Chapter 189: This isn’t over

MINUTES EARLIER

Back at the mansion after Dorian left, Alyssa couldn’t sleep.

She lay beneath the sheets, staring absentmindedly at the ceiling, her heart hammering against her ribs.

Every time she closed her eyes, her mind conjured terrifying scenarios; Dorian’s eyes burning with that horrific mix of crimson and pitch black, his claws unsheathed, blood pooling across the floor as he gutted Joffrey.

She didn’t care about Joffrey. After what he had done to her in the library, after the terrifying grip on her arm and the memory of his hands on her body, she wanted him punished.

But she knew Dorian. She knew the darkness that lived inside him. If he murdered his own cousin in a blind rage, the fallout, the guilt, and the stain on his soul would destroy him. She couldn’t let him cross that line.

Unable to lay there taking in the heavy silence of the room, she threw off the covers. She pulled on her robe, tied the belts tightly around her waist, and hurried out the ruined door into the hallway.

The mansion was dead silent as she hurried down the stairs to the lower floor. She sprinted down the hallway, stopping outside Jake’s door. Without hesitation, she pounded her fist against the cold wood.

A few seconds passed before the lock clicked, and the door swung open.

Jake stood in the doorway, shirtless, his brown hair messy, his eyes heavy with sleep. He rubbed his face, blinking down at her in confusion.

"Luna?" he murmured. "What’s wrong? Did something happen?"

"Jake, I’m so sorry to wake you," Alyssa gasped out, her voice trembling. "But I need your help."

The sleep vanished from Jake’s face instantly. His stance shifted, his posture instantly alert as his instincts kicked in.

"What do you need me to do?"

"It’s Dorian. He’s going after Joffrey, and with how furious he was when he left, I’m afraid he’ll do something horrible."

Jake’s frown deepened. "The Alpha? What happened?"

"I can’t go into details right now," Alyssa said urgently, clutching her robe close. "But you need to stop him before he does something he would regret."

"Where is he now?" Jake asked sharply. "Has he left?"

Before Alyssa could answer, the soft click of two doors echoed down the hallway. Alec stepped out first, his shirt unbuttoned, followed closely by Anthony and Pandora, who both looked startled by the commotion.

"What’s going on?" Anthony asked, striding toward them with furrowed brows.

Alyssa turned to all three of them, tears glistening in her eyes. "Dorian is on his way to Conri’s villa. He’s going to murder Joffrey. You have to stop him before he does. Please."

Jake didn’t waste another second asking for an explanation. He turned back into his room and grabbed a shirt off the chair. He pulled it over his head, then stepped back into the hallway while shoving his feet into his boots.

"Stay here, Luna," he said to Alyssa, his tone firm but protective. "Stay behind with Pandora and Henna. Anthony, Alec and I will go after the Alpha."

Alyssa nodded, but the fear was still visible in her eyes. She watched the three men hurry out the door, while Pandora came to stand beside her.

"If it were up to me, I’d let Dorian kill that bastard Joffrey," she muttered. "But don’t worry, Alyssa. I think they’ll get to him before he does."

Alyssa let out a deep sigh. "I hope so."

...

Within minutes, Jake sped into Conri’s villa and stepped on the brakes, bringing the SUV to a sharp halt, tires screeching loudly.

Through the shattered front door, they witnessed the horrifying scene unfolding before them; Dorian was mounted over Joffrey on the floor, his massive, blood-soaked fist pulling back to strike a face that was already pulverized beyond recognition.

"Holy shit! He’s going to kill him!" Anthony yelled as all three of them rushed out of the car. He shifted halfway as he ran, his bones snapped loudly, his body expanding into his Lycan form in a split second.

With a loud roar, he leapt through the shattered doorway and slammed straight into Dorian’s side. The force of the impact tackled Dorian off Joffrey’s limp body, sending both Lycans rolling across the floor.

Jake and Alec rushed in immediately after, dropping to their knees beside Joffrey. Alec pressed two fingers firmly to the side of Joffrey’s crushed throat, searching for a pulse amid the gore, while Jake held up his hands to keep the guards from interfering.

Dorian bounced back to his feet instantly, his chest heaving, his claws dripped in crimson. His eyes blazed with pure demon fire as he growled, attempting to bypass Anthony who had shifted back to his human form.

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" he roared, his voice a horrifying double-pitch of man and beast.

"Dorian, stop!" Anthony yelled back, risking his own life by putting himself between the raging Alpha and Joffrey’s broken form. "Control your beast! If you take another step, you will kill him!"

