RICHARD’S POV
I took Amy to her mother’s house after breakfast.
The nurse I had hired was already there, tending to Emily with quiet efficiency.
She had made excellent progress; her color was better, her movements less labored.
The surgery had been a success, and with proper care, she would make a full recovery.
Amy rushed to her mother’s side, enveloping her in a gentle hug.
“Mom, you look so much better!”
Emily smiled, patting her daughter’s cheek.
“I feel better. The nurse has been taking wonderful care of me.”
I stepped forward, offering a polite nod.
“Mrs. Hart, I’m glad to see you’re recovering well.”
She looked at me, her expression warm but assessing.
“Thank you, Alpha Richard. For everything. The nurse, the care, the… well, everything.”
“Of course,” I said.
“You’re family now.”
After a few moments of pleasant conversation, Emily turned to Amy.
“Sweetheart, would you mind going to my room and fetching my medication? The nurse said it’s on the nightstand.”
Amy nodded, rising immediately.
“Of course, Mom. I’ll be right back.”
She disappeared down the hallway, leaving me alone with her mother.
Emily waited until she heard Amy’s footsteps fade, then turned to me.
Her eyes were sharp, probing.
“Alpha Richard,” she said, her voice quiet but firm.
“I need to ask you something.”
I met her gaze evenly.
“Of course.”
“Why did you invite Derek and his parents to the wedding?”
I felt my jaw tighten, but I kept my expression neutral.
“I thought it was important for Amy to have closure. To show them—”
“To show them what?” Emily cut me off, her voice sharp.
“You knew exactly what would happen. You knew Derek would cause a scene. You knew his parents would humiliate my daughter. And you invited them anyway.”
I paused, weighing my words carefully.
She was smarter than I had given her credit for.
“Amy wanted them there,” I said smoothly.
“She wanted to reveal to everyone why their relationship ended. She wanted to make it clear, publicly, that she was done with Derek.”
Emily studied me for a long moment.
“Is that the truth?”
I held her gaze.
“Yes. I would have preferred to have the wedding without them. But it was important to Amy, so I respected her wishes. In the end, it did serve its purpose. Everyone in that hall now knows exactly what kind of man Derek is.”
Emily was quiet for a moment.
Then she let out a slow breath, some of the tension leaving her shoulders. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
“I hated seeing him there,” she admitted.
“Hated seeing him humiliate my daughter like that. But…” She paused.
“I suppose it was good that everything came out in the open. Now no one can question why she left him.”
“It won’t happen again,” I promised.
“Derek won’t come near Amy again.”
Emily nodded slowly.
“I’ll hold you to that.”
I checked my watch.
“I’m afraid I need to get to the office. I have meetings to attend to.”
“Of course,” Emily said.
“Have a wonderful day.”
“I’ll let Amy know I’m leaving.” I excused myself and walked down the hallway, finding Amy in the doorway of her mother’s room.
She looked up as I approached, a small smile on her face.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Your mother and I had a good conversation,” I said.
“She questioned why I invited Derek and his family to the wedding. I told her that you wanted him there because you wanted everyone to know the truth about why you separated and also get your closure.”
“Oh okay.” She nodded in understanding.
“I have to get to the office now. I’ll pick you up later.”
“Okay.” She nodded, and I turned to leave.
***************
As I stepped out of the house, my driver was waiting, and I slid into the back seat.
“To the office, Alpha?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, already pulling out my phone to check my messages.
But before I could unlock it, my phone buzzed in my hand.
I saw the name on the screen, it was the head security of the Pack.
“Alpha Richard,” his voice was tense, urgent.
“There’s been an incident. We need you at the eastern border immediately. It’s… it’s bad.”
My body went rigid.
“What happened?”
“I can’t explain over the phone, Alpha. You need to see it for yourself.”
I ended the call and told my driver to change direction.
“Eastern border. Now.”
When we arrived, the scene was in total chaos.
Security personnel swarmed the area, their faces grim and serious.
Yellow tape cordoned off a large section of the street, and the air was thick with the metallic smell of blood.
I stepped out of the car, my body tense, my senses on high alert.
My head of security approached me, his face pale.
“We found them this morning. Three bodies. All brutally murdered. No witnesses, no leads.”
I walked past him, my eyes scanning the scene.
The bodies were covered with white sheets, but the blood had soaked through, staining the fabric dark red.
I could see the shape of them; two men, one woman.
Their limbs were twisted at unnatural angles, their bodies clearly mauled.
I crouched down, lifting one of the sheets.
The face beneath was frozen in terror, the throat ripped out.
My wolf snarled in my head.
Rogues.
This was the work of rogues.
I dropped the sheet and stood, my hands clenching into fists.
“How did they get in? The borders are secure.”
My head of security shifted uncomfortably.
“We’ve been processing immigrants from other packs, Alpha. As you ordered. But there are so many coming through, it’s possible some slipped past our vetting.”
My blood ran cold.
I had ordered the vetting.
I had increased security at the borders.
But the influx of immigrants had been overwhelming, and I had one person to blame for that.
My brother, Greg.
Rainwood Pack and Darkwood Pack shared the eastern border.
Since Rainwood Pack had more rights over it, I had expressed my concerns on the amount of immigrants flooding and talked to him about closing the gates but he refused because the immigrants were flooding Darkwood Pack and not Rainwood.
I felt a cold rage settle in my chest.
Greg had put my pack in danger.
He had allowed rogues to infiltrate Darkwood territory, and innocent people had paid the price.
I turned to my head of security.
“I want every immigrant processed in the last month re-vetted. I want the guards at the border doubled. And I want to know exactly who let these rogues through.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
I looked back at the bodies, my jaw tight.
This was only the beginning.
Greg had pushed me and I would make sure he regretted it.