Chapter 56
I barely touch the damn food.
Every muscle in my body is wound tight with rage–rage I’ve been nursing since the moment I stepped foot into Red Night Pack territory. My hands twitch at the memory, and my jaw is clenched so tightly it’s a miracle my teeth haven’t shattered. My mate–Kali–was on her knees, being screamed at and shoved around like a worthless mutt by some pathetic excuse for a woman.
She slapped Kali and before I even registered my own movement, she was dead.
I snapped her neck so fast she didn’t even get the chance to scream. No warning, no second chances. Her body hit the ground with a dull thud, and the silence that followed was… satisfying. The crowd gasped, mouths hanging open in shock, but all I saw was Kali–frozen, trembling, trying to stand tall despite everything.
The screaming didn’t start until the shock wore off–wails about how I had just killed their “future Luna.”
I didn’t give a damn. If anything, I smiled because there is no future for anyone who raises a hand to
my mate.
And now, as I sit here at the dining table, watching Kali with her mother, her words echo in my head like a drumbeat.
“You’re free now.”
She whispered it so softly. But I felt the weight of it.
I know what she meant. The mark is fading–her mother finally rejected that bastard. That waste of a man who dared to call himself her father. My spies had filled me in on how he used her like a punching bag. Beat her bloody. Humiliated her.
I close my eyes for a moment, my jaw tightening again. I want to burn the Red Night Pack to the ground.
And yet, she survived it all.
She walked into my pack broken, banished, and I–I was just another monster waiting to tear her down.
The thought makes me sick. I didn’t know what she had been through. And still, I tried to force her into submission, like she hadn’t already fought a thousand silent wars.
But she didn’t bend or submit. Not then. Not now.
Not even after what that wretched excuse of a Luna did to her. Diana–who treated Kali like she wasn’t even human. And her precious son Travis–gods, if I get my hands on him. She refused him. Rejected him. Stood her ground like a damn queen.
And now the bastard ran. Escaped. But he can run all he wants.
I’ll find him. And when I do, he’ll beg for a quick death.
I scrape back my chair and rise silently, ignoring the curious looks from the omegas. I need to see the warrior in the hospital–the one who risked everything to stop Travis.
Caspian.
The name clicks into place in my mind. Kali’s best friend. The man she wanted me to test–to make alpha. I hadn’t known it was him. When I said I’d give the alpha title to the warrior, I saw the flicker of pain in her eyes. She thought Caspian lost his chance,
But now I know the truth–he is the one who stood against Travis.
It wasn’t favoritism. It was loyalty.
It was strength, and he’s earned the title more than anyone. I don’t care if he’s in a hospital bed–I’ll crown him there if I have to.
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Chapter 56
As I reach the door, I hear soft footsteps behind me. A gentle voice calls out.
Alpha Jack?
I pause and tum,
Kall’s mother stands just a few steps away, her hands clasped nervously in front of her. She walks toward me, slowly, like she’s approaching a wild beast she’s not sure won’t bite.
She looks nothing like Kali, Smells nothing like her either. My spy told me Kali was adopted–and I believe it. But the woman in front of me… she loved Kali. Even when the rest of this damned pack turned their backs, she stood by her.
I see the fear in her eyes. And I hate it.
She’s afraid of me–not because of what I’ve done, but because of what I am.
The monster from Blood Fang.
So I lower my head slightly. Just enough a gesture of respect.
She blinks in surprise, then smiles softly and bows back.
We walk side by side, saying nothing, until we reach the balcony. The night air is cool, brushing against our faces as we step into the quiet space overlooking the garden.
“I wanted to thank you,” she begins, her voice gentle. “For taking care of my daughter.”
I stiffen. A bitter taste rises in my mouth.
I didn’t take care of her. Not at first.
I hurt her. Made her feel like she had no choice. I pushed when I should’ve protected. And maybe that’s why she rejected me–again and again.
But I won’t interrupt her. I let her speak.
“I never imagined Kali would be mated to you,” she says with a soft laugh. “To Alpha Jack. When she was banished, I warned her. Told her not to go near Blood Fang territory. Told her to stay far away from your kind. I’d heard the stories–about you. What you do to rogues and woman. How dangerous you
are.”
“I still am,” I say quietly, eyes fixed on the garden below.
She chuckles. “Maybe. But she needs someone dangerous. Someone who would set the world on fire for her. I see how you look at her. You’d burn kingdoms.”
glance away, my jaw tightening, “She probably hates me.”
“No,” she whispers. “She’s just scared.”
“She rejected me. Twice.”
She lets out a soft, bittersweet laugh. “That girl has always been stubborn. But it’s not hate. She’s just… guarded.”
A quiet moment passes between us.
“So thank you. For loving her.”
Love? Kali?
