The Alpha’s Pen Pal (Crescent Lake Book 1)
The Alpha’s Pen Pal: Chapter 74

WESLEY

“Where are you? What happened?” I asked Reid through the mindlink as I rushed out of the cells with Haven’s hand gripped in mine, Nolan right behind us.

Sebastian was in front of us, using a speed I hadn’t seen him use since that day almost twelve years ago when he pushed me to race him. Our dad was ahead of us too, his pace faster than I’d seen him run in years.

With a squeeze of my hand, Haven let go of me and pushed me forward. “Go. Go make sure she’s safe. I will catch up.”

I gave her a grateful look and then took off after my dad and brother, still waiting for Reid’s response.

But Reid didn’t even need to answer my mindlink because he wasn’t far from the cells. He stood at the edge of a training field, his eyes fixated on a point in the center where Pierce stood with Maddie. Pierce had his arms around her with his claws extended and aimed at her throat.

Reid’s entire body was tense, on edge, as he stared out at Pierce and Maddie. Sebastian stopped next to him with our dad, and I came to his other side. She stood as still as a statue, her breathing deep and even.

The only hint she gave that something was wrong was in her eyes. She locked them onto Reid’s, and I glanced at him, noticing how he was hardly blinking as he kept eye contact with her.

“Why isn’t she escaping? She could easily get out of that hold,” Sebastian muttered.

“I don’t know,” Reid answered, his eyes never leaving Maddie’s. “She rushed at him, preparing to shift and attack, but something blocked her shift and weakened her.”

“Why was she even here?” I asked.

Reid swallowed and closed his eyes for just a moment. “I asked her to bring me some snacks,” he mumbled. “And then that fucking douchebag showed up out of nowhere,” he added, opening his eyes.

“It’s not your fault,” I said as Haven’s hand slipped into mine. “The king is here. He can command him to let her go.”

Reid nodded but said nothing else. I looked down at Haven, her eyes wide as she scanned the scene before us. Her worry showed on her face, and I could feel it flowing through our bond.

I put my arm around her shoulder and tucked her into my body. “She’ll be okay, Sugar Plum.”

“Timothy Pierce!” King Malachi’s voice boomed out over the field. “You will retract your claws and release the girl, alive and unharmed. You will let her return to her family, and you will come with us willingly.”

But Pierce just smiled, displaying his crooked, yellowing teeth. His wild, dilated eyes scanned over all of us until they landed on Haven in my arms. His smile grew creepier when he saw her, his pupils growing even larger and his nostrils flaring.

“You’re even prettier in person, daughter of Selene,” he crooned.

I roared and dropped my arms from Haven’s body, launching myself in his direction. I watched in horror as his grip on Maddie tightened as I moved forward, a drop of blood dripping down her neck from his claws.

But the king and my dad both grabbed me and held me back before I could move forward.

“Patience, young alpha,” King Malachi whispered to me, using a strong but calming version of his aura. “He has a witch hidden somewhere. My men are searching for her, and once they replace her, your sister will be safe, and then you can deal with Pierce,” he added under his breath.

My lycan and my body fought against his commands. She was our mate, and we needed to defend her, to eliminate any threat against her. I trembled with rage, wanting nothing more than to tear his eyes and throat out for looking and speaking to Haven that way.

But her soft hands caressed my back, and I relaxed my efforts to escape the king and my father. I needed to focus, needed to use caution, and the patience I had so little of. I needed her to help me control my impulses.

“I’m safe,” she reminded me. “Safe and yours.”

I nodded, stepping backwards to feel more of her touch. I felt the king staring at her, and I knew there was no way to keep her identity a secret from him. Not with how this was all playing out.

“Is she really—?”

“I am,” Haven said.

Keeping her hands on my body, one arm wrapping around my waist, she maneuvered around me until she was face to face with Pierce. Pure disdain flowed out of her every pore. With her pale features, bright red hair, and the coldness in her eyes as she stared down her nose at him, she looked every bit the part of a daughter of a goddess—avenging, cruel, and unforgiving.

“How did you know who I was? How did you replace me?” she asked Pierce evenly.

He smiled again, a harsh smile of cruel triumph. “Every wolf knows the story,” he said with a shrug, his casual words and actions contradicting with the glint in his eyes. “But I had inside information,” he added, unable to contain himself.

“Elaborate on that,” she said, her voice calm. “I’m sure it’s quite the story.”

“It is, and one I am quite proud of,” he boasted. “You still don’t even realize the power you hold, little goddess.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, though,” she said, shaking her head and looking at him with something close to pity. “I am powerless. I may have the blood of Selene, the blood of a goddess in my veins, but that is all I have. I have no gifts, no powers, no abilities.”

He cackled. “The power isn’t yours to use, silly girl. It’s the power you give your mate once they mark you. The power that strengthens him, strengthens his pack, and makes them better than any other.”

I blinked and furrowed my brow. “But—”

Haven cut me off with a sharp glare, and I bit my tongue, holding back the words I had been about to say.

“She’s distracting him. Let him talk so we have time to replace the witch,” my dad mindlinked me. “Who cares if he forgot that part of the story? That Asteria could only be marked by her mate. It just proves how utterly delusional he is.”

“You see, Conan’s youngest son knew Selene’s daughter would bring power and glory to whoever she was mated to when she came along. His brothers all shunned him for his idea, saying that wasn’t the point of Selene sending another daughter to her warriors. But he knew the truth. He knew what Conan had hidden from his children all those years—that Asteria was the real reason for his prowess.

