Threat

Alpha Luciano’s POV
I let go of Arabella and she fell to the ground unmoving. I pulled the file from his hands and opened it. Truly all the papers were blank as Mikah had said. I was beyond shocked. Arabella had really swapped out the content of the file? Was it in a misguided attempt to protect me?
I was confused. No one had ever done something so stupid and strange for me before. “Check if she’s still alive.”
It would seem I had been mistaken as rare as that was. At least I had found a mole from this pathetic attempt at whatever Arabella had thought she was doing.
“Her pulse is faint but still there.”
“Get her to the infirmary.”
Being stupid was… well stupid. But it wasn’t a crime. At least not in my books.
I watched my men troop in according to the signal. They picked up Tina’s body. And I watched Mikah carry Arabella away to be treated.
What a waste of time.
***
I came out of my shower to meet Emery on my bed.
She was naked.
“Alpha Luciano.” Her gaze was downcast and demure. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have concerned myself with affairs that were beyond me. Your relationship with other women in the harem is none of my business. I ask for your forgiveness.”
“Emery.” I would never condone anyone questioning me. However, she had done a good job and done this pack a good service. If not for her, I wouldn’t have found out about Tina betraying me and communicating with Vitalio.
Also, I missed her expertise in bed. “For your services today, I forgive you but that’s not why you are here, is it?”
Emery smiled coyly and stood up from the bed before approaching me swaying her hips.
“Please allow me to show my gratitude.”
Her dainty fingers unknotted my towel. And she sank down to her knees and took me into her mouth.
I sank my fingers into her silky hair and sighed as I felt myself harden. It wasn’t so bad to be Alpha. I would think of a suitable comeback for Vitalio later.
Arabella’s POV
When I woke up, I was blank.
My father was a piece of shit who had lied to and betrayed both me and the rest of my pack lying to the world for years on end.
My mate was an even bigger piece of shit who I had tried to protect. When I saw those papers, and read through them, I knew they were important, too important to just be laying around. I almost left with it but I stopped. I couldn’t do that to him.
Even if he wouldn’t do the same for me, I couldn’t do it to him. Betray him like that. So I swapped out the papers before leaving the room with the same file but different papers in it.
I only planned to find out from the horse’s mouth if he had really done all the things they said he did. To find out if my father was the monster they said he was. Now that I knew for sure what he was, I didn’t know what to do about it.
I was in the hospital again. Alpha Luciano put me in here. My throat was on fire and my neck was bandaged. Even for a wolf with super healing, he had marked me. If not for the fact that I was a wolf, he would have broken my windpipe already and I would be dead.
He could have killed me yet he didn’t even stick around to give me an apology. No, I didn’t even deserve that it would seem.
“I came over as soon as I could.” Margaret entered the room like a whirlwind of activity.
It was oddly relieving to see her. “Margaret.” She bent slightly to give me a hug.
“Must you always come here? I get so worried for you. Do you know? The–”
“He killed Tina.” Margaret paused. She sat next to my bed and took my hand. “Arabella–”
“She betrayed him, I know. I know that she wasn’t a good person. Hell, she… I didn’t even like her but she was a member of his pack. How could he be so ruthless?” I looked at her with tears glittering in my eyes.
“Arabella, he is an Alpha. He has to set the rules down so that no one else can challenge his authority.” Margaret’s tone was gentle and her grip on my hand was strong.
“Oh, so it’s a power game. My father and Alpha Luciano are at war and Tina was a casualty. The same way I almost was and the world will continue to go on.” I laughed brokenly.
“Oh, Arabella. If only life were that easy. I can’t ease your pain and tell you it will be different because it is the same everywhere. I’m only sad that you had to go through all this.”
“You were right about my father. He is not a good person but you were wrong about Alpha Luciano. He is not a good person either. Far from it, he is wicked, he simply doesn’t care. I don’t think that is going to change anytime soon either.”
Margaret searched my eyes looking for something. “You made a mistake looking for something you might never find in Luciano. He will never be a knight in shining armour that will sweep you off your feet. He can’t be that person because he is broken. I don’t think he can be fixed. If you care about him, you will learn how to love him with his flaws and all.”
I paused.
“Margaret. I’m not a potter. I can’t fix him even if he could be fixed. And I can’t love someone who is so fundamentally wrong and flawed. Someone I don’t even understand. I can’t. I shouldn’t have to.”
It was like I had finally awakened again. I had told Alpha Luciano that I decided to do everything for me and me alone. Now I would really do that. I was going to live for myself alone. I refused to regret the fact that I saved him. It was done already. I couldn’t change that fact nor did I want to. I had done it for me, not him.
However, I couldn’t trust him. It was something I had always known but it had somehow settled into the back of my mind instead of the forefront. I had let myself relax and forget who he was.
The only thing I could do now was to think about my next move because I had never felt so unmoored before.
*******
Emery’s POV
I had done it. Finally.
Or so I thought.
I never expected that Arabella would actually stay loyal to him. We’d all seen the video but who could really know what was going on in her head?
I knew she was planning something. She acted like she hated him all the time but I knew the truth. I saw it on my face every day. She was in love with him. Her feelings were inconsequential, the only problem was that he was different with her.
I watched from the shadows during the raid even though Luciano had ordered me away. How could I not when she was going to get her comeuppance? I saw as he killed Tina quickly without a fuss. Luciano always hated torturing women, he’d done it before but it wasn’t something he gloried in.
Then he started choking her. I watched in anticipation, then I noticed he was taking too long. At first, I thought he was trying to prolong it because she was Vitalio Bianchi’s daughter but then I looked at his face.
He looked pained. Like he was hurting himself as he hurt her. That was when I knew that I was in trouble.
Arabella had just become a bigger threat than I had thought she was.