Chapter 199

Alexander POV

I sat in my office with an untouched cup of coffee in front of me, steam curling from the mug in lazy spirals. My laptop sat open but dark, its blank screen reflecting my hollow expression. I had work to do. There was always work to do.

But I couldn’t focus.

What I had just done was reckless. Foolish.

God, August was going to kill me when he found out.

He was the only one in my life who knew about my persona as the Ice King. I was always careful to keep that part of myself separate from my role as Alpha of the Black Rock Pack.

I knew how dangerous my double life was—how many lives were at risk if I were ever exposed. It would devastate the pack. But more than that, it would cause mass panic.

My identity as the biological child of the Northern Alpha King was kept secret for a reason. If people knew the power the Northern King held over the border packs... If my truth came to light, it could ignite a war.

That wasn’t a risk I was willing to take, so I did everything in my power to keep my secrets safe, no matter the strain it put on my personal life.

I left in the middle of the night for my meetings in the Rogue Lands. I went alone or with August, lying to everyone else.

I let people believe I was doing all kinds of terrible things—let them think I was unfaithful, manipulative, and cold. It was better than them knowing the truth.

It was easier to be hated than to risk them digging deeper.

This was exactly what August had worried about when Ella came into the picture. Somehow, he’d known she would get under my skin. And she had. Yet, even now, knowing all my darkest secrets, she was still here.

Could she really love a criminal like me?

The thought tore at me, unraveling every defense I’d built to protect myself—and to protect her.

When the door to my office opened, I already knew who it was. I’d canceled every meeting today except for one.

August stepped in with a grim look on his face, closing the door behind him before locking it. He crossed the room and took the seat opposite me, his eyes never leaving mine. For a long moment, he just stared, his expression unreadable.

“What happened?” he asked at last. “I haven’t heard your voice sound so distressed in a long time. And your secretary told me you weren’t to be disturbed.”

“I asked you to look into Ella,” I said, my voice flat. “What did you find?”

August hesitated, his gaze flickering. “Nothing,” he finally answered. “No history of mental illness. No odd behavior. No illnesses in her family tree that would raise any red flags. I dug deep, Alexander. There’s nothing to report.”

I nodded slowly. That’s what I expected. I believed Ella’s story. I just needed to be sure.

“Alex... what’s going on?” August’s voice softened as he leaned forward, his eyes sharp with concern.

I exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of the truth pressing down on me. He hadn’t called me Alex since we were kids. It told me exactly how serious he considered this situation to be. I had to be honest with him.

“Ella knows,” I said simply.

Anger flashed across his face, sharp and sudden, before it was replaced by worry, then a flicker of sadness. Finally, his expression settled into a carefully neutral mask.

“I told her everything.”

August drew in a deep breath, his shoulders rigid as he leaned back in his chair. His hands clasped together so tightly his knuckles turned white. He stayed that way for a moment, fighting for control.

“Why?” he asked, his voice low, rough around the edges.

“I had to,” I said, my voice steady despite the turmoil inside me. “This latest kidnapping was impossible to explain away. Ella recognized my voice from the last time I had to intervene as my other self. If I didn’t tell her, she would’ve started looking into things on her own, and that would’ve raised even more suspicion.”

August sighed, rubbing his forehead. “I get it. We couldn’t risk her accidentally exposing everything. You told her... everything?”

“Everything.”

“Well, shit,” August muttered under his breath. “What do we do now?”

“I’m not sure,” I admitted. “I trust her, so I don’t think there’s anything else to do.”

“You trust her?” August’s eyes narrowed. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“Why shouldn’t I?” I countered. “Ella’s never given me a reason not to trust her.”

He shook his head, his expression skeptical. “We still don’t know where she gets her information.” Disdain tinged his words.

“You don’t know,” I corrected. “Ella confessed to me. I understand it all now.”

August’s eyes widened slightly. “I see. So that’s why you wanted me to look into her background... to confirm whatever story she told you was true.”

“That’s right,” I said, leaning back in my chair. “And it seems it is. So now she and I know all of each other’s secrets.”

“At least that’s something,” August muttered under his breath.

“I know you don’t like this arrangement,” I acknowledged, my gaze steady. “And I understand why. But, August, I need you to trust my judgment.”

“You know I trust your judgment,” he responded automatically. “If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have gone along with so much of this. I may be your beta, but my responsibility to the pack remains. If I thought you were doing anything that endangered it...”

I smiled, appreciating his honesty. That was one of the things I respected most about August—he called me out when no one else dared, and when I lost my way, he reminded me who I was.

“For the moment, this changes nothing,” I said, my voice firm. “I just wanted you to know that she’s aware.”

“It’s information I need,” he said tensely. “What about Sabrina? Have you learned any more about that?”

I shook my head slowly. “No,” I admitted. “There was so much else to talk about, we didn’t get to that topic. Whatever Ella found out about her… we need to stay on high alert. Have you had any luck looking into her?”

“She’s separated from her husband,” August said. “No divorced, but it seems like things are headed that way. She’s been very private about things, so it’s hard to find details.”

“Still, that gives us an idea of why she might make an appearance now,” I said thoughtfully. “If she’s in a desperate situation, she may think that blackmailing me is a way out.”

“What should we do?”

“Nothing for the time being,” I said. “Just keep an eye on her movements. If she has any contact with the media or comes to the capital, let me know right away.”

“Yes, sir,” August said. He stood and without another word left the office.

I let him go. I had nothing else to say to him for the time being. He needed time to get over his anger at me.

I leaned back in the seat and closed my eyes.

Sabrina was having trouble in her marriage. There was a time when I would have been happy to hear that the man she left me for wasn’t everything she had hoped he would be. Now, the news just left me feeling numb.

I would have to tell Ella about her at some point.

If she could really look past my identity, then surely the complicated history of my first love wouldn’t turn her against me.

Still, it was painful to even think about her. I tapped a key on my laptop and signed into my account.

I needed to take my mind off of all of this, so I might as well distract myself with work.