When she got to Lucas' office, the door was already open. Convenient. She stepped inside and found him lounging on a couch.
He didn't even bother with a greeting. "I've reached Alpha Leon. He's approved entry into his territory. We leave in two weeks."
Ava frowned. "We?"
Lucas gave her a pointed look. "I do not like repeating myself."
Okay, Your Majesty, we get it. You're arrogant.
"Why do I have to go?" she demanded.
Lucas finally looked at her. "The contract concerns you, doesn't it?"
And then, the smirk. That infuriating, condescending smirk.
"What? Afraid to see your ex-mate again? Or is it nervous? I thought you'd miss him. He was, after all, your mate."
Ava squared her shoulders. "I do not miss him."
Lucas shrugged. "Good. Then you may go."
That was it? No threats? No ridiculous power play? Just... go?
Two weeks. And that was all he summoned her for. To fill her in on his ridiculous and obsessive agenda to take over her forr pack.
She clenched her jaw and turned on her heel.
*****
Lucas watched her go, truth be told, he was both amused and mildly entertained. She was pissed. He knew that. It wasn't exactly difficult to tell when Ava was annoyed—her entire presence scread defiance.
She wants my attention, he mused. They all did. That was nothing new. But Ava? She was different. Instead of scheming, flirting, or throwing themselves at him like the others, she acted like his attention was an inconvenience she was forced to deal with.
And yet...
Here she was, fuming because she wasn't getting enough of it.
It was almost cute.
If she wanted him close, all she had to do was ask. Nicely. Maybe even beg.
Now that would be sothing to see.
But no. Ava was incapable of doing anything the easy way. No, no, no—she had to be difficult. It was like it was written into her DNA.
She'd already proved that when she wandered off the fortress grounds and almost strolled straight into Dennis' rogue encampnt.
Lucas clenched his jaw at the mory. That had not been amusing.
His irritation hadn't just been because of the risk—it was because she had no idea what she was walking into.
And worse? She didn't respect Beta Drogan's authority at all.
That was another problem.
Drogan was supposed to be his second-in-command, but Ava treated him like a security guard who wasn't doing his job properly. The Beta was the most feared warriors in Silver Pack, could rival Lucas himself, yet sohow, Ava made him look like a frazzled babysitter.
Lucas smirked at the thought.
What she lacked without her wolf, she more than made up for in sheer willpower. She was stubborn, reckless, and didn't know when to shut up—which was either an admirable trait or a mildly concerning one, depending on the day.
But still... he had found her weakness.
She cared.
She cared for people.
And that? That made her breakable.
Leon had been a damn idiot. Ava would have made a fine Luna—if he hadn't been too blind to see it.
Not that it mattered anymore.
Lucas wasn't bringing her to Crimson Pack just to sign the peace treaty. No, the real reason was far more personal.
He didn't trust her.
And when Ava was left unsupervised... well, let's just say, he preferred not to return to a kingdom in flas.
*****
Ava woke up the next day with one clear realization: she was going to lose her mind if she stayed in that fortress another minute.
So, she did what any self-respecting rebel would do—she got dressed, grabbed the Alpha's black card, and her new phone just in case.
She had barely stepped into the garage when she ran smack into Beta Drogan.
"You again? You're like a bad penny."
She crossed her arms, giving him her best unimpressed look.
Drogan raised a brow. "Going sowhere?"
Ava let out a dramatic sigh. "Not that it's any of your business, but since I know you're going to report everything to your overlord, I'm going shopping."
Shopping. Therapy for the oppressed.
Drogan sighed, probably already exhausted by this conversation, and motioned for one of the guards to drive her.
"Try not to get into trouble this ti."
Ava scoffed.
She glanced around the garage, filled with an impressive collection of vehicles fit for a narcissistic warlord. Her eyes landed on the sleek black Lamborghini Urus—the very car she had arrived in.
"That one," she declared, pointing at it with the confidence of soone who fully intended to ignore all rules.
Drogan rolled his eyes. "That one is specifically for the Alpha."
Ava raised a brow. "But I rode in it before."
"With. The. Alpha." Drogan's patience was visibly hanging by a thread.
