Chapter 0159

My frown deepens. “He said I should believe that he would be the only one who ever wants our pups. What if he’s right? Have you heard anything from his pack? Crestwood City?”

“He’s messing with your head, Athena. Ethan will be executed publicly tomorrow. Nothing he says matters.” He presses a soft kiss against my cheek. “But yes, I’ve received word from Crestwood. It seems Ethan grew too power-hungry. The Beta has taken over as Alpha. He assured me the pack is relieved to see him gone.”

I furrow my brows. It took me time to understand the bond between an Alpha and Beta. I always assumed they were unshakable. But my only references were Dominic and Marcus, and Alexander and Sebastian.

“So they won’t retaliate?”

“It doesn’t appear so.”

“What about the Rogue, Gabriel? Will his sentence be carried out tomorrow?”

“Isabella requested to speak with him first.”

I jolt in surprise. “What?”

“She asked. I agreed. Maybe she can get him to talk. He hasn’t said a word to you, no matter how many times you’ve tried.”

I’m shocked Alexander allowed it. Especially after what Gabriel did to her.

“Are you certain that’s safe?” I whisper.

“Zachary and I will be with her. She won’t be alone.”

Later that evening, the three of them headed toward the dungeons. Isabella hobbled on crutches, much to Zachary’s visible frustration.

“She’ll be alright,” Sebastian murmurs beside me.

“You can’t know that.”

“You’re right, I don’t. But neither of them will let any harm come to her.”

I watch until they disappear from view, then turn back inside.

“What answers were you hoping to get from him?” Sebastian asks, following me.

“I’m not sure.”

“Really? You’ve been sneaking down to that dungeon for days. You must have wanted something specific.”

“I wanted to understand how he became like that. But he refuses to answer anything.”

“You wanted to know how he turned Rogue?”

I nod, a lump forming in my throat.

He studies me for a moment. “That won’t happen to you.”

“You can’t know that.”

“Do you crave the taste of flesh?” I hear the hint of amusement in his voice.

“No. But what if I break? Or lose control? What if I’m tempted into it? What if something so terrible happens that I let Nyx take over completely? What if—”

“Athena, that’s too many ‘what ifs’.” He grins. “You’ve only fully shifted a few times, and only briefly. It would take a catastrophic event for you to become permanently like them. You have Alexander. You have the entire pack behind you. You aren’t a lone Lycan. Right now, you don’t need to worry about them. We have it handled. I promise.”

Maybe I was overthinking it. Maybe I’d let the silent Rogue get inside my head.

I nod as we walk toward the kitchen.

“Do you think there are more?” I ask quietly.

“Rogues? According to Theodore, it’s highly likely. We don’t know how many they marked. Brianna said the others found her over two years. So yes, there are probably more out there.”

“And in the forest,” I continue. “It was like my body knew where to go. Like Nyx could sense them, but I couldn’t. How is that possible?”

“Did Nyx know?”

“No, I didn’t!” she snaps.

“She says no. How, Sebastian? How was I able to track him without ever seeing him?”

He smiles. “You’re an Alpha, Athena. It’s in your blood.”