“I’m grateful to fate,” she adds. “That it was you who became her second chance mate. She’s strong, but she’s tired. And I know you’ll protect her now.”
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Chapter 56
I turn slightly, just enough to see her face. She’s smiling gently, hopefully.
I nod once, slowly.
“I’ll protect her with my life,” I say, and I mean every word.
Then I step away–before she can see the guilt in my eyes.
I walk–off the balcony, down the hallway, out of the Alpha house, and straight to the hospital. The place reeks of burnt flesh, blood. I push open the door to the intensive care unit, and the healer on duty, an older man with weary eyes and trembling hands, looks up and immediately bows.
“Alpha,” he says softly. “I’m sorry, but… he won’t make it.”
I look past him.
Caspian.
He’s lying on the bed, barely recognizable beneath blood–soaked bandages, connected to machines that beep and blink like they’re counting down his final seconds. His chest rises and falls with effort, each breath a battle he’s losing. His face is deathly pale, lips tinged with blue. One arm is completely still, twisted at an unnatural angle.
Travis didn’t hold back. His claws tore through Caspian like paper.
“Leave us,” I say coldly, my voice leaving no room for argument.
The doctor bows again and scurries out, closing the door softly behind him.
I walk to Caspian’s bedside. For a moment, I just… stare at him. His body is broken, but his spirit isn’t. I can feel it. It’s hanging on, barely, like a flickering flame in a storm.
He deserves a chance to rise.
I reach for the dagger on my belt, slice a clean line across my palm. Blood wells instantly, warm and red, dripping slowly.
“Time to wake up, warrior,” I murmur.
With my uninjured hand, I part his cracked, cold lips. Then I press my bleeding palm to his mouth, letting my blood slip in, drop by drop. As I do, I begin to whisper the ancient words of the ritual–low, guttural phrases passed down through Alpha bloodlines, as old as the moon itself.
My blood is ancient. Powerful. It can shift fate.
“By the will of the Moon and the blood of the First,” I whisper, “I gift you strength. I gift you fire. I gift you reign. By the old blood and the oath of fire… I give you my blood. My strength. My Alpha.”
The moment the final word leaves my lips, Caspian’s body jolts violently–like something reached inside and yanked his soul back from the brink.
His chest arches off the bed as a loud gasp tears from his throat. His hands claw at the sheets, and his legs tremble uncontrollably. I step back, watching
as his body convulse. A loud snap echoes through the room–like bones breaking and rebuilding themselves.
Then… silence.
He lies completely still.
No beeping. No movement. Nothing.
My heart stops. Did I-?
Suddenly, he gasps–loud and ragged–like he’s drowning in air, choking on the first breath of a new life. His eyes fly open.
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Chapter 561
Gold.
Gold like the sun rising over war tom lands
Alpha eyes.
He blinks, chest heaving, hands gripping the sheets like he’s just been dragged back from the edge of death. For a moment, he stares at the ceiling, dazed. Then his gaze shifts to me. Recognition flickers–slowly–followed by confusion, awe… and fear.
He pushes himself up on shaky arms, swings his legs over the bed, and bows low.
“Alpha…”
I smirk, shaking my head. “You don’t have to do that. We’re equals now.”
His brows furrow, sweat glistening on his forehead, “w. what did you do to me?”
“You feel different now,” I say, crossing my arms as I watch him with quiet pride. “Like your body isn’t yours. Like something bigger is moving under your skin. That’s because you’ve got Alpha blood in your veins now.”
He stares down at his hands like they’re foreign, like they might suddenly explode.
“I–I don’t deserve this,” he stammers. “I’m just a warrior. A nobody-”
“No,” I cut him off. “You’re Caspian–the warrior who stood up to his Alpha. You risked everything to protect Kali. No one deserves this more than you.”
He blinks rapidly, still visibly overwhelmed. His throat moves as he swallows hard, then he looks up at me, curiosity flickering in the golden hue of his newly awakened eyes.
“You…” he starts hesitantly. “You’re Kali’s second chance mate, aren’t you?”
I nod slowly.
He exhales and smiles. “I’m glad. She always said she’d reject her second chance if she got one, but… I’m glad she didn’t. You’re a good man.”
I chuckle at that, unable to stop the grin that spreads across my face. “Good? That’s a stretch.”
If only he knew how many times she rejected me.
He laughs a little too, the tension easing slightly.
“Can I know your name?” he asks, tilting his head.
I raise a brow. “I’m Alpha Jack. Blood Fang Pack.”
Dead silent.
I can see the gears turning. The reputation. The fear. The rumors. The name that’s whispered to pups to make them behave.
“Blood… Fang…?”
“Yeah,” I say casually, then narrow my eyes and lean in slightly. “And stay the hell away from my mate.”
