Chapter 105: This Can't Be

Liam's POV

Harlan looked at me and smiled. "He deserved what he got for spying on me," he said, with a mockery of a smile, walking toward the small bar at the corner of the room. The casualness of it landed somewhere deep in my chest like a fist.

"Harlan." I kept my tone calm. "I will ask again." I swallowed the bile rising in my throat and kept my face neutral. "What is the meaning of this?"

Harlan took one of my own bottles of wine from the bar and poured himself a drink. "My Alpha, do you care for one?" He extended his hand, glass in it, like this was a courtesy call.

I scoffed. "Do you have any idea who Cam is to me? To this pack?"

‘What in the Moon Goddess's name is happening?’ Kiara still unconscious. And now Cam, the one person I could call my closest friend without hesitation, is lying on the floor in front of me.

I thought of what he'd told me only days ago. That he would lay his life down for me. That it wasn't a figure of speech.

‘Is this what fulfilling that promise looks like?’

"No," I muttered through gritted teeth. "This can't be."

I looked up at Harlan. He was already sipping my wine, completely unbothered.

"My Alpha," he said, "Cam crossed boundaries ignorantly." He took another sip, studying the glass like it deserved more attention than the body on the floor. "How could he not see my men on duty and simply run? I was taking my evening walk when I noticed someone following me. My guard reacted appropriately, based on the instructions I'd given, without knowing who was involved." He gestured vaguely at Cam. "It was only afterward that we realized who it was." He looked up at me. "Why would your commander be following me, Alpha?"

My hands were shaking. I kept them locked behind my back. I felt hollowed out, like my bones were giving way one at a time.

"I've noticed some strange movements," I said, keeping my voice level. "Around the palace. Around the city." I paused. "Roman confirmed some of it."

It was a lie. But anything to make this moment useful.

Harlan went still. His glass paused halfway to his mouth. His eyes flicked up to mine and held there for several seconds.

"You've been in contact with Roman?" he asked, and for the first time there was something other than composure in his voice.

I held his gaze and said nothing, which was its own answer, and watched something move behind his eyes that he didn't quite manage to hide.

"Roman has been behaving strangely as well," I continued, letting the lie build smoothly. "I had guards watching him too. When they searched his quarters, they found a letter. He's made some claims." I let that sit between us. "About you."

Harlan stood so fast the glass slipped from his hand and shattered on the floor.

"He's a liar," he said, his voice rising for the first time since he'd walked in. "Whatever that man told you, it's a fabrication. He's trying to destroy my name to save himself from whatever trouble he's gotten into–"

"I put Cam on you out of concern," I said, my voice still level, cutting cleanly through his. "And this–" I gestured at Cam's body ". “–is what you did in return."

Harlan's jaw dropped. He cleared his throat, visibly recalibrating. "If you had concerns, Alpha, you should have come to me directly. Not sent men to skulk in shadows like common spies."

"I'm the Alpha," I said. "I do what I believe is right. I don't require your approval for it."

The room went quiet.

Harlan looked at me and I looked at him, and for a moment neither of us moved. The air between us pulled tight enough that I could feel my wolf pressing forward, ready to lunge, ready to tear him apart right there.

Then, abruptly, Harlan bowed.

"I apologize," he said, his voice smoothing back into something diplomatic. "For the loss of your commander. I will see that the guard responsible is dealt with– his life, as compensation."

I looked at him for a long moment.

"Leave," I said. "All of you. Now."

He straightened, gestured to his guard, and they moved toward the door. I stood very still and thought about how easy it would be to end this right now, with my own hands, in this room.

Harlan stopped at the door.

"One more thing," he said, turning back. "I haven't seen Kiara in some time. She must be very excited about the coronation."

I forced a smile. "It means everything to her."

Something sly crossed his face. "Indeed." A pause. "We should have a family dinner before the ceremony. All of us together."

He left before I could respond.

The door closed and I stood frozen.

Then I dropped to my knees beside Cam.

"Cam." I grabbed his shoulder. "Cam, wake up. Please. Look at me."

He didn't move. A deep gash ran across his chest, the blood already slowing, and his chest wasn't rising the way it should.

"Cam."

Samuel burst through the door, took one look and made a sound I'd never heard him make before.

"My Alpha–"

"Get the physician." My hands found Cam's wrist, pressing for a pulse. There– faint. Too faint. "Now, Samuel, now–"

Samuel rushed out so fast he nearly hit his head on the doorframe.

I gathered Cam up. He was heavier than he looked, dead weight in the worst possible sense of the phrase, and I started running for the infirmary.

The corridor blurred past. I was shouting for the physician, for anyone, my arms aching with the effort of holding Cam steady while moving as fast as I could.

I was still at the staircase rushing downstairs when a scream cut through everything high and deliberate.

‘That voice belongs to Kiara. Or am I dreaming?’