Chapter 148 Kaden's POV
The battle lasted six hours.
Six brutal, bloody hours of fighting off wave after wave of Dark Moon Pack warriors. They came at us with everything they had coordinated attacks, dark magic, weapons I'd never seen before.
But we held the line.
My warriors fought with the desperation of people protecting their home, their families, their future Alpha.
By the time the sun rose, the eastern border was littered with bodies. Theirs and ours the ground was soaked with blood.
But the attack had stopped. Xavier's forces had retreated.
"Status report," I demanded, wiping blood from my face.
Ethan appeared, looking exhausted. "Twenty-three of our warriors died. Forty-seven injured, ranging from minor to critical. We killed or captured approximately thirty-five of theirs. The rest retreated with Xavier."
"Captured? How many prisoners?"
"Seven all Dark Moon Pack wolves all refusing to talk."
"We will see about that." I looked toward where Damian had set up a field hospital. "What about our wounded?"
"Damian's doing everything he can. But some of them..." Ethan's voice trailed off. "Some of them aren't going to make it."
I felt the weight of those deaths settle on my shoulders. People who'd died protecting my family. My son.
"Make sure their families are taken care of. Full honors, full compensation."
"Already arranged."
I walked through the aftermath, checking on my warriors. Thanking those who could hear me promising vengeance to those who'd lost friends and family.
Damian was covered in blood, moving from patient to patient with practiced efficiency.
"How bad?" I asked.
"Bad enough. I've done fifteen emergency surgeries in the last four hours. Lost three patients despite my best efforts."
He gestured to the wounded lying on makeshift cots. "And these are just the ones stable enough to wait for treatment; the critical cases went straight to the pack house medical wing."
"You need rest-"
"I need more hands, more supplies, more time." He moved to the next patient. "But I'll manage. I always do."
I left him to his work and returned to the command post.
One of my captains approached. "Alpha, we have one of the prisoners who says he has a message for you from Xavier."
"Bring him."
They dragged a Dark Moon warrior forward. He was injured but conscious, his face set in defiant lines.
"You have a message from Xavier?" I asked coldly.
"Yes." The man spat blood on the ground. "My Alpha instructed me to deliver it if I was captured."
"Then deliver it."
"Alpha Xavier offers you a trade, a simple exchange to prevent further bloodshed."
"Xavier doesn't get to negotiate after attacking my pack after killing my people."
"Nevertheless, he makes this offer: Deliver the woman Elara and the child Adrian to the coordinates I will provide. At exactly midnight tonight. Do this, and the war ends. Refuse, and he will return with ten times the force. He will burn your pack to the ground and take what he wants from the ashes."
Rage exploded through me. "He wants me to hand over my mate and son? To the enemy? Does he think I'm insane?"
"He thinks you are practical; he knows you have already lost warriors today. He knows you will lose more if he attacks again. He's offering you a way to save the rest of your pack."
"By sacrificing my family?"
"By making a difficult choice the needs of the many versus the needs of the few."
The messenger's expression was cold. "Elara and the child will be treated well. Used for their purpose and then released unharmed. Xavier gives his word as an Alpha."
"Xavier's word means nothing; he's a traitor working for Erebus. His promises are lies."
"Then you condemn your entire pack to destruction. Because he will come back with more warriors, more magic, more weapons. And next time, your borders won't hold."
"Is that the end of the message?"
"Almost. Xavier also wants you to know he has allies you haven't considered. Other packs who follow Erebus. Other Alphas who want to see the blessed child's power used properly. You're outnumbered and outmatched. Surrender Elara and Adrian, or watch everything you've built burn."
I stared at the messenger for a long moment then I moved faster than he could react.
My clawed hand slashed across his throat. Blood sprayed in a wide arc.
He made a gurgling sound, his hands going to his ruined neck, trying desperately to stop the bleeding.
It was futile; the wound was too deep, too severe.
He collapsed to the ground, choking on his own blood, his eyes wide with shock.
"That's my answer to Xavier's offer," I said, looking down at the dying man. "He wants my family? Tell him to come and take them himself. If he dares."
The messenger's eyes went blank. His last breath rattled from his throat.
Dead.
Ethan approached cautiously. "Kaden, he was a prisoner under our protection-"
"He delivered a threat. I demanded I hand over my mate and child to the enemy. That's not negotiation. That's a declaration of war."
I looked at the other prisoners being held nearby. "Execute the rest of them. Send their bodies back to Xavier with a message written in their blood. Blue Moon Pack does not negotiate with traitors."
Ethan hesitated, then nodded. "As you command."
I walked away from the carnage, my hands still dripping with the messenger's blood.
Xavier wanted war? He would get war but it would end with his death.
And nothing less.