Chapter 138: Two Options
Chapter 138: Two Options
Kaden’s POV
The world blurred.
Thirty days.
She wanted to leave me for thirty days—to go to his territory, to live under his roof.
My eyes snapped from Rebecca’s cold, empty face to Kane. My brother was standing right next to her, and the smug, victorious grin on his face made my wolf roar in uncontrollable madness. The beast inside me wanted to tear through the tables, rip Kane’s head off his shoulders, and paint the stone floor with his blood.
Kill him! Take her back! Lock her away! My wolf screamed, clawing at the walls of my mind.
"No," I growled, the sound ripping from my throat like a dying animal. The heavy wooden arm of my throne finally snapped under my grip, breaking into pieces. I stepped down from the dais, my boots slamming against the floor. The raw pressure of my Alpha King aura exploded from my body, so heavy and dark that several Alphas near the front gasped and dropped their cups.
"I refuse," I spat, my dark green eyes turning completely pitch-black as my wolf took over. I marched toward them, each step shaking the very ground. "She is my woman. She belongs in this palace. She goes nowhere near your pack, Kane!"
"Kaden, stop!" Kane shouted, though he didn’t back down. He intentionally stepped right in front of Rebecca, shielding her from my anger. "The law is clear! You cannot refuse unless she asks for total freedom. If you deny her right in front of the alliance, you break the sacred oath of the ancestors!"
"I don’t give a damn about the oath!" I roared, reaching out to shove Kane out of my way.
"Alpha King, control your beast!" a loud, booming voice commanded from the side.
It was Elder Thompson, the oldest and most respected wolf in the entire realm. He stood up, his face stern and full of authority. The guards in the hall immediately shifted, their postures rigid.
"The law of the Solar Eclipse cannot be broken by anyone—not even the King," Elder Thompson declared, his cold eyes locking onto mine. "If you refuse your slave’s legal request tonight, the ancestors will view it as a total breach of contract. By law, she will be granted complete, permanent freedom from you, and she will walk out of your territory a free woman tonight. Is that what you want?"
I froze, my hand stopping just inches from Kane’s throat.
The words hit me like a physical blow. If I refused, she would be completely free, and she would walk out of my life forever. I would lose her permanently. But if I accepted, she would spend a whole month with the brother who was trying to steal her from me.
I looked past Kane’s shoulder and met Rebecca’s eyes. She didn’t look afraid anymore. Her gaze was sharp, calculated, and dead. They had planned this together. She was using my own laws to punish me for what I did to her four days ago.
My chest heaved as I fought for air. I was the Alpha King, but in this moment, I was completely powerless.
"Kaden," Kane smiled softly, his voice full of fake pity that made me want to gouge his eyes out. "Give the word. Let her go for thirty days, or let her go forever. The choice is yours."
I clenched my fists so hard my claws sliced deep into my palms, fresh blood dripping onto the stone floor. The silence in the hall was suffocating. Every Alpha was watching me, waiting to see if the King would break his own laws for a slave.
I stared at her unkempt hair, her ragged dress, and her pale skin.
A terrible weight settled in my gut. How did she become this way? I knew she was still receiving treatment for her weak womb after the poison, but the doctors had told me she was doing fine. She shouldn’t look this starved. She shouldn’t look this broken. Something wasn’t adding up. Something was very wrong.
"I want to speak with my woman in private," I demanded, my voice cutting through the tense silence of the hall. "Clear the room."
"No," Kane said instantly, taking a step forward to block my path again. He shook his head, frowning. "You can speak to her right here, brother, but not in private. Who knows what you will do behind closed doors? You might just scare her into canceling her request entirely."
I glared at him, the skin around my eyes twitching. Kane was my twin brother. We shared the same face, the same bloodline. But right now, looking at his arrogant smile, I wanted nothing more than to slice his throat open and watch him choke on his own blood.
I forced my eyes away from him and looked back at Rebecca. The sight of her shattered something deep inside my chest. My heart broke into a million pieces. I couldn’t lose her for a month. I simply couldn’t survive thirty days without her scent, without knowing she was safe under my roof.
I stepped closer, the harshness melting out of my expression. I couldn’t even hide my desperation anymore.
"Rebecca..." I said, and I couldn’t believe how gentle my own voice sounded in front of the entire alliance. "What happened? What went wrong? I have been... I have tried to be good to you. Why do you want to leave? Why do you want to go to my brother’s pack for a month?"
For a second, her mask slipped. She looked up, her blue eyes meeting mine. But there was no warmth left in them. Only a cold, heavy exhaustion.
"I just want to breathe a new air, Alpha Kaden," she whispered, her voice low but steady enough for the whole room to hear. "Don’t worry. It is only for a month. I will be back... and when I return, you can punish me in whatever way you please."
Her words felt like a slap to my face. She thought I was going to punish her. She wanted to escape me so badly she was willing to throw herself to my brother just for a moment of peace.
Frustration and panic boiled over inside me. I kicked a heavy wooden chair out of my way, sending it crashing against the stone wall.
"Fuck it!" I roared, throwing my hands in the air. "You aren’t going! I won’t allow it!"
"You will have to let her go, Kaden," Kane intervened, his voice challenging. "It is the law of the ancestors. You have no choice."
"No!" I spat, pointing a sharp claw right at his chest. "I know exactly why you are doing this, Kane! You want to take her away so you can find a way to take off her choker!"
Kane let out a dark, amused chuckle. He raised his hands in defense, but his eyes were mocking me. "Brother, we both know that only you have the power to remove that magic collar. Even if I wanted to, I cannot take it off. And besides, doing so without the master’s consent is completely illegal under pack law. I wouldn’t dare."
Elder Thompson stepped forward then, his heavy staff thudding against the floor to demand order. He looked directly at my twin. "Kane speaks the truth, Alpha King. But let this be a warning. Kane, you must not touch that choker while she is in your care. If you attempt to take it off, the royal council will punish you by death. Only the master has the right to release a slave from their choker."
Kane turned to the elder, bowing his head smoothly. "I understand, Elder Thompson. I won’t touch it. I won’t dare break the sacred decree."
Then, Kane turned his gaze back up to my throne. His eyes gleamed with total victory as he pressed the final nail into my coffin.
"So, brother... the law handles the collar, and the elders have spoken," Kane smiled, extending his hand toward Rebecca. "What do you say, Alpha King? Will you let her go for thirty days, or will you lose her forever?"
My entire world narrowed to Rebecca’s face.
Thirty days...
Or forever.