Chapter 68

Chapter 68
Tristan PoV

I was in my office when everything went to shit, and not for a second did I think I’d be fighting today. I’d planned on taking Talia for a picnic after her nap. But that clearly wasn’t going to happen anymore, not with the enemy storming the border.

I had a feeling it would happen soon, just not today. I know who it is, any idiot with half a brain would be able to realise what this attack was. It was Talia’s father, he had come for them. He’d come to take them back or kill them.

He clearly doesn’t care which way it ends.

I rush to the eastern border of my lands, and when I get there I realise something fundamentally wrong. He wasn’t here. Alpha winters was no where to be seen.

Which could only mean one thing, he was already somewhere on my land, looking for my mate.

Fuck.

I rush to James who was slowly pushing back the enemy with the help of our best warriors, if he noticed these men were acting alone, he didn’t realise the implications of what that actually meant. But I did.

“He’s gone straight for them!” I shout over the noise.

My brother turns to look at me, “I know. I sent five of our best to intercept him.” He says, his eyes on the fighting. “They should have caught him right about now.”

I shake my head, growing frustrated, “five men is no where near enough to take Alpha winters down if he were alone, but he isn’t. He wouldn’t come into enemy lands on his own.”

He’s not that stupid.

But clearly my brother didn’t think his decision through.

It’s almost like he wants Talia to be harmed, and if that’s the case, I’ll throw him to the enemy wolves myself.

Sure, he was only trying to protect Aria from what he deemed a stranger, but Talia was perfectly within her rights to stop him from destroying their family before they had a chance to bond.

He clearly didn’t take it well.

But her actions wouldn’t kill him, his actions might hurt her, really hurt her.

“Five men is plenty.” He argues, “I sent our best.”

I shake my head again, unable to stop a growl from tearing out of my throat. “Five men is not enough for what they face.” I say, “you’ve sent them to their deaths.”

James smirks, faking innocence as he shrugs his shoulders. “Think what you want, brother, but I made a decision whilst you weren’t around, which is my job as your beta.”

I growl again, running a hand through my hair, “we will speak about this later.” I snap, turning towards my men who were pretending not to overhear us. “I need twenty men, now.”

My best warriors stepped forward, all fifty of them, all of them ready to go and find their Luna.

I smile, the first real smile all day. “Talk amongst yourselves, choose twenty and I want those who stay behind to take down as many of these fuckers as you can. Leave no one alive.”

There were other warriors around, but they were already fighting, if I distracted them now, it would mean their deaths.

I turn back to James, “if anything happens to Talia or her sister, I’m holding you responsible.”

It wasn’t a warning, it was a promise.

And I wouldn’t go easy on him just because he was my brother. Plotting against the Luna of this pack was punishable by death.

Maybe I wouldn’t go that far with my own brother, but he’d definitely know he fucked up.

I might even let Talia choose his punishment.

“I’ve done nothing wrong.” He argues coldly, his eyes like ice. “I sent men to protect the Luna, if the number is insufficient, you can send more. That is your choice.”

I turn away from him, unable to voice how angry I am with him out loud. How would he feel if I purposely put his mates life at risk? He wouldn’t fucking like it, that much I’m certain of.

He can say he’s done nothing wrong all he likes, but we both know what he might have caused. What happens if Winter’s men find Aria first? We have no idea what he wants with them. He may kill her.

He may drag her home, but that’s the best case scenario, everyone knows what kind of man he is. He left scars on a five year old girl. Permanent ones. He’s a monster, and he doesn’t deserve his daughters.

He doesn’t deserve his life, and if I have my way, he doesn’t have long left. He needs to die, it’s either him or Talia and Aria, and I know which option I’m going to choose.

Twenty men surround me, bowing, one of them speaks for them all. “Lead the way, Alpha.”

I nod, throwing one last look at my brother over my shoulder, my heart almost aching, he doesn’t realise what he’s done, or maybe he does. But he hasn’t once thought about the consequences of what that decision could cause.

“Kill them all.” I tell James, not even looking him in the eye.

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him if anything happens to either Talia or Aria, and the sad thing is, I’m not even sure I’d want to.

Family is supposed to support you, not try and kill the other half of your soul.

I take a deep breath and shift into my wolf, my wolf is much bigger than me, and faster. He’ll find Talia.

I just hope we don’t find a corpse.