58

ALEXANDER

“You can’t seriously believe that bullshit,” Claude scoffed after I told him what happened with Isiah.

I stared at him blankly. I did believe Isiah. The state he was in? He didn’t have the strength or clarity to fabricate a decent lie. If he were bluffing, I would’ve caught on before he even finished the sentence.

Claude didn’t care. He kept talking. “You’re being dumb, Alex. I’m sorry to say it—”

“No, you’re not,” I cut in.

He smirked, proving my point.

“You’re right. I’m not sorry to say it. I get that you think he’s family,” Claude said, folding his arms, “but family doesn’t betray each other. And he did.”

“He didn’t tell her on purpose,” I snapped. “You know how fucking smart she is. He could’ve sighed and she would’ve gotten something out of it.”

It was taking everything in me not to blow up. Claude was just being stubborn now, letting his pride cloud his judgment. His ego had taken a hit, and instead of getting over it, he was picking a fight.

“You’re too soft when it comes to the idea of family,” he said. “He messed up, Alex. Own it.”

“He didn’t mean to.”

“And that doesn’t matter. He messed up. He should be punished.”

“I’m not killing him,” I said firmly, cutting him off before he could argue. “We’re not starting a fucking war with one of the few men loyal to my mother just because his son slipped. Discipline him however you want, but he stays alive. And in one piece.”

I hadn’t planned to add the last part, but this was Claude. He’d maim a man, chop off limbs, maybe even slice off his dick, then claim he technically followed orders. I had to be specific.

“Fine,” he grumbled, standing. “But don’t come crying when people start seeing you as weak.”

“No one would dare say that to my face.”

That clearly annoyed him, because he made a sound on his way to the door.

“Letting some girl distract you and refusing to kill a traitor?” he muttered. “Hell, maybe I’ll be the first to say it.”

“You like her,” I said, more irritated than anything.

His tone was smug. I didn’t have the energy to go back and forth. I needed to send a message to Isiah’s father, better he hears it from me than through the wrong channels. I wasn’t scared of the man, even with his oversized army. I had better troops, better allies. I just respected him too much to blindside him.

People always paint me as some monster who only understands violence. Truth is, war is my last resort especially when it comes to other Lycans. There are already too few of us left. We’d be suicidal to start a civil war amongst ourselves when we’ve got species like the mutts actively trying to wipe us out.

That’s why I want them all dead. They’ll never stop coming for us. Why should we give them the chance?

Claude’s voice cut through my thoughts. “Just because you like her or I like her doesn’t mean she’s good for you. Or the pack.”

I gave a humorless laugh. “I don’t need her.”

He nodded slowly, expression unreadable. “Right.”

His tone was drier than the Sahara.

“She has no power over me. I decide how things go between us. I’m in control.”

A voice in the back of my mind started listing all the meetings I’d cut short just to be with her. But that didn’t count. I was still in control. That was a choice. A power move. She wasn’t a distraction.

Wait, who said anything about distractions?

I muttered under my breath, rubbing a hand over my face. If I could beat up the annoying voices in my head, I would. Especially the ones that made too much damn sense.

“Keep saying that, Alex. Maybe one day you’ll believe it,” Claude said over his shoulder, shutting the door behind him before I could respond.

Probably for the best. If he’d stayed, I might’ve thrown a dagger at his chest.

“Fuck,” I exhaled, staring at the ledge in front of me, trying to focus but his words kept playing on a loop.

As if that wasn’t enough, a new message came in. One of our beta teams outside the territory confirmed what I feared. There was a leak. Again.

And every clue pointed to Isiah.

I started to worry. Maybe he had betrayed us.

My thoughts shifted to his father.

If my own blood could stab me in the back, why wouldn’t someone who wasn’t even related to my mother?

I had too many enemies. Strong ones, too.

Instead of being grateful that I’ve restored our place at the top of the food chain, they resent me. Paint me as the villain.

If not for my reputation, Lycans would be extinct by now. From apex predators to the dirt under everyone’s boots until I changed that. And now that we’re finally reclaiming our place, they want to cry about how I did it?

Ungrateful bastards.

I shoved my chair back and stood, intending to grab a drink. But my feet carried me elsewhere.

There was only one person who could calm the storm building in me.

And I was going to her.