Page 99 of Alpha's Rejected Warrior
“Why would he take it?” Rhiannon asks. “Does having two make him more powerful?”
Haron shakes her head slowly, fresh tears building. “No, the only reason to take it would be—” Her breath hitches. “To make sure our father wouldn’t survive the attack.”
“But he did.” I soften my voice, watching her world crack apart in real time.
“Only because of the two of you.” Haron sniffles.
Rhiannon releases a long breath and gives a curt nod. “Fine. I’m stationing guards outside both your room and the infirmary for your father. Twenty-four hours.”
“I welcome it,” Haron says quickly. “They can protect both of us from Holden if he returns.”
“He won’t return.” Rhiannon’s voice drops to something deadly. “Because we’re going to find him first.”
She turns on her heel, already moving toward the courtyard.
“Please be careful,” Haron says to me. “My brother can be very dangerous.”
Despite knowing she’d been ready to sacrifice me to Jayme, I force out a “thank you.”
The necklace goes into the pocket of my jeans as I follow Rhiannon. Through my peripheral vision, Haron drops onto a stone bench, burying her face in her palms. What goes through someone’s head when they grasp that they’re aiding a search party to hunt down their twin?
Rhiannon doesn’t wait for me as she exits the gardens, her shoulders hunched tightly.
“Where are you going?” I call after her when we’re out of earshot.
“To tell Xander.” She doesn’t turn around or slow down, but her voice is low and controlled. Dangerous.
“Wait up. What’s wrong?”
She stops dead in her tracks, then whips around to face me. “You shouldn’t have interfered.”
“Interfered?” I keep my tone even as I catch up to her. “You mean when I stopped you from ripping her apart? Trust me, I thought about letting you, but we needed her to tell us where Holden is. You know I’m right.”
“You—” Gold flares in her eyes before she turns away. “I’m done discussing this.”
She stalks off toward the fortress. The necklace grows warmer against my hip, and I have no idea if that’s a good or bad sign.
Whatever it is, I have a feeling I’m going to need it to protect me from more than just Holden.
Chapter 37 — Rhiannon
“We need to move against Holden now.” I plant my hands on Xander’s desk, the wood grain rough beneath my palms. “Every moment we wait, he could be planning another attack through Jayme.”
Akila paces near the window. “He turned Jayme into a weapon. Made him attack people he’d die to protect.”
“I want to rip that bastard apart.” Conan pounds his fist into the arm of his chair.
“The Osorin Temple is north of here. We can get there in three hours if we push hard.” I straighten, meeting Xander’s silver-blue gaze. “We should go as a small team: me, Branson, Akila, and Conan. We know the terrain, and we can handle whatever magic Holden throws at us.”
Xander leans back in his chair. “You’re asking me to authorize an attack on a Shaman Elder’s son while his father lies unconscious in our infirmary. The political ramifications—”
“Screw the politics.” The words burst out before I can stop them. My wolf bristles at challenging my Alpha, but I press on.“Holden’s controlling one of our own. He tried tomurderhis father. He’s sabotaging all the work you’ve done for this summit—”
“Commander.” The single word from Xander stops me mid-breath.
Ethan reaches into his pocket. “Haron wants him stopped too.”
The crystal catches the torch light as he sets it on Xander’s desk. The protective charm gleams like captured starlight, its delicate chain pooling around it.
