"Look at me," Alexander commanded, his voice barely above a whisper.
Brandon flinched. The Alpha of Shadowmere remained pinned to the concrete, unable to lift his chin from the rough pavement. The invisible weight of the King's aura pressed him flat against the ground.
"I said, look at me."
Brandon forced his head up. His eyes met Alexander's, and the color drained from his face. The King's gaze was freezing, a suffocating force that left the plaza silent.
"Your Majesty, please," Brandon whimpered. "I have a family."
"Ah!" Victoria shrieked from the sidelines.
She grabbed her swollen belly, contorting her face into a mask of sudden agony. "Brandon! The baby! It hurts!"
She tried to crawl toward him, dragging her torn silk maternity dress across the red carpet. "Help me! The stress is causing contractions!"
"Victoria!" Brandon yelled, reaching a trembling hand toward her.
Before she could close the distance, a towering figure stepped into her path.
Gideon, the Captain of the Royal Guard, planted his steel-toed boots on the pavement. He did not draw his sword. He just stared down at her, an immovable wall of black uniform and muscle.
"Move!" Victoria screamed, clutching her stomach harder. "I am in labor! Are you going to let an Alpha's heir die on the street?"
"You are not in labor," Gideon stated. His voice sounded like grinding stones. "Your heart rate is steady. Your scent betrays no pain. Stay on the ground."
"You brute! I need my mate!"
Gideon merely crossed his arms. "Take another step, and I will consider it an act of aggression against the King."
Victoria froze. The fake tears vanished. She sank back onto her heels, her mouth snapping shut as she realized her performance had failed.
Alexander turned his attention back to Brandon.
"You value your property," Alexander observed, glancing at the silver luxury SUV parked in the VIP drop-off zone. "You value your status."
"Sire, I worked my entire life for my pack," Brandon pleaded. "Do not take everything from me over a ruined tire."
"You think this is about a tire?" I asked, stepping out from behind Alexander's protective hold.
Brandon glared at me, a flash of his old arrogance returning. "You stay out of this, Aria. This is between men."
Alexander's jaw tightened. "She is the only reason you are still breathing."
The King raised a single, gloved finger.
He didn't look at Gideon. He didn't need to.
The Guard Captain turned away from Victoria and marched straight toward the silver SUV. He reached into the trunk of the Royal transport vehicle parked nearby and pulled out a massive, long-handled sledgehammer.
Brandon's eyes widened. "Wait. What is he doing? That is a custom build! It cost me a fortune!"
Gideon swung the heavy steel hammer backward, his broad shoulders bunching under his dark uniform.
With a brutal grunt, he brought the weapon down directly onto the center of the SUV's hood.
CRASH.
The metal caved. A jagged crater formed in the pristine silver paint. The front grille snapped, sending pieces of expensive chrome flying across the pavement.
"No!" Brandon screamed, thrashing against the invisible force keeping him down.
Gideon did not stop. He ripped the hammer free and swung again, this time aiming for the windshield.
The heavy steel head connected with a deafening crack. Shattered glass exploded outward, raining tiny, glittering fragments over the red carpet and the concrete drop-off zone.
"Stop him!" Brandon begged, tears finally spilling down his cheeks. "Please! I just bought it!"
I watched the destruction, my pulse steadying. Five years ago, Brandon had driven away in a car just like that one, leaving me standing in the dirt with a single dollar bill. He had laughed at my tears. He had mocked my pain.
Now, he was crying over bent metal.
Gideon brought the hammer down a third time, obliterating the driver's side door. The frame buckled. The side mirror snapped off and bounced into the gutter.
"Alexander," I murmured, resting my hand on his arm.
He looked down at me, the ice in his eyes melting away. "Does it please you?"
"It is a good start," I admitted.
Leo tugged on my neon-orange courier jacket. "Mom, that man is breaking the bad Alpha's car."
"I know, baby," I said, smoothing his dark hair. "Stay behind me."
"Your Majesty," Victoria interrupted, changing her tactic. She pushed herself up, ignoring her supposedly agonizing contractions. "I had no part in this. Brandon acted on his own. I told him to leave her alone."
"Victoria!" Brandon snapped, betrayal flashing across his face. "What are you doing?"
"I am protecting our pup!" she shot back. She looked up at Alexander, batting her eyelashes. "Please, Sire. I am just a mother trying to survive. Punish him, but spare me."
Alexander didn't even blink. "Your loyalty is as cheap as your tears."
Gideon stepped closer to her. "Silence yourself, or I will remove you from the plaza."
Victoria shrank back, her lips trembling.
"The engine," Alexander ordered casually, not taking his eyes off Brandon. "Make sure it never starts again."
Gideon raised the hammer high. He brought it down directly on the engine block. A sickening crunch echoed through the plaza, followed by the hiss of leaking fluids. Dark oil pooled onto the red carpet, staining it black.
Brandon let out a gut-wrenching wail. "The engine! Do you know how long I waited for that?"
"You always thought you were untouchable," I told Brandon, stepping over a piece of broken chrome. "You built your entire life on stepping on people you thought were weaker than you."
"You are weaker than me," he spat, blood dripping from his chin where it had hit the concrete. "You have no wolf. You have no power."
"I have my dignity," I replied. "Something you clearly lost the second a stronger Alpha walked into the room."
"You manipulated him!" Brandon yelled, pointing a shaking finger at Alexander. "You used your pathetic sob story to get the King to fight your battles!"
"She didn't have to say a word," Alexander intervened.
Gideon lowered the hammer, resting the heavy steel head on the ground. He looked to Alexander for further instructions.
The King finally released the crushing pressure holding Brandon to the ground.
Brandon gasped, sucking in massive lungfuls of air. He scrambled backward, dragging himself toward the ruined shell of his vehicle. He touched the dented hood, his hands shaking hard.
"My car," he whispered, staring at the destroyed engine block.
Alexander stepped forward, his boots crunching over the shattered glass. He stopped just inches from Brandon's trembling hands.
"Did you think a broken windshield settled your debt?" Alexander asked, his tone flat and merciless.
Brandon flinched, pulling his hands away from the ruined metal. "You destroyed my vehicle. You humiliated me in front of my mate. What more do you want?"
"Humiliation?" Alexander echoed. "I have not even begun to humiliate you."
"I am an Alpha!" Brandon shouted, desperation making him reckless. "You cannot treat me like a common criminal!"
"You attacked a woman under my protection," Alexander said. "You threatened a child under my care. Your title means absolutely nothing to me."
Victoria crawled toward Brandon, grabbing his sleeve. "Stop talking, Brandon. Just let it go. We need to leave."
"Leave?" Alexander asked. "You are not going anywhere."
He gestured to the two Royal guards standing near the hotel entrance. "Confiscate their communication devices. Seize their luggage."
"You cannot do this!" Brandon yelled as the guards marched forward.
"I am the King," Alexander reminded him. "I can do whatever I deem necessary to protect what is mine."
He looked down at the pathetic Alpha, his expression devoid of any mercy.
"You have twenty-four hours. Tomorrow, the Royal Lycan Court will decide the fate of your territory."
