ALPHA JASON MCMAHON’S POV
:
<b>79 </b>
55 vouchers
“Alpha, we’ve received word, they’ve crossed out of our territory,” Beta Joma said as he entered my study. “Everything is ready on our side. We’re only waiting for your order.”
Almost immediately, Luna Carrie’s lips lifted into a faint smile. “Alpha… the time has finallye.” Her gaze dropped to the framed painting in her hands, a hand–painted image her daughter made years ago, before she was married off to Cassian in the north.
In the painting, her daughter’s face was bright, her smile untouched by the weight of politics or the cruelty of war. Carrie’s fingers tightened around the frame, pressing it against her chest. “This time… it has finallye.”
“Father, I want to go too,” Caron Mcmahon said. “You told me one day we’d have our revenge. I want to be there. I want to see him break. I want to tear the skin from his bones myself.”
Jason’s eyes shifted back to Beta Joma. “Report. What have you seen so far?”
“They left without suspecting anything,” Joma replied, stepping closer to the desk. “There was no sign of anyone preparing medicine or mixing antidotes, nothing that would suggest they knew about the poison. From what I observed, their departure was as routine as any other. If they suspect danger at all, it’s not from us. They’d be thinking of the Demon Fangs.” A faint smile tugged at the Beta’s mouth as he added, “They didn’t suspect a thing. And if they did… they’re looking in the wrong direction.”
Jason’s gaze lingered on him for a moment before he gave a single nod. But inside, his thoughts weren’t on the Demon Fangs, they were on his daughter. La McMahon. Cassian’s first wife.
La had been barely eighteen when she left for the north, dressed as a bride and carrying the hopes of their alliance. She hadn’t evensted a single night. By the next morning, word arrived, she was dead. No exnation, no details, just the cold announcement that the north had already buried her. They’d never even seen her body, Jason didn’t need proof to know the truth. Cassian had killed her.
And La wasn’t the only one. The second wife, gone. The third, gone. The fourth, gone. One after another, all of them ended up dead. By now, Jason was certain, Cassian wasn’t just dangerous, he was a maniac who treated marriage as a death sentence.
“What about Lady Atasha?” Jason asked, his tone sharp.
Joma shrugged slightly. “We have investigated her before. She’s Alpha Collin’s eldest daughter, but I believe you haven’t met her before. She’s wolfless. Dull. An omega without any power or influence in the political game. That might be the only reason she’s still breathing.”
“Or,” Jason said, his voice low. “It’s because she hasn’t reached the north yet.”
55 vouchers
He didn’t voice the rest, but the thought stayed with him. Atasha ck was nothing more than a pawn, one the North would discard when her purpose was served. And when that day came, she’d meet the same fate as La and the others.
Jason leaned back in his chair. “And Alpha Collin?”
“Already on his way,” Joma replied. “He should arrive within the next hour or two.”
Jason’s fingers drummed once on the desk as the pieces fell into ce in his mind.
“Father, what about me?” Caron’s voice rose. “I muste! I must avenge my elder sister!”
Jason’s head snapped toward him. “Do you hear yourself?” His tone cut through the room like a de. “You think this is some personal vendetta you can parade into? You are the heir to this pack. The next Alpha. If you’re seen anywhere near this, you won’t just be avenging your sister, you’ll be dragging our entire pack into the king’s judgment.”
Caron stepped forward, fists clenched. “And what? I’m supposed to stand here and do nothing? I’ve trained my whole life for this. I have the right to be there!”
Jason mmed his palm on the desk, the sound sharp enough to make Joma stiffen. “Your right?” His voice hardened. “Your right is to protect this pack, not throw yourself into danger because you can’t control your temper. Use your brain, boy. Revenge without strategy is suicide, and I will not risk my sessor over it.’
“You think I’m afraid-” Caron started, but Jason cut him off with a re that froze him mid-
sentence.
“Afraid? No. Stupid? Absolutely.” Jason’s voice was low but brimming with anger. “I want Cassian to suffer as much as you do. But there is a difference between wanting it and exposing yourself to the consequences. You can’t seem to see that difference.”
Before Caron could retort, Luna Carrie stepped between them. “Enough,” she said sharply. “Both of you.” Her eyes darted between father and son, reading the stubborn set in their jaws. “You’ll tear each other apart before the enemy even lifts a finger.”
She caught Caron by the arm and tugged him toward the door. “Come with me.”
He resisted for half a step but followed when she didn’t loosen her grip. She didn’t stop until they were inside her chambers, the heavy door shutting behind them.
Caron turned on her. “Mother, I-
“You want revenge. I know.” Carrie’s tone softened slightly, though the firmness remained. “But your father is right. No matter how much we hate him, Lord Cassian is still the Alpha
79
55 vouchers
King’s brother. If the king gets even a whisper that our pack had a hand in anything against him, he will not spare us. And he will not spare your father.”
Caron’s brow furrowed. “The king wouldn’t—”
“Don’t be naive,” she cut in. “He may act like a benevolent ruler, but he is far from innocent. If… and only if… he learns the truth, do you think he’ll simply sit on his throne and mourn? No. He will act. And when he does, it won’t be mercy he sends our way.”
He frowned deeper. “What are you saying, Mother?”
Carrie studied him, her fingers tightening on his arm. “Do you truly believe your sister’s death had nothing <i>to </i>do with the king?<b>” </b>
“You-
“Do you truly believe that the death of Lord Cassian’s previous bride had nothing to do with the king?” she asked.