Chapter 117 YOUR DUE
CHAOS.
I stood still, staring at my mother’s headstone, my hands clenched at my sides.
The dark suit I wore felt suffocating, the fabric too tight around my chest, but I barely noticed.
The guests were leaving the cemetery, their hushed voices fading into the distance, but I didn’t move.
My father had kept the funeral small, just close family and a handful of palace officials. No friends, no warmth—just cold, empty formalities.
I didn’t know where he was now, and honestly, I didn’t care.
The last time I had stood here like this, it was for Lorelai.
Two years ago, I had watched them lower her into the ground, and I had cried for the first time in years. I thought that would be the last time I ever let myself break. But now, as I looked at both their graves side by side, I felt that same crushing weight again.
Lorelai.
Mom.
Gone.
I swallowed hard, but it didn’t help. The grief sat heavy in my chest, choking me. I knew my mom had been sick for a long time. I told myself that she was finally at peace, free from the pain that had followed her for years. But that didn’t make it any easier. The truth was bitter, and no matter how much I tried to push it down, it wouldn’t go away.
I loved her.
And now, she was with Lorelai.
A cold wind picked up, and soon enough, the rain started to fall. Light at first, then harder. I didn’t move. I just stood there, watching the water drip down the polished marble of their graves. The world around me blurred as memories came rushing back—Lorelai’s laugh, my mother’s soft voice, the way they had both looked at me with so much love. And now… they were just names on stone.
I clenched my jaw, shoving my hands into my pockets, trying to hold myself together. The rain soaked through my suit, but I didn’t care.
I don’t know how long I stood there, but eventually, headlights cut through the darkness. At first, I thought it was my father, coming to drag me back to the palace, but when I looked up, I saw someone else.
The palace Beta.
He was driving past slowly, his window rolled down just enough for me to see his face. Our eyes met, and something inside me snapped.
The numbness that had held me in place all day shifted, burned away, and something else took its place.
Hatred.
Rage.
My hands curled into fists, and without thinking, I turned and walked to my car. I slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine, my jaw tight as I followed after him.
I knew it had to be him.
He was the one who would’ve had me followed, spied on while I was at school. The only one who could’ve told him about Merrielynn.
Fuck, Merrielynn.
Just thinking about her name made my heart clench.
How the hell was I supposed to let her go? After everything we’d been through? After the bond we’d rebuilt, stronger than it ever was before she lost her memory?
I... loved her.
And my father wanted me to cut her out of my life like she meant nothing.
I gritted my teeth as I followed the Beta’s car through the winding roads leading back to the palace.
When we pulled up to the palace gates, I didn’t even wait. I threw my car into park and stormed out, slamming the door behind me. The Beta barely had time to step out before I was on him, shoving him hard against his car.
“Talk,” I growled, my claws elongating and pressing into his throat. Not deep enough to kill him. But enough to let him know how angry I was.
The Beta’s eyes widened in shock, his hands flying up to grab my wrist. He gagged, trying to speak, but I didn’t loosen my grip.
“You had me followed, didn’t you?” I snarled, my voice low and deadly. “You were the one who told him abouther.”
He was a full grown man, but it was nothing pit against my Lycan strength.
The Beta choked, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water, but he couldn’t answer with my claws against his throat. My grip tightened, my anger boiling over.
“She doesn’t deserve this,” I spat. “You had no right—”
“Cormac.”
The voice cut through the storm inside me like a whip.
I froze for a second, my eyes narrowing as I heard my father’s heavy footsteps approaching.
“Let him go,” he ordered, his tone firm and cold.
I didn’t move at first, my claws still pressed against the Beta’s skin. The urge to end him, to rip him apart for what he’d done, burned inside me.
But I knew better.
My father’s presence was like a leash around my neck, pulling me back into control.
With a growl, I yanked my hand away, shoving the Beta back against the car. He coughed and stumbled, holding his neck as he gasped for air.
My father stepped closer, his eyes cold and calculating. “I suggest you leave for school tonight,” he said, his voice smooth but laced with warning. “You have until morning to do what you need to do.”
I knew what he meant.
Let her go. Or face the consequences.
My fists clenched at my sides, and for a moment, I thought about refusing. About standing my ground and fighting back. But deep down, I knew what would happen if I did.
My father never made empty threats.
If I didn’t do as he said, he’d destroy Merrielynn’s life without a second thought.
I looked at him, feeling more trapped than I had ever felt in my entire life. Every muscle in my body screamed to fight, to defy him, but the weight of reality pressed down on me.
It wasn’t a battle I could win.
If I didn’t do this… I could lose everything. And so would she.
I swallowed hard, my voice hoarse when I finally spoke. “I’ll leave tonight.”
A cruel smile curled at my father’s lips. “Good.”
He turned and walked away, leaving me standing there in the pouring rain, my fists trembling at my sides.
I had never felt so helpless in my entire life.