After My Mate Betrayed, I Fought Back Chapter 07

After My Mate Betrayed, I Fought Back Chapter 07

Prince Lucas stepped forward, his obsidian eyes flashing with a dangerous light as he surveyed the room. The air around him seemed to vibrate with power, his royal aura pressing down on everyone present like a physical weight. I watched as wolves who had been jeering at me moments ago now cowered, their expressions shifting from mockery to terror.

“To disrespect her,” Prince Lucas announced, his voice carrying effortlessly through the hall without him having to raise it, “is to disrespect the Lycan throne.”

The impact of his words was immediate and devastating. Throughout the grand hall, wolves dropped to their knees as if their legs had been cut from beneath them. Necks bared instinctively in submission, their faces pressed almost to the floor. The scent of fear permeated the air, sharp and acrid, replacing the earlier stench of arrogance and cruelty.

Madison’s perfectly made-up face had drained of all color. Her designer outfit, which she’d chosen so carefully for my humiliation, was now rumpled as she knelt, trembling visibly. Beside her, Dylan looked as though he might vomit, his earlier bravado completely evaporated.

“Your Highness,” Madison whispered, her voice barely audible. “Please… we didn’t know. Had we known she was under royal protection-”

“Silence,” Prince Lucas commanded, and her words died in her throat.

I stepped forward, finally allowing my carefully constructed facade to fall away completely. My posture straightened, shoulders back, chin lifted-the stance of a warrior, not a victim. The wolves who had gathered to witness my humiliation now stared at me with new eyes, finally seeing glimpses of who I truly was.

“Captain Valerius,” I called, my voice clear and commanding.

“Commander Blackwood,” he responded immediately, stepping forward with a respectful inclination of his head that sent another ripple of shock through the assembled wolves.

I turned to face Madison and Dylan directly, savoring the moment I had waited five long years for. “I, Commander Aria Blackwood, personal guard to the Lycan Royal Family and head of covert operations for the Crown’s intelligence division, formally order the detention of Beta Dylan Blackwood and Luna Madison Sterling on charges of conspiracy and treason against the Crown.”

Dylan’s face contorted with panic. “Aria, please-” he began, reaching toward me with a trembling hand.

“You will address the Commander with proper respect,” Captain Valerius snapped, moving

between us with fluid grace.

Madison had begun to sob, mascara streaming down her cheeks in black rivulets. “This can’t be

happening,” she whispered. “This was supposed to be-”

“Your triumph?” I finished for her, my voice soft but carrying. “The day you humiliated the weak, unremarkable Aria Blackwood and took her mate as your own?” I allowed a cold smile to touch my lips. “Plans change.”

Four royal guards moved forward, surrounding Madison and Dylan. The sight of them being secured-wrists bound behind their backs with silver cuffs bearing the royal insignia-sent a wave of satisfaction through me that was almost physical in its intensity.

“Take them to the transport,” I ordered. “Full security protocols.”

As they were led away, Dylan looked back over his shoulder, his eyes wide with desperation. “Aria,” he called, his voice breaking. “We’re mates. You can’t do this to me. The bond-”

“The bond you were so eager to break minutes ago?” I replied, raising an eyebrow. “The bond you mocked and prepared to reject in front of an audience you gathered specifically to witness my humiliation?” I stepped closer, allowing him to see the truth in my eyes. “That bond is already broken, Dylan. You did that yourself.”

The remaining wolves in the hall remained frozen in their submissive postures, afraid to move, afraid to speak, afraid to even breathe too loudly. Prince Lucas moved to stand beside me, his powerful presence a silent statement of alliance.

“The Lycan throne does not forget,” he said, his gaze sweeping over the assembled pack

members. “And neither does Commander Blackwood.”

As Madison and Dylan were escorted from the hall, their faces etched with the dawning horror of understanding exactly what they had done and who they had crossed, I felt five years of pretense finally fall away. The hunt was over. The predator had been revealed.

And this was only the beginning of their reckoning.