Betrayed by Blood, Claimed by the Alpha-Chapter 143

Betrayed by Blood~

The door slammed shut behind Lydia, but Cain didn’t move toward his desk. Instead, he stood near the window, staring out into the distance as if he could still see Avery’s smile.

Lydia cleared her throat, pulling out the folded parchment from where she had kept it and held it out. "The king’s summons. You need to read it, Cain."

The messenger had arrived just shortly after Cain left to confront the recruit.

"Alpha—" she called out again, seeing as he didn’t reply to her.

"Toss it out," Cain replied easily, not even a flicker of emotion in his voice.

Lydia blinked, caught off guard. "Are you sure?" She asked, "I mean, I heard the king had a meeting with other alphas in the region. I know for certain this has something to do with Silvermoon. You might want to-"

"Throw it away, Lydia. I didn’t stutter, did I? If Alaric has anything to say, then he should say it to my face. He can as well get into his car and drive here if he needs to speak to me."

Lydia’s mouth pressed into a thin line. She hesitated just a moment longer before setting the parchment down on the edge of his desk. "Fine," she muttered.

She then straightened up, her arms crossed over her chest. "Might I ask what you plan to do with Luna Victoria and her daughters? They’ve been locked up for days with nothing to eat or drink. I’m worried something might—"

"Why are you worried about them? We have hundreds of people in Vehiron, but you chose to be worried about the woman who birthed the two idiotic fools. One betrayed our agreement, and the other tried to have me killed. But here you are as my beta worried about them. Hilarious, isn’t it?"

Lydia straightened up instantly, her arms dropping to her sides. "That wasn’t what I meant."

Cain finally turned from the window, his eyes sharp and intense on her. "Then, what did you mean, Lydia?"

Lydia swallowed hard, "I just think that keeping them as slaves will only bring more trouble than needed. We already have the Silvermoon pack. I don’t think there’s any need to keep her and her daughters as slaves. The alphas of the region and the people are still talking about our takeover of the pack and Matt’s death. I just think it’ll be in our/your best interest if we don’t have people wondering what kind of alpha locks up women without cause."

His jaw clenched, the muscle ticking beneath his skin. "Without cause?" He took a step forward, and Lydia instinctively tensed. "Victoria raised two traitors. That’s enough of a cause for me."

"Yes, but others don’t. They don’t know Matt tried to have you killed or that Rowan sold out the pack to rogues. People don’t know that, and all they know and think is that you’re being unnecessarily cruel to them. They sympathize with Victoria and her daughters after the loss of their two sons. I’m not saying she doesn’t deserve to be made a slave, but maybe you can give it time. Let everything die down first."

Cain stared at her, his jaw clenched. Of course, he understood her point, but it only made him angrier thinking she could’ve supported her son’s wrongdoings.

"Fine, bring them to me."

Lydia nodded, a breath of relief escaping her lips. She stepped back, ready to leave when Cain stopped her.

"Any news on Kendra?" He asked. Lydia slowly turned to look at him; the mention of Kendra’s name had her frowning.

"No, she’s still locked up in the dungeon," she replied stiffly.

Cain nodded, turning towards the window again. "Have her moved to the women’s dungeon instead. Take Victoria and her daughters out and replace them with Kendra."

Without another word, Lydia turned and left.

~~~~~~~~~~

The walls of the dungeon echoed with every drop of water that fell from the ceiling above. Kendra sat huddled in the corner of her cell, the damp air gnawing at her bones. Her once-pristine hair was now greasy and tangled around her face, her cheeks were sunken and hollow, and she had eye bags the size of Jupiter.

The sharp clank of the cell door unlocking broke the silence. Kendra’s head shot up, her heart thundering in her chest. Two guards stepped in, followed closely by Lydia.

Kendra’s spine straightened, a spark of hope igniting in her chest. She forced a smirk onto her cracked lips. "What’s this? Finally come to your senses?"

The guards didn’t answer. Instead, rough hands seized her arms, yanking her up from the ground.

Kendra’s smirk widened into something feral. Finally. They had realized their mistake. Cain needs me. He always does.

"Of course," she sneered, tossing her head back as if she still held any dignity. "Cain finally came to his senses, didn’t he? Realized I’m the only one who understands him. I knew this wouldn’t last—he always comes back to me."

Lydia didn’t respond, only watched her.

"Oh, don’t act so cold," Kendra leaned toward Lydia as best she could. "You thought you could keep me down here forever? You’re pathetic, Lydia. Cain and I. We’re inevitable. Can you see now? I knew it wouldn’t take long. I’m the only one who truly understands Cain. I was there when no one else was—he needs me, whether you like it or not."

The guards didn’t slow, dragging her through the corridors. The air grew heavier, thicker, the scent of sweat clinging to every surface.

It wasn’t until they reached the door of another cell block that Kendra’s confidence began to waver.

Her smug expression faltered when Lydia finally spoke, "You’re right about one thing. Cain did make a decision."

The guard unlocked the cell, Victoria and her daughters sat huddled together in the far corner, their eyes hollow and defeated. The guards moved, unlocking the cell and ushering Victoria and her daughters out.

Kendra’s stomach twisted, her heart now hammering for a different reason entirely.

Her eyes widened as realization struck. "What... What is this?" she demanded, trying to pull back against the guards’ grip. "No, this isn’t right. You’re not putting me in there—"

Lydia smirked, enjoying the humiliation. "You don’t give orders anymore, Kendra. You have no power or authority. You’re no different than the women in this cell, and now you’ll live like the disgrace you’ve proven yourself to be."

The guards shoved her into the cell, the door slamming shut behind her with a thud.

Kendra rushed to the bars, her voice filled with panic now. "You’ll regret this, Lydia! Cain needs me—he’ll realize it soon enough, and when he does, you’ll pay for this!"

Lydia stepped closer towards the bars. "You’re wrong. He does need you—but only to stay the hell away from him. Enjoy bonding with the others in there." She winked and walked away, the guards dragging Victoria and her daughters behind her.