Chapter 52

I watched as the color drained from Duke’s face. He stared at me with pained eyes.

“You don’t like my surprise? I thought you’d be happy to see Claire” I couldn’t wipe the smirk off my face.

“Duke! Baby! What happened to you?!” Claire wailed. Duke was covered in half-healed wounds and dried blood.

Noah grabbed her arm before she could get any closer to Duke.

“NO! You leave her out of this! She doesn’t know anything.” Duke yelled, struggling against his restraints.

I looked up at Shiloh.

****Be prepared to paralyze him in case he bolts**** I mindlinked her. Shiloh nodded at me and put her game face on.

“I think the saying is “An eye for an eye.” That’s correct, right guys? Right, Duke?” I looked around.

A few other warriors had formed a circle around us in human and wolf form. The fights had ended just like dad had said. We had won the battles against the rogues; it was just their leader that needed to be dealt with.

“Alex, you leave her the fuck alone! This isn’t her fight!” Duke was struggling harder.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Does it hurt you to see your mate in trouble?!” I walked over and stood next to Claire.

“Hi, Claire. We didn’t have time for a proper introduction last night. I’m Alpha Alexandria Danton, Queen of the South,” I introduced myself.

Claire swallowed loudly. She bowed her head a little in respect but stayed quiet.

The sound of cracking bones distracted me. I turned to find Nicholas shift back into his human form. Thankfully one of the warriors handed him a pair of shorts. The last thing I wanted was to get horñy right now.

“Be honest with me. Did you know what Duke was up to?” I turned my attention back to Claire.

Claire looked over at Duke and then back at me.

“No, I don’t. Why? What has he done?”

“Claire, baby, please. Don’t listen to her. She’s full of shït! She’s just trying to ruin our relationship. She’s jealous I’ve picked you instead of her!” Duke exclaimed. Desperation to make Claire believe him filled his voice.

“Claire, your mate here, had a spell cast on me. A spell that kept me away from my mate for 18 years. He intended to use me to break a curse and open a powerful vortex. He let his boy Erik use me. He used me. He played with my feelings and emotions. Used me physically in the name of “revenge.” If things went according to plan, in 29 days, he would be offering me as a sacrifice to open a fucking vortex. Did I miss anything, Duke?” My eyes didn’t leave Claire’s face.

Claire froze in her spot. Her face was slowly going pale. She was trying to find a trace of humor in my face.

“I-... I don’t believe you. Duke, what is she talking about?!”

“Yeah, I didn’t think you would. It doesn’t matter what you think. You're here as collateral.”

“Alex! Leave her alone!” Duke yelled, trying to get up.

Matt and Nicholas grabbed his shoulder and pushed him back down.

“18 years! 18 damn years! You blinded me and kept me away from my mate. You and Erik took turns playing with my emotions! If I had let Erik, you two would have taken turns fucking me too. All I’ve done is brought your mate here. I still have lots I can do. Lots my boys here can do. I’m sure the boys would happily show Claire a good time. Right boys?”

“NO!!! You keep your fucking hands off her!! You bïtch. Leave her alone!” Duke was now thrashing vigorously, trying to get lost. Matt grabbed him tightly, and Nicholas pinned him down.

“He's feisty!” Nicholas laughed.

I wasn’t going to hurt Claire in any way. She was just a pawn. I was angry at Duke, not Claire. She was innocent, and I already knew she wasn’t part of Duke’s plans. It was a coincidence that we had even found Claire.

She had turned up at Alpha Trent’s doorsteps last night looking for Duke. Claire could feel Duke’s anxiety and wanted to help ease it. But when Duke left after they had mated, he didn’t leave Claire any contact information prompting her to find alternative ways to find her mate.

Claire had given me the perfect way to get any information I wanted from Duke. I hadn’t told Claire what my plan was, but Noah knew. Noah’s job was to drop Gideon and Natalie at Luna Leah and return with Claire and the package he had picked up for Trent from his trip out East.

