Princes’ Lover

Chapter 26

POV Matteo

The image won't leave my mind.

I stand in the emptying courtyard, watching servants scrub blood from the cobblestones, and all I can see is Eva throwing herself between Dominic and that whip.

The crack of leather against her flesh. The way she didn't flinch, didn't retreat, just positioned her body as a shield for the man she loved.

And then she kissed him.

In front of her father. In front of the pack. In front of every wolf who'd ever told her she wasn't enough.

My wolf stirs with something unexpected—not jealousy, but admiration. Raw, genuine admiration for a woman I once thought I could conquer.

The broken princess has more fire than anyone gave her credit for.

She doesn't need a wolf to make her strong. Her courage burns brighter than any beast. In that moment, facing down her father's wrath with Dominic's blood on her hands, she was more Alpha than any of us.

Then her father spoke, and the admiration turned to ice in my veins.

Treason.

The word echoes through my memory, cold and absolute. Alpha King Aldric declared his own daughter a traitor—for defying his authority, for choosing a low-ranking wolf over her duties to the bloodline.

Both she and Dominic will be imprisoned until a fitting punishment is decided.

The implication was clear. Execution is on the table.

For Dominic, certainly. For Eva... her father might not kill his only heir, but there are punishments worse than death. Forced mating. Exile. Having her child ripped from her arms the moment it's born.

I watched the guards drag them away. Eva didn't struggle—she walked with her head high, spine straight, fingers intertwined with Dominic's bloodied hand. Even condemned, she refused to bow.

As she passed my position in the crowd, her eyes found mine.

She gave me the smallest nod. A tired smile.

Trust. Despite everything, the seduction, the manipulation, the games, she trusts me.

That trust settles into my chest like a coal, burning with unexpected heat.

I won't let it be misplaced.

That night, Soren comes to my chambers.

He doesn't knock—just enters with the silent efficiency of a wolf who's done stalking and started hunting. His usual ice has cracked, revealing something raw beneath. Something almost human.

"We need to get her out." He doesn't waste time on pleasantries. "Both of them."

"I know." I close the door behind him, checking the corridor for listeners. "I've been thinking the same thing."

"The eastern tunnels." Soren moves to the desk where I've already spread maps of the estate. "They connect to the old wine cellars, which have an exit beyond the walls."

"Guarded?"

"Two wolves. Easily managed." His pale eyes scan the layout. "The problem is getting them out of the dungeon. It's in the heart of the estate, surrounded by loyal guards."

"A distraction, then." I tap the map, tracing routes. "Something that pulls attention away long enough to extract them."

"Fire?"

"Too obvious. They'd lock down immediately." I consider the options. "We need something that causes chaos without triggering defensive protocols."

We work in urgent whispers for the next hour, mapping escape routes, cataloging resources, identifying which guards might be bribed and which would die for the Alpha King.

Soren's strategic mind complements my knowledge of court manipulation—together, we begin to form something resembling a plan.

"Why are you doing this?" I ask eventually. "Your involvement could destroy your pack's alliance with the Aldridges. Your father would be furious."

Soren's jaw tightens. "She carries my child."

"And?"

"And I won't let my heir be born in a dungeon." His voice drops, rough with emotion he rarely shows. "I won't let Eva be destroyed for choosing love over politics. She deserves better than what her father offers."

"Even though she chose someone else?"

Soren is quiet for a long moment. When he speaks, his voice is barely above a whisper.

"I've spent my entire life controlling my wolf. Burying what I want beneath duty and strategy. Eva showed me what it looks like to stop hiding."

His pale eyes meet mine. "The least I can do is give her the chance to live that truth."

Something shifts in my chest. Respect, maybe. Or recognition.

We're both wolves who learned to cage ourselves. Eva is the one who reminded us what freedom looks like.

A knock at the door makes us both tense.

Before I can respond, the door opens. Sebastian enters without waiting for permission, his golden face unusually grim. The charming prince is nowhere in evidence—in his place is something harder. Older.

"Don't bother hiding the maps." He closes the door behind him. "I know what you're planning."

Soren's hand moves toward his belt. I raise a hand to stop him.

"How long have you been listening?"

"I haven't been listening tonight."

Sebastian moves to examine the maps spread across my desk.

"But I've known something was wrong for weeks. Eva's behavior. The tension between you two and Khalil. The secret meetings, the meaningful glances."

He looks up, meeting my eyes. "I'm not as oblivious as everyone assumes."

"Then why didn't you say anything?"

"Because Eva deserved to handle her own affairs."

His expression is complicated—hurt and understanding tangled together. "She was carrying secrets that weren't mine to expose. I chose to observe rather than interfere."

"And now?"

Sebastian's jaw tightens. "Now her father is going to execute the man she loves and imprison her until she breaks. Now Khalil has revealed himself as the vindictive bastard he always was beneath that gentle mask."

His golden eyes harden. "This has gone too far."

"She used you." The words come out harsher than I intended. "Lied to you. Slept with you while carrying another man's child."

"I know." Sebastian doesn't flinch. "And I won't pretend it doesn't hurt. But Eva was drowning, and I was a lifeline she grabbed in desperation. I can't hate her for trying to survive."

"So what do you want?"

"To help." He straightens, squaring his shoulders. "I have resources. Connections. A strategic mind that everyone underestimates because I smile too much."

His gaze sweeps between Soren and me. "Eva doesn't deserve execution. Neither does Dominic. Whatever you're planning, I want in."

Soren and I exchange glances.

Three princes who came here as rivals. Three wolves who competed for the same woman. Now united by something none of us expected—genuine care for a princess who showed us what courage really looks like.

"You understand the risks?" I keep my voice level. "If we're caught, your pack's alliance with the Aldridges is destroyed. Your father's political standing. Your future."

"I understand." Sebastian doesn't waver. "Some things matter more than politics."

I study him for a long moment—the golden prince who lost the woman he loved to another man, now offering to risk everything to save her. There's no calculation in his eyes. No hidden agenda.

Just decency. Simple, stubborn decency.

I extend my hand.

Sebastian takes it without hesitation. His grip is firm, certain.

"Welcome to the conspiracy," I say. "Let's figure out how to break our princess out of prison."

Soren moves to make room at the desk. Three heads bend over the maps, dark, pale, and golden, plotting treason against an Alpha King.

An unlikely alliance, forged in desperation and unexpected loyalty.

But an alliance nonetheless.