My Alphas' Dark Desires
Chapter 208: Angry Mates

Chapter 208: Angry Mates

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Chapter 208

~Dristan’s POV~

And then she walked away briefly before running after looking at Xade.

I wanted to follow after Valerie, but I knew, as pained as she was right now, I couldn’t, because in that moment, I realised something I never thought I would: I had become the thing she needed protection from.

The silence was deafening once the cars pulled away. The others stood like statues. No one moved, not even Xade, whose face was a knot of disbelief and guilt.

Kai’s brows were drawn together, fists clenched at his sides like he was ready to punch someone—me, probably. Emerald’s lip trembled, but she didn’t speak. Isla didn’t look at me at all.

Only Kieran looked amused, and that made my fists curl.

He loved it. Every ounce of this disaster. Every tear Valerie shed. Every foot she stepped away from me.

And I gave it to him.

I gave it all to him.

Because I’d been trying to help, to keep her safe out of fear. To protect her, the only way I knew how—through strategy, through order, by following protocol.

But Valerie didn’t need rules. She needed someone who would fight for her, not around her, not without her.

Now I had lost her, and worse? I deserved every bit of it.

Another tear slid down my face as I turned, my gaze locking with Isla’s finally.

Then she walked up to me, her fist clenched as she glared daggers.

My cousin’s eyes were red like she had been dealt a bitter blow, but the words she said next, not even her face, prepared me for it.

"I didn’t know it would turn out this..."

"Save it, Dristan," she started. "You acted without thinking, without once putting yourself in Silver’s shoes."

"But she lied, and she could be dangerous," I tried to explain, but Isla crossed her hands in front of her chest, her glare so sharp.

"Like she said when I asked why the sudden closeness with Valerie, Silver mentioned that Valerie reminded her of her late cousin."

The second she said that, my mouth opened, but no words could come out.

"And I’m sure Valerie took her like a sister, too. And now, you just ruined that for them both. Way to go, Dristan, classic foolish move."

Isla had barely moved away before Kai came from nowhere and punched me hard on the face.

I did not try to dodge it, even though I could and as I turned to the side, another fist connected with my face.

I looked up to see Xander towering over me.

His eyes flashed from Violet to red and then blue as he glared at me. "I told you, do not hurt Valerie. I warned you all! But what do you do? The opposite."

He lifted his hand, ready to impale my face once more, when someone rushed into my front, blocking him.

"Control yourself, Xander."

"Move out of the way, Xade, let me teach him a lesson."

"And how the hell is that going to solve anything? It’s not going to rectify what he did."

"No. But it would satisfy me that he no longer goes close to Valerie."

"You do not get to decide that. You’re not even her mate."

"Classic move, Xade," Ash enunciated as he moved in and clapped. "But it seems that the Moon Goddess saw how useless of a mate you werewolves would be and gave her Lycans. Only we haven’t hurt her."

"Yet," Axel countered as he walked close to stand in front of Dristan. "He made a mistake, but even he knows what he did, and he is repentant."

"Is he, though?" Ace’s cool voice reached my ears as he too came into my line of sight.

With both hands tucked in his trousers’ pocket, he looked commanding as he stood and sneeered at me.

"Even if Valerie and I aren’t overly close as he and she, I could tell the girl, Silver meant something to her. Besides, Silver deceived us all, but I believe she must have her reasons."

"You don’t know anything." I gritted and stood up.

"Oh... I do know that you got jealous someone other than Valerie wasn’t scared of you and that spooked you, Dristan."

"I did it for Valerie," I defended, and both Kieran and Ace clapped.

"Way to go," Kieran replied, looking my way. "You know, for a guy who claimed to love her, you sure have a terrible way of showing it."

I growled at him. Was he really speaking?

Out fo everyone here, only him shouldn’t utter a single word.

Without saying much, I rose to my feet, my eyes meeting theirs. "I’ll fix it."

"Y advice, don’t," Ash’s harsh voice rang out sharply. "Before you end up making it worse."

I clenched my fists and walked away.

Soren did not help either way; he growled deeply within me, pacing back and forth like a beast shackled to a wall of his own rage.

"You fool," his voice thundered in my head. "You just watched her walk away. You let them tear her down, and you stood there. We stood there!"

"I was trying to protect her," I muttered, fists clenched as I walked blindly across the grounds, the night wind biting at my skin.

"From what? From her own choices? From one of her few friends?!"

Soren snarled, his voice felt like claws raking across my soul. "You didn’t protect her. You punished her. For loving freely. For trusting. For being brave enough to feel!"

"I didn’t mean to—"

"But you did. And now look at us—alone. Again. We don’t even deserve to scent her anymore."

I staggered slightly, the weight of Soren’s anguish crashing into mine. He was grieving, the same way I was, only louder. Fiercer. I had never heard him this furious with me.

I stopped under the shadow of a tree, the night now quieter but heavier. My mind flicked back to Xander’s eyes when he hit me.

Violet... red... then blue. The shift, fury and warning in those eyes wasn’t just rage but something deeper, like an unspoken threat.

I exhaled sharply and pulled out my phone, needing a distraction, anything at all.

But what I saw stilled me.

It was a message from my father.

Dad: Who is Valerie Nightshade?