Chapter 198

[Third-Person’s POV]

Alexander turned his entire body along with the man he kept the blade firm against his throat. His eyes instantly locked on Evelyn who seemed to be in a very similar position as his own hostage.

Gregory held a curved blade of his own to her delicate neck.

His heart pounded so fiercely in his chest, that he was certain that his ribs would end up cracked. He heaved and tried to steady his breath.

“Evelyn,” he whispered.

Alexander tried to see past his tunneled vision in order to get a better look at her. She didn’t seem harmed in any way, although she was horribly shaken up—most likely from the terrible devastation and destruction that had taken place around them.

Evelyn knew nothing of war or active battle. Hell, she’s never dealt with death this close-up and personal. Alexander wished for nothing more than to take her in his arms and shield her eyes from it all. She didn’t deserve to see this kind of decimation.

“Let her go, or I’ll paint the walls with his blood,” he snarled.

The king visibly tightened his hold on Evelyn, causing her to flinch.

“Not a chance, Kingston,” he sneered. “You call off this bullshit invasion and then I’ll decide if I want to let you walk out of here with your wife.”

“My patience is wearing far too thin,” Alexander growled. “You want to negotiate? How’s this? Let her go and I’ll think twice about decapitating you after I kill your friend here.”

Evelyn’s breath caught in her lungs. She was almost sure she was going to feel another press of Gregory’s blade hit her throat. Yes, it scared her. But what troubled her more was the desolate look in Alexander’s eyes.

[Evelyn’s POV]

I’d never seen his gaze so dark. It was haunting. Unfamiliar.

This wasn’t the man whom I married or fell in love with. This was someone else entirely. A lethal, venomous creature whose sole purpose was to bring death and destruction. And he had.

The palace had been known for its beauty and long-standing history only for it to become bathed in blood. No matter where I looked, my eyes were met with a horrifying image that would likely never leave my memory.

It seemed as though Alexander and the King had reached an impasse. Neither one was willing to yield to the other. But something had to give. It wasn’t as though we could all remain in this position forever.

At any given moment, Gregory’s hand could slip and it would all be over.

But what could I do?

Out of the corner of my eye, something caught my attention...Or rather, someone.

Oliver.

He looked just as worn and drained as Alexander. I tried to get a good look in his direction without drawing too much attention to myself as well as putting any further pressure against the edge of the blade.

He’s trying to tell me something...

Oliver’s eyes kept glancing between me and Gregory. He slightly leaned his head down before jolting it back against the empty air behind him. And as if that wasn’t enough to get his message across, Oliver nonchalantly lifted his hand to brush the bridge of his nose.

Holy shit. Surely, he wasn’t insinuating that I...

The vision of me head-butting Oliver in the nose the day Alexander had outwardly humiliated me at the market raced through my mind. It was a memory that still made me cringe with shame and guilt to this day.

My mouth practically fell open.

I mouthed the word ‘no’, but he wasn’t having any of it. He gave me a stern look and demanded that I at least give it a chance.

I suppose I could. The only problem, I knew I would essentially get only one chance to try. Not to mention that in order to pull off the move, I had to lean my head forward as far as I possibly could. Considering there was a very large knife being held to my throat—it didn’t exactly leave much room to move around.

But I had to do something.

My heart was racing. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath before gradually leaning my head down. The undeniable pressure from the blade was pressing well into my neck. I bit through the pain until that last second when I snapped my head back and heard the victorious sound of Gregoy’s nose breaking.

The King let out a disgruntled snarl. For the first time, he loosened his hold on me and I was able to slip away. Unfortunately, it wasn’t without feeling the mean tip of the blade tear at my throat.

Everything happened in those same few seconds. I dropped to my knees and immediately wrapped my hand around my neck to slow down whatever bleeding there was. Meanwhile, Alexander coldly slashed the throat of the man he’d been holding onto.

A horrible shudder ran through me as I watched the whole scene take place.

“Oliver,” Alexander barked. “Get Evelyn out of here. Call Ian and have him check her wounds and anyone else who may need him.”

Gregory was distracted, Alexander moved forward and knocked the blade from his hand. Oliver rushed to my side and tried to see the severity of the injury on my neck.

“Lift your hand,” he told me. I leaned my head back. His face filled with relief. “It’s only a minor cut. Nothing vital was hit.”

While that was a relief, there was still a huge problem that needed to be settled.

My voice felt hoarse in my throat. “Oliver, you can’t let Alexander kill Gregory,” I rasped.

He gave me an admonished look. “Evelyn.”

I shook my head. “If he does then he is no better than Gregory and all the previous Kings who ruled before him.”

I knew Alexander was beyond the point of seeing logic and reason. The murderous look in his eyes was proof enough of that.

“All that time he spent on building a case on Gregory will fall to nothing if the man is never properly exposed to the media.”

Alexander bit out a grueling snarl, causing Oliver and I to turn our heads. The man was seething. God only knew the number of times the man had envisioned holding the Alpha King’s life at the end of a sharp blade.

And to think that he had to give it up.

“She’s right,” Alexander groaned in anger. “I can’t kill you. Not yet at least.”

Gregory’s hands were bloodied from his broken nose, barely paying any mind to what was going on.

“The whole region is going to know the kind of person you really are. And when they do, I’ll let them decide what your fate will be.”

Gregory hissed through his hands. “So you think you’re just going to replace me and the legacy my family’s built for the last century?”

“I’m going to be running this region the way that it should have been this whole time. Starting with your exposure and weeding through all the little illegal businesses you have operating. It will be as if you never existed.”

A large group of soldiers came to surround Gregory on all sides.

“Take him down to the holding cells,” he ordered.

We watched as the former King was hauled out of the main hall. For what it was worth, I was glad that Alexander was able to see sense at the last moment. But I couldn’t ignore the fearful dread that was still determined to linger.