The morning bustle of the Sweet Toy Cupcake bakery was a temporary antidote to the restlessness that had settled in Erika's heart.
The aroma of burnt sugar and vanilla offered her an anchor to reality, but the invisible buzz of surveillance didn't dissipate. That persistent feeling, like a cold breeze on the back of her neck, of being watched, analyzing her movements.
The fact is that, although she didn't know how close William's gilded cage was to closing around her, something inside her sensed something was happening as the days passed.
Without realizing it, her day shift ended earlier than planned, granting her a rare window of free time. So, Erika decided to go to the municipal library, one of the few places where she could find some peace, as books offered an escape.
The journey took her along one of the busiest arteries downtown, a symphony of honking horns, fragmented conversations, and the constant murmur of the city. What she didn't know was that this coincidence at her job was orchestrated by the black-haired alpha, who pulled invisible strings at his bakery to ensure that her free time coincided with her stroll down that exact street.
Despite everything that was happening, and despite his men guarding the omega with extreme care and diligence, there were times when he couldn't help but want to see her for himself.
This time, the alpha was sitting in a designer cafe, behind a pristine window, watching Erika as if every movement was a slow dance for his eyes, or it was until something happened that made him growl.
.
.
.
As the omega walked past a busy bus stop, her mind wandering to the titles of books she'd like to read, she felt a sharp tug.
Her bag, slung over her shoulder, was yanked violently. The jerk destabilized her, causing the world to spin for an instant as a skinny young man with wild eyes attempted to snatch her few belongings. The movement was so swift that panic hadn't even had time to affect her, and she remained completely still for a few moments.
In a matter of milliseconds, before Erika's scream could form, William's reaction was that of a primal predator. His muscles didn't tense for the physical assault; his power operated on a different plane.
An imperceptible burst of Alpha Gamma authority expanded from his body, not to subdue Erika, but to reach his attacker. It was a pulse of pure, icy terror, a poison in the bloodstream that stripped the thief of all sanity. The young man, who was already running away with the snatched bag, suddenly stumbled inexplicably. His legs buckled beneath him, his face contorted in a silent scream of panic, his eyes bulged as if he'd seen the devil himself, and he fell to his knees, dropping the bag due to a spasm in his hands that trembled uncontrollably, his muscles seized with fear.
William watched with cold satisfaction as the pathetic, pale, sweaty burden tried to rise, only to collapse again. A security agent of William's, discreetly dressed as a civil guard and "coincidentally" walking a dog a few meters away, approached the fallen young man and began to arrest him. He didn't say a word, recognizing the traces of clear submission induced by the primal terror provoked by his boss. Once the guard had subdued the young man, he took Erika's bag, which was lying at her feet, and walked calmly toward her, her dog trailing the criminal.
Erika, still in shock, blinked.
It had all been so unreal. One moment, her purse was being snatched; the next, the thief was on the floor, writhing, only to be reduced to a state as catatonic as if she'd seen the devil himself.
She hadn't seen anyone intervene, heard no screams or struggles. It was as if an invisible force had acted, a disembodied hand that had dispelled the threat as quickly as it had appeared.
Belion bowed her head slightly and thanked the guard as he approached with her purse, picking it up with her heart still racing. But amid the adrenaline rush, a strange and powerfully familiar feeling began to invade her—not like the fear of robbery, but something deeper and more familiar.
She straightened, ignoring the retreating guard, and fixed her gaze, almost by inertia, on the café on the corner.
There, behind the glass of the establishment, she saw a man. Tall, with dark hair slicked back, immaculately dressed. His very bearing marked him as a high-class alpha, leaving no room for doubt.
His eyes, the same ones that had pierced her at the club and stalked her from the shadows of her unconscious thoughts, stared at her with an intensity that seemed to disarm her.
It wasn't a look of surprise or concern over the incident; it was a look of possessiveness, of control, almost of... ownership. As if the world itself belonged to him.
For an instant, their gaze met. In that brief second, suspended in time, Erika felt a chill that wasn't of fear, but of visceral recognition. As if a part of her, her Omega instinct, knew that this immense and powerful presence, this Alpha, had been the invisible architect of her salvation.
The white-haired woman didn't understand how he had achieved what he had, but a certainty washed over her: there was a connection. A strange, inexplicable feeling of familiarity and security enveloped her, a warmth that contrasted with the cold logic that told her this man was a stranger.
It was as if he were something she needed.
.
.
.
William, impassive as a statue, raised the coffee cup to his lips, the slight curve of his mouth a barely perceptible mockery.
Unwittingly, the first interaction had been more perfect than he'd intended. The petty thief, an insignificant pawn who didn't even belong in his own game, had served a purpose far beyond her imagination or importance.
Erika had now experienced his protection, his power, in a tangible way, without him having to break the veil of his total anonymity. She wouldn't know the truth of how he had achieved it, only the impression of a powerful, almost supernatural presence that had saved her and now watched her with an intensity that promised more.
Without waiting, William stood up, leaving a few gold coins on the table. He gestured goodbye to Erika, confirming that their chance encounter was over.
The alpha left the establishment as discreetly as he had entered, his tall, shadowy figure merging with the crowd, disappearing like a ghost in the throng. All the while Erika stood there, her bag safe, but her mind in turmoil. The feeling of surveillance hadn't disappeared; in fact, it had become more intense, more personal. But now it came with a new nuance: the promise of protection.
That Alpha wasn't just an observer; he was a silent guardian, one who operated from the shadows, with a power that bordered on the inexplicable. The encounter, though brief and seemingly fortuitous, had left an indelible mark.
William Aballay had entered her world in a more direct way, not with a gift or a note, but with an act of power that, paradoxically, had drawn her even closer.
The gilded cage wasn't just closing; William was now inhabiting it as well.