CHAPTER 123:No Mercy Tonight
ADAM
Drake’s lips twisted into something between a snarl and a smirk, his expression a mask of barely restrained rage. His glowing eyes locked onto mine bright, unstable, almost wild.
But still... I didn't choose.
Because choosing meant ending something. And if I chose wrong...
Not all of us would leave this room alive.
"I choose..." I started, the words dry in my throat, but my voice faltered.
Then Emmanuelle stepped forward, her voice gentle but firm. “He chooses you, Drake.”
Both our heads turned to her.
“I’m a stranger to you too,” she said, her eyes filled with sincerity. “I won’t come between you. I know humans have wronged you my family especially. But not all of us are like them.”
She swallowed, stepping closer, unafraid of the tension simmering in the room. “Some of us are trying to be good. We’re just surrounded by the wrong people, the wrong systems. And maybe your world your realm, or kingdom, or whatever you call it isn’t so different.”
Drake blinked. The fire in his eyes dimmed slightly.
“I won’t let you fight your brother,” she said, voice cracking slightly. “I won’t let him make a decision that might destroy him. So I’ll make it easier.”
She turned to me, then back to Drake.
He chooses you.
The words rang out softly but firmly, like a bell in a storm.
Emmanuelle stepped forward, her voice shaky but brave. “If you want his help, that’s your choice. I won’t force him into it. I do need him… but not like that.”
Her eyes met Drake’s, and even though her voice trembled, there was something defiant in her gaze.
“I want to take back what was stolen from me. My mother’s company Vallaire & Co. was everything she built. My father and his leeching relatives took it, like they take everything. I’m not one of them. I never was. I didn’t hurt you, Drake. I didn’t even know what happened to you until now.”
She swallowed, her voice lowering. “I’m a victim too. I know what it’s like to have everything ripped away. So if you choose to help me or let Adam help me I swear to you, I’ll never get involved with any werewolf again.”
For a moment, the room was dead still.
No growling. No shouting.
Just silence heavy, charged.
And then something in the air shifted.
Drake’s stance eased. His claws retracted, his breathing slowed. The monstrous snarl faded from his features as skin replaced fur in slow motion. His glowing eyes dimmed, returning to a colder, more human blue.
The beast stepped back.
And the man returned.
I stepped forward, placing a firm hand on his shoulder. His body was still warm, still trembling slightly from the change.
“We’ll get your revenge,” I said quietly. “But not with chaos. I’ve got a plan.”
He turned his head just enough to meet my gaze. “What plan?”
A corner of my mouth lifted. “The real you is still in there, Drake. That kind part of you… it’s buried, but not gone.”
He didn’t answer.
“But there’s something I need to understand,” I added, watching his face closely. “Your wolf used to be white. Now it’s black. That’s not just anger. That’s pain. Corruption. Something happened that changed you.”
He flinched barely, but I saw it.
“I need to read your memories,” I said, voice low. “To know what really broke you.”
Drake said nothing.
But he didn’t pull away either.
I turned to Emmanuelle, who stood quiet but alert.
“Vallaire & Co.,” I said, “is circling the drain. It’s either about to collapse, or it already has. I told James to acquire fifty percent of the shares. He pulled it off.”
Her lips parted, stunned. “That’s”
“Only the beginning,” I cut in. “Marcus will be desperate. He needs your signature to offload the company. Without it, he’s stuck. He’ll want to run. Sell fast and vanish with his family.”
She nodded, listening closely.
“So here’s what we’ll do.” I laid out the plan in a steady voice. “Tomorrow evening, you’ll go back to the restaurant. Work one shift. I’ll have our contact leak your location to Marcus. He’ll come for you. Kidnap you, most likely.”
She stiffened. “And then what?”
I grinned. “Then you let me handle the rest.”
“But can you give me a clue?” she asked. “Just a glimpse?”
My grin widened. “That would ruin the fun. Trust me.”
She hesitated, then gave a slow nod.
I turned to Drake. “And as for Tessa… I know what she did to you. I found out where she spends her nights. Same club, same drinks, same stupid laugh.”
His eyes narrowed. His jaw clenched.
“She’s there tonight,” I said. “This time… she’s not the hunter.”
Drake’s lips curved into a smile—cold, sharp.
A predator’s smile.
“I’m in,” he said.