Chapter 44

The screen flashed through the images, there was no denying it was Harper. Her hair, her face, and clearly Adrian’s body. The crowd was in an uproar, shouting and arguing over what it all meant.

I turned to face Lucas, whose skin was bleached white like he had just seen a ghost. I smiled gently, not bothering to hide how pleased I was to finally hit him where it hurt.

Caleb’s face was unreadable, but he slowly came to stand beside me at the podium, placing his hand softly around my waist so we looked like a united couple.

I opened my mouth to speak, but the crowd parted, revealing Adrian standing with his hands in fists at his side. Even in my past life married to Lucas, I hadn’t known him very well. But although he was practically a stranger to me, I could see his desperation.

He suffered every time Harper made the decision to fuck Lucas. Every time she took his cock, her mate had to feel the cheating pain. I didn’t feel sympathy for him, but I understood him. There was more anger in his eyes than I had ever seen a person’s face, and without warning he launched himself at Lucas.

The audience moved like a wave of water, scrambling to get out of the way of the two men. Lucas’s eyes looked like murder, and he landed the first blow just under Adrian’s chin.

Adrian let out a horrible gurgling sound, and whipped his fist at Lucas’s face, barely missing his left eye. Lucas’s neck snapped back from the blow, and he plowed into his gamma, forcing him to the ground with the full weight of his body.

They thrashed on the marble, kicking and striking like they were at war. I saw a glint of silver, and my heart sank. Who had pulled out the knife?

“Stop!” Harper screamed, diving head first into them.

They rolled over her, tearing at the skirts of her dress. Her necklace came undone, and the diamonds scattered everywhere like broken glass.

“Stop fighting…get off! No!” Adrian grabbed her by the waist and spun out of Lucas’s grasp, keeping her behind him like he was trying to protect her.

“He has a knife!” Adrian shouted, throwing his arms wildly to keep the crowd away from Lucas.

Lucas’s expression remained impassive, and he held up empty hands as if to prove his innocence.

Harper struggled out of Adrian’s hold, kicking violently at his shins so he would let her go. “You bastard!” She exclaimed, and tossed her hair back over her shoulders. “Who do you think you are?” She hissed.

The crowd went silent, completely caught up in the drama before them.

Adrian stared at her, his eyes wide in shock. “What?”

“Marrying me? You think you’re good enough for that?”

“I’m your mate!” He cried, reaching out his arms for her, but she shoved them away mercilessly.

“You are my mate, but not my love. I have never wanted to be with you.”

“What…” Adrian said, his voice dropping to a whisper. “What are you saying?”

Harper shook her head, adding a theatrical tone to her voice. “I’m saying that you are nothing compared to Lucas, I have only ever wanted to be with him.”

She darted to Lucas’s side, but Adrian followed her on his knees, a split in his lip beginning to bleed.

“Harper we can run away, no one has to be involved in our love, I’m your mate. I have only ever cared about you, please. You don’t have to put on this show anymore!”

Harper turned her nose up at him. I was shocked by how cold she could be to someone she was bonded with.

“Lucas, is going to be my husband. Now get out of here before you embarrass yourself any further.” Adrian’s expression went from tense to slack, like the will to live had drained from his body.

Lucas turned to face Harper, the first movement he had made throughout their entire argument. I held my breath watching them.

He took her face in his hands, and for a moment looked as though he was going to bring her to his lips and kiss her. Instead, he tilted her head to the side, bringing her ear roughly to his mouth. “You should have chose the man with the ring.”

Harper hiccupped roughly, clawing at his wrists to keep him from leaving her. “No, no, no, no, no please.”

Lucas said nothing, and turned on his heel to leave her on the marble dance floor.

“You can’t do this to me!” She cried, falling to her knees and crumbling into a puddle of glittering fabric.

I couldn’t see from the podium which direction Lucas had gone. The crowd stayed in place as if in shock, and he had to shoulder his way through the onlookers to get out.

“Not bad,” Caleb breathed to me when the chattering began.

I looked back at him, still irritated with his earlier behavior. “A thank you would be enough.”

He started to speak, but I ignored it, I wasn’t done with my work for the evening.

Lucas couldn’t have gone far, so I raced across the floor to the exit hallways, determined to face him before he made it out of the palace.

My heels echoed through the hallways with each step, but I couldn’t hear anything else until I got to the front foyer.

“This is outrageous!” I heard someone shout, and I immediately ducked behind a vase at the doorway. I peered around to see Lucas frantically waving his arms in front of Vic and Brutus, the two Bears watching impassively.

“It’s outrageous that you would try to come back to us after making such a fool of yourself in the ballroom.” Brutus responded calmly, obviously uninterested in making any deals.

“Caleb is going to ruin you, you don’t have to believe me, but sooner or later you’ll find out what a manipulative piece of shit he is.”

“The only ruin I think we can all count on was what we just witnessed between you and your own gamma.” Vic replied. “In the few short hours since we’ve switched allegiance, Caleb has already proven to be a more effective and stable leader than you ever appeared to be.”

Lucas took a strong step towards the Bears like he was ready for another fight, but he cowered back down when Brutus drew up to his full height. I couldn’t believe how small and insignificant Lucas looked in front of these men.

“I don’t have to deal with this. You’ll regret crossing me,” he said, furious. With that, he stormed out through the main entrance, throwing the doors open and stomping off towards the gardens.

I leaned back against the wall behind me, letting out an anxious exhale. Lucas would need time to recover from this, and I was more than happy to find other things to keep him on his toes.

When I returned to the ballroom the dancing had resumed, and Harper was nowhere to be seen. The diamonds that had fallen from her jewelry remained untouched on the floor, like the guests were afraid they might be cursed.