All Chapters of The Lycan Queen's Ruthless Beta: Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

The training arena had never felt this quiet.I stood on one side of the open ground, staring at Luca across from me. He wore the same black training clothes he'd worn through countless practices when we were younger—no armor, no weapons. Neither of us needed them.Around us, the council had gathered alongside a handful of warriors from the palace. Our father stood at the center of it all, watching us with an expression I couldn't begin to read. I rolled my shoulders once. Luca mirrored the motion without seeming to notice he had.For a moment, neither of us moved. I still couldn't quite believe this was happening. Yesterday I had offered him the throne. Today I had to fight him for it.Our father's voice cut through the silence. "Are you both ready?"Luca nodded. I swallowed hard. "Yes."He stepped back. "Begin."Luca moved first, closing the distance between us in a heartbeat, his fist snapping toward my face. I got my arm up in time to block it, and the impact traveled straight thr

## AmberI felt Austin about to pull away, so I kissed him harder instead. For one brief, electric second, I thought he would finally stop pretending.Instead, he tore himself back, expression furious. "Don't try to get close to me."I stared at him, then laughed outright. "I think you're the one who's delusional."His eyes narrowed. "You're the one who kissed me.""My wolf did.""I would never kiss you," he said, and he looked completely, insultingly serious about it.I folded my arms. "Of course not."His jaw tightened. "You tried to be with someone else. My wolf got restless. That's all that was.""So now you care?""I care about controlling my wolf.""That isn't my problem." I almost laughed again at the sheer audacity of him.His eyes darkened, and I stepped closer instead of backing off. "I told you to reject me. Didn't I?"His fists clenched at his si

I found Evelyn sitting on the edge of our bed, staring at nothing. That was usually a bad sign. Normally, when she was angry, she was loud. When she was upset, she argued. When she was furious, someone somewhere usually regretted being within ten feet of her. Silence was worse.I leaned against the doorframe. "You've been sitting there long enough to become part of the furniture."Her eyes moved toward me. "I'm thinking.""That explains it."Her eyebrows pulled together. "What does that mean?""It means the furniture looks less miserable."She grabbed the nearest pillow and threw it at me. I caught it — good, she still had some fight in her — and walked over to drop it beside her."You're annoying.""I've been told.""By me.""Frequently." She tried not to smile, and almost succeeded.I sat beside her. For a moment neither of us spoke. Her fingers were twisting the edge of th

## LucaThe letter arrived just before noon. I knew Austin's seal at a glance and dismissed the servant who had brought it, because whatever Austin had to say, he clearly didn't want anyone else hearing it. I broke the wax and unfolded the page.*By next week, my army will be at your borders. Help me remove Evelyn from the throne, or stand beside her and be counted among my enemies. You have until my arrival to decide.*I lowered the letter, and my pulse beat slow and hard in my throat. Austin had stopped pretending this was a partnership between equals. He wanted an answer, and he wanted it soon.A soft knock sounded at the door. I slid the letter beneath a book. "Come in."Angelina entered with a small plate of sliced apples and set it on my desk. "You missed lunch.""I wasn't hungry.""You said that yesterday.""Then I'm being consistent."She rolled her eyes and plucked up a slice. "Your c

## EvelynBy sunrise, the entire palace knew. The Lycan King and Queen were dead.I sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the dress I had worn the night before. Someone had changed the sheets while I was in the physicians' room, but I could still feel my mother's cold hand beneath mine. I kept telling myself I had imagined it. If I walked into their chambers again, my father would look up from his desk and ask why I was wandering around so early. My mother would scold me for skipping breakfast. Everything would fall back into place, and I would finally tell them about the baby.Instead, the royal physician stood before me with his head bowed. "We're doing everything we can, Your Highness. We haven't yet determined the cause of death.""Then keep looking."It came out sharper than I'd meant. He lowered his head again and withdrew. I pressed my palms against my eyes, but that only made the images clearer: my mother on the floor, m