Claiming Emerald: Four Alphas At Her Feet
Chapter 47: Be My Guest...

Chapter 47: Be My Guest...

"If he wants to kill me," Kieran said, stepping forward, "then he’ll have to fight me."

Emerald blinked at him like he’d lost his mind. "What? No. No one will be fighting anyone. You’re not animals."

Adrien scoffed lightly, arms folded. "We kinda are, though, technically. You know... wolves? Primal by nature? It’s kind of our thing."

She shot him a glare so sharp he actually shut up mid-smirk.

Adrien coughed and looked away. "Okay. I’ll shut up."

Emerald turned to Lucien. "Please. Can you talk some sense into them?"

Lucien met her gaze and shrugged. "Don’t look at me like I’m the peacemaker."

"You act more mature than them."

Adrien let out a short whistle but remained quiet.

I’m not the voice of reason, at least, not today. We might all be your mates, Emerald, but let’s be honest. Every one of us wants you for himself."

Her mouth parted slightly at the bluntness of it. "So what, you’re all going to duel? Like some deranged mating tournament? This is madness."

"It’s not madness to protect you," Kieran said, eyes locked on The Rogue King. "And if it means fighting him, I’ll do it. Without hesitation."

Emerald stepped closer to him, grabbing his wrist, her voice dropping to a desperate whisper. "Kieran, don’t. You’re making a mistake. You don’t know what you’re dealing with."

Kieran didn’t flinch. "You think I’m weak?" he asked, eyes narrowing.

Before she could answer, The Rogue King stepped forward with a smirk. "I accept your challenge."

Emerald jerked her head around to him. "No."

But it was too late. That feral, knowing smile was back on his face, as though he’d orchestrated every word leading to this moment.

Emerald pulled back, her hands shaking. "Fine," she snapped. "If that’s what you all want, go ahead. You want to act like children playing Alpha? Fight to the death? Tear each other apart? Be my guest. I’m done."

She turned on her heel, and just then, the earth beneath them began to rumble. At first, it was subtle, like a shiver through the stone.

Then the mine groaned.

"What now?" Adrien muttered.

The tremor grew stronger. The ground shook violently beneath their feet. Rocks cracked and tumbled from the ceiling as the walls rattled with force.

"Move!" Lucien barked, about to make a move towards Emerald.

But before anyone else could reach her, The Rogue King was suddenly at her side, arms wrapping around her, shielding her body with his own.

They fell together, and above them, stones crashed and split against the floor.

Emerald braced herself as his weight held her down, protecting her entirely from the falling debris.

The quake lasted nearly a full minute... and then, silence.

She opened her eyes slowly. The scent of dust, stone, and him overwhelmed her senses. The Rogue King still hadn’t moved; he hovered above her, pinning her protectively to the floor.

"Get off," she muttered.

He didn’t move.

Until... "Emerald?! Are you alright?" Kieran’s voice cut through the dust.

"I’m fine!" she called out.

Only then did The Rogue King shift, slowly rising and brushing stone dust from his black coat like the whole thing had been an inconvenience.

He smirked. "And these are the men you call your mates, Emerald? First sign of danger and none of them think to protect you."

"I don’t need protecting," she muttered, standing up.

Kieran stepped forward, his tone clipped. "You got to her first. That’s all."

The Rogue King turned his gaze to him. "And that is why I should have her."

"No one is having me," Emerald snapped.

They didn’t hear her. They were already talking over each other.

"You think being fast makes you better?" Adrien growled. "Let’s see how fast you are without that smug mouth."

"You couldn’t touch me even if I let you," The Rogue King replied.

Lucien narrowed his eyes. "I’m not impressed. Your power’s all for show. I’ve seen stronger rogues in broken packs."

"You mean like yours?" The Rogue King replied in a low and mocking tone.

Kieran’s fists were clenched. "Say one more thing, and I swear..."

"Oh? You’ll do what? Freeze my bones?" The Rogue King smiled wider. "Please. Try."

Emerald threw her arms up and stepped between them. "That’s enough!"

They all stopped. Finally.

She turned and pointed toward the tunnel exit.

"While you were all too busy pissing on territory that doesn’t belong to you, we got trapped. If you want to keep arguing like children, do it on your own time, but now, we have bigger problems."

They turned.

The entire tunnel entrance was buried under a collapsed mass of stone and earth.

Lucien cursed under his breath. "Shit."

"What the..." Adrien muttered.

Lucien stepped toward it, trying to pull at the smallest stone. It didn’t budge. "We’re sealed in."

"You’ve got to be kidding," Kieran said.

Emerald tried calling out. "Hey! Anyone up there?!"

No response.

"They can’t hear us," Lucien confirmed. "The stone’s too thick."

The Rogue King stepped up to inspect the blockage, nodding to himself. "Looks like the quake triggered the collapse."

"You mean the quake you probably caused?" Adrien muttered.

Emerald turned to him. "So... we’re stuck. Here. Together."

Adrien grinned, completely unfazed. He took her hand and lifted it to his lips, pressing a kiss to her palm. "We’re stuck together, love."

She pulled her hand back and glared at him, trying not to roll her eyes. "Fantastic."

Lucien shrugged. "It’s fine. Someone will soon notice that four Alphas are missing. They’ll send help."

The Rogue King turned, offended. "Four?"

Lucien didn’t blink. "You weren’t invited. You don’t count."

Emerald added with a smirk, "You call yourself the Rogue King, and no one sent you an invite. So yes. Four Alphas."

The Rogue King muttered something under his breath about a cruel oversight as he stepped away from the wall.

Time passed slowly.

With nothing to do but wait, they each settled into their corners.

Eventually, Emerald drifted toward Kieran, who had sat against one of the stone pillars.

She sat beside him, quietly.

"So... that’s him," he murmured. "The one that marked you."

Emerald nodded slowly.

Kieran let out a breath through his nose. "Why didn’t you tell me sooner?"

She wrapped her arms around her knees. "Because I was scared. He’s not like anyone we’ve ever faced. One minute he’s everywhere, the next he’s a ghost. He’s not just powerful, he’s something else. I didn’t want to bring you into that."

Kieran was silent for a long moment. "I wish you’d trusted me enough to tell me what was going on," he said, not in an accusatory voice; he just sounded... hurt.

"I know," she murmured. "I should have. I’m sorry."

He nodded, though his expression remained distant.

She cleared her throat softly. "Why were you here? In the mine?"

He looked up at her. "I got a message from my Beta. Said he needed to talk, away from the other Alphas. I figured it was something urgent."

Emerald nodded slowly. "Yeah... that wasn’t your Beta. That was definitely him."

Kieran closed his eyes. "Of course it was."

Silence fell between them for a beat.

Then he asked, "What do you know about him?"

Emerald didn’t respond right away. Her fingers tightened around her arms. When she finally spoke, her voice was almost a whisper. "It’s bad."

Kieran turned his head toward her. "How bad?"

She looked toward The Rogue King, who sat silently in a far corner, eyes closed, as though resting.

"Bad enough that he’s not playing by any of the rules the rest of you intend to follow," she said.