Fifty four

DEARIL POV.

I could feel the bond I shared with Jade, it had grown stronger due to the amount of time we spent together, and that alone kept me calm and collected. Jade bore my mark, and my scent, every other Alpha or wolf would know she belonged to me. They would know that she was all mine, so they'll know to stay away from her.

I had returned to Etral to fulfill some of my duty as the new head of the clan, but the truth was I just needed a distraction, because every second that passed, I had to fight the urge of going to find out who the Hayden guy was, and probably bashing his head in out of spite. The pen I held in my hand disintegrated in my hold as I applied pressure.

I sighed, tossing the remnants of the pen into the trash can before grabbing the wipes to clean up the ink stain.

I wanted Jade to rule beside me- because I and my wolf got agitated whenever she wasn't near us, but I could see how suffocating it would be for her to stay forever in Etral when she had a whole empire that she controlled. Besides seeing her in her element made her look fucking sexy as hell. Jade was not someone that could be hidden away in a corner. She was a fucking dynamite.

As mates, I knew in time we were going to work out a way to make it work. The only thing that really mattered was that she accepted me. She could have rejected me if she truly wanted to and I would have been unable to do anything about it.

'We would have kept her by force', my wolf hissed in my head. And It was true. My wolf was the only one that made me stay true to myself. There was no way in hell I would have allowed her to walk away from me.

It was not ideal, she was not an object for me to own, but I couldn't help my obsession and possessiveness over her.

I never had anything that was truly mine from a young age. I had to fight and struggle just to protect the little I had so that others didn't take it away from me. And for things I managed to keep, I guarded jealousy, so in a way, I saw Jade as one of the stuff that I had fought to get, only she was more, she was my number one priority. There was no way I was ever going to let anything or anyone take her away from me.

The door to my office opened and Detinos stood there glaring. He slammed the door shut then walked towards my desk and slammed his hands against it.

"You told your beta not to allow me in. How dare you show such blatant disrespect to another Alpha".

"I would watch the way I speak Detinos. You're standing before the head Alpha".

My cool demeanor took him aback. I guess he had expected more hostility from me, but that did nothing to stop his tirade.

"Father was right about you. You are going to take vengeance for everything we did to you, aren't you? You are going to destroy the whole pack just to make us pay for what we did to you in the past" he said and I sat back, my gaze holding his until he fidgeted.

"You finally feel guilty for the past, don't you? Well, you do not have to worry brother, I do not have any such agenda in mind. If I did I would have killed father a long time ago, Black would have gone next, then you, and I would have made sure it was a very gruesome kind of death" I said coldly and saw him shudder before he got himself composed.

Jade might have rubbed off on me a little because she wasn't afraid to embrace her darkness, and mine too for that matter, and because of that, I felt more comfortable saying whatever I had in my head.

Detinos swallowed. "Well, I do not still like you..."

"The feeling is mutual" I retorted, then raised a brow. "Say what you have to, I do not have all day to listen and validate your feelings".

Detinos cleared his throat, suddenly looking unsure. "Father and Black left the pack house they were assigned to".

The information had me sitting forward. They knew leaving the pack house meant they were going to be stripped of their titles permanently, so why had they chosen to defy my orders? I looked up at Detinos who kept his gaze averted from mine as the hairs on the back of my neck stood on edge. Whatever had made them take off from their assigned house was something that was guaranteed to piss me off.

"What are they up to Detinos" I growled, rising from my chair and walking around the desk until I stood face to face with Detinos, leaving him with no choice but to meet my gaze. "Speak Detinos" I ordered, my Alpha voice coming out in a growl.

Detinos swallowed. "They plan to kill your Mate," he said and it was like all the air rushed out of the room. "I believe they are already on their way to put their plan into action" he informed, his voice faltering as my pheromones saturated the whole space. Detinos fidgeted in discomfort, his Alpha instinct all over the place.

"Cut it out" he pleaded, almost baring his neck in submission.

His words sounded as if they came from a distant place with the blood rushing through my ears. I didn't want to believe what he said. After everything, this was how they were going to repay my kindness. I'd spared their life, despite all that they had done to me. The witch's curse had finally been broken, and now they were looking for another way to make me run wild. It had always been my father's plan from the start, and even though I knew him for the manipulating bastard he was, I still choose to do everything he required of me with the hope that he would accept me one day. I guess it was all a fool's dream. This was the real world I lived in.

