Page 49

"Just ahead." Kane punched a code into a keypad beside an unmarked door that, in their estate, led to the pantry.

The heavy barrier slid open, revealing a concrete stairwell leading down. The sounds of struggle echoed from below, metal striking metal, enraged shouts, the distinctive clang of chains.

"He's awake," Kane warned, his face grim as they descended the stairs. "The sedative must have worn off."

The vast underground garage had high ceilings supported by concrete pillars.

In the center, surrounded by overturned equipment and scattered tools, stood a black armored van.

Its rear doors hung open, revealing a glimpse of the chaos within.

Thrashing limbs, flashing golden eyes, the gleam of silver restraints

"TRAITOR!" Titan's voice boomed through the cavernous space. "I'LL TEAR YOUR THROAT OUT!"

Kane's face hardened as they neared the van. Inside, Titan strained against the silver chains wrapped around his massive frame. Blood seeped from where the metal touched his skin, but his rage seemed to override the pain. Four wolves struggled to hold him down, their faces contorted with effort.

"Your Majesties." One of the rogues gasped, relief washing over his features as he spotted the twins. "He woke suddenly and broke through the first set of restraints-"

Kill. Touched. River. Our Young. Killed Bennett. The roar that emanated from Apollo's wolf almost knocked him over.

Rage took over him in an instant, and he wanted the same thing his wolf did: to kill Titan.

With predatory grace, he lunged forward, seizing Titan by his throat, his claws ripping into Titan's flesh, and dragged him from the van.

Titan slammed to the ground with an oof.

The silver chains scraped across the concrete as Apollo flung Titan against the nearest pillar, the impact cracking the solid stone behind him.

"You took her," Apollo snarled. His fist connected with Titan's jaw with a crack, blood spraying across the concrete. "You kept her prisoner." Another punch, this one shattering Titan's cheekbone.

Apollo let his rage consume him. Each accusation punctuated by another devastating blow, his control slipping with every impact.

"You murdered my best friend." His wolf tore into Titan, wanting to break Titan apart, bone by bone.

Titan laughed through bloodied teeth, his face already swelling. "She should have been mine," he spat, blood bubbling from his lips. "My father's throne. My Luna."

Apollo roared, a sound so primal it sent the rogues backing away. His next blow crushed Titan's nose, driving bone fragments deeper into his face. "She was never yours to take!"

Apollo punched Titan's gut once, twice, three times until he heard the crack of ribs. Then he punched Titan in the kidneys. Every blow released the pain Apollo held inside.

Titan groaned and gasped for air as Apollo continued to punch him. Over and over and over until he couldn't see or think of anything but blood, vengeance, and death.

"Enough." Ares' calm voice cut through the haze of Apollo's rage, his hand closing around his twin's wrist.

Apollo turned toward Ares, his wolf pushing dangerously toward the surface. "He deserves to die."

"Yes," Ares agreed, his face tight with fury. "But not like this. Not by your hand alone."

Titan wheezed out another laugh, blood dripping from his ruined face onto the silver chains binding him. "The monster twin," he mocked, his voice strained. "Holding back the civilized one? That's irony at its best."

Ares' eyes flashed as he turned to Titan.

"Make no mistake. I want nothing more than to tear out your tongue myself.

But we are kings. And kings dispense justice, not vengeance.

That is what this whole thing is about, right?

Why you want the throne? What you told everyone being slaughtered upstairs?

This is all for justice. But we aren't like you, Titan. We won't do whatever it takes to win."

Apollo's chest heaved with each ragged breath, his knuckles torn and bloodied from the beating he'd delivered. For a moment, he fought against his wolf, who wanted to tear away from Ares and finish what he'd started.

"Think of River, she deserves justice as well," Ares said. "Think of our children. What do they deserve?"

The mention of River reached Apollo's wolf, where nothing else could. Ares was right. This vengeance wasn't his alone to dole out. River deserved her moment as well.

"Children?" Titan's voice came out small.

Ares turned to him. "Yes. River is having our children. Twins."

"It's not possible. She only escaped a few days ago."

"She was pregnant when you took her," Apollo growled.

