Chapter 161

Two of the rebels step forward to grab me. The last thing they see is the pavement, as Caleb lands on them, smashing their faces down to the ground.

Caleb is in his werewolf form, massive and deadly. Standing in front of me, he’s ready to protect me.

The three remaining rebels take an unsteady step backwards and glance at each other. Yet, just when I think they might run, they make a coordinated attack, jumping forward together.

Caleb, furious as he is, lashes out in one large sweep, knocking all of the rebels clean off their feet. When he struts forward to finish them off, I dash toward him and grab one of his massive arms with mine.

“Caleb! They are down! There’s no need to kill them.”

Caleb’s voice comes out barely discernable from his growling. “They tried to take my mate from me… They will suffer…”

“I’m not saying that they need to escape punishment. But they can’t fight back. Call the guard. Take them prisoner. There’s no need for more violence!”

I am at my limit, having already seen enough needless death. I won’t let Caleb be the monster that Samuel believes him to be.

Caleb turns to look at me, his red eyes flashing dangerously. “You would protect them?”

“I would protect you!” I tell him earnestly, with all of my heart. These killings and this violence has been taking its toll on Caleb for years, driving him to madness. “Don’t lose yourself anymore, please. Not for some need to protect me. I’m right here beside me. You saved me. I’m safe.”

Slowly, with his gaze heavy on me, Caleb starts to recover himself. Breathing deeply, he gently starts to shift back down to his human form. It’s a relief, seeing his handsome face and clear eyes again.

“Caleb…” I reach my hand out toward him, but hesitate at the last moment, letting it hover between us. He takes my hand in his, brings it to his lips and kisses my palm, expressing his gratitude without words.

“A touching scene,” comes a sinister voice from the phone. Samuel!

Lifting the phone, his face has grown even tighter with annoyance and hatred. Caleb stands behind my shoulder so that we can both look at the screen. The full brunt of Samuel’s anger is clearly not for me but for Caleb.

“Who knew the great and terrible Alpha King Caleb could be halted by the words of a mere woman,” Samuel says.

“If she was a ‘mere woman,’ you wouldn’t be trying to kidnap her,” Caleb replies, a growl remaining in his voice despite his shift back to human.

“Perhaps not, but you can’t keep her there forever,” Samuel says. “Even if you somehow outlive the rebellion, even if I’m in the ground, she will eventually see you for the monster you are.”

“That’s enough,” I snap. Due to Caleb’s past with his brother, he’s often beat himself up, believing himself to be a monster despite having been manipulated by his father. For Samuel to use that term for Caleb without true care makes my blood boil. “Give this up, Samuel. You’ll never win.”

“I have an army, Harper, and it’s growing larger all the time. You and your king might hide behind the walls of the capital, but soon I will have a force large enough to storm it,” Samuel replies.

“I’m not the one who is hiding,” Caleb says. “You send your rebels here to kidnap Harper. Why not come yourself if you are so confident? You still yet fear me and my power. You are a coward.”

Samuel’s brow furrows as a heavy frown pulls at his lips. “I’m not the only one hiding behind my fortress walls and allowing my lessers to do my dirty work. Perhaps you never cared about your Beta, but the man was loyal to you until the end.”

I bite back a gasp, not wanting to give anything away, but my heart aches. If Samuel knows about Tristan, Tristan must have been caught. Or worse.

A growl erupts from Caleb.

“Truth hurts,” Samuel says.

Samuel looks away from Caleb, back to me. “I’m giving you one last chance, Harper. At one point in our lives, we meant something to each other. I haven’t forgotten that, and would honor it once more. You could be my mate. I would never make you a mistress, as Caleb has done.”

“She’s not going anywhere with you,” Caleb growls.

“Harper,” Samuel continues, ignoring Caleb. “If you say the word, I will rescue you from that place. You only have to ask me.”

“I will not betray my King,” I say, adding privately, Or my heart. Caleb is the man I love. For better or worse, I would not abandon him.

Especially not for a man like Samuel, who has already shown me his true colors. He is neither reliable nor trustworthy. That he married my sister at all only adds to the faults against him. If he loved me, he would have stayed loyal to me. He would have believed me and fought for me after my disgrace.

Now, he wants me to give up the man I love and the life I’ve made here to follow him into certain folly and death? Why? Because he assumes that I would show him the kind of love and faithfulness that he’s never shown to me?

“No,” I say, continuing to affirm my feelings. “You are on your own in this Samuel. My feelings for you changed a long time ago.”

“I see…” Samuel says coldly. “I suppose I expected this, though I hoped your decision would be less foolish. Very well, Harper. Consider my obligation to our previous relationship finished. When my army comes for the throne, and it will, you will find no mercy. You will die right beside the king you love so much, and then –”

Caleb reaches up, gently takes the phone away from my hand, and then, holding it a safe distance from me, smashes it in his strong, tight grip. The screen shatters, some pieces scatter, and the battery hisses. He opens his hand and all that’s left falls down to the ground.

“His army will never breech these walls, Harper,” Caleb says, returning his attention to me.

Turning toward him, I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly feeling very cold. Caleb steps toward me. He doesn’t touch me, but the warmth of his body so close to me offers me comfort.

“He will never touch you,” Caleb continues.

Looking closely, I can see the pain in Caleb’s eyes. He’s always been fiercely protective of me, but I wonder now, if part of this new recommitment to my safety might be because of the loss of Tristan.

To many, the Alpha-Beta bond might have only been one of servitude, but for Caleb and Tristan, I have seen enough to know that they were friends. Caleb trusts so few people in his life implicitly, but Tristan was one of them.

For him to be gone now… It is a difficult blow.

He promised he would be careful. What happened?

I try not to think about his last moments. I’m sure he faced them with bravery, but how frightening it must have been to be found out. To be punished and killed.

I hope he did not suffer.

Caleb lifts a hand and clutches my arm. In his eyes, I watch as uncertainty crosses his face.

“You won’t leave me,” he says – demands.

The paranoia is back.