“Liam is a royal lycan,” I explain shortly. “His father is a crown prince. They are direct descendants of the first five lycans to ever exist. This here… is a normal werewolf pack, a smaller one, with a normal alpha. They are no match against him.”
“He meant it literally when he said that he doesn’t honor the alpha here enough to challenge him for a fight.”
Do you want to join me?Liam links me.
It’s the first time he has asked me something like that in such a situation. His lycan is very territorial and doesn’t like to share his power.Does Fenris not mind?
He agrees that this is also your battle.
“Excuse me,” I tell the others before joining my alpha and friend in front of the packhouse. We don’t talk, just wait until more and more warriors surround us. The moment they want to attack us, Liam unleashes his aura, making them stumble back. One after another, they fall to their knees.
“What’s going on?” someone yells, and I feel the aura of an alpha approaching us.
“You came to my pack and kidnapped three children,” Liam says shortly. “Two of them were my twin brothers. That’s what’s going on.”
Liam looks at me, and I bring forward the necklace. “Also, we found the secret behind this and the reason you went after my mate, the beta, and our niece. That’s another thing that’s going on.”
The alpha is either desperate or stupid because he charges at us. Liam knocks him down easily. Before Gideon can jump up again, Liam grabs him by his neck and pushes his face to the ground. “You came to my pack like a coward, kidnapping three children. You assaulted and tortured them like only a pathetic coward would do.”
While Liam talks, I scan the people surrounding us. Some warriors don’t look too surprised; however, some do. I pick out four who look shocked. One of them seems particularly strong. “You are the gamma?”
“Yes,” he says, his voice bland.
I gesture for five of my warriors to come closer, Raffy included. “Show them where your dungeons are. I assume you have more than one?”
“Yes, but one is old and almost off pack grounds. We don’t use it anymore.”
“That’s the one you will show them.” I nod at Raffy. “You take the lead.”
“Yes, Beta.”
Liam presses Gideon so hard into the ground I swear some bones break. “You know what the difference is,” Liam hisses. “That you have a wolf that can heal you. Kids don’t have that, you pathetic abuser. Who beats powerless kids!?” he growls, the veins on his arms and necks getting darker as his lycan pushes forward. “Who?”
One half of me contemplates stopping him so we can bring him in front of the Council. Losing his rank and position, the humiliation, is something I’m looking forward to. The other part of me wishes Liam would end his life.
Fortunately, Liam keeps his control and gets up, tugging Alpha Gideon with him and pushing him towards me. “Be my guest. He is all yours, but make sure he stays alive,” he says.
With grim satisfaction, I deliver a punch to Gideon’s ugly face, sending him flying back to the ground. Meanwhile, Liam has turned away and orders for Gideon to be put in a cell in the dungeons once I am done with whatever I want to do with him. Then he ensures the pack members stay in their rooms and houses while the proper investigation starts.
“Do we need to stay until things are sorted?” Aryanna asks him.
“No,” he says. “The Council will send a team to this pack here and to the other packs involved.”
True to his words, the first cars start pulling in around two hours later. Liam seems to know the woman who exits the first car and chats with her shortly. In the meantime, Raffy and his group find the hidden dungeon where Charlie and the twins were kept. Once we update the newly arrived warriors from the Council, we leave it in their hands and finally head home.
forty-six
The Twins
*ELLA*
ImakesurethatCharlie gets a proper checkup in the infirmary immediately. Fortunately, she only strained one of her wrists and got a few bruises from being tossed around, but other than that there was no physical harm.
The wounds we can’t see are a different issue. I will need to set her up with a therapist to work through this properly. For now, however, I spend the night with her in the hospital, cuddling with her and just listening to what she wants to tell me.
“Did you hear anything about Felix?” she asks me.
“He is still getting surgery,” I say, brushing over her hair.