Grace of a Wolf-Chapter 38: Caine: The Price of Stealing

CAINE

"No! I didn’t. She—she wouldn’t let me get near her. I swear it, High Alpha."

Fenris growls low in my head, but Jack-Eye’s hand grasps my shoulder, squeezing hard. "Caine," he says. Just my name, but his tone is full of warning.

I killed the last Alpha. Killing his successor is going to bring more trouble and headache. These are all facts I understand, but my brain is screaming, howling for a blood payment to ease my rage.

"That girl is mine," I whisper, forcing my clenched fingers to relax. The moment tension is released, his face slams to the ground again, still victim to my dominance.

Kill him, Fenris says, as if he wasn’t the one to force a promise of pacifism out of me earlier.

I shake my head, fighting to clear the red haze of bloodlust clouding my vision. The struggle is visceral—a war between my baser instincts and whatever shred of civility I’ve managed to maintain since ascending the Lycan’s throne.

It hasn’t been this hard since... A long time ago, in memories I refuse to recall.

My foot comes down on Raphael’s outstretched hand. Not an accident. Not a mistake. A deliberate, calculated expression of my fury.

Tiny bones crunch beneath my heel, bringing me a sliver of satisfaction, though my face remains blank.

Raphael grunts, jaw clenched tight, fighting to maintain dignity through the pain.

I’m not satisfied with this small display. Digging my heel in deeper, I grind against already fractured bones. Something inside me—something darker than even my normal temperament—wants to hear him break completely.

When Raphael finally releases a high, shrill scream, I feel the barest hint of satisfaction.

"Who does Grace Harper belong to?" My voice drops low, barely above a whisper. The question hangs in the air between us, loaded with threat.

"You," he groans. "She’s yours, High Alpha!"

The fury inside me ebbs slightly at his admission. The submission in his voice calms the savage beast clawing at my chest, at least enough to lift my foot from his hand.

My gaze sweeps across the clearing, taking in the mass of prostrated wolves. Some have their faces pressed so hard against the dirt I wonder if they’re still breathing. Others tremble visibly. Terror and fury mix in a bitter, pungent odor, overpowering even the smell of burning corpses brought in by the breeze.

"Keep your filthy hands off the girl. All of you."

The crowd is frozen, without so much as a twitch in response.

Something nags at the edge of my consciousness. A detail I’ve missed. I scan the gathering again, more carefully this time, cataloguing the faces, the scents, the postures.

That’s when it hits me. Raphael never appointed a beta tonight. It’s a glaring oversight for a succession ceremony. While it isn’t required, it is certainly unusual for a beta-less pack to leave the position empty.

There’s always the possibility his first choice of beta died, but it’s a potential sign of trouble, leaving me uneasy. Especially when I also realize the scent from the girl’s room, the strange wolf who’d challenged Fenris in the forest, is missing.

Fenris.

My wolf responds instantly to my silent call, the tattoos on my skin burning as he materializes beside me, saturating the immediate vicinity with a faint haze of blue light.

"Check on the girl," I order him, keeping my eyes on Raphael.

Fenris doesn’t hesitate, bolting toward the main building with supernatural speed. The sight of him—manifested separately from me—sends another wave of fear through the crowd.

I kneel in front of Raphael, grabbing his hair to once again bring his face level with mine. His eyes are glazed with pain, his breathing shallow.

"Who else visited Grace tonight?" My voice is calm now, almost conversational. The contrast to my earlier rage probably makes it all the more unsettling.

"Caine," Jack-Eye says again, with a sigh.

I can feel my subordinates standing with him, but they remain silent, probably disapproving. I’m bringing more trouble and work onto my shoulders, but it’s impossible to hold back the rage in my head, the whispers of vengeance driving my every action.

Raphael’s eyes slide off, and I shake his head until his gaze meets mine again. "Who is it, Alpha Raphael? Which of your people went to her room tonight?"

"No one," he says, his voice hoarse.

Lie, lie, LIE.

"Lying again?" I grab his jaw, forcing him to maintain eye contact. "After what just happened to your hand, you’re still lying to me, you little shit?"

A tremble runs through his body. It’s hard for any alpha wolf to submit, even a young one, but hardest for those who rule over a pack. Still, he should know better than to keep foolishly resisting.

"Andrew," he finally whispers.

Andrew. The name means nothing to me, but I’ll find him soon enough. "And why would this Andrew visit her?"

Raphael swallows hard. "He was checking on her well-being."

Half-truth. The scent of deception is weaker, but still present. My eyes narrow, fingers digging into his cheeks. All I want is to rip this pup apart, to raze this pack to the ground, but I hold myself back. I have to.

If I kill everyone, she’ll always be afraid of me, won’t she?

"Checking on her for what purpose?"

Sweat drips down Raphael’s temple as he struggles to speak through my grip. "Just to make sure she was okay."

Lie.

"Last chance." I tighten my grasp on his jaw until he winces. "What was Andrew doing in her room?"

Something in Raphael breaks. Perhaps it’s the pain, or maybe the realization that I won’t stop until I have the truth. "We were going to move her," he gasps out. "Tomorrow morning. To Forest Springs."

Forest Springs is a neighboring pack. The Alpha’s daughter is now Raphael’s Luna, who hurt the girl only this morning. "Do you know the price of stealing from the Lycan King, Raphael?"

Caine, Fenris says, growling. Fury burns through our bond, leaving my wolf incoherent with rage as he howls. Words are unnecessary; I already understand.

Grace is gone.