"No," he whispered. "You're lying."

"Why would we lie? We have no reason."

"She's mine!"

"Actually," said Apollo. "She's not. We finished the ceremony with the Council as witnesses earlier today."

Apollo and Ares raised their left hands, displaying the matching gold bands to Titan.

Titan howled in rage.

"Chain him tighter," Apollo commanded, stepping back from Titan's broken form. "Gag him if necessary."

As the rogues rushed to comply, Kane approached cautiously. "What will happen to him now?"

"He'll face trial," Ares replied, his voice hard as iron. "Before the Council and every Alpha whose pack he's harmed."

"And the others?" Kane asked, glancing toward the door.

"We'll keep our word," said Ares. "They won't be harmed unless they force our hand."

Kane nodded.

The acrid odor of burning skin scorched Ares' nose as several more pairs of silver shackles wrapped Titan's arms and legs.

Titan barely noticed the extra shackles. His eyes stayed on the floor. When he finally lifted his eyes, he looked straight at Kane.

"What did they offer you? What do you get out of betraying me to my enemies? A place at their side?"

Kane looked to Titan, his eyes sad. "Nothing. Like you, I'll take whatever punishment they dole out. That's how we wanted it, right? Fair justice for everyone."

Titan stared at Kane emotionless. "Then I guess we'll die together."

Kane nodded. "As it should be."

* * *

ARES

They hauled Titan to his feet, and Apollo turned to Ares. "Let's go before this whole place collapses on us."

Ares nodded and then looked at Kane. He motioned to the rogues. "Shackle him as well."

The rogues paused, looking at Kane.

Kane held out his hands, offering up no resistance. "Do it."

Ares' wolf gnashed his teeth.

No fair. Kill Titan. Touched River. Hurt pups.

I know. But we must let River decide. It won't be fair to her if we just kill him. She deserves justice. Closure.

Death. Kill him. Break bones. Rip throat.

Ares sighed. He needed his wolf to stop before he lost all sense of reason and let his wolf have what he wanted. He took the steps three at a time, reaching the kitchen and striding through it. He coughed several times and covered his nose with his sleeve.

The fires had been put out, but the air remained thick with smoke and the scent of burning hair and flesh. The main floor revealed itself as they emerged from the kitchen into the hall. Kane faltered at the threshold.

The once opulent entryway had become unrecognizable. Blood slicked the marble floors, the pristine white walls now painted crimson in sprawling, chaotic patterns. Bodies lay where they'd fallen. Alphas, Betas, and rogues alike. Their limbs contorted from the final moments of desperate struggle.

"Goddess," Kane whispered, his voice hollow as he took in the carnage.

A young female rogue crumpled against the wall, her blonde hair matted with blood, eyes fixed in a permanent stare. Beside her, an Alpha from a northeastern pack, his throat torn out, fingers sizzling and still clutching a silver dagger embedded in his heart.

The Alphas wanted vengeance, and they'd gotten it. One way or another.

Kane moved forward. He knelt briefly beside a fallen rogue. A boy, merely a teen, his ribcage ripped open and his heart on the floor next to him.

"His name was Licah," Kane said. "Seventeen. Exiled because his Alpha feared he would challenge for leadership someday." He rose, continuing through the battlefield of broken bodies.

He walked to the female with blonde hair. "This is Lydia. She was one tough wolf. She ran from her pack after they killed her mate. She never would say why." Kane closed her eyelids.

Ares scanned the room, his wolf pacing, unsure what to think or feel.

The destruction was absolute. Shattered chandeliers, splintered furniture, walls pocked with bullet holes and claw marks. In the formal dining room, three more bodies. Rogues who had made their last stand among overturned tables and broken china.

"I never wanted this." Kane's voice cracked despite his efforts to maintain composure. "None of this was supposed to happen. We were building a sanctuary, not... this."

He paused beside an older fallen wolf with silver-streaked hair.

"This was Yaser. He treated everyone as equals, regardless of their status or pack affiliation.

Titan found him living in the woods after his Alpha cast him out for giving rogues shelter and food.

