Chapter 8 Behind Bars
ELIJAH
If any member of my pack caught sight of their King bound in chains like some common prisoner, it would spark a war before sunrise.
I’d reached out to Hazel through the mind link the second they threw me in here. She’d been furious, naturally. Her first question was how in the hell I’d ended up in White Crescent territory in the first place. Honestly, I didn’t have a good answer. I’d been so consumed by my thoughts during that run through the woods that I hadn’t even realized when I crossed from our lands into theirs.
I told her I’d explain everything later. Right now, the priority was making sure they knew who I was before they decided to string me up. I couldn’t let Lisa get what she wanted. She’d been gunning for Adriana’s death, and I’d be damned if I let that happen.
“Hey Ezra!” I called out to my wolf. Silence greeted me. “Wake up! We have important shit to do.”
“First of all, I wasn’t sleeping,” his voice finally filtered through. “Second, that’s incredibly rude to say to your best friend.”
“Whatever. Where the hell were you when I actually needed you? We should’ve taken those guards down. Maybe then we wouldn’t be rotting in this cell right now!”
He had the luxury of existing inside me without consequences. Sometimes I wondered if he truly grasped what it meant to be me and be responsible for an entire kingdom.
“I was occupied, actually. Trying to work out some things about Adriana. And giving you space to get to know her properly.” I rolled my eyes.
I did not have time for this.
“And why exactly would I need to get to know her?”
“Because she’s your mate, clearly.”
I let out a long breath. It was like nobody was listening to a damn word I said about not wanting to fall in love again.
“Ezra, I swear to god—”
“I’m being serious, Elijah. She’s the one this time.”
“That’s bullshit. I would’ve felt it the instant I laid eyes on her. The mate bond doesn’t just—”
“Her wolf is hiding,” he cut me off. “There’s something strange going on with her. I could barely pick up on her presence, but I knew she was there. That’s the reason Adriana has no clue you’re her mate. She can’t sense it on her end either.”
For the first time since being thrown into this godforsaken cell, I actually sat down. I’d known Ezra long enough to tell when he was messing with me and when he was dead serious. This was the latter.
My mate. I’d run from love after what happened last time, convinced I’d never put myself through that again. Yet here I was, separated by prison bars from my second chance mate who had no idea what we were to each other.
“So she really is the one…”
He let out a defeated sigh.
“Yes. I keep wondering why her wolf would hide like that. God, I can only imagine how beautiful she must be. I can’t wait to—”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Ezra. We have no idea if this is even going to work out.”
“What? Why the hell not?!”
There were too many reasons to count.
“Elijah?” Her voice drifted to me from the neighboring cell, soft and uncertain. I was on my feet in an instant, hands wrapping around the steel bars.
“I’m right here.”
I heard her release a heavy breath.
“I’m so sorry. This whole mess is my fault. I never meant for things to go this far.”
Every instinct screamed at me to tell her none of this was her doing, that she bore no responsibility for the situation, that I was going to get us both out of here. But I held back.
My thoughts wandered to Emily and the devastation she’d left in her wake. It had taken years to climb out of that darkness. I’d be a fool to dive headfirst into that same trap again.
“It’s okay,” I said simply.
“You’re a cold-hearted bastard,” Ezra growled in my head.
I pushed his voice aside. He wasn’t the one who’d lived through that pain. I was.
“Why does your sister hate so much that she actually wants to kill you?”
The question might be difficult for her to answer, but I needed to understand what I was dealing with.
“It’s my fault,” she said quietly. “I should have been a better sister to her.”
Wrong. Lisa was the one hell-bent on killing her. She owed that psychotic bitch absolutely nothing. I wanted to say all of that, but I kept my mouth shut. I couldn’t give Ezra any ideas. He would start planning a damned wedding and the name of our kids.
“What do you want?!” Her voice was sharp with alarm. I blinked before the new scents registered and the realization that she wasn’t talking to me. Guards had appeared in front of her cell.
One of them laughed, the sound grating.
“We’re not here for you, sweetheart. We’re here for your little lover.”
They moved toward my cell.
My back instantly straightened. Perfect. I’d been dying to knock some sense into someone.
“Wait, please leave him alone!” Adriana’s voice rang out desperately. “I’ll do whatever Lisa wants, just let him go. Don’t hurt him!”
Something bitter settled on my tongue. What kind of hold did Lisa have over her? It was infuriating how quickly she was ready to sacrifice herself without any real pressure.
Then again, she was willing to surrender to her sister’s demands for my sake. She had a genuinely soft heart. The way she kept putting herself on the line for me was starting to get under my skin.
“If we let him walk, should we hurt you instead? You sure you can handle it?” One of them stepped closer to her cell. He had a smug expression that I wanted to knock right off his stupid face.
I knew exactly what he was implying. My blood boiled.
“Hey! You lay one finger on her and I will fucking kill you!”
He stopped and glanced back at me. I just needed him close enough to grab.
“What exactly do you think you can do from inside a cell?”
He was right where I wanted him. Before he could realize his mistake, I seized his shirt and drove his face straight into the iron bars. While he was still stunned, I landed a punch hard enough to send him crashing to the ground.
“That’s what I can do from inside a cell.”
That should send a message to the others. Not much, but enough to make them think twice. Pretty sure I shattered his nose—blood was pouring everywhere.
“You son of a—”
“STOP!” A voice boomed through the dungeon. Footsteps echoed as someone approached. Probably that bastard who’d slapped Adriana. He was next on my list.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing? Release him immediately! His Beta is here to see him!”
Finally.
Hazel had arrived.
The guards practically fell over themselves opening my cell door, then scattered to the corners like the cowards they were. They knew damn well who I was, they’d just thought they could get away with it while I was locked up.
“Elijah, what’s happening? Where are they taking you?” The panic in Adriana’s voice was clear.
“Everything’s fine, Adriana. I’ll come back for you, I promise.”
I could see the worry still written all over her face, so I reached through the bars and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
Her eyes—wide with worry and hope—turned glassy. I could see her thoughts. She expected me to be like everyone close to her. It wasn’t hard to see she wasn’t new to disappointment. But I wasn’t going to be one of them.
I gave her hand another squeeze and spoke while she was staring into my eyes. “I’ll be back.”
Hazel cleared her throat. Reminding of her presence. I immediately let go of Adriana’s hand and cleared my throat. The look the former gave me told me I would hate the next time I was alone with her.
All in due time, now I have an alpha to deal with.
I turned back to face the cowards pressed against the walls.
“When I return, if I find so much as a scratch on her, I will slaughter every last one of you. And then I’ll raze this entire pack to the fucking ground.“