Defying the Rogue Alpha
Chapter 181: Grace

Chapter 181: Grace

"Yes, Your Highness," Lucia replied, bowing her head slightly with practiced grace.

Ava frowned softly, waving her hand. "No, don’t call me that. The title belongs to Zoe now. I’m just... Luna Ava. Or Ava."

Lucia cracked a shy smile. "Yes, Luna Ava."

That earned a soft chuckle. "Close enough. Now, what do you need a rope for?"

"Alpha Lucas requested it."

"Is he in there?"

"Yes, Luna."

"Alright. Oh, before I forget...would you ask Zoe to join me for tea on the terrace later?"

Lucia gave a graceful nod, then glided off, disappearing down the corridor.

Ava turned the knob, pushing open the doors. "Hey, husband," she called with a smile that already softened the room.

"Hey, wife," came Lucas’s muffled reply, his voice partially buried beneath a fortress of aged documents and dusty ledgers. He paused in his task and pulled her into a warm hug.

She melted into his chest, and he instinctively dropped a kiss onto her belly. "How’s the little one doing?" he murmured.

"I’m sure he’s fine." Ava said dryly, resting her hand over his. "This looks like it’s going to take ages."

Lucas groaned, running a hand down his face. "Herod was a terrible king. Look at this."

Ava perched herself on the edge of the desk. "I don’t think I ever saw him at this desk. He was always lounging on the throne....You don’t have to fix everything in a day, you know."

He sighed. "I know. But someone has to clean up his mess. Zoe’s stepping in, yes, but I need to make sure the foundation isn’t rotten under her feet....I really want to go back home. Kade and some of the men have already left. And I know Kade can handle things but I just need to be out of this place, Ava."

"Well, we still have a lot of things to do before we can leave. You know, Zoe and Dennis still need to get married. Then there’s the coronation ceremony."

"Ugh!" Lucas groaned, slumping back into his chair. "Do we really have to stick around for all that?"

Ava narrowed her eyes and put her hands on her hips, her stance radiating wife-mode. "Lucas Raventhorn! Dennis is your brother! If you’re not here to support him, especially now, during something this huge...who will be?"

Lucas sighed dramatically and raised both hands in surrender. "Alright! Alright! Damn. I was just kidding," he muttered, rolling his eyes. He grabbed another stack of papers and groaned. "But would you kindly nudge them into hurrying it up, please? Before this throne room becomes my eternal grave."

"I’ll try," Ava said. "I was going to speak to Zoe anyway."

"Please. My sanity depends on it."

Ava walked over and leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to his forehead. "I’ll go pour you a stiff drink."

He let out a quiet, grateful groan. "Thank you, love. You’re my favourite wife."

Ava lifted an eyebrow at his comment.

"only! only wife!" Lucas chuckled at the look on her face. Pushing her buttons was always the highlight of his day.

*****

"My mate is human?!" Kade’s voice exploded across the sunny pool side.

Nelly’s eyes went wide. "Kade, shhh!" she hissed, immediately lunging to cover his mouth with her hand.

"But...Nelly...she’s human!" he muffled through her palm, blinking furiously.

"Will you stop being so loud? I have neighbours, you know!" Nelly hissed, dramatically. "Tone it down!"

"Besides...what’s so terrible about May being your mate?" Nelly added with a shrug.

"What’s so...Are you kidding me? What am I supposed to say to her? ’Hi, I’m your mate. We’re magically bound by fate and I sometimes turn into a big scary monster. Wanna get married?"

Sarcasm dripped from every word and Nelly raised an unimpressed brow.

"Oh come on," she said. "It’s not unheard of, you big dramatic man-cub. You just need to ease her into it."

"I think you’ve been spending way too much time around humans," Kade muttered.

"Kade..." Nelly began.

"I am the Beta to the most powerful Alpha in our land! I command warriors! I’ve got people who bow when I enter a room! And I’m mated to a human?"

He looked so distressed Nelly half expected steam to come out of his ears.

