Chapter Nine

LUCAS

Lucas stared at the girl's limp form. Her dark hair covered her face where it had slammed against the tiled floor. No one had even stepped forward to catch her when she fell. Lucas had tried, so had Sorin, but they’d both been too far to make it in time. They were faster than the average wolf, but not that fast.

Lucas's stomach turned sourly. This boondocks pack was awful. The omegas he'd been flirting with had all been so eager to get out of here and no wonder. This place sucked the light right out of you. He’d never seen such quick retribution over something that could so easily have been an accident.

How could a pack treat one of their own so rottenly on just the suspicion of a mistake. They didn't even give her a chance to say her piece before a wolf three times her size knocked her out. It was ludicrous.

Based on what Cyrus had told him about a possible assasination attempt it probably wasn’t an accident. But still.

And now Cy seemed to be playing at something larger. If he knew this girl was trying to kill them with the mistletoe berries, why was he trying to convince this weasel eyed alpha otherwise? And how did he know this anyway?

He glanced at his brothers. Cyrus's expression gave nothing away. It was a mask. Stone cold and unfeeling, but Lucas knew that underneath all that granite his brother would be just as bothered by this little display as he was. Cy was just better at hiding it than he was.

Sorrin on the other hand looked ready to tear that guard's throat out. He was their best fighter, their darkest horse in any race, and yet the softest touch when it came to those weaker than him. Chivalrous didn’t even begin to cover Sorin. He would view her as innocent until proven without a doubt that she was guilty.

“Did you not hear me, Roy?” Cyrus snapped, purposefully omitting the alpha’s title. It didn’t go unnoticed. The temperature of the room dropped by five degrees at least. The way these wolves were looking at them was so hostile you could cut the tension with a knife. But Lucas doubted that they’d say anything. They were all as scared and submissive as Roy when it came down to it.

A pack needed a strong leader and Roy was certainly not that. No wonder the rouge problem had grown so out of control in this region.

“Your highness?” He was practically on his knees now. Lucas frowned and looked around. None of the other wolves seemed bothered by this display. Did they not care that their alpha was so weak? Who would protect them from outside threats?

He remembered seeing the bruises on one of the lovely omegas who showed him to his room earlier. Maybe outside threats weren't the real worry here.

He was suddenly overcome with the urge to get these women out. This pack was poisonous. No omega deserved to live under the tight fist of such a cowardly ruler. He’d have to talk to Cy about it but he was sure that his friend would agree. They’d offer the girls servant contracts. As many as would like to leave.

“This was obviously a foolish mistake by a foolish, unsupervised, omega. What kind of leader over reacts in such a way as to execute an omega just for a mistake. Was anyone hurt?”

“Well, no, Your Highness, but-”

“And if there was a supposed victim in this mess it would be me, wouldn't it? After all, our dinner has been ruined.”

“Highness, I am so sorry I-”

“So it’s decided,” Cyrus clipped. It was impressive, the way he could just get his way through pure will power and throwing around his dominance like a cloak over all objections. “We will take this ‘problem’ omega off your hands.”

“Wh- I mean, of course your highness. But she still must be punished for the transgression. She put you at risk!”

“Of course.” Cyrus sounded bored by the entire thing. If you looked at him you’d never guess that he was carefully manipulating the situation to his benefit. No, to any onlookers he seemed like a spoiled and impatient prince, bothered that he was no longer the subject of the feast.

“Four lashes. To be given at dawn. One for each life she endangered.”