Stealing the Alpha’s Heritage

Chapter 24

POV Aria

The neutral ground stretches before us like a battlefield waiting for blood. Three packs have gathered to witness this challenge—Moonveil, Silverfang, and smaller allied packs who've come to watch two Alphas tear each other apart over a woman and her children.

"Stay close to me, boys," I tell Kael and Finn, gripping their small hands as we're positioned at the circle's edge. "No matter what happens, you don't move from this spot."

"Mama, the shadows are screaming," Finn whispers, his gray eyes unfocused. "They say blood will spill before the sun reaches its peak."

"Papa looks scared," Kael observes, his green eyes tracking Thorne as he enters the circle. "I've never seen Papa scared before."

Guards from both packs flank us, their faces carefully neutral. I recognize Marcel among Evander's wolves, Elena standing behind him with her medical supplies. She won't meet my eyes.

"Let all witness this challenge!" Elder Aldric's voice carries across the grounds. "Alpha Evander Caldris of Moonveil challenges Alpha Thorne Blackwood of Silverfang for rights to the marked female Aria and her offspring."

The mark on my neck flares to life at Evander's name, sending waves of heat through my body.

"The challenged has choice of weapons," Aldric continues. "What say you, Alpha Blackwood?"

"No weapons," Thorne says, his voice steady despite what Kael noticed. "We settle this as wolves."

"Agreed," Evander responds, already pulling off his shirt. "I prefer feeling bones break with my bare hands anyway."

They shift simultaneously, two massive wolves now circling each other. Thorne's black fur gleams in the morning sun while Evander's brown coat ripples with muscle. The crowd falls silent, even the wind seeming to hold its breath.

Evander attacks first, using our bond to his advantage. The mark burns white-hot, and I can't suppress the scream that tears from my throat. My knees buckle, the pain so intense my vision blurs.

"Mama!" Both boys cry out, but the guards hold them back.

Thorne's attention snaps to me for just a second—exactly what Evander wanted. He launches himself at Thorne's exposed flank, teeth sinking deep. Blood sprays across the circle's edge, and the crowd gasps.

"Get up and fight properly!" Evander snarls through his wolf form, the words somehow clear despite the fangs. "Or are you too weak to protect what you claim is yours?"

Thorne rises slowly, favoring his injured side. But I see something the others miss—he could have dodged that attack. He's deliberately taking damage, leaving openings that shouldn't exist.

"Papa's not fighting right," Kael says, confirming my suspicion. "He's letting the mean wolf hurt him."

The mark burns again, bringing me to my hands and knees. Through the haze of pain, I watch Thorne circle back, his movements sluggish. Evander presses his advantage, claws raking across Thorne's shoulder, teeth finding purchase on his back leg.

"This is pathetic," Evander growls, pinning Thorne beneath him. "The great Alpha of Silverfang, reduced to this. You couldn't keep your Luna satisfied, couldn't protect your sons, and now you can't even die with dignity."

"Stop playing with him and finish it!" someone shouts from Moonveil's side.

"Not yet," Evander says, his brown eyes finding mine. "I want her to watch. I want her to see how thoroughly I destroy everything he is before I claim what's mine."

"Evander, please," I gasp between waves of pain from the mark. "Just end this."

"Oh, I will," he promises, pressing his claws deeper into Thorne's chest. "But first, I want him to know something. Those boys? They'll call me father within a month. Your precious twins will forget you ever existed, Blackwood. I'll raise them as mine, teach them to be proper wolves instead of cursed abominations."

That's when everything changes.

Thorne's eyes shift from resigned green to burning crimson. The same red I've seen in Kael's eyes when his Alpha blood surges. A snarl rips from his throat that makes every wolf present step back instinctively.

"You won't touch my sons," Thorne roars, throwing Evander off with strength that shouldn't exist in his injured body.

The real fight begins now. Thorne moves like liquid death, all pretense of weakness gone. His teeth find Evander's throat, not quite piercing but holding him down. Evander twists free, his claws opening gashes along Thorne's ribs that pour blood onto the packed earth.

"So you can fight," Evander spits blood, his brown fur matted red. "Too bad you waited too long to try."

They crash together again, a blur of fury and violence that has the crowd crying out in alarm. Both Alphas are bleeding heavily now—Evander's left eye swollen shut, Thorne's back leg dragging uselessly. They're killing each other, and neither seems willing to stop.

"Papa!" Kael screams, fighting against the guard's grip with his unusual strength. "Papa, stop! You're dying!"

"The shadows show them both fallen," Finn says, his voice eerily calm. "Neither wolf leaves this circle alive."

The mark burns so intensely I can barely see, but I force myself to watch as Evander pins Thorne again, teeth at his throat. This time there's no escape—Thorne's lost too much blood, his movements sluggish.

"Any last words before I take everything you love?" Evander asks, savoring his victory.

"My sons," Thorne gasps, his eyes finding the twins. "Protect my sons."

"Your sons?" Evander laughs, the sound cruel. "They're mine now. Everything that was yours becomes mine. Your pack, your territory, your bloodline ends today."

That's when I hear it—the sound of small bodies hitting the ground. The twins have somehow broken free from their guards, racing toward the circle despite every adult scrambling to stop them.

"No!" I scream, forcing myself to stand. "Boys, stay back!"

But they don't listen.

Kael reaches the circle first, his eyes blazing red, his small hands already shifted to claws. Finn follows, his gray eyes pure black now.

"Let our Papa go!" they shout in unison.

The power that erupts from them shakes the earth itself. Every wolf—Alpha, Beta, Omega—drops to their knees as raw energy pulses from two three-year-old boys. The air cracks like thunder, and both Evander and Thorne are thrown apart, their wolf forms forcibly shifted back to human.

"What are they?" someone whispers in terror.

The twins stand between their injured father and Evander, power crackling between them like lightning. Kael's skin glows with red fire while Finn seems to be dissolving into shadow at his edges. They're holding hands, their combined force creating a barrier nobody dares approach.

"We said let him go," Finn says, his quiet voice carrying impossible authority. "Or we'll make you go away forever."

"The curse," Elder Aldric breathes, his ancient face pale with recognition.

"Please," I crawl toward them. "Kael, Finn, you need to stop."

"They wanted to hurt Papa," Kael says, his red eyes never leaving Evander. "We won't let them."

"The shadows agree," Finn adds, darkness spreading from where he stands. "Anyone who hurts our family disappears."

Thorne struggles to his feet, blood streaming from dozens of wounds. He limps toward his sons, and their power immediately softens, creating a path for him.

"That's enough, my princes," he says gently, dropping to his knees beside them despite his injuries. "You've protected me. Now let me protect you."

"Papa, you're bleeding so much," Kael's eyes fade from red to green, tears replacing rage.

"I'll be fine," Thorne promises, pulling both boys against his chest. "We're all going to be fine."