Chapter 111

Alexander

The air was thick with distrust, the scent of sweat and simmering rage wrapping around me like a noose.

They wanted blood—my blood.

I knew why too, the pack was mad, furious I had left them to defend from the Rouges on there own.

But I didn’t regret my choice.

I leaned back against the tree behind me, a picture of calculated ease while my muscles coiled tight beneath the surface. Every wolf in the clearing, every damn one of them, stared at me like I was the enemy. I’d expected resistance, expected pushback. What I hadn’t expected was the rage—the betrayal laced into their glares.

Liam was already standing at the podium, his voice a sharp blade cutting through the murmurs. “We all need to calm down.”

His voice barely broke through the voices.

I exhaled through my nose, tilting my head just slightly, measuring him. He seemed to being calming them, which was surprising considering I thought he wanted my position since the moment I took it, circling like a vulture.

But this? This was new.

“Alexander left in the middle of a battle,” another beta continued, eyes flicking around the gathered pack members, gathering their anger like kindling. “To chase after something personal. Something that put all of us at risk!”

My jaw tightened, but I didn’t rise to the bait.

“It’s true,” someone called from the far end of the room. “We bled while he ran!”

A growl rumbled in my chest, low and warning. “I went to protect my family.”

Another voice scoffed. “And we’re not your family?!”

Silence. Then, voices rising all at once. Angry. Accusing. Demanding.

I clenched my fists, claws biting into wood. They didn’t understand. My blood was still on the battlefield—just not in the way they wanted.

Like this was an easy choice.

Besides, Liam handled it as a favor, we won.

I did owe him for that, even if that guy pissed me off.

A sharp crack rang through the clearing as the heavy branches broke to the approaching bodies. The air stilled, wolves parting instinctively.

The Alpha King had arrived, Liam’s father, Dalverious.

He was a colossal white wolf, towering over the others with an air of ancient authority. His fur, though still thick and regal, had the telltale signs of age—long strands that once held the luster of fresh snowfall now dulled and thinned by time.

A jagged stripe of deep, stormy gray ran down his spine, like a wind-carved path through untouched ice, marking him apart from the younger wolves around him. His presence was commanding, his posture effortless yet powerful, each subtle shift of muscle carrying the weight of decades of experience.

His piercing eyes, the color of frost-kissed steel, held a knowing sharpness, as if he had seen the rise and fall of countless wolves before him. Even in stillness, he exuded a quiet dominance, an unshaken force carved by the years, untouched by the passing of time yet weathered by its cruel hands—the weight of every unspoken rule that had governed our kind for centuries.

My eyes felt heavy, half-lidded as I let out a slow, weary sigh. Just great. Absolutely perfect.

With his arrival, I knew I was in trouble—deep trouble. There’d be no avoiding it now. More explanations than I had answers for, and truth be told, even I was still trying to make sense of everything.

His gaze settled on me, cold and appraising as he walked the steps of the stage, the pack near silent. “Explain yourself.”

I glanced at the wolves flanking him—his new Luna, Killy, a delicate thing with soft, cream-colored fur and wide, rabbit-like eyes. Behind her stood a guard, his posture rigid, watchful.

I took a breath, bowing my head as he approached. “I left to bring my family back. A second set of Rogues were after them, planning to kill or use them as leverage against us, me. If I hadn’t, I would have lost my family.”

“And yet,” the Alpha King mused, “your absence nearly cost your pack.”

Costed us?

My brow furrowed.

Liam straightened, stepping forward. “Father, wait, he doesn’t—”

“We nearly lost members,” Dalverious continued, halting inches from me. “In the hospital with serious injuries. They would be well today if you had protected your pack like an Alpha should.”

I countered low, “You don’t know that.”

“Either do you,” he snarled.

A murmur of agreement rippled through the pack. My blood ran hot.

Lauren shifted beside me, her presence grounding, but there was no fear in her stance—only the fire that I had come to know so well. She stepped forward before I could stop her.

“He didn’t leave for himself.” Her voice was clear, unwavering. “He left to protect me. To protect our children.”

One of the elders scoffed. “And that justifies his recklessness?”

Lauren turned, eyes burning. “Do you even understand what he brought back? And yet you are whining how he is unfit.”

She lifted her chin, before taking a deep breath. “My bloodline is old, the Lycan, Moon Goddess’s blood runs through my veins.”

A ripple of unease, only the wind whisping through the branches.

“Lauren—” I tried but she had her mind set, pulling away from me.

Lauren looked at the Alpha King, unflinching. “The Rogues knew this. They knew about my power, my children. They were willing to burn this city to the ground to get to us. They want our blood, that is why you are fighting. We are the reason. And yet you wanted your Alpha to let them have it, to win?”

Silence.

Then, like a storm breaking—

Dalverious voice boomed, quiet, yet so loud. “Lycan… a child of the Moon. I thought your kind were—”

“Dead?” Lauren snarled.

“Wiped out.” He delivered dry and Lauren flinched.

“She’s dangerous,” someone called.

“We can’t trust them.”

“How dare she talk to the King like that!”

“This is why we have traditions. Why we don’t let—”

A snarl tore from my throat, silencing them.

I stepped closer to Lauren, my stance clear. “If you have a problem with her, you have a problem with me.”

The Alpha King’s eyes darkened. “Enough.”

The clearing stilled.

His gaze swept over the pack, lingering on me. “This infighting is weakness. The Rogues are not waiting for us to settle our differences. And that abomination you brought back, Mark, we’ll see what he is capable of. You’re family, what’s really going on in this mess of a blood mixing, mutt fest, will be exposed. And as for you, Alexander—” he stepped forward, the weight of generations pressing down, “—you were right to retrieve your family, but your loyalties are divided. That is dangerous.”

My teeth clenched, but I didn’t speak.

“You are on thin ice.” His gaze flickered to Lauren. “And as for you—you may have the Moon Goddess’ blessing, but things have been a certain way for a long time. They will not change now. You. Will. Mind. Your. Place.”

Lauren’s shoulders straightened. “So, we should be silenced? Hidden away?”

The Dalverious smiled, and there was nothing kind about it. “I am saying that fate is not something we interfere with. We have traditions, rules, laws for a reason. Behave.”

I barely stopped my snarl.

“Someone will be sent to help with Mark,” the Dalverious continued, dismissing any further argument. “Prepare your forces. The Rogues are planning something bigger than you realize. You will need every advantage. I need to check on the other branches, think you can handle this mess?”

His tone made it clear: this conversation was over.

As he turned to leave, the pack fell into a tense murmur, splitting into groups, avoiding my gaze. I had no illusions—I wasn’t their Alpha tonight. I was their problem.

Lauren exhaled beside me, voice low. “They’re afraid.”

“They should be.” My voice was rough, edged with something dark. “Because if they force my hand, I will remind them why they chose me in the first place.”

Lauren looked at me, her expression unreadable. Then, softly, “And if they… disagree?”

My vision darkened at the thought.

“They won’t.”

Because if they did, there wouldn’t be a pack left to stand against me.