Chapter 126: I was almost killed

Alyssa paced the bedroom restlessly, her hands wringing into tight, trembling knots. It happened again. Someone had tried to murder her in cold blood. Just when she thought she was finally safe, another shadow stepped out of the dark and made her a target.

When would it end? Was this her life now? Forever hunted, forever cowering in fear? How was she supposed to attend the Academy, earn her degree, and live a normal life when she couldn’t even survive in her own home?

She let out a defeated sigh and dragged both hands through her hair. André had driven them back to the mansion minutes ago under heavy escort. Pandora had strictly instructed her to remain inside the bedroom while she hurried off with Anthony and Henna.

Two guards were stationed outside the door, and when she had demanded to leave, they politely informed her they were under strict orders from the Alpha to keep her inside.

And she couldn’t reach Dorian. He wasn’t answering his phone, and every call went straight to voicemail.

The door suddenly swung open, startling her. When Pandora and Henna entered, their faces pale and grim, she hitched up her gown and rushed toward them.

"What’s happening?" she demanded, her voice rising. "Did they find the shooter? Where is Dorian?"

"Relax, Alyssa," Pandora began smoothly, but the words instantly made Alyssa’s temper flare up.

"DON’T TELL ME TO RELAX!" she screamed. "I WAS ALMOST KILLED! I ALMOST LOST MY LIFE, FOR HEAVEN’S SAKE!"

The sudden, explosive outburst shocked both Pandora and Henna to the core. They took an instinctive step back, flinching at the raw rage twisting her features, and the strange crimson light that flashed through her eyes.

Alyssa froze, realizing what had just happened. She shut her eyes as the rage she felt a moment ago suddenly oozed out. For one terrifying heartbeat, a wave of primal, unimaginable power had zapped through her veins like lightning.

But now that the energy had drained away, guilt washed over her.

"I’m... I’m sorry," she whispered, her voice trembling under the crushing weight of it all. "I didn’t mean to scream... I just... I’m so tired of all of this."

​Her knees gave out and she collapsed onto the cold floor tiles, her silk gown pooling around her. Pandora and Henna exchanged unsettled, wide-eyed glances. Both of them had distinctly seen that crimson glare in her eyes, but neither knew what to make of it.

Pandora moved first. She rushed to Alyssa’s side, dropping to her knees and gathering the sobbing girl tightly into her arms.

"It’s okay," she murmured gently. "You don’t have to apologize."

"I didn’t mean to scream at you," Alyssa whispered against her shoulder.

"I know you didn’t," Pandora said softly, stroking her hair and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Everyone is on edge tonight. It’s completely normal for tempers to explode."

"Pandora is right," Henna added, crouching down beside them and placing a comforting hand on Alyssa’s back. "The only thing that matters is that you are unharmed."

"What if Dorian hadn’t caught the arrow?" Alyssa whimpered, looking up with tear-stained eyes. "I would be dead right now."

"That will never happen," Pandora shook her head sharply. "Just breathe and center yourself. Dorian has everything under control."

Alyssa wiped her eyes and let out a shuddering breath. "Where is he right now?"

"Down in the Conclave," Henna answered softly. "They captured the archer, and the ones who orchestrated everything."

Alyssa snapped her head up. "Who?"

"Maybe it’s better if you don’t know..."

"Of course she needs to know!" Pandora cut in sharply. "It’s time we stop hiding the truth from her. Keeping her in the dark causes more harm than good."

She turned to Alyssa, holding her firmly by the shoulders. "It was Fabian and Melinda. They orchestrated the entire assassination. Their argument and rejection was a staged distraction. It was all fake."

"Goddess above," Alyssa gasped, her blood running cold. "Will I ever be free of those two? I tried so hard to show them mercy, but they just keep coming back to destroy me."

"You will be completely free of them tonight," Pandora stated flatly. "Because Dorian will be absolutely merciless."

Alyssa stared warily at her. "Do you mean... he’s going to execute them?"

"Yes," Pandora nodded without hesitation. "He has to. Because if he spares them, they will simply try to hurt you again. Dorian won’t be lenient this time. Some monsters don’t deserve second chances."

"And some do," Henna chimed in quietly. "Like Samantha. She was the one who alerted Alec to Fabian’s entire scheme."

Alyssa and Pandora both recoiled in total disbelief. "What? Samantha?"

Henna nodded. "Jake told me everything. I was just as stunned as you are."

