Chapter 81
-Maya’s POV-
A strong grip clamped onto my arm from behind, yanking me back just as I lunged forward. It was van. Dread washed over me for a moment, but then I saw him. My father. Emerging from the back of an ambulance, his face etched with pain and anger, burns marring his skin.
Alive
I blinked, confused. The dead body on the stretcher, covered in a white sheet, sent a jolt through me. My wolf senses had failed me
completely.
Shame burned in my throat, acrid and hot. I had assumed wrong. Whoever was on the stretcher must have been someone else. I immediately wanted to run towards him because I never learn. He’d told me point–blank he didn’t love me, yet here I was, ready to run to him again.
Ivan’s grip tightened on my arm and I turned to face the stern expression on his face. “Don’t. You know how this ends. It’s been a long night, let’s just get you home.”
I turned back to see my father’s scowl deepening deep in conversation with someone nearby.
Ivan sighed, a sound laced with frustration. “Come on.”
His grip firm as he began to lead me away. We walked in a tense silence, the image of my father, alive but uncaring, heavy on my mind. We were almost at the car when a voice cut through the commotion.
“Ivan!”
We both turned to see a man approaching, his face etched with concern. He spoke quickly, his words tumbling over each other. “We need to talk strategy. This attack on Daniel Stone, you could be next…”
Ivan’s jaw clenched tight. He let out a frustrated huff. “Look, I appreciate you coming by, but this isn’t the time. We’ve had a rough night.”
He cast me a sidelong glance, his expression unreadable. “Besides,” he continued, his voice hardening, “this whole mess wouldn’t have happened if someone hadn’t gone and bombed Alex’s meeting.”
With that, he pulled me to continue walking until we got to the car. I hadn’t noticed my father approaching because my back was turned to him but his voice cut in, his voice though rough, held a chilling edge. “Alex deserves everything he got. He started this war, and it’s time we finished it.”
Ivan’s eyes flashed with anger. “Don’t you dare try to turn this on Alex! Your reckless actions are what put Maya and everyone else in danger. 1 formed this alliance to strengthen our packs, not for you to use its power for a personal vendetta!”
My father’s shrug was like a dismissal, “He started it,” he said, his voice gruff. “You forgetting the whole wedding thing already? The bomb? Then he goes after my company, throws me in jail like some criminal. What the hell did you expect me to do? Just lie down and let him walk all over me?”
His
swords held anger, sure, but there was something else there too. A coldness that made me shiver, Ivan’s jaw clenched so tight I swear I heard his teeth grinding.
“There’s a difference, Daniel, between getting even and starting a full–blown warl” he yelled, his voice shaking with barely contained rage. “You could have done things differently! Instead, you go behind everyone’s back and bomb his meeting? Now people are dead, Maya’s a
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wreck, and the whole damn city’s on the verge of exploding!”
My father scoffed. “War doesn’t care about hurt feelings, Ivan. Alex lit the fire, now someone’s gotta put it out for good.”
“By starting another, bigger fire?” Ivan shot back, disbelief dripping from his voice. “There’s a way out of this, Daniel. We can find a way to settle things that doesn’t involve turning the whole city into a battlefield.”
“And what’s your brilliant plan, huh?” My father challenged, his voice laced with a dangerous edge. “Just sit back and let him walk all over us? Let him take everything I’ve built?”
His gaze flickered to me for a brief moment, but there was no warmth in his eyes. Just a steely glint of determination.
“This isn’t just about you anymore, Daniel,” Ivan said, his voice low and dangerous. “You dragged all of us into this. These are our people you’re putting at risk. My pack, your supposed ‘allies – they’re the ones getting caught in the crossfire.”
“They’re my wolves now too, aren’t they?” My father countered, his voice dripping with a smugness that made me want to punch him. “That’s the whole point of this merger, remember? We’re one pack now,”
He gestured towards the body on the stretcher, its form covered by a white sheet. A cold dread filled my gut as I realized what he was implying.
“This is what happens in war, Ivan,” my father said with a shrug. “There are casualties. You gonna cry about every single one?”
My stomach churned. This wasn’t some game, some movie where the hero could just walk away. Lives were being lost, families were being torn apart, and all because these Alex couldn’t seem to settle their differences like grown men.
Ivan stared at my father, his eyes burning with a mix of anger and something else – maybe even a flicker of sadness. “I need to take Amaya home. We’ll talk about this later. But one thing’s for sure this ends now. No more attacks, no more bloodshed. We find another way, or this
alliance is over.”
My father opened his mouth to retort, but Ivan cut him off with a sharp gesture. “Don’t even think about it,” he growled. “This isn’t about your pride or your need for revenge. This is about protecting our people. And if you can’t see that, then maybe it’s time you went your own
way.”
My father scoffed again, a harsh sound that scraped against my ears. “Threats, Ivan? You think that scares me? Alex started this fight, and I’ll be damned if I let him finish it. We built this alliance on the promise of strength, and that means protecting ourselves from those who would see us crumble.”
“Strength isn’t about reckless attacks, Daniel,” Ivan countered, his voice tight with controlled fury. “It’s about strategy, about finding a way to win without sacrificing innocent lives. You just handed Alex a weapon, a reason to escalate this whole mess further.”
“He already had a weapon,” my father shot back, his voice laced with a dangerous glint. “He used it on me, on my company. He doesn’t play fair, and neither will 1. This city might be our home, but it’s also a battlefield now, and I won’t let my guard down for a single second.”
to stop this The tension between them was thick enough to choke on. My heart hammered against my ribs.l wanted to scream, to beg them to stop madness, but the words wouldn’t come.
“There has to be another way,” Ivan pleaded, his voice softening slightly. “The council, negotiations, anything. We can’t just keep throwing fire at each other and expect the flames to die down.”
You can’t re
reason with a snake.You
My father let out a humorless chuckle. “Negotiations? With Alex? The man’s a snake. Just like his father. You just gotta crush it before it bites you. It’s their fault not mine.”
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“It doesn’t matter whose fault it is anymore!” Ivan yelled, his voice hoarse. “What matters is that we find a way to stop it!We can’t keep going down this path, Daniel. It leads nowhere but to more bloodshed.”
They locked eyes, a silent battle of wills raging between them. The air crackled with tension, and I felt a cold sweat prickle my skin.
A beat of silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating. Then, my father spoke, his voice low and dangerous. “I won’t back down. Not until Alex is dealt with. He wants a war? Then he’ll get one. And this time, he won’t like the ending.”
Ivan stared at him for a long moment, his face a mask of disappointment and anger. Finally, he seemed to deflate, the fight draining out of him. He turned to me, his gaze softening.
“Enough of this,” he said, his voice gruff but gentle. “Let’s just go home.”
He reached out and took my hand, his grip firm but comforting. As he pulled me away from my father, I stole a final glance back. His face was an unreadable mask, just plan emptiness.
He led me towards the car, and I didn’t resist. I was drained, both physically and emotionally. All I wanted was to escape the suffocating tension, to find a safe haven away from the brewing storm.
As we climbed into the car, I turned to Ivan, a question burning on my lips. “What are we going to do?”
Ivan met my gaze, his eyes filled with a deep sadness. “I don’t know, Maya,” he admitted. “But they are not going to stop. I’m afraid I can’t stop a war that has already began.”
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