"Do you even realize what this means? Do you know how badly she’ll be mocked? What kind of life would she have...tied to me? What am I supposed to do, Nelly? What are we even supposed to talk about? Her favorite cereal?"

"That most powerful Alpha you’re so proud to serve," Nelly said sharply, turning back to him, "he’s mated to a woman who didn’t even have a wolf in the beginning. She was powerless, vulnerable. Look at her now. She’s Luna, leader, strategist, and more than a match for any one who dares to doubt her."

"That’s different and you know it," Kade muttered. He wasn’t yelling anymore, but the storm hadn’t passed, it had just condensed into a quiet chaos. "I can’t deal with complications. Not at this point in my life."

Nelly crossed her arms and tilted her head at him. "Kade... no one plans for complications. They don’t send a note or ask for a meeting. They just show up sometimes as a really pretty human with zero clue what a mate bond is."

He let out a long, guttural groan, dragging a hand through his thick hair until it stood on end. His face looked like he was halfway between tears and throwing himself into the pool. "What the fuck!" he yelled at the sky, arms spread wide.

"Stay the night," Nelly said, gentler now, approaching him with calm. "Go back home tomorrow. Clear your head. Just... think about all of this. Don’t make a rash decision. You’re not just making it for yourself anymore."

Kade gave her a hard look, then dropped onto the lounge chair. "You’re enjoying this," he muttered.

"I live for this," Nelly grinned. "Gossip and personal growth? I’m thriving."

*****

Herod sat alone. A box sat neatly on the old wooden table before him. It was elegant and sturdy, with Lucas’s seal pressed into the wax. Inside it, coiled was the rope.

Lucas had kept his promise.

Herod lifted the rope out of the box slowly. It was ironic, he had built his reign on manipulation and fear, and now his final act would be tied to a symbol so simple, so blunt. He laughed, a dry, bitter sound.

A rope. Not a blade. Not poison. Lucas wanted him to struggle with his dying breath. Son of a bitch. He really did take Herod messing with his mate personal.

It meant Lucas had left Herod with the power to finish this on his own terms. The last mercy from the man who had taken everything else.

His only affairs were in order now; Zoe and her mother.

He knew Lucas would protect Zoe, and guide her into becoming the Alpha Queen their people needed. And he knew she would eventually uncover the truth about her mother, even if it shattered her. She had to know. Her mother still meant everything to him, before loss turned him cruel.

There was nothing left for Herod.

He had been a fool since the moment the crown touched his brow. Blinded by Alaric. He had dutifully played his part in bringing Herod here.

With a deep breath, Herod picked up the rope and stared at it, fingers tightening slightly. "So this is how kings fall," he murmured.

"You could have at least sent wine with the rope, Lucas."

He smiled for the last time.

Using the single cold iron seat in the cell, Herod climbed onto it. He moved mechanically, each step void of emotion. The stone walls echoed the quiet scuffle of his boots as he adjusted the rope he had received in a neat wooden box from Lucas. The very man who now controlled the throne he had once believed would be his until the end of time.

No ceremony. No audience. No crown. Just silence.

Herod simply felt... done. He took a breath, to remember how it felt one last time. And then, he got to work.

*****

"Ava, are you sure you should be running around planning weddings and coronations while pregnant?" Zoe asked, her brow furrowed with genuine concern as she poured a generous splash of honey into her tea. They were seated on the upper terrace, the sun slanting across the table, catching the steam rising from their cups.

Ava waved her off with a shrug and a cheeky grin. "I’m not exactly waddling yet, Zoe. I still feel full of energy. Besides, planning royal events is practically cardio." She sipped from her cup, unbothered, then added with a smirk, "And I am enjoying bossing people around."

Zoe opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted as a guard hurried toward them. His posture rigid with tension. These days, half of Lucas’s men had returned to the East, and the Northern Gammas were slowly resuming their duties. A few had quit after Herod’s fall. Zoe didn’t mind.

"Your Highness," the guard said, bowing slightly, eyes darting between the two women.

(I kinda feel bad for Herod. What is wrong with me?)

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.