"How?" Pandora frowned deeply. "How did she even get tangled up in his plot?"

"I need to see Dorian," Alyssa declared, pushing herself up from the floor.

"Are you sure about that, Alyssa?" Henna warned, reaching out to her. "When I saw him heading to the Conclave, he looked terrifying. Fabian’s execution is not going to be a pretty sight."

But Alyssa didn’t hesitate. She had to see it for herself. She needed to know if Dorian was truly prepared to execute his blood for her, even if Fabian deserved it.

...

Inside the Conclave, the air was thick, suffocating, and heavy enough to slice with a blade. Dorian sat rigid behind the desk, his broad frame radiating pure violence. Flanking him were Jake, Alec, and Samantha.

At the far end of the chamber, four fearsome guards held Fabian and Melinda bound in iron chains. The archer was nowhere in sight; likely already beaten to a pulp and awaiting execution.

Dorian finally broke the silence. "Repeat every word you told Alec, Samantha."

Samantha stepped forward, her face a completely unreadable mask. She was still dressed in the simple servant’s attire from the Moon Ceremony.

"This morning, I found an unsigned note left on my bed," she began, her tone low and monotonous as she detailed her secret meeting with Fabian, his offer of vengeance, and his plan to use an archer.

When she finished, Dorian slowly shifted his pitch-black gaze toward his cousin, the sniveling bastard responsible for so much of Alyssa’s suffering.

​"Is this true?" he demanded.

"She’s lying!" Fabian yelled, struggling against his iron chains. "I would never do anything to harm Alyssa again! Not when she is your wife!"

"Address my wife without her title one more time and I will rip your tongue out of your throat!" Dorian growled savagely.

"I’m... I’m sorry!" Fabian stammered, terror flooding his voice. "But I swear I never targeted Luna Alyssa! Samantha is fabricating this entire story to save her own skin!"

"You lying bastard!" Samantha spat.

"Silence!" Dorian barked. He cut Samantha a warning glare, then turned back to Fabian. He already had enough proof of Fabian’s involvement, but he wanted to watch his sniveling cousin dig his own grave deeper. It would make what came next far more satisfying.

"You claim Samantha is fabricating the whole story?" he asked, his tone dangerously calm. "Then explain your movements tonight."

"I know nothing about any archer," Fabian lied, the words tumbling over each other. "I left the arena early to break Melinda out. We had a massive argument earlier and I rejected her, but it was a misunderstanding. I couldn’t bear to see my mate locked in a cell. My only crime tonight was trying to free her."

"So you had absolutely no hand in hiring the archer?" Dorian asked coldly, his dark eyes void of all humanity.

"Nothing! I swear it on my life!" Fabian maintained desperately. "I know for a fact Samantha paid an assassin to murder the Luna in the past. She tried it again tonight, and when her plan failed, she pinned the target on me."

Dorian went deathly quiet. A long pause stretched through the room. Then, he motioned to Jake.

A second later, the door swung open and two guards dragged a bloodied, broken man inside; it was the archer. He could barely stand. His face was battered beyond recognition, his eyes swollen shut, and blood dripped from his bruised mouth.

Fabian stared at the broken assassin without a hint of fear. He had already bribed the man with enough gold to lay the entire blame on Samantha if the operation went south.

The guards yanked the archer up by his hair, forcing his head back.

Dorian leaned forward over his desk, his broad shoulders taut with fury, his jaw set in a hard line. "Who paid you to assassinate the Luna?"

"Lady Samantha!" the archer blurted out instantly, spitting blood onto the floor. "She paid me to execute the Luna. Please, Alpha, mercy! I was only following her orders."

Dorian suddenly threw his head back and laughed, a harsh, cold, completely humorless sound that sent a jolt of terror straight down Fabian’s spine.

He had expected Dorian to order Samantha dragged to the dungeons on the spot. Instead, Dorian was glaring directly at him, his pitch-black eyes promising unfathomable torture.

Dorian slowly rose from his seat and rounded the desk, his movements smooth and predatory.

"Samantha," he murmured in an eerily quiet voice. "Play the recording from tonight."

Samantha stepped forward, pulling her phone from her pocket. She looked up at Fabian, an icy smirk curving her lips. Then she tapped the screen.

The moment Fabian heard his own voice through the phone’s speaker, detailing the exact position of the archer, the signal, and his plan to use Samantha as a distraction, every drop of color drained from his face, leaving him frozen in horror.