Chapter 204
Kael's POV
I pressed the broken metal pipe harder against his throat. The sharp edge bit deeper into his skin, and I watched another thin line of blood trickle down to stain his collar.
"You know who I am," I said. My voice came out flat. Cold. "You know she's under my protection. And you still dared to touch her."
I leaned in closer. Close enough to smell the fear rolling off him in waves.
"Tell me, Rezar. How many lives do you think you have?"
The killing intent that rolled off me wasn't subtle. I didn't bother hiding it. The air in the control room felt thick with it—heavy and suffocating.
I felt his throat work under the pipe as he swallowed. His pulse hammered against the metal edge.
Good. He should be afraid.
For a long moment, he didn't move. Didn't speak. Just sat there with his hands flat on the desk, trying very hard not to do anything that might make me push harder.
Smart man.
Then he took a slow, careful breath.
"I know who you are, Alpha Harrington." His voice was steady despite the fear I could smell on him. "But you need to understand something."
He shifted slightly. Testing. When I didn't immediately gut him, he continued.
"I'm the leader of Wild Hunt. She killed Fenrir—one of our core members. By wolf law, blood demands blood. I have every right to hunt her down."
My jaw clenched. Wolf law. He was actually trying to use wolf law as justification.
"And here's what you need to understand," Rezar continued. His voice gained confidence. "You can't kill me. Everything in this room—every camera feed, every data point—it's all linked directly to Wild Hunt's network."
He paused. Let that sink in.
"If anything happens to me, if my vital signs flatline, the entire organization will know within minutes. And then..." Another pause. "Then it becomes war. Wild Hunt versus whoever killed me. No negotiations. No mercy. Just blood."
I didn't move. Didn't let my expression change.
But inside, my mind was racing.
"Wild Hunt operates across all of North America," Rezar said. "We have contacts in Europe too. We're the best—the most dangerous wolf mercenary organization in existence. You kill me, and every single one of them will come for her."
He turned his head slightly. Just enough to look at me from the corner of his eye.
"She might be able to hide for a while. Maybe even a few months. But eventually? They'll find her. And when they do..."
He didn't finish the sentence. Didn't need to.
My hand tightened on the pipe. The urge to just end him right here, right now, was almost overwhelming.
I wasn't afraid of Wild Hunt. The Harrington family had enough power, enough resources to handle them if it came down to it.
But Lynette...
The image flashed through my mind unbidden—her face when she'd talked about her family. That rare softness in her eyes. The way she'd said "I just want them to be safe."
She had people she cared about. People who couldn't defend themselves against professional killers.
If I killed Rezar now, Wild Hunt would come after all of them. They'd use her family as bait. As leverage. They'd turn her life into a living nightmare of constantly looking over her shoulder, wondering when the next attack would come.
And there would be nothing I could do to stop it. Not completely. Not when they operated in the shadows like they did.
Damn it.
I looked down at Rezar. At his smug, calculating expression. At the way he thought he'd won.
My blood boiled.
I hated being threatened. Hated being backed into a corner. Hated that this bastard thought he could use my feelings for her against me.
The pipe in my hand shifted. Changed angle.
And then I drove it straight down into his shoulder.
The resistance of flesh and muscle gave way under the sharp edge. Blood sprayed—hot and wet—across my hand and wrist.
Rezar's entire body went rigid. A choked sound escaped his throat—half gasp, half scream, bitten off before it could fully form.
"That," I said quietly, "is for threatening me."
I twisted the pipe. Ground it deeper into the wound.
More blood. Rezar's face went white. His good hand clawed at the desk, trying to find purchase, trying to deal with the agony.
But he didn't scream. Didn't beg.
I'd give him that much—he had spine.
Then, impossibly, he started to laugh.
It was a low sound at first. A wet, pained chuckle that bubbled up from his chest despite the blood pouring from his shoulder.
"Ha... haha... oh god..."
The laugh grew. Became louder. More manic.
"I was right. I was actually right!"
His head turned—fully this time, ignoring the pipe still pressed against his throat. His eyes met mine, and what I saw there was pure, unhinged amusement.
"The great Kael Harrington. The infamous Alpha of Pinehollow. The man who never compromises, who never shows weakness..."
Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth. He was smiling.
"You're in love with her. You actually love that killer. And you're letting me walk because of it."
Something cold settled in my gut.
"I thought you'd just kill me anyway," Rezar continued. His voice was getting weaker, but the manic energy in his eyes didn't fade. "Your reputation... everyone says you're ruthless. Cold. That you'd never let someone threaten you and live."
He coughed. More blood.
"But here you are. Holding back. Because of her."
His smile widened into something grotesque.
"How disappointing."
The word hit me like a slap.
Disappointing.
My vision went red.
I yanked the pipe out of his shoulder and drove it back in—same spot, deeper this time. Then I twisted.
Rezar's scream finally broke free. Raw and agonized.
I leaned down until my face was inches from his.
"Listen very carefully," I said. My voice was soft. Deadly. "I'm not killing you. But I can make you wish I had. I can break every bone in your body. Shred every muscle. Leave you alive but completely useless."
I pushed the pipe deeper. Felt it scrape against bone.
"So let's be very clear about who has the power here."
Rezar's face was chalk white now. Sweat poured down his temples. His entire right side hung limp—the shoulder joint probably destroyed.
But his eyes... his eyes still had that calculating gleam.
The laughter was gone. The mockery was gone.
Good.
I pulled the pipe out slowly. Let him feel every inch of metal sliding free from torn flesh.
Then I pressed the blood-slicked edge back against his throat.
"Here's what's going to happen," I said. "You're going to agree to my terms. All of them. Or I'm going to find out exactly how much damage this body can take before it stops working."
Rezar's jaw clenched. "What... terms?"
"First—you stop hunting her. Immediately. No more contracts. No more tracking. You leave Lynette alone."
His eyes flashed with anger, but he didn't interrupt.
"Second—Wild Hunt pulls out of this ship. Tonight. You take your modified freaks and you disappear."
"And third..." I let the pipe dig in just a little more. "Fenrir's death ends here. No revenge. No vendetta. It's over."
For a long moment, Rezar just stared at me. Blood still oozed from his ruined shoulder, pooling on the desk beneath him.
Then he spoke. His voice was rough. Pained.
"You think I'll just forgive her for killing my brother?"
"I don't care what you forgive," I said. "I care what you do. And what you're going to do is walk away."
"And if I refuse?"
I smiled. It wasn't a pleasant expression.
"Then we find out if Wild Hunt's network can transmit fast enough to matter when your head is separated from your body."
The pipe pressed harder. Drew fresh blood.
"Your choice, Rezar. Make it fast."