Chapter 144: Chapter 144 The King Will Fight
Perry’s POV
Timothy and his warriors had crushed five rebel packs, and just recently, we’d claimed the Obsidian Claw pack too. But the victory came at a steep price—Timothy had walked straight into their trap.
The battle hung in limbo now. We couldn’t push forward without proper leadership, yet this was our prime opportunity to strike.
The enemy pack was still bleeding from the damage my royal warriors had inflicted. Our only real threats now were the Crimson Fang pack and the Obsidian Creek pack.
Take down those two, and we’d have the upper hand. The remaining five packs would fall like dominoes.
"Don’t you have a senior warrior to lead the attack?" Elder Tricia pressed. "Send Jimmy. He’s battle-tested."
"He’s a solid warrior, but strategy isn’t his strength." I knew Jimmy well—he’d never commanded a campaign this massive. "He’ll bungle it."
Typical beta thinking. Flynn and Elder Tricia excelled at court politics, matching scheme with scheme, but the battlefield? They were clueless.
Elder Tricia sank into thought, releasing a heavy sigh. "What’s your move? Retreat?"
"No. This is our moment to end it." I wouldn’t waste what Timothy had bled to secure.
The answer hit me like lightning.
"I’m leading the attack myself."
"What? You’re abandoning the palace?!" Elder Tricia shot to his feet. "Absolutely not. You’re the king! If something happens to you..."
The royal bloodline dies with me. I’m the last one standing.
"Even with your strength, kings don’t charge into battle. Find someone else to command those warriors. Victory’s within reach—just overwhelm them and they’ll surrender."
Elder Tricia made it sound simple. If only battles worked that way. The battlefield was chaos incarnate.
A flawed plan guaranteed death.
"Handle palace affairs. I leave tonight." I rose from my chair, dismissing his protests entirely.
"No, think this through, Perry. You can’t risk your life."
I laughed at that. "I’ve been risking it my whole life, old man."
——
Phoebe’s POV
"Please, you have to stop him. He can’t march into battle. He can’t risk his life. He’s the king—this isn’t his duty. His place is here."
Elder Tricia’s words tumbled out in a frantic rush, his usual composed demeanor shattered.
"Go to his room and stop him." He seized my hand, yanking me from my chambers toward the adjacent room—Perry’s quarters.
I barely had time to process his request before finding myself planted in front of Perry’s door.
Elder Tricia rapped on the wood, then vanished, leaving me stranded.
Wait. No.
I didn’t want to face Perry. I had no idea how to even talk to him, let alone convince him to abandon his plans.
But before I could flee back to my room, the door swung open. Perry looked at me with confusion, though a smile played at his lips.
"Need something, Phoebe?"
I glanced around desperately. The elder had disappeared, and the guards stationed here couldn’t help with this mess.
I shook my head, turning to leave, but Perry caught my hand and pulled me inside.
He shut the door behind me, then pressed my back against it, trapping me.
"Need something?" he repeated.
——
Retrieving alpha Theodore’s body from the Obsidian Claw pack ruins demanded extra effort. Two warriors died in the attempt, five more suffered injuries—they couldn’t avoid clashing with the royal warriors to reach their fallen leader.
Fiona was beyond consolation. She wept over her father’s corpse, his shirt stained crimson with blood, a gaping hole in his chest. Someone had at least closed his eyes.
"Dad! Dad!" Fiona’s cries echoed unanswered.
Her little brother clung to her desperately.
Draven was only nine. Their father had begun grooming him as the pack’s future alpha, but now that future lay in ruins.
He was too young to lead, and Fiona lacked the qualities of a true leader.
"Who did this?! Who did this?!"
She’d been told Timothy was responsible—the royal gamma had killed her father. But in her hysterical state, rational thought had abandoned her.
An omega led Draven away as the boy sobbed, terrified by his sister’s screams and his father’s condition.
Fiona turned to Reginald. "Please, you have to avenge my father. You have to avenge him!"
Reginald shed no tears, but he gripped his mate’s hand and locked eyes with her. "I will."
