+8 Points
Chapter 121: A Bitter Choice
The Silver Creek tavern brimmed with the usual cacophony of laughter, clinking glasses, and murmured conversations that filled its hearth–like glow nightly.
Yet my focus remained fixed on Lucas.
He sat hunched at the bar’s edge, the warped wood cluttered with empty glasses of
half–drained moon–blessed wine.
His golden eyes were glassy and dull, radiating simmering unrest just below the surface.
“You look terrible,” I said coolly. There was no effort to mask the edge in my words as I pulled out a chair, sitting opposite him.
“Have something to say, or did you come here to lecture me?” Lucas scoffed, his words slurred
ever so slightly. His wolf still carried traces of the aggression from earlier–the raw energy spilling out messily from the heavy turbulence inside him.
Instead of answering, I grabbed the bottle of moon–blessed wine and poured myself a glass.
The burn of the drink was dull on my tongue–barely enough to distract from the bubbling mix
of dissatisfaction and unease crystallizing within me.
“You don’t fool me,” Lucas continued, his voice steadying through sheer stubbornness. “You’re
just as damn angry as I am–over Scarlett, over her.”
He didn’t need to elaborate on “her.” The weight of Celeste’s presence lingered like a phantom
between us.
My silent acknowledgment seemed to infuriate Lucas further as he leaned forward, slamming
his glass against the bar’s surface with unnecessary force.
“I came to talk about Marcus’s mate claim,” he snapped, his voice dropping low. “That damn
girl has no sense of self–preservation. Still fixated on gaining royal protection, no matter the
cost–even after what he did. You need to talk some sense into her!”
I raised an eyebrow as I took another deliberate sip from my glass. The irony of Lucas giving
me such advice was not lost on me.
“Why not let her mate with him?”
The blow of my question landed hard–sharper than any strike.
Lucas jerked back, his wolf recoiling visibly in stunned silence. Then his golden eyes narrowed fiercely, glowing faintly as his wolf surged beneath the surface.
‘Did you even see her injuries?” His voice cracked, raw edges of suppressed anger bleeding
through. “If she mates with Marcus, she’ll be dead within three moons. Believe me. I’ve seen
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+8 Points
Chapter 121: A Bitter Choice
what his wolves leave behind.”
The tavern briefly quieted around us, the surrounding faces subtly shifting away as they sensed the tension radiating between us.
“Can she even survive in the pack as it is?” I countered calmly. My white wolf stirred uneasily
as I spoke, but I pressed on–direct, unflinching.
The fire in Lucas’s gaze blazed dangerously, spilling over as the glass in his hand shattered. The sharp sound of breaking glass punctured through the thick air, drawing faint murmurs of
uneasy attention from nearby patrons.
Drunk or not, Lucas’s temper bubbled dangerously close to unmanageable.
“Alexander,” he growled lowly. His voice cut through the air like a blade, bridging the fine line between warning and desperation. “What the hell do you mean by that?”
His wolf bristled openly now, dominating the space between us with roiling aggression. But
my wolf remained cold and unbothered–its icy energy casting a sharper edge against Lucas’s
fire.
“…Do you even plan to stop her–someone has to!” His voice broke as he stumbled over
desperation.
Leaning forward slightly, I fixed my ice–blue gaze onto him. The pointed intensity swirling in my expression was enough to make even him hesitate momentarily.
“You’re not going to stop it,” I murmured flatly. “None of us will. The forces holding this claim together are far stronger than either of us–and you know it.”
Lucas blinked slowly, his wolf stuttering as my words fully landed. He looked visibly sickened, his hands tightening into trembling fists barely able to contain the frustration snarling
beneath.
The truth of my words settled heavily between us. We both knew the forces pushing this mating forward – Alpha James, determined to maintain pack alliances; Luna Victoria, desperate to secure her position; and Regina Blackwood, orchestrating everything from the
shadows.
Lucas’s wolf whined softly, a sound of distress he couldn’t quite contain. The golden fire in his eyes dimmed slightly as reality sank in.
