Chapter 182: Chapter 182 Let The Dead Man Walk
Fiona pressed closer to Reginald as his arm wrapped around her shoulder, the warmth cutting through her anxiety. She forced herself to ignore Allen completely, treating the royal beta like he didn’t exist. Every fiber of her being screamed for more wolfbane, but she gritted her teeth and fought the craving.
This time, her guilt over betraying her mate burned stronger than any drug addiction. The shame ate at her worse than the grief from losing her father.
Her father was gone forever—nothing could change that. But Reginald? She could still save what they had, if she acted now. She couldn’t lose him too. The love she felt for him made her guilt unbearable.
Allen, however, made no effort to hide his leering stares. His salacious smile didn’t escape Darius’s notice, and rage coursed through the warrior’s veins. He wanted to rip the bastard’s throat out right there.
’There will be the right time for that,’ Reginald’s voice cut through Darius’s murderous thoughts. They needed Allen’s body intact to fuel the Valerium warriors’ rage when they discovered their royal beta’s death.
But killing him now would slow their progress. They had to reach the meeting point first—no point hauling a corpse for miles.
Let the dead man walk to his own execution.
He’d been useless alive; they weren’t about to burden themselves with his corpse any longer than necessary.
"Time to do it," Darius muttered when Allen collapsed against a tree, snoring peacefully. The fool had no idea death lurked inches away from people he trusted.
"No. Five more hours to go. Fiona’s barely hanging on—she won’t keep up if we don’t carry her."
Darius cursed under his breath. Reginald was right.
"Fine. We’ll handle it closer to the rendezvous point." He glanced at Fiona. "How’s she holding up?"
"Exhausted, but alive." Reginald looked down at Fiona, who’d fallen asleep using his thigh as a pillow.
"Thanks for looking after her. I mean it."
Reginald said nothing.
——
**Phoebe’s POV**
The battlefield sounds crashed over me like waves—howls and roars echoing from the distance as beasts tore into each other. This was my first time so close to real combat, and the brutality made my stomach clench.
Casualties flooded into my makeshift infirmary faster than I could handle. I was running out of staff, desperately needed more hands to brew healing concoctions, and Millie and Katherine were reaching their breaking point.
I grabbed a piece of paper and scribbled a note for them to read: *Don’t heal them completely. Save your energy—heal just enough for survival. Let their natural healing and medicine handle the rest.*
I’d already sent word to the palace requesting more healers, but they wouldn’t arrive for two hours. Every minute mattered now. Backup forces were also two hours out.
From what I could see, we wouldn’t hold the fortress much longer.
"We’re losing it," Austen reported, blood and sweat coating his face. "They’ll breach the fortress walls. We’ve got maybe thirty minutes before they’re inside."
"Are the warriors in position?"
"Yes. Just waiting for your signal. Once we evacuate, there won’t be much time."
I studied the black smoke billowing outside as dawn’s first light touched the horizon. The moment felt right.
"Now."
The message raced through mindlinks, warriors moving in perfect synchronization. They retreated from the walls, cutting down enemies who’d managed to breach the fortress.
Once the enemy realized we’d pulled back, they’d charge through the gates like rabid animals. But that was exactly what I wanted—the core of my plan. Time to see if my strategy would work.
"Millie, Katherine—move everything now. We’re evacuating to the secondary position."
Walking wounded moved on their own while others leaned on fellow warriors for support. Chaotic but organized—exactly how a good retreat should look.
When we reached safe distance and watched the massive gates swing open, I tugged Austen’s sleeve.
"Signal them."
Austen’s mindlink couldn’t reach the mountain warriors directly, but relay messengers would carry the word. Within minutes, our people stationed in the peaks would execute their part.
"You sure this will work?" Austen asked.
I wasn’t sure of anything, but this was our only shot. It had to work, or we were all dead.
Minutes later, a thunderous explosion shattered the morning air. The enemy forces, marching confidently through our gates, froze in stunned silence.
The mountain shook. The ground trembled beneath our feet.
A rumbling sound rolled across the distance like thunder that wouldn’t stop.
