Page 80 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
His dark eyes gleam back at me with more alarm than I’ve ever seen from him, and his chest heaves a bit harder with every breath now. He knows the walls are closing in now, and he knows this won’t end well.
Fear emanates from him despite his pride, and I feel the way he tenses up, as if preparing to bolt and lick his wounds. If he did, his wolves would only come down on him harder, and he would never make it out alive.
For a moment, I consider letting him go and allowing his pack to handle him naturally. Maybe I don’t need to be the one to finish this. But that’s what Caleb did before. He tried to show him mercy, and after the fact, Dawson returned to scheming and trying to use magic to his advantage.
If I leave him like this, he’ll come back. Whether it’s after a few weeks or several months, he’ll be back, and since he knows about Sera and her powers, he’ll aim for her again. Maybe even for my child.
When his eyes meet mine again, I see the silence promise within them. Some way, somehow, he’ll find a way to survive the others, and he’ll never let this go.
That’s all I need.
Surging forward, I clamp my jaws around his throat while he snarls and tries to twist free, but he’s already spent.
For a heartbeat, everything stills, and I see the line right in front of me. The one every Alpha has to be willing to cross for the sake of his family and his pack. It’s one my father has crossed countless times before, and one I’ve always been destined to.
His body tenses under the inevitable weight, then I end it with a single clench.
It happens quickly and decisively, with no drawn-out cruelty or spectacle. Killing isn’t something I find pleasure in, even when it’s deserved.
Beneath the unsavory parts of Dawson Voss, I understand his motives. I realize the pressures of being an Alpha and what is demanded of you, and in some ways, I feel for him. But relief still comes from feeling him go still, knowing he can’t threaten my mate or my child anymore.
Releasing him, I back away as the silence of the clearing slips into my awareness, and when I lift my head, I watch as the Wraith Peak wolves still around freeze mid-retreat.
They know now, and with Dawson removed from the equation, it won’t be long before the pack dynamics shift, and a new Alpha rises.
Then, in an act of submission, they lower their heads before pulling away, dashing back within the trees. In an instant, one of my wolves calls, and I respond with a deep, resonating howl that spurs the others on.
At once, an anticipatory wave of excitement rolls through the pack link, almost making them come alive with primal energy, knowing I have won. Without hesitation, they chase after the Wraith Peak wolves, not to fight now, but to push them out of our territory.
The weight of what I have done sits firmly in my chest with a note of finality, and when I catch my father just within sight near the tree line in his wolf form, I already know he watched it all. He watched me choose another’s fate.
As our eyes meet from across the clearing, something moves between us, and it feels different now. Where disapproval often existed, acknowledgment sits instead, and for once, it doesn’t come with conditions. His head bows slightly in quiet respect, something so rarely given, and I sense his thoughts without him needing to say them.
You did what needed to be done.
For years, I chased after his approval as if it were the only thing that could sustain me. Every fight and every decision all came back to what he thought of me. For so long, I resented the way he shut down after mom died, leaving me to be a parent to my siblings, all while trying so hard to live up to his expectations when he drowned himself in work. Even when I committed myself to being the best brother and heir I could be, it never seemed to be enough.
But now, it’s like that weight has suddenly lifted, and I don’t need to look for that approval anymore.
For the first time, I don’t feel like I’m standing in his shadow. I’m my own man, an Alpha with people worth fighting for. I know what my convictions are, I know what’s important to me, and that’s what matters.
With a final look, Dad darts off through the trees with the others, helping to push the wolves out.
Once the clearing has mostly emptied, I find Sera standing a few yards away.
Her arms are streaked with try dirt, and her hair is wind-swept from the surge of magic that came from her earlier. She’s bright-eyed and only looking at me.
Finally able to truly breathe and lower my guard now, I slowly approach her, head lowered when I reach her. My body language melts into something more open and respectful, offering myself in a mate-to-mate exchange.
After a beat, I feel the gentle pressure of her hand against my head between the ears, and as I look up again, her palm slides to the side of my face.
Gazing at her, I don’t see any fear in her eyes. There’s no horror from knowing what I’ve done. Instead, she looks at me with a silent acceptance while her fingers run through my fur.
The bond rests quietly, soothed and no longer under threat. It’s warm and steady, more chosen and accepted than it has ever been.
I press into her touch a little more, eliciting a small smile from her, then I begin slowly through the trees, sending just to her,Come with me.
Sera doesn’t hesitate as she walks along next to me, hand resting on my shoulder as she feels my every step. Together, we slip through the trees and away from any lingering eyes.
