Chapter 50 50
Denzel’s POV
“We will do as you have requested,” Jalisa said hastily, dropping to plead with her father.
I watched her closely. She wanted the crown desperately. And she wanted Venessa gone even more. In that moment, it struck me with unsettling clarity that this might have been the plan all along.
“That decision is not yours to make, Jalisa,” I said coldly.
She broke immediately, tears spilling as though they were meant to soften me. They didn’t.
“Unlike the bears,” I continued, turning my attention to the king, “I have done nothing wrong to you.” My voice remained steady. Controlled. “My only crime is refusing to go to war. If that is something you wish to punish me for, then so be it but you will not be getting any of your demands.”
I held his gaze. “I am not guilty of any crime. And if you continue down this path, I will have no choice but to push back, Your Majesty.”
With that, I bowed my head not in submission, but to end the discussion and turned to leave. Rayon and Tyrell followed suit, bowing as well.
Fabian stood frozen. Shock rippled across his face. He had truly believed this would end differently. That I would fold. He needed to understand that my hand could not be forced.
As I reached the threshold, his voice came sharp and venomous.
“I hope you know you’ll lose half of everything if you’re cheating on your wife.”
I stopped and turned back slowly.
“And what would she lose if the situation were reversed?” I asked calmly.
His temper snapped.
He rushed forward and grabbed me by the collar, his grip tight, breath hot with rage.
“Do not speak of my daughter that way! I will not let you tarnish her image especially in her condition!”
I felt something close to pity then. He truly had no idea what his daughter was doing behind his back.
I said nothing. I didn’t need to. All I had to do was catch her and Tyrell together. Once I did, the divorce would be effortless. If my trap failed, there was still a chance she’d walk away with half of everything I was and everything I owned.
Time was not on my side. Venessa was my clock, and every second mattered.
I could walk away now. Let Jalisa go without proof. It would cost me half of everything.
A small price to pay for the woman the goddess had gifted me.
For the woman I had, without realising it, fallen completely in love with.
“Very well,” I said quietly. “If it ever comes to a divorce because I refused to abandon a woman I swore to protect, I will gladly lose half of everything rather than break my word as Alpha.”
I turned my gaze to Jalisa.
“If you want a divorce because I won’t send Venessa away, then so be it. I will give it to you.”
She collapsed into sobs.
“Excuse me, Your Majesty,” I said formally, and walked away.
Rayon and Tyrell followed.
The moment we got into the car, Tyrell couldn’t keep his mouth shut.
“I would advise you to give Venessa to King Fabian,” he said carefully. “He likes her. He won’t hurt her. You’ve already rejected her anyway. You know he won’t back down from this request, and her presence in the pack is affecting Jalisa. She’s a mess and that’s dangerous given her condition. You don’t need Venessa anymore. Why not just let her go?”
I turned to him slowly, violence simmering just beneath my skin.
“Until someone slips poison into my food and I need a healer,” I said flatly.
He fell silent.
“I will never forget that Venessa saved my life, Tyrell,” I continued. “She earned my protection. It is only right that I protect her in return.”
That ended the discussion.
Jalisa eventually joined us in the car, eyes swollen and red. I didn’t know what her father had said to her, but it was clear she, too, was nothing more than a pawn in his hands.
Still, I intended to make the separation as painless as possible.
I would give them a chance, one chance to come clean.
If they truly loved each other, I would reject and divorce her without cruelty.
Everyone who is in love deserves to be with the one they love.
Even if it cost me everything.