Koa's POV
I zoned out of whatever Lucien was ranting about when a familiar scent clung to my nostrils. I inhaled slowly, and my wolf stirred, pressing closer to the surface. I forced it back down.
If I lost control, someone else would find out tonight that I was a true Alpha. And I did not want that second person to be Lucien.
I turned toward where the scent seemed to be coming from and found no one standing there. Just a cleaning maid, moving quietly as she picked through the mess Lucien had made of the room.
I tried to see her face beneath the mask she wore, but I couldn't. Still, one thing was certain. The scent clinging to my senses was not coming from her.
Had I imagined it?
"Hey, I'm talking to you." Lucien's voice cut through the haze, and I fought the urge to roll my eyes as my gaze settled on him once more.
"Are there enough maids in the palace?" I asked, as I now faced him.
Lucien's face flickered with confusion for a brief moment before settling back into annoyance. "And why do you care about maids?" He laughed, shifting his weight slightly before his gaze locked onto me. "Already trying to act like you're the boss around here?" He stepped closer. "Listen carefully. Everyone here is under me, and nobody is taking orders from you. So do the needful and stay in your place."
He was still talking when I cut in. "Under you? Even better."
Lucien's brow furrowed again, but I didn't give him time to think too hard about it.
"Because you'll be needing them more than ever," I added calmly, my gaze shifting to the maid cleaning nearby. More had entered the room now, quietly restoring order to the mess he'd made. "To clean up after you when you crash out. Something I believe you will be doing more."
Lucien scoffed. "So that's your plan? Stop by the palace just to make me lose my cool? That's your idea of a power play?"
I tilted my head, pretending to consider it before shaking it. "No."
"No to what?" Lucien snapped, frustration bleeding into his voice. I enjoyed that far more than I should have.
"I didn't just stop by the palace."
He looked like he was struggling to process what that meant, so I turned to one of the maids. "Has my luggage been taken to my room?"
They stopped immediately and bowed. "Yes, Prince Koa," they chorused.
I turned back to Lucien and found his expression darker than before, his jaw tight with restrained fury.
"Oh. Father didn't tell you?" I said lightly. "He informed every guard and maid, but not his precious boy?" I clicked my tongue. "Here I was thinking you were his favorite. Silly me."
That was all it took.
Lucien snapped.
He lunged at me, claws extending as his eyes burned yellow, his wolf bursting to the surface.
I couldn't help the smile that tugged at my lips as I watched him move in an intense slow motion.
Not because he was weak but because compared to me, he was slower. Every wolf aside myself was. My vision sharpened, the world stretching thin as my true Alpha sight took over, breaking his attack into moments I could step through.
Lucien's rage made it worse. It was sloppy and loud.
I watched the way his shoulder dipped, and his claws angled too high, the way he committed to the strike before thinking it through. He thought he could scare me just by attempting to look scary.
I couldn't help but find it funny.
Inside my head, my wolf Rex stirred, restless and impatient.
How long do we have to wait before we send him crashing to the ground?
I held back a laugh at his words as Lucien closed the distance between us, his claws slicing the air inches from my face, missing me by the smallest margin.
His breath was hot, and his eyes were wild with confidence, probably thinking he had me right where he wanted me.
Not long now, I said in response to Rex, before I side-stepped Lucien and grabbed his hand behind his back.
I reined back my true Alpha sight so he could move normally in my eyes. He let out a scream just in time, pain shooting from the hand I twisted and pressed hard against his back.
And now? Please make him bleed, even if it's just a little, Rex spoke again, licking his paws nonchalantly in my mind as I lifted Lucien off the ground effortlessly, his feet leaving the floor.
When have I ever hurt someone without making them bleed? I responded to Rex in my head.
Just as I was about to drop Lucien on the ground and end it there, a voice with an intense Alpha command cut through the room.
"That's enough."
I felt Lucien, who was still suspended in midair, freeze from the tone, his body going stiff in my grip. I could feel the intensity of the Alpha command, though it didn't affect me the way it affected others.
"Koa, put your brother down."
My gaze shifted toward the voice, and there was my father, hand clasped behind his back as always, standing tall with an annoyed expression on his face.
I smiled sweetly. "As you wish, Father."
With that said, I threw Lucien down roughly, not bothering to soften the fall.
He groaned in pain from the impact, curling slightly where he landed.
Tsk. He's not going to bleed from that, Rex muttered in displeasure.
And at that moment, Lucien coughed up blood, staining the floor beneath him.
Have faith in me, bud, I said in response, unable to hide my smirk.
I faced my father and gave him a mocking bow.
My gaze caught movement from the corner of my eye.
Lucien was struggling to get back on his feet. His steps were unsteady, but he forced himself upright anyway.
His eyes settled on me, burning with fury.
"I'm going to kill you, you motherfucker."
He took a step toward me. Then another.
Before he could take a third, father's voice cut through the room again, heavy with Alpha command.
"Stand down, Lucien."
Lucien immediately stilled.
His jaw tightened as he turned to face our father. It was clear he wanted to argue, refuse, and ignore the order.
But he couldn't. Because of the Alpha command used on him and his desperate need to stay on father's good graces.
Can't relate, Rex muttered in my head and my smile broadened at his comment.
Father began to walk forward, his footsteps steady as he moved toward the center of the room.
"There is news," he said when he stopped walking.
Before he could say more, Lucien spoke.
"Father," he pointed at me. "Why is he here?"
"We will discuss that some other time," Father said with restrained annoyance. "There is news about your mate, Chelly."
Lucien stiffened and so did I.
For the first time since the fight started, his anger wavered and fear flashed across his face.
Even I frowned slightly.
I didn't know Chelly was Lucien's mate, nor did I care about their conversation, but the moment Chelly's name was mentioned, I paid attention.
Whether I liked it or not, I wanted to know.
Father continued.
"There has been a car accident," he said. "The vehicle has been recognized as that of Chelly Morgan. Only one body was found in the vehicle and it's not recognizable. You should go to the hospital and confirm if it's her."
Lucien immediately rushed out of the room without another word.
The smile I had on my face a while back disappeared. An ache settled in my chest instead.
Chelly is dead?
The thought repeated itself in my mind.
And here I had hoped I would be the one who ends her life myself.
I couldn't help but think as a cold weight settled over me, one I hadn't expected.