" Kane's fists clenched at his sides. "He never hurt anyone. "

Apollo's expression remained impassive, though his eyes cataloged every detail, every fallen wolf. Ares walked slightly ahead.

"All of this," Kane continued, gesturing around them, "because of bloodlines, and territory, and power. Because some wolves are considered worthy of protection while others are disposable." His voice hardened. "Tell me how this is justice."

He turned and pointed at Titan. "And you. This is your fault. You promised them a better world, and they sacrificed their lives for it. They didn't even care that you'd given up on them in the end. That you only cared about yourself. They tried to protect you anyway."

"Fuck you," said Titan. "And fuck all of them as well."

Ares slammed his fist into Titan's jaw. "Do you have no respect for anyone?"

Titan spat on the floor and looked up through one barely open eye. "Fuck you, too."

Ares' wolf roared to life, wanting to rip Titan's head off. But Ares refused. To kill him would be selfish. He hadn't let Apollo kill him, and he couldn't either.

As they approached the main doors, the sounds of struggle reached them from outside. Ares pushed open the massive doors, stepping out into the darkness to find five rogues forced to their knees on the driveway.

Elkan and Elena stood over the kneeling rogues, their eyes burning with a primal hunger for retribution. Blood dripped from the prisoners' faces, their bodies bearing the marks of a brutal capture. One young male trembled as Alpha Ronan pressed a blade against his collarbone.

"We found these," Elena announced, her voice sharp with satisfaction. "Trying to escape through a service tunnel."

Ares moved forward with regal authority, his gaze sweeping over the captured rogues. "Bind them. They'll be transported with the others."

"Bind?" Ronan snarled, pressing the blade harder against the young rogue's skin. "These vermin deserve to die where they kneel. This one personally participated in an attack on my territory."

Alpha Elkan nodded in agreement, his massive hand fisting in another rogue's hair, yanking his head back to expose his throat. "This one killed three, including my Beta. Their blood demands justice."

"And they will face it." Apollo stepped forward to stand beside his brother. "But not here. Not like this."

"With respect, your Majesties," Elena countered. "These rogues have slaughtered our people. A quick death is more mercy than they showed their victims."

Ares' voice dropped to a deadly rumble. "I said bind them."

The command vibrated with Alpha authority, causing the surrounding wolves and Alphas to lower their eyes. Ronan held his ground, the blade still against his captive's throat.

"Your mate is safe now," he argued, desperation edging his voice. "You have Titan. Let us have our vengeance on these nobodies."

"This is not a request," Ares growled. "It is a royal command. Any wolf who defies it will follow the wolf they kill straight to the grave."

Tension crackled as Ronan's eyes darted between the twins, weighing his options. With a snarl of frustration, he withdrew the blade and stepped back.

"Bind them," Apollo ordered the rogues who had followed them from the garage. "And ensure they reach the holding facility alive and unharmed."

Kane looked on, silently. The young rogue Ronan had threatened held silent gratitude in his eyes.

"This isn't over," Elkan warned, his voice low as he reluctantly released his grip on his captive. "These rogues will answer for their crimes."

"Yes, they will," Apollo agreed, his tone leaving no room for argument. "But they will answer to us and the law. Not you."

The Alphas reluctantly back away.

"Go home," said Ares. "We will see justice done."

"So we just walk away?" asked Elkan. "Pretend all of this never happened?"

"No," said Apollo. "You wait until you are called to testify."

"About what they did?"

"About what you did."

The Alphas and Betas looked at each other.

"You want justice? So do we. For everyone," Apollo finished.

Several of the Alphas looked unsure as they backed away.

Screams and pleading rang out behind them, and everyone turned. Theo and Zeke held a woman between them, crying and struggling to get free.

They dragged her down the steps and threw her at Ares' feet.

She crawled to him on her knees, head down. "Ares, please…"

Apollo yanked her to her feet.

Makeup melted down her face as she tried to grab onto him. "Apollo, please. Don't hurt me. Please… I… I…"

Apollo smiled at her. "I'm not going to hurt you. Your fate, like that of Titan and Kane, will be left to our mate, High Luna, River Wolvenguard."