Jace’s POV
I was speechless, angry, and I felt powerless after hearing everything. There was nothing I could say, and Ridge, too, was silent.
I could remember everything before her death, but after that, it was all a blur.
“Alpha, we are ready to accept any punishment you choose to give us because it was our fault that our humans were out of control,” Talic said as I brushed my hand through my hair.
They weren’t the only ones at fault; we all were, and by how they described Lillian, she was nothing like the mate I knew. What was I to do? Kneel down and beg for mercy or take my own life? Why was I even saved? A bastard like me had no right to live.
I stood up and swallowed hard, feeling my muscles tense in pain.
“I am going to see her, right now,” I said as they both looked at me with fear in their faces.
“Alpha, you can’t,” Las screamed out.
“I have to kno….”
“Jace, you can’t!” Talic yelled, startling me.
I looked at him and then moved closer, patting his shoulder.
Harvey was my childhood friend, but that didn’t mean I was very close to Ridge. Despite us being on a different level of understanding, he was still someone I looked up to.
“Sooner or later, I will have to face her. This is my pack, and she is still my mate,” I answered.
“But she might reject you or even hurt you!” He exclaimed.
“It’s okay, that’s the least I could do to make up for my past deeds,” I answered as he clenched his hands into fists.
“Sir,” he called huskily.
“Tell him to let it go,” Ridge whispered to me.
“He won’t take over because he too agrees with my decision. We need to pay with our blood no matter what,” I answered as he lowered his gaze to the floor.
“No one should interfere no matter what she does to me or what you may hear, that’s an order,” I said in a low tone, then walked out and went to her room.
As soon as I touched the handle, I swallowed hard and then closed my eyes.
“Keep calm,” I whispered to myself and then opened my eyes and pushed the door open.
“Alpha!” Flora called out in shock once I had closed the door.
I ignored her and looked at the balcony where Lillian stood.
I felt so nervous and afraid over what she could say to me.
She had her back towards me so I couldn’t see much, but her scent that invaded my nose made my body completely relax instantly. It was the most beautiful scent I had ever inhaled, yet I just couldn’t admit it in the past. Even now, I just couldn’t understand what ticked me off so badly to act up when it was an incredible scent.
She looked like an angel just from the back, her long white hair falling down perfectly, and the gown she was in made me have a clear view of her figure.
I was about to move when she spoke.
“Leave us,” she ordered as I tensed.
Her voice was strong and dominant yet not warning.
“Yes,” Flora answered and then quickly gave a bow and rushed out.
“Speak,” she said coldly.
I went to my knees in silence with my hands pressed on my thighs.
I was about to speak when I got startled hearing her loud laughter.
“Oh no, you don’t get to be a paid actor in just a second,” she said loudly, then turned and faced me as I instantly held in my breath.
The one in control was completely Lillian’s wolf and not her.
But despite knowing that, I couldn’t help but smile. She was breathtaking! Nothing and no woman or she-wolf could ever compare to her beauty.
Her pale skin and freckles made my heart beat rapidly, and when a strand of hair touched her lips, I felt like I was in a trance. This was the first time I was looking at her seriously and taking my time to appreciate how gorgeous she looked.
“I want to talk to him,” she said seriously as I frowned.
“Who?” I asked in a low tone.
“Him,” she answered coldly.
I knew then and there who she was talking about, and he knew it too that she was referring to him.
I willingly gave Ridge control, and she raised a brow when he did.
She slowly moved, approaching us as our hearts began to ache with each step she took. Her angry expression was one we couldn’t pretend not to notice; it hurt us seeing her like that.
When she stood in front of us and touched our chin, we raised our head to look her in the eyes. A soft sigh that was like a moan nearly escaped our lips because of the tingles that we felt.
She smiled and then moved her hand to our shoulder as she slowly began to walk, circling around us, making us feel very uncomfortable.
“Does this mean she is okay with us?” I asked Ridge loudly. When he didn’t respond, I felt very happy.
It seemed there was really hope for us to be together! Was she truly okay with us?
She stood in front of us and then knelt down.
“Ridge,” she called in a form of greeting.
He was about to respond when we felt intense pain through our chest that felt like a thousand needles piercing our flesh. We looked at the claws that had plunged into our chest, which was badly bleeding, then back at her in shock with widened eyes as we coughed out blood.
Our forehead was sweating badly, and our body felt weaker.
“Ridge,” I forced out the words.
“We let her kill us,” came his painful response.
He smiled at her, and that seemed to anger her even more.
“I wonder what would happen if I did this,” she whispered as her claws dug deeper into our flesh.
Our breath became muffled, and our throats closed up.
“Scream out!” She yelled angrily as she dug in further, making us throw up blood as our vision began to blur.
We were losing our minds because of the pain, yet we didn’t want to see her in such a state.
“So… so…” Ridge tried to apologize, but his words couldn’t come out.
When she pulled out her hand, we fell to the ground with a loud thud.
“Do you think this is even close to what you made us go through? Oh no, Ridge, we are just beginning,” she said as I took over and raised my hand to touch her.
I screamed out in pain when she raised her foot and stepped on it, breaking my wrist. I was trembling and trying to keep my voice in as her laughter echoed in the room.
I felt like throwing up badly and dying at the same time.
“Do it again, I like it when you cry out, Alpha,” she said then stepped hard on the broken wrist as I screamed out in pain.
I groaned loudly as tears rolled down my cheeks, and I struggled to move. I watched with a painful heart as her figure began to fade away.
It wasn’t the pain I was going through that was making me shed tears, but the pain in her voice when she spoke. She no longer wanted us; she wished us dead.
“Do you like what I’m doing to you, Alpha?” she whispered.
This was our decision to die by her hand. We knew the very minute we chose to walk into her room that she wasn’t going to accept us. We were ready to face it all for her.
If seeing us in pain would make her one day happy, then we were willing to suffer.
If she wanted, she could take lives in our pack, and no one would fight back or stop her, no matter what.
We were at fault; we made her into the she-wolf she is today.
“Pathetic,” she muttered in a cracked voice as I inhaled the scent of her tears.
It saddened me to know that she was crying again, yet all I could do was endure it because I didn’t want to make her feel worse than I already was making her feel.
As my vision began getting worse, I tried to stay fully awake; sadly, it was no longer possible.