“This youngest son seduced a young oracle acolyte and learned when the next daughter would arrive. Even then, Selene already knew when she would send you, knew when we would be ready to receive her gift again.

“He passed this information down to his children, and their children, and so on, until it reached me. Of course, I didn’t want to rely on old information passed orally over centuries, so I did my own research. I also formed a relationship with an acolyte and confirmed your arrival during one of my many visits there.”

“The oracles wouldn’t just tell you what you wanted to know, though,” I said. “You or Conan’s son.”

“I don’t know how he learned the information, but I had the help of Gladys. My witch. The thirteen crones shunned her for delving into forbidden magic. I offered her shelter and protection in exchange for her services. And she has served me very well.”

His lip curled at that, and a wave of disgust and nausea rolled through Haven. But she kept her mask up. Kept that cool, indifferent look on her face. I wrapped my arm around her, though, supporting her and giving her more strength to continue her misdirection.

His grip on Maddie had relaxed during his diatribe. But as she squirmed to escape, he tightened it again, glaring down at her and nicking her skin again with his claws. I tensed, and low growls rumbled behind us, but I didn’t turn to see if it was Sebastian, Reid, Nolan or all three.

“So you knew when I would arrive, but how did you know it was me? How did you replace me?” Haven asked, trying to bring his attention back to her, pulling it away from Maddie again.

“I stole a piece of a relic from the temple on Selene’s island. A relic that contained her hair. Gladys was able to scry for anyone who shared that DNA, and that’s how we knew where you were.

“Getting to you was harder, though. Social services moved you around so often that forming a plan to take you was difficult.

“But then you found people who actually wanted you, and I could finally snatch you away. All it took was some properly placed poison and a whisper of neglect to the right ears while Jack was in a coma. A little money and a little magic can go a long way in getting an adoption pushed through in record time.”

Haven’s body quivered under my touch, tears of rage pooling in her eyes. Her jaw tightened, and her fists clenched as her anger pulsed through her.

“It was easy to keep you away from other packs. We hid you with magic, making it so no one else would be able to replace you by any means.”

He glanced at me, and it was my turn to tremble with withheld rage. He was the reason we couldn’t replace any trace of her, try as we might. Him, his bitch of a witch, and Melissa.

“But all of that work almost went to shit. That stupid bitch and her mate let you leave, and John and Mary didn’t even tell me you’d gone. I found out from a mailer sent out by the ballet company listing the company members and their roles in the upcoming performance.

“Luckily, there was time before your birthday, and I was able to get them and Lennox here. I took care of John and Mary and finally told Lennox the truth of what you are. He was even more excited by the idea of claiming you after that.”

I snarled but only tightened my hold on Haven, using her to calm me and keep me from attacking him like he wanted. She gripped onto me as well, and I could feel through the bond she was barely keeping it together. That all of this information was hurting her more than she let everyone believe.

But my mate was strong, and she kept it all in, using me as her strength like I’d told her she could. I was her rock, her anchor, just as she was mine.

“MADDIE!” my mother screamed, and from the corner of my eye, I saw her running with Felix, Benjamin, and a younger wolf running behind them, papers held in Benjamin’s hands.

Sebastian moved on instinct and grabbed our mom, hugging and holding her so she couldn’t get closer and put Maddie at risk. Her body shook as he held her back, her eyes pooling with tears.

“I’m okay, Mom,” Maddie breathed, her voice quiet but strong.

But my sights were on Benjamin. Locked on him. I would kill him if he had double-crossed us.

“Oh look, two of my three regrets,” Pierce sneered, glaring at Benjamin and the other younger wolf. “Surely here to just disappoint me even more.”

Ben didn’t even acknowledge him or show if his words affected him. He just walked straight over to us—my dad, the king, Haven, and me—and held out the papers.

“I found these,” he told me, looking me straight in the eye. “In my dad’s safe. I was finally able to get it open, and this is all that was in there. I was going to just throw them away, but then I saw her name on one of them,” he said, nodding at Haven. “And I knew I needed to show them to you.”

“The blood contracts,” King Malachi sighed as he took them, shaking his head. “I will turn these over to the thirteen crones. Along with his witch, if we can replace her,” he added.

“You still have a chance to prove yourself to me. To prove you are worthy of carrying my title and being my heir,” Pierce taunted Benjamin, completely unfazed by the evidence against him his son had just turned over to the king. “You can claim Selene’s daughter as yours. Take her as your mate, and you will forever have my approval,” he said.

Ben frowned and looked at Haven, shaking his head. “I have no intention of taking someone’s fated mate away. Selene’s daughter or otherwise. The mate bond is sacred. Selene pairs us for a reason.”

“Or you, Oliver,” Pierce continued, ignoring Ben. “You can claim her. Fight for her, and when you turn 21 in a few years, you can mark her.”

“You’re delusional,” Oliver said, shaking his head, disappointment and anger in his eyes.

“Fine,” Pierce growled, his eyes swirling with rage, his teeth bared. “Fine, I will do it myself then.”

He tossed Maddie to the ground without sparing her a glance and stalked forwards. She hesitated for a moment, watching him, waiting to see what would happen. Then she sprang to her feet and sprinted to us, running straight to our dad. A choked noise came out of her, and Dad grunted at the impact, but he wrapped her up and held her close.

The others behind us rushed forward and huddled around them, murmuring words of comfort to Maddie as she clutched onto our dad. But my focus stayed on Pierce as he pointed at me.

“I, Alpha Timothy Pierce, challenge you, Future Alpha Wesley Stone, for the right to claim Selene’s daughter.”