad for these two to hide their family ties? What were the demons that were chasing Milly then?

Although I wasn't sure if this would do anything, I still remained silent and sat back down, watching them both. Maybe if I didn't show any reaction, they would be more comfortable speaking to me?

"Okay," I breathed out. "I might have overreacted just now. My apologies. Please, speak and explain everything you can. I will do my best to remain open minded and ensure I don't overstep or pry."

Milly and the old man nodded, but instead of him, Milly was the one who spoke again. "That girl, she's not my sister. She doesn't know that. No one knows. In fact, she thinks I'm her step-sister, the adopted one. My dad took her in and agreed to keep her safe. We don't have too many details but it was said that it was too dangerous for her to stay with her family or return to them in the future. My dad agreed to raise her and look for a good husband for her. That's how we got here."

Nodding, I hummed as I thought about her words. Wherever my bride came from, I had a feeling it had to be a very known and powerful family if it was dangerous for her to stay around.

"Okay. What about the demons? What is chasing you then?" I asked and leaned forward a little, genuinely curious about the answer I might get from her.

Milly averted her gaze and sucked in a sharp breath. "Not demons. A demon. You know him. It's Bane."