Chapter 136
Chapter 136:
The whiskey in my glass was smooth, but it did nothing to quell the fire of humiliation burning in my gut. Dallas Marshall. A Lycan King. He had walked into my territory, taken my woman, and looked at me as if I were nothing more than a bug beneath his boot.
But bugs can carry poison.
I sat in my office at Hyde Manor, the heavy velvet curtains drawn against the rain. On my desk lay a file folder, delivered moments ago by my contact within S&D Design.
“Well, well,” I murmured, tracing the edge of the document. “It seems your new best friend is a liability, Adella p>
The report was detailed. Elara Vance — the bright-eyed girl Adella had grown so fond of — had made a catastrophic error. In her haste to restore the Hyde Pack Founding Treaty, she had authorized the use of a solvent too acidic for three-hundred-year-old vellum. The signature of the founding Alpha — my ancestor — was dissolving.
It was an unforgivable offense against Pack heritage. If I took this to the Alpha Council, Elara wouldn’t merely be fired; she would be branded incompetent and exiled as a Rogue. Her life would be over. And S&D Design? The shame would stain Elder Augusta Marshall’s legacy for generations.
But that wasn’t all. My contact had found something else — something far more interesting. Dallas Marshall’s military psych eval from his Dire Guard days. The one that detailed his “homicidal loss of control” and “volatile Lycan tendencies.” If that surfaced, the Council wouldn’t just question his fitness to rule — they’d have grounds to lock him away.
Two weapons. One to control her, one to destroy him.
I picked up my phone, a cruel smile twisting my lips. I couldn’t fight a Lycan with claws, but I could certainly strangle his mate with guilt.
Adella’s POV
The S&D Design studio was quiet, save for the soft scratching of charcoal on paper. I tried to focus on the restoration plan in front of me, but my mind kept drifting back to the elevator. To Dallas. The phantom sensation of his lips on mine was a brand that refused to fade.
Rea𝘥 o𝗇 𝗮ո𝗒 𝗱e𝗏𝘪се 𝗼n g𝘢l𝗻𝗈𝘃еlѕ.𝗰𝘰𝘮
We are inevitable. His voice echoed in my head, making my pulse quicken.
My phone buzzed on the desk, shattering the memory. I frowned at the unknown number.
“Hello p>
“Adella p>
My spine locked. Braydon.
“What do you want? I told you p>
“Before you hang up,” his voice was silky, dripping with false concern, “you should know that I’m holding a report regarding the Founding Treaty. Specifically, the damage Elara Vance caused to the signature p>
I froze, my eyes darting to where Elara was humming happily at her workstation across the room. “What are you talking about p>
“She used the wrong solvent, Adella. The ink is dissolving as we speak. One call to the Council, and your little friend becomes a Rogue. Imagine her — alone, unprotected, in the Wilds p>
“You wouldn’t,” I whispered, horror cold in my veins.
“Oh, I would.” He paused, letting the silence stretch. “But that’s not the only file I have. I also have Dallas Marshall’s military psych eval. The one that proves he’s a liability — a danger to every Pack in the region p>