The plan was to torment Duke by making him think Noah would force himself on Claire if Duke didn’t cooperate. Claire was bait, and I knew Duke would do anything to save his mate.

“The power a mate holds. They make you weak, don’t they.”

****Alex, Roy’s gone. We found the other witches but no sign of Roy. What do you want to do?**** Asher mindlinked.

I clenched my jaws and knelt before Duke again.

“Where’s Roy, Duke?”

Duke narrowed his eyes at me before turning his gaze away. Nicholas grabbed his face and held it tightly, so he was looking at me.

“The lady asked you a question, jackaśs,” Nicholas barked.

When Duke wouldn’t give in, I turned my attention to Erik.

“Erik, where is Roy?” I hissed. I was trying to keep my cool.

“fuck you, bïtch!” Erik growled.

Nicholas snarled loudly and punched Erik. As Nicholas’s fist connected to Erik’s jaw, you could hear a crack and see the spit fly out of Erik’s mouth. He lost his balance and fell to the ground with a bloody mouth.

“Fine. You two want to play. Let’s play. Noah, take Claire inside. There’s a spare room next to mine on the 4th floor. I want to hear her screams from here.”

“Sure thing, Luna.” Noah grabbed Claire’s arm and started dragging her towards the house.

Claire’s screams and protests filled the air.

“DUKE! No! No! No! Let me go! Duke, help me! Please help me!” Claire screamed as she struggled to get out of Noah’s hold.

In one swift motion, Noah grabbed Claire by her waist and swung her over his shoulder.

“STOP! Stop! Put her down, asshöle!” Duke shrieked.

Matt and Nicholas grabbed Duke as he attempted to race towards Claire. Erik stayed still on the ground, rolling his eyes at the commotion.

“You don’t seem phased.” I chuckled at Erik.

“I told him not to mate, but who listens to me.”

Duke wouldn’t stop screaming and struggling as he watched Noah carry his girl away.

“How does it feel watching your girl get taken away from you as you sit here not being able to do anything. It’s torture, right?! This is what you get, you bastard! You don’t get to be happy after taking other's happiness away,” Nicholas scolded, holding on to Duke’s neck, keeping him still.

“Well said, babe. He doesn’t deserve any happiness! You kept me apart from my mate. You fucked me knowing I was saving my virtue for my mate. Now, you will hear Noah ruin your girl” I punched Duke as hard as I could make him spit blood. Nicholas held him in place so he could watch Noah walk away with Claire.

“Alex, pl-... please stop him. Please, I’ll tell you where Roy is. Please don’t let him touch her” Duke stopped struggling and calmed down a little.

“Noah,” I called out, and he stopped in his tracks.

“Where is Roy?”

“He's gone toward the North. We have a safe house at the border of the South and North. If ever our plan failed, Roy was to go there and get rid of all the evidence.”

****Asher, he's gone North. Take the rest of the witches down to the dungeon. Call King Joel and Alpha Peter. They should be able to intercept him. Tell him to find the safe house and bring me everything.****

****Got it.**** Ash mindlinked back.

“See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” I chuckled.

Noah came back with Claire and put her on her feet in front of Duke.

“Please don’t hurt her. She really didn’t know anything about my plans” You could hear the defeat in Duke’s voice.

“I promise nothing. Tell Claire what you did. She deserves to know what a prïck her mate is”

Duke looked up at his mate and then back at me. He was begging me for mercy with his eyes. The last thing you want is your mate hating you.

“Duke, did you do what she said? Did you really use her?” Claire kneeled before Duke and cupped his face with her hands. Her eyes were searching for answers on Duke’s face.

Duke closed his eyes and sighed.

“Yes, I did. But you need to understand. My family has suffered for generations because of the Moon Goddess. Who gave her the right to decide who’s good and who’s bad? Who gave her the right to make innocent lives miserable? Do you know how hard it is to live when people around you know the shame your family brought just by smelling you? I had to do something to make this right.”