I stepped past Detinos who looked like he wanted to disappear from my sight, my anger a palpable feeling in the air. If they touched Jade, even just a little bit, I was going to fucking destroy everything and everyone.

It was a promise.

I stepped out of the pack house, using the bond I shared with Jade as a compass. I hoped I got to her first before they did.

*******

JADE POV

I stepped back from Ryland, my eyes widening as he finished recounting all the plans that had been made against me and Dearil, the name of Skye ringing in my head. The witch girl.

They had planned to destroy Dearil by hurting and killing me.

The thought of Dearil going through any more pain after all he had to endure in the past years made my heart feel like a hot searing iron was being poked into it. No. I would not allow it, not after I found in him all I have been looking for all my life.

Ryland dropped to the floor, his strength nonexistent. He'd fought my power till the very end, but I was too strong for him to resist, and that drained him mentally. I was sure I'd messed him up a bit. I picked him up, shoved him into the car, and buckled his seatbelt.

I got in beside him, started the car, and followed the direction he had described leading to Skye's lair. No one was going to hurt Dearil, not while I was breathing. His parents and his clan had bullied him enough and that was going to end now that he had me. I did not care who I had to destroy to keep my happiness. I would move the heavens for what was mine, and Dearil was my freaking Alpha.

Ryland grunted beside me pathetically.

"Do not hurt Skye" he got out weakly and I scoffed.

"You sound so sincere, I almost believe you give a shit about her".

"I do" he got out forcefully. "All she wanted was to make Dearil pay for what he did to her family".

"By getting rid of me even though I had nothing to do with what happened to her family right, how is she different from Dearil then?" I asked and Ryland stared at my glass eyes.

"She just wanted justice and I promised her that. Do not touch her".

"She was going to kill me, I'm not sure I feel really sympathetic to her plight or yours right now".

The ride got quiet. "I love her" Ryland choked out.

I glanced at him, my eyes widening a bit because I did not believe him capable of uttering those words or even harboring feelings for a fellow human being. But I guess if I could become so whipped for Dearil after vowing to destroy him, then Ryland might also have not stood a chance against the witch.

"More than the syndicate?" I asked, and Ryland's eyes met mine. I could sense his internal war with himself. It was like an eternity passed before he finally spoke.

"The syndicate was the only avenue for me to ever be seen and feared Jade. All my life, I have always been in your fucking shadow. Our Father was ashamed of me. I could see it every time he looked at me. I wanted him to be proud of me, but I knew it was a waste of time to expect that from him. You were his favorite".

"Of course I was. The favorite who was treated worse than an animal".

"And I would have given anything to have been treated in that manner. At least then I would know that our father cared about us too".

"Alvarez would have given you the syndicate Ryland. It was all in his will." I said, staring at him. His mouth fell open in surprise before he forced it to shut. "But you blew it by having him killed. You see, to your father, I was never his real flesh and blood. He hated my mother, so he hated me more since I came from her. He didn't torture me because I was his favorite Ryland. He tortured me because he hated what I reminded him of. Despite everything I did, he was going to choose you over me but you were too hasty in your decision, not that it mattered what was written in the will Ryland. The syndicate has always been mine. If there is anyone who deserves to rule the Alvarez Mafia clan, that would be me"

Ryland's throat worked. "What I feel for Skye is still confusing. I do not know what I want yet... "

I smirked. Bloody bastard. He wanted to have his cake and eat it too. "Do not worry step bro, I'll make sure I make both your death quick and easy. Maybe when you get to the afterlife, you both might finally figure out what you feel for each other.

Ryland groaned as if my words caused him physical pain.

"And would you look at that, we arrived at your little girlfriend's lair" I announced as I saw the house in the distance. I stopped the car, hauled Ryland out, and dragged him towards the house that looked creepy as hell even just from taking in the exterior of the building.

Ryland's face went pale but that did not make me pity him one bit. I was going to destroy whatever it was that threatened Dearil's existence.

Even though Dearil killed the witch, he wasn't responsible for the child's death. It was all a bloody accident that could have been avoided, but all in all, he had already atoned for his crimes by enduring the curse for so long. He did not deserve extra punishment.

I and Dearil deserved our own fucking happiness.