Chapter Thirty Two

Lucien’s POV

Seeing the dead body lying there, my mind raced. I pulled out my phone I hard pocketed earlier and dialed for an ambulance.

When the paramedics arrived, they quickly loaded the body onto a stretcher. I decided to follow them to the hospital, needing to get some answers.

At the hospital, I waited anxiously while the doctors examined the body. Eventually, they came out to speak to the person who had found the body.

I was met by one of the doctors, who immediately recognized me. “Are you the one who found the body, Alpha?” he asked.

“Yes, yes. I found it just laying there in the middle of the road. Do you know who he is, Doctor?” I asked, trying to piece together the mystery as I stood to meet him.

The doctor nodded gravely. ”He’s a member of the royal families. Came into town three weeks back and had been missing since.” He explained.

His words sank in sadly. A royal family member dead and abandoned on the street? This was really bad especially how we were beginning to do business with them.

“How exactly did he die?” I asked, wanting to know more.

“We’re still running tests, but from the bruises and other marks on the body looks like he was beaten severely,” the doctor said. “But we’ll need to do a full autopsy to be sure.”

I felt a chill run down my spine. This wasn’t just a random attack. I was still talking with the doctor about how the man might have died when another man burst into the room.

“Doctor, Alpha Lucien. Three more bodies have been brought, and they’re all members of the royal families too or prominent people.” he announced breathlessly.

The news hit me hard with shock. Why was this happening I questioned myself. This seemed to be no coincidence.

Someone was obviously targeting the royal families and the most important people in the pack.

My mind raced with the thought of the situation. I looked up and everyone was looking at me for direction, and for the first time in a long while, I felt lost and didn’t know what to do.

I knew I needed to share this with Zane. He had demanded to be kept in the loop, and maybe he knew something about the murders.

Besides, it was time to come clean about Alpha Rio to him. Apologize and maybe together we could figure out what was happening and stop it from going further.

Just as I was about to call Zane, my phone rang. It was my associate from earlier calling.

“Lucien, we have a problem. You need to come quickly.”

I glanced at the doctor and the man who had brought the news about the other bodies. “Keep me updated about the issue if there’s anything else,” I told them.

They both nodded, and I rushed out of the hospital. As I drove to meet him, my mind was a storm of thoughts.

The murders, the missing money which we were supposed to pay some of the royal families with, and the growing tension in the packs which I could see from the gazes of the pack members.

I felt it was all connected, everything, and I needed to get ahead of it before it turned out of control.

When I arrived at the warehouse, my associate was waiting for me, looking nervous. “What’s going on?” I demanded.

“The package still seems missing, there’s talk of interference from an unknown party. Someone doesn’t want us to get that money to pay the royal families, Lucien.”

I felt a surge of anger in me “Who?” I asked, buy rhetorically.

“We’re not sure yet.” He answered anyway. “But it seems like whoever is behind the murders is behind this also. They might be trying to destabilize us completely.”

I clenched my fists in anger. “Exactly my thoughts. We need to find out who it is and fast. If they’re targeting the royals and interfering with our operations, this is bigger than we thought.” I said finally.

My associate nodded. “Agreed. So what do we do now?”

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm inside me. “First, make sure to secure what we can. I’ll ensure that our key people are protected. I need to meet with my brother now.” I said.

He looked confused but nodded. “Got it.” He answered.

After that, I raced back to the mansion. Zane needed to be warned to stay alert. I burst into his room study where he was buried in his computer.

“Zane, we need to talk now,” I said, my voice sharp.

He looked up, irritation forming on his face. “What’s it this time, Lucien?” he asked frustrated.

“There’s been a few murders around, bodies found randomly  Someone’s targeting the royals. We need to act fast, and you need to stay alert, do you understand me?” I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

Zane’s face twisted with anger. “Why should I listen to you? You’re probably the one causing all this chaos.” He responded.

I clenched my jaw, trying to keep my temper in check. “Look, Zane. About Rio… yes I did it. I put him in the hospital.” I confessed. “I’m sorry.”

His reaction was immediate and filled with hate. “Of course, it was you. Who else would be so self-righteous? You always act like you’re the only one who can fix things around.”

“We need to put that behind us, Zane.” I said, my frustration gathering. “We have a bigger problem. We need to figure out who’s behind these murders.”

Zane’s eyes flashed with anger. “Oh, of course, you’d say that. You think an apology will just fix everything between us? You took away my chance for revenge. You think I can just ignore that?”

My anger flared. “I did it to protect us, damn it! Rio was a threat to the pack and I did what needed to be done.” I stated angrily.

Zane stood up to face me, his face red with rage. “You think you’re the hero right? You act like you’re the only one who knows what’s best. You’ve turned everything into a mess, and now you want me to just forgive and forget?”

I stepped closer, my voice rising. “Forgive and forget? You want to blame me for everything? I’m the one who’s been trying to keep this pack together while you’re sulking about your stupid revenge!”

Zane’s fists clenched at his sides. “Don’t you dare, Lucien!” he snapped.

The argument was getting out of control. Needing to hit something, I shoved a nearby chair, knocking it over. “I did it to help! To protect the pack from a threat! You’re too blinded by your hatred to see that." I screamed at him.

Zane took a step towards me, his face inches from mine. “Blinded by hatred? You’re the one blinded by your own arrogance, Lucien! You think you’re saving everyone, but you’re just making everything worse!”

We were toe to toe now, our tempers flaring. I could see the rage in Zane’s eyes, and I felt my own anger bubbling inside.

My hands clenched into fists at my sides, and I was tempted to throw a punch.

“You think you can just take control and do whatever you want?” Zane yelled again.

“Well, maybe if you actually did something instead of sitting around sulking, we wouldn’t be in this mess. I did something and I don’t see anything wrong with that.” I shouted back.

Zane’s eyes narrowed. “You’re nothing but a selfish, ignorant fool if you think nothing is wrong with denying me of my revenge.”

The tension between us was clear, and for a moment, I thought we might actually come to blows.

But before things could escalate further, I turned around sharply and stormed out of the room, unable to contain my frustration any longer.

As I walked down the hall, my mind raced. I passed Brielle’s quarters and immediately I felt a sudden, unsettling pull, a sense of urgency that I couldn’t ignore.

I opened the door to find Brielle standing by the window, about to jump, a look of dread on her face. My heart stopped.

“Brielle?” I uttered, realizing what was happening.