"Well, you just said it's 'specifically for the Alpha,' which ans only the Alpha gets to ride in it. But if I've already been in it before, doesn't that an—"
Drogan shut his eyes as if ntally transporting himself to a peaceful place far away from her nonsense.
"Ava..." he exhaled. "For the love of God, pick anything else!"
Ava grinned. Mission Annoy the Beta was a success.
"Fine! Mr. Grumpy."
"Oh dear God," he muttered under his breath.
She strutted away, leaving him fuming in place, and made her way to a red Dodge Challenger.
The guard grabbed the keys, and a few minutes later, they were off.
Ava had a plan. If the alpha didn't give her the attention and ti of day she needed, she would remind him every minute that she existed.
*****
Beta Drogan stord off toward the Alpha's office, internally debating whether or not he should just pretend he hadn't seen Ava leave. But no, his overdeveloped sense of duty wouldn't allow that.
Lucas needed to know that his rebellious little pet was out running wild with his black card.
Honestly, why was she still here? Any other concubine would have been thrown out on her ass for half the things she had pulled. Yet, here she was—untad, unbothered, and sohow still breathing.
When he entered the Alpha's office, Lucas barely looked up from the massive map of Silver Pack spread across his desk.
"Drogan?" The Alpha's voice was calm. Too calm. That was never a good sign.
Then Lucas asked a very dangerous question.
"Tell , I would really like to know... how the hell is my brother and his band of rogues still alive?"
Drogan blinked. "I don't understand, Alpha."
Lucas finally turned his attention to him, his piercing gaze making it clear he wasn't in the mood for stupidity.
"We cut off their route to human territories. No one sells to them. They have no revenue, no supplies. I assud that within two years, they'd either be dead or crawling back to ." He leaned back, his fingers drumming against the desk. "And yet, ten years later... they still exist. Why?"
Drogan shifted uncomfortably. "Alpha... how should I know?"
Lucas exhaled slowly. "The boy Ava was trying to save—he's a rogue from my brother's pack. What the hell was he doing on my land?"
Drogan hesitated. The Alpha had never cared before. Why now?
Lucas answered before he could even ask. "Sothing Ava said the other day has been nagging at ."
Now that was a sentence Drogan never expected to hear.
Ava? Causing problems even when she wasn't in the room? Shocking.
"What did she say?" Drogan asked, standing straight.
"A pack is easier to destroy from the inside." Lucas' eyes darkened. "If Dennis is still alive and thriving, then soone in my pack is betraying ."
Drogan stiffened. "Alpha, no one would dare."
Lucas tilted his head with that dangerous smirk of his. "Soone with ans and wealth."
"Maybe it's another pack—"
Lucas cut him off. "Did you forget? They have to go through my territory. Which ans it's soone from my pack."
Drogan exhaled, his mind already racing through the possibilities. Smuggling supplies past their border? Feeding the enemy? This was treason.
"I will look into it—"
Lucas' voice turned ice-cold. "Is it you, Drogan?"
"Alpha?"
"You have the ans. You have the wealth..."
"I would never betray you. Besides, Dennis has always been resourceful. You know that. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he turned his entire rogue pack into farrs."
Lucas narrowed his eyes, considering the idea. Dennis as a rogue alpha farr? The ntal image was almost funny.
"Hmm." Lucas exhaled sharply, tapping his fingers against the desk again. "In any case, assign more Gammas to the streets. Any smuggler should be killed on sight."
Drogan nodded. "Yes, Alpha."
Then he rembered sothing else.
He opened his mouth to speak, but before he could even get a word out—
"WHAT THE FUCK?!"
Lucas' growl shook the room. His phone was blowing up with notifications.
"What the fuck is she buying?"
Drogan cleared his throat. "Actually, I ca here to tell you—she went shopping."
Lucas wiped a hand down his face and let out a deep, murderous growl.
"Is it really a good idea to hand over your black card to her?"
Lucas shot him a deadly look. Drogan wisely shut up.
"You can go," Lucas muttered, waving him off.
Drogan turned to leave, but the notifications just kept coming.
DING.
DING.
DING.
Lucas' jaw twitched. His eye twitched.
This was her way of getting his attention.
He exhaled slowly, forcing himself not to react.
It wasn't going to work.
She was going to submit. Just like every other concubine.
...Right?
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