“What are you talking about? What suffering?!” Claire looked confused.

*What the heck was going on?*

“Claire, do you know who Duke is?” I asked.

She stood up and shook her head at me.

What the fuck?! Duke didn’t tell his mate who he was.

“What is wrong with you, asshöle?! Seriously? You didn’t even tell your mate who you were? What did you do exactly? fuck her, mark her, and leave?” I was so angry.

The look on Claire’s face confirmed my suspicion. Duke did just leave after they mated.

“Duke said he would be back in a few days and explain what he was doing. It was very important, and he had to leave. I trusted him and waited. I’ve been waiting for almost a year ...” Claire sounded sad. Her voice was cracking a little at the end. She looked down at her fingers.

*Wait! Did she say almost a year?!*

“Hang on. Are you telling me that Duke and you have been mated for almost a year?!” Claire nodded.

Kona growled, and I was furious. Without a second thought, I turned and punched Duke in his face again.

I grabbed his jaws and squeezed.

“You fucking bastard! You’ve been cheating on your mate! You are so fucking pathetic!” I shoved him back and kicked him in the stomach, making him double over. Duke groaned in pain.

Nicholas grabbed Duke’s shoulder and made him sit up again. I could see the anger on Nicholas’s face.

“Wha-... what??” Claire stuttered.

“Claire, Duke’s been here in Angel Falls since the beginning of this year. We’ve known him for maybe 10-11months. He's been hiding his mark and making it seem like he was my mate. He cast a spell on me that made me believe I was his mate. He slept with me, and God knows who else. He's been cheating on you, Claire.”

Claire stared at me with big watery eyes. The pool of tears in the corner of her eyes growing by the second.

The look on Claire’s face broke my heart. Duke hadn’t just used me; he used her too. He didn’t care that she was at home waiting for his return. He didn’t care that her life was now attached to his.

If he hadn’t thought about her when he was busy trying to get into my pants, then why was he suddenly not interested in keeping her safe now?

“If you didn’t care about her when you were trying to get into my pants, then why the sudden love now? Why do you care about what I do to her now?!” I was definitely missing something.

Duke stayed quiet. He turned his face away, trying to avoid eye contact.

Nicholas grabbed Duke’s neck and pulled him to his feet, lifting him slightly off the ground.

“The lady asked you a question, asshöle!” He snarled.

“I-... I did what I had to make my plan successful. I always cared about Claire, but she wasn’t going to stop me from getting what I wanted,” Duke choked out.

Anger was pumping through my body like blood. A word hadn’t been invented to describe how enraged I was.

Claire’s sobs brought me back to reality.

“You-... I-... You lied. You cheated. Why? I thought a mate was meant to be the most important thing.” Claire’s sob we’re turning into cries. Tears were pouring down her cheeks.

I took a deep breath in.

Nicholas dropped Duke to the ground. Matt grabbed Erik off the ground and sat him up as well.

“Claire, crying over someone as pathetic as him is not worth it.” I tried to console her, gently rubbing her back.

“It hurts, Alpha. It hurts knowing the person that’s meant to love and cherish me has been cheating”

Her words hit home. I knew exactly how she felt. Flashbacks of the pain I had to suffer for six months played in my head.

“Unfortunately, I know all too well what you mean. That’s exactly how Duke’s made me feel. I’m sorry you have to go through this, Claire, but there is a way out.”

She looked at me with confusion written all over her face.

“I can break your mating. I can make all your pain go away. All you have to do is ask.”

“But-... but we’re fully mated. I thought the only way to break a mating is death.” She looked down at Duke and then back up at me. Her face was stained from the tears.

“Don’t worry about how it’s done. Just worry about what you want. Keep in mind; it’s more painful to watch your mate die than it is to have your bond broken.”

Claire’s eyes widened at my words.

“You’re going to kill him?” She stuttered.

“Yes....” I replied without hesitation.

He didn’t deserve to live.