Chapter 124 Betrayal in the Halls
Wynter‘s POV
"It's a risk," I said, drawing both their attention. "But consider what we know. Draven didn't want this ledger to exist. He tried to destroy it when we escaped. His people have been hunting us relentlessly to get it back—we've been attacked three times in the past week alone. If this was bait, why would he be so desperate to reclaim it?"
Lord Julian considered this, his fingers drumming against his glass. The silence stretched for several heartbeats, and through the Bond I felt Chase's tension, his desperate hope that this alliance would hold.
Finally, Lord Julian nodded slowly. "A fair point." He set down his glass with decisive finality. "Very well. Here's what I propose. Lord Sterling, get me your father's formal commitment. Once I have Silvermoon's official pledge, Emerald Valley will mobilize our forces."
He moved to his desk and pulled out a map, spreading it across the surface. "We'll coordinate through signal flares—when Silvermoon is in position and ready to strike, send up three silver flares in sequence. Emerald Valley will respond immediately with our own forces, hitting Bloodrock from the eastern border while you attack from the west."
Through the Bond, I felt Chase's surge of relief and triumph. "Agreed," he said, standing to clasp Lord Julian's hand. "Thank you. You're helping us save innocent lives."
"I'm avenging an old friend," Lord Julian corrected quietly, his eyes finding mine again. "And making sure his daughter doesn't have to fight this battle alone."
The words made my throat tight again, but before I could respond, I caught movement in my peripheral vision—one of the servants by the door, his hand twitching toward his pocket in a gesture that seemed too deliberate, too tense.
Chase, I sent through the Bond, my mental voice sharp with alarm. The servant by the door. Something's wrong.
I felt Chase's attention shift immediately, his Alpha senses focusing. Through our connection, I felt him notice what I had—the servant's elevated heart rate, the way his eyes kept darting toward the window, the fine tremor in his hands.
I see it, Chase sent back. Jax?
I glanced at Jax, who'd been standing quietly by the wall. I caught his eye and gave the slightest nod toward the servant. Jax's expression didn't change, but I saw his weight shift subtly, his hand moving imperceptibly closer to the knife at his belt.
"Lord Julian," Chase said smoothly, his voice betraying nothing of the tension suddenly crackling through the Bond, "perhaps we could continue this discussion in your study? I'd like to review the tactical maps of the Bloodrock border in more detail."
"Of course," Lord Julian agreed, rolling up the map on his desk. "We should coordinate exact positions, timing—"
"My lord!" The servant suddenly lurched forward, his hand diving into his pocket with desperate speed.
Jax moved like lightning, crossing the room in three strides and slamming into the servant before the man could complete whatever action he'd intended. They crashed into the wall, and I watched Jax's hand close around the servant's wrist with bruising force.
"Don't!" Jax snarled, twisting the man's arm.
But the servant's free hand had already found what he was reaching for. His thumb pressed down on something small。 and metallic—a signal flare—and I lunged forward, trying to knock it from his grip.
Too late.
The flare shot through the open window with a piercing whistle that made everyone in the room flinch. It exploded in the sky above Emerald Valley in a burst of blood-red light that seemed to stain the clouds, the color so vivid it hurt to look at directly.
"Damn it!" Jax snarled, slamming the servant against the wall hard enough to crack the plaster. "Who sent you? Who are you working for?"
Lord Julian's roar of fury brought guards running from all directions, their boots thundering in the corridor. But the damage was done.
Through the window, I could see people in the streets pointing at the fading red smoke, confusion and alarm spreading through the city like wildfire.
"Bring him to my study," Lord Julian commanded, his voice like ice despite the fury burning in his eyes. "Now."
Minutes later, we stood in Lord Julian's private study while the servant—his name was Thomas, according to the guard captain who'd dragged him in—was forced into a chair.
Two guards held his arms pinned while a third bound his wrists with silver-laced rope that made him hiss in pain.
His face had gone pale, sweat beading on his forehead, but there was a defiant glint in his eyes that made my skin crawl.
"How long have you been working for Bloodrock?" Lord Julian demanded, his Alpha presence filling the room with crushing weight that made even Chase shift uncomfortably beside me.
Thomas laughed—a brittle, slightly unhinged sound that raised the hair on the back of my neck. "Long enough to know you're all already dead. That signal? Your enemies know exactly where you are now. They know your plans." His eyes found mine, and the hatred in them was visceral, personal in a way that made no sense. "You should have stayed hidden, little wolf. Should have let your father's death go unavenged. Now you'll join him."
"Where's Anne?" I demanded, stepping forward despite Chase's hand on my arm. "Where are the children? Tell us where Draven is keeping them!"
"Why would I tell you anything?" Thomas sneered, his gaze sliding from me to Lord Julian with open contempt. "You think torture will work? You think threats?" He laughed again, the sound scraping against my nerves. "I've been trained for this since I was younger than those Rogue brats you're trying to save. Pain means nothing. Death means nothing. Only the mission matters."