Chapter 146 146
Denzel’s POV
I tried to force my way through the mass of bodies to reach Tyrell but I couldn’t get to him in time.
I saw it happen.
Tremaine surged forward and drove his claws into Tyrell’s chest, ripping out his heart with brutal finality. The sight shattered something inside me, and a raw scream tore from my throat.
I broke.
We’d had our differences our share of conflicts but Tyrell was my best friend. We had grown up together, side by side, watching each other’s backs long before Jalisa entered his life. And even after everything, he had redeemed himself. He had proven his regret, his loyalty, his devotion right up until his final breath.
Tears burned my eyes as rage took over. I cut down anyone who came near me, slaughtering without mercy.
Then Jalisa screamed.
She reached for Tyrell as he fell, catching his hand before his body hit the ground. She didn’t fight her fate. She accepted it choosing to die beside him.
Tremaine took her head without hesitation.
They had planned to live together.
They had planned to die together.
Just not like this.
I looked around the battlefield, and the truth was undeniable.
We were losing.
Venessa’s vision had been right all along.
There would be no victory so I resolved to take as many traitors with me as possible.
“Denzel,” Fabian’s voice came through the link, exhausted and strained. “Donovan deceived us. He’s been on their side from the beginning.”
I searched frantically for the werewolf king and found him still fighting still loyal. Then I followed his line of sight.
Donovan stood over King Jamar’s body.
Understanding struck like a blade to the chest.
He must have approached Jamar as an ally close enough to kill him without resistance.
A roar of pure rage exploded from me.
Fabian had always warned us. He could be extreme, erratic but he had never been wrong about the Bear King. Donovan could not be trusted.
And yet we had trusted him.
We had shared our plans. Let him into everything.
How could he?
I couldn’t let Venessa know yet. Not now. She couldn’t afford that pain.
Donovan scanned the battlefield, and I knew what he was doing.
He was looking for Venessa, Atabey’s champion.
They needed her dead to win.
Just as we needed Tremaine dead.
I charged.
Gun blazing, I barreled through the chaos until I reached Donovan. His expression shifted instantly feigned innocence but Fabian had seen him. I had seen him laughing over Jamar’s corpse.
I glanced down at the fallen king.
Shock was frozen across Jamar’s face.
A sneak attack.
I holstered my ultraviolet weapon and seized Jamar’s sword.
Donovan realized I knew.
He attacked.
Steel met steel.
“You bloody traitor,” I snarled.
He laughed.
“No one wants to stand on the losing side.”
“How could you turn your back on Atabey?” I demanded, striking hard. “Do you even understand what you’ve done what you’ve destroyed?”
I sliced across the top of his knee.
The wound healed instantly.
New power.
“Eshera blessed me,” he said, laughing. “And I’m not alone. Alphas on your side switched long ago. Fabian was foolish. Orville whispered truths to me years ago. And your wife her display of power made everything clear. None of us would ever rule. Atabey only leaves the throne to her own bloodline. What does Venessa know about ruling our world? A servant you sheltered? I would never bow to her kind.”
I had heard enough.
“She gave you healing,” I said coldly. “But you’re still a son of the moon.”
Before he could react, I fired.
The silver bullet struck perfectly right between his eyes.
Donovan collapsed, lifeless, black smoke seeping from his body as whatever Eshera had gifted him abandoned him. So much for her loyalty if she had cared, she would have revived him with her own life force.
“Be careful,” I linked Fabian. “We have compromised alphas.”
“I’ve identified them,” he replied. “Shane. Allen. Desmond.”
Desmond’s name didn’t surprise me.
“We need to take down as many as we can,” Fabian continued. “Tell Venessa to focus on Eshera’s champion. We’ll clear her path.”
Guilt twisted in my chest. I had misjudged Fabian.
I understood now why he was Atabey’s last champion. He wanted to be king but he wasn’t a traitor. To him, eliminating me would have simply been duty if that were required.
I found Devon and Rayon and ordered them to help me push forward to carve a path to Venessa.
When I finally spotted her, she was nearly overwhelmed. Alpha Keon fought fiercely at her side, cutting down attackers without discrimination his own men and werewolves alike.
At least the bear general hadn’t turned.
I searched constantly for Tremaine, refusing to lose sight of him and then I saw him moving toward Fabian.
“Move toward Venessa now,” I linked urgently. “Tremaine is coming for you.”
Fabian reacted instantly.
As expected, Tremaine halted and changed course.
The Lycans shifted in unison I recognized Venessa’s command immediately. By now, she must have known her father was dead.
“Donovan murdered the king,” I linked her. “I’ve killed him. You need to stay strong. We must win this. We’re coming to you so we can face Tremaine together. I love you.”
She looked at me through the carnage, tears streaming down her face as she fought.
Crying and still standing.
Her strength humbled me.
Donovan was wrong.
Venessa would have made an exceptional queen.
Atabey chose correctly.
Watching my mate fight while mourning her father made one truth painfully clear
I could not die.
Not now.
She needed to be at her strongest.
And that meant I had to survive.