Alpha Charming | Rheon

TWENTY-EIGHT

Despite my heart hammering in my throat, I willed myself to look brave, to nod my head and plaster on a sad smile. "Trust me."

'We need to get her out in the open,' I thought as loudly as I could, hoping that my suspicions of him hearing my thoughts were true. 'Please, just trust me, I have a plan.'

I didn't know if he heard me or not, but he turned towards Lucine and lowered his head in defeat.

A wolfish grin tugged at her lips. "Well, this evening turned out to be lovely."

With a single whistle, her pack of werewolves dropped what they were doing and formed a large circle in the center of the lawn. They parted like the Red Sea as she strode through them while a blanket of dark red smoke floated over the grass, swirling around her legs as she moved. It was exactly like I predicted; she was putting up a show claiming Rheon for herself in front of every pack in Scotland.

Rheon cast one final look at me before entering the circle of werewolves. I watched the smoke waft with each step he took, glowing with dominance like the alpha he is. I felt proud knowing I'm his mate despite the consequences that title brought upon Craven Pride.

I could hardly breathe as Rheon stopped at the center to face off Lucine. She awaited him with an expression radiating victory, running her finger down the porcelain skin of her neck, foreshadowing what was about to occur.

My nerves left me an anxious mess as the witch took a step toward my mate. Now would be a great time to do something, Blake.

To my relief, a surge of grey smoke swept over the grass, following the outline of the wolf circle until it surrounded only Lucine and Rheon. The smoke formed a globe-shaped barricade around the two of them, expanding upward too far for my eyes to see.

All heads turned to Blake as he emerged from the crowd with outstretched arms and palms facing forward while clouds of grey smoke poured from them. Lucine's eyes flashed when she realized she'd been betrayed by her own flesh and blood. The glare she sent him would have been enough to burn him alive on the spot.

From where I was bound, I saw Blake chanting the ritual meant to strip his sister of her magic. The more the ritual manifested, the darker his magic grew. The grey smoke slowly turned black, blurring everyone's view from the wolf and the witch inside the barrier.

I had to squint my eyes to see Rheon within the chaos. He was smart enough to stay clear of Lucine while Blake's magic whirled around her legs and up her frame. It was getting harder to see by the second, but I felt the plan was working. Any moment now, these red tendrils will vanish along with the curse.

Any moment now, we would have won.

But as I allowed Blake to spark hope within me, the temperature in the air dropped just as it did that night when I was exploring the castle halls.

It happened too fast for me to comprehend.

Lucine's hand broke free from the magic and thrusted forward, an invisible force sending Blake flying backward. He ploughed into the ground several yards from where he was standing, the impact sure to knock the wind from his lungs. With a flick of Lucine's wrist, hundreds of red smoke tendrils wrapped themselves around Blake's sprawled out form, slowly squeezing the life out of him.

Out of the crowd of werewolves, a bone-chilling snarl shook the earth before a dark wolf emerged. I instantly recognized Clemmy as she stormed the barrier with her fangs bared, fully controlled by rage and ready to kill Lucine herself if not stopped.

Lucine's expression twisted into a wicked grin. Just as Clemmy pushed off the ground to invade the barrier, the grey smoke turned to red, causing her to bounce off the wall. Clemmy was on her feet in a second and charged again, but the result was the same. Lucine has overtaken Blake's magic, meaning the ritual didn't work.