*Selena*
Hours had passed, and Zander hadn’t returned to the room since the meeting. The tension between us was intense, and Zander had stopped speaking to me. Despite my attempts to explain, he refused to listen. My alpha mate had a fiery temper.
Lost in my thoughts, I heard the door open, and Zander walked in. Once again, he glanced at me briefly before heading straight to the bathroom. His coldness and indifference were tearing me apart inside.
I continued pacing the room, and eventually, Zander emerged from the bathroom, going straight to his side of the bed, ready to sleep.
“Zander, we really need to talk,” I insisted.
“Good night, Selena. I’m very tired,” he dismissed me with those words, leaving no room for discussion as he turned his back toward me.
“How long will this continue, Zander?” I asked, refusing to give up.
“You should know the answer, considering you’re the cause of this conflict,” Zander dismissed me.
“I’ve explained it to you, Zander. Why can’t you forgive me?” I questioned, feeling frustrated and annoyed by his stubbornness.
He remained silent, shutting me out as he always did by closing his eyes.
I hoped that when we retrieved our son, the distance and conflicts between us would finally come to an end.
The following day, we set off for the Vampire Kingdom in a Range Rover, accompanied by guards and soldiers in separate vehicles.
Damon was with us, so we entered the Vampire Kingdom without any trouble.
Upon arriving at the palace, the guards swiftly escorted us to meet the Vampire King, Silas Shadowborne.
“I’ve been expecting you earlier, Alpha King,” Silas said mockingly, making Zander scowl . His features hardened and if look could kill Silas would be dead already.
“Where is my son, King Silas?” Zander’s voice boomed.
“He’s safe with me, but if you wish to see him, you must agree to my terms and grant me access to the werewolf realm,” Silas demanded.
“True kings don’t negotiate by cowardly means of kidnapping and blackmailing a father,” Zander scoffed.
Silas chuckled. “Haven’t you heard that everything is fair in love and war? So, come to the point. Will you sign the peace pact or not?” Silas asked shamelessly.
“I’ll sign anywhere,” Zander huffed, but beneath his calm facade, I could sense his anger simmering. “But first, I want to see my son,” Zander made his condition clear.
Silas gestured to one of his vampire guards, who disappeared into the palace and returned after a while, holding my son in his arms.
“Alpha and Austin look exactly alike,” Madox remarked, studying Austin before glancing at Zander.
Gasps echoed through the room as our soldiers were taken aback-Austin was the spitting image of the Alpha king. The resemblance between father and son was unmistakable. Even Zander was surprised by the striking similarities. He stared at his son in wonder, his lips parting, eyes fixed on Austin.
“He’s my son!” Zander declared, looking at Austin. Austin’s eyes were moist, his face filled with sadness. But as he looked at Zander, his expression changed. He seemed shocked, perhaps realizing that the man before him resembled an older version of himself.
“Austin!” I exclaimed, rushing towards him, but the Vampire guards signaled for me to stop, holding up their hands and blocking my path.
“What’s the rush, Selena? Before you get your son back, don’t you want to know who helped us trick you and take your son?” Silas sneered as his grin was sly and cunning.
“Who was it?” I asked, furrowing my brow as my heart braced itself to confront the traitor.
“Selena!” a familiar voice from behind startled me, causing me to turn abruptly.
“Uncle Jack?!” I couldn’t believe my eyes seeing him there, smirking and appearing so composed. He was the traitor. I couldn’t fathom that my only family, my uncle, my only blood relation left after my family died, was behind putting my son’s life in danger.
“I can’t believe you orchestrated my son’s kidnapping,” I spat out with disdain, feeling the respect and care for him crumble away. The moment I realized he had used my son and me for his despicable motives, any love I had for him vanished. He had faked his entire life, pretending to genuinely love Austin and me.
“Selena, I never wanted to do this,” he began, his voice filled with pain. “Believe me, you were my only family. But my hatred for the Alpha King was stronger than any other feelings,” he sighed before continuing. “When you said you were going to tell the Alpha King about Austin and reconcile with him, I lost control. You ruined my plan because my revenge wasn’t complete. I wanted to see him suffer for destroying my pack and my family,” he paused, glaring at me, and I was shocked to hear such hatred from him. His heart seemed consumed by immense hatred for the Alpha King. “I’m truly disappointed in you, my child. How could you forget about your parents, your brother, sister, and pack members’ deaths? They were brutally killed by your ex-mate,” he yelled at me.
“No, Uncle!” I shouted in anger and hatred. “You’re wrong, and you’ve always lied to me!” I yelled, then glanced at Austin, who flinched. I never wanted my son to endure what I had experienced: the violence, crime, bloodshed, and the killing of innocent people.
But perhaps his fate was already decided, destined to witness all the brutality because he was the Alpha King’s son.
“Our family perished because of their mistake. If Father hadn’t opposed the Alpha King and attempted to kill him, he would still be alive,” I argued.
“So this cunning Alpha King has twisted your thoughts, and you believed in him and his lies,” Uncle snarled, glaring at Zander, who met his gaze with a furious stare.
I shook my head. “Uncle, I have a conscience to discern what’s right and wrong. Please, stop being paranoid and surrender. Perhaps the Alpha King will forgive you and spare your life,” I pleaded.
Uncle laughed. “Selena, you still don’t grasp that your ex-mate is powerless in front of the Vampire King. With the protection of the Vampire King, no one can harm me.”
It was Uncle’s excessive confidence that was gradually leading him towards his demise. I made one last attempt to save his life, but it seemed he was destined to be killed, provoking the Alpha King instead.