"Death is too easy for what he did!" Dorian yelled back, the veins in his neck bulging as Shadow writhed beneath his skin. "He put his fucking hands on my wife! I will burn this entire villa to ash and slaughter everyone inside!"

"Alyssa sent us!" Anthony shouted, the name cutting through the chaos like a blade.

Dorian froze, his chest locked mid-heave, his eyes flickering dangerously.

"She sent us, Dorian," Anthony repeated, much calmer this time. "She begged us to stop you, to prevent something you would definitely regret. Do this for her!"

The mention of Alyssa’s name echoed through the red fog consuming Dorian’s mind. His hands, still curled into tight fists, shook violently. The terrifying glow in his eyes flickered, the pitch-black darkness receding slightly, though the bloodlust remained coiled tight in his chest.

He stared at Anthony, then glanced past him to where Jake and Alec were lifting Joffrey’s broken frame.

He shoved Anthony out of the way and turned towards Conri who was still sprawled on the floor with Bethany beside him.

"Joffrey better watch his back," he growled in a deadly voice that sent a chill through the room. "This isn’t over. Not by a long shot."

Without waiting for a response, he shifted into his Lycan form, tearing out into the night at full speed to run until the rage burned out of his blood.

The silence that followed after he left was deafening.

Anthony exhaled a deep breath and walked over to help Alec and Jake. Together, the three of them lifted Joffrey’s unconscious, disfigured body off the floor.

Conri managed to climb to his feet, gripping his cane so tightly his knuckles turned white. Blood still dripped from his own broken nose, his face contorted in a mask of silent rage.

Bethany sobbed uncontrollably beside him, clutching her robe, but neither of them dared to stop the three men as they carried Joffrey out to the car.

The drive to the hospital took less than ten minutes. Alec sat in the backseat with an unconscious Joffrey, while Conri and Bethany followed in another car.

The moment they arrived, several nurses rushed out with a gurney. Joffrey was wheeled straight into the ICU, the doors slamming shut behind them.

Jake, Anthony, and Alec stood in the hallway waiting with Conri and Bethany. Moments later, the doors opened, and Doctor Dylan stepped out. He looked grave.

"How is he?" Jake asked immediately, stepping forward.

"It’s critical," Dylan said flatly. "His skull is fractured, his jaw is shattered, and there is severe internal hemorrhaging. What the hell happened to him? An accident?"

He looked between the three men, waiting for an answer, but no one responded.

"The damage is terrible," he continued finally. "He is teetering on the edge of brain death. I will do everything I can, but I can’t guarantee he will make it through the night."

Bethany, who had been listening silently beside Conri, let out a heart-wrenching shriek and grabbed Dylan’s white coat.

"Please," she wept hysterically. "Save my son! I don’t care what it takes, save him!"

"We will do our absolute best, Lady Lowell," Dylan assured her, slowly peeling her hands off his coat. "I promise, we will try to save him."

He nodded at Jake and the others before retreating back into the ICU.

Conri stood motionless, his eyes fixed on the doors. The fury radiating off him was almost palpable, suffocating the quiet hallway.

Before leaving, Jake turned to face Conri, his expression hard and expressionless.

"He brought this on himself, Lord Conri," he said coldly. "If your son hadn’t made the fatal mistake of trying to assault the Luna, he wouldn’t be fighting for his life right now. You need to remember who started this."

Conri didn’t shift his gaze. He didn’t even blink. He completely ignored Jake, standing like a stone statue as Alec and Anthony joined Jake, turning their backs and walking toward the exit.

Once they were gone and silence had descended on the hallway once again, Bethany turned to her husband.

She slammed her fists against Conri’s chest, her eyes wide and bloodshot with tears.

"He’s a murderer!" she wailed, her voice cracking. "Dorian has always wanted Joffrey dead! He tried to kill our son in cold blood! Are you just going to stand there and let him get away with this?"

Conri slowly turned his head to look at his weeping wife. His broken nose was slowly healing, and his smashed jaw was on the mend, but his expression was utterly devoid of emotion. The lingering fear from earlier had evaporated, replaced by a cold, deadly venom.

"No," he muttered, his voice taking on a threatening edge. "He won’t get away with this. This time, there will be no more delay. No more restraint."

He looked back toward the doors where Jake, Alec, and Anthony had just departed, his jaw tightening as he made his silent vow.

"The next strike I make," he growled, "I will personally have Alyssa’s head on a spike."