60 Chapter 60
Betrayed by Blood- Chapter 60
Xander sat in the corner of the cell, his left arm throbbing dully. A groan escaped his lips and his feet jerked forward, hitting the plate placed on the floor by his feet. He glanced at it; it was still filled with the stale bread and cold baked beans given to him in the morning. He didn’t take a bite of it, not trusting any of the guards around, Although they were once under his command and followed his orders, now they were different. He was no longer the head warrior, and they didn’t respect him anymore. Xander groaned again, leaning back against the walls. He shut his eyes tightly. The iron door groaned open, and Xander squinted against the sudden influx of light. He saw her immediately, Lydia. She stood outside the cell, talking to a guard for a second. The guard then marched up to his cell and unlocked it, allowing Lydia into the cell.
Lydia stepped in, her shoulders squared, the dark circles under her eyes betraying her exhaustion. It had been days since he last saw her, and he believed Caine was allowing her to visit him. “How are you feeling?” She asked, stopping right in front of him Xander snorted humorlessly, looking up at her and seeing the exhaustion clearer than before. “Shitty,” he responded as he finally got to his feet.
“What do you have for me, Lydia? What’s going on?” He asked, and she sighed internally, locking her lips hesitantly.
“I- I-” she began, the words feeling heavy on her tongue.
Xander’s expression hardened, his heart beating louder than ever in his chest. “Lydia,” he called out, and she stopped, lifting her eyes to stare at him.
“It was futile. Callum is on his way back to the pack,” she replied. “The blood root–he couldn’t find it there. It went cold. The seller couldn’t be found.”
Xander’s face drained of blood instantly. This was the only way he could have been proven innocent. Lydia found a link, a way to prove his innocence. If they found the seller of the poison, then he would be clear. He would be proven innocent, but this-
“Xander,” Lydia called out.
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No response. He was too deep in thought.
“Xander,” she called out again.
No response still.
“Xan-” she was cut off roughly.
“Why is Callum coming back here? He needs to stay there and find the seller. He can’t come here. How is that supposed to prove my innocence? He has to-”
Lydia’s eyes widened, seeing him agitated. “Xander, you have to calm down. We are doing=”
“Enough!” Xander’s voice boomed, echoing throughout the dungeon walls. His head snapped up, his eyes wild and filled with frustration. “Don’t say it, Lydia. Don’t try to tell me to stay calm or to hold on. I’ve done enough of that, and look where it’s gotten me.” He groaned frustratedly as he ran his fingers through his hair.
“What am I supposed to do? What happens to me now? This is the one lead that could’ve exonerated me, but I’m back to square one. What happens if Cain finds me guilty? What happens if he wakes up one morning and decides to hash it out with me? I could be executed, Lydia!”
Lydia flinched but quickly collected herself. “I’m not saying that,” she said softly, though her voice trembled slightly. “I’m just-”
“You’re just what?” he interrupted, his tone sharp as a blade. “Here to give me more bad news? To remind me how hopeless this is? I don’t need it, Lydia.” He paced a few steps, his shoulders taut with tension.
Lydia’s fists clenched at her sides, her nails digging into her palms. “I’m not here to remind you how hopeless things are,” she said. “I’m here because I believe you still have a chance, even if you refuse to see it!”
her, his j
Xander stopped pacing and turned to set. “A chance? What chance, Lydia? Cain’s already made up his mind. You know how he is. If he wanted me dead, he’d have done it by now. This isn’t about justice. It’s about power. He wants me to rot in here, humiliated, broken. I am losing my mind in here, and I have nothing to prove my innocence.” He dragged his hand over his face… “How long do I stay in here and continue to rot? I have lost my arm, Lydia! I am not the man I was before.
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Lydia’s chest tightened at the raw pain in Xander’s voice. She had never seen him like this–so stripped of the confidence he always carried, so deeply broken.
“You’re right,” she admitted softly, her voice barely above a whisper. “You’re not the same man you were before. But that doesn’t mean you’re nothing, Xander. You’re still a warrior. You’re still a survivor, the Xander I know doesn’t give up.”
Xander let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. “A warrior?” he repeated mockingly. “Look at me, Lydia. I can’t even fight back if I wanted to. They’ve taken everything from me–my position, my respect, my arm. I have nothing. I am nothing”
Lydia’s heart clenched; she couldn’t watch this go on any longer. Her brother had now become a shell of the man he was once. She couldn’t let this go on any longer. She has to keep searching for the proof of his innocence, but first, she has to convince Cain to let him out of the cell. At least put him on house arrest. She doesn’t mind going on her knees and writhing on the floor just so he listens to her.
Lydia stepped closer to Xander, placing her hand over his arm. “I promise you won’t stay in here for much longer. I will get you out even if it’s the last thing I do. I promise you.” She said, but he didn’t say a word in return; he didn’t even look at her. Clearly, he had lost all his will.
Lydia swallowed hard, glancing outside the cell where the guard now stood, waiting for her. Her time with him for the day was up. She opened her mouth to bid Xander goodbye but paused; she couldn’t, and so she stepped out of the cell even if every nerve in her body protested against it.
Once she was out of the dungeon, Xander slumped back against the wall, his eyes shut tightly. When he finally opened his eyes, his mind was already made up.
He walked towards the iron bars, his eyes locked directly with the guard. “Get Alpha Matt here.”
Carol sat by the balcony, a book in her hands and a mug next to her. Her eyes flickered through the book, a small smile making its way to her lips. This was the first peaceful atmosphere she’d gotten since she arrived at the pack.
It was short–lived, of course.
The door to her room slammed open with a crash. Kendra stormed in, her face red
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with anger. Her heels echoed sharply against the floor. She didn’t bother with greetings, slamming the door shut behind her with a force that made the walls shake.
Carol didn’t flinch.
“What is it this time?” She asked as she dropped the book she was reading to look at her daughter. Kendra stormed over to the alcohol cabinet and grabbed a bottle of whiskey, downing it in one go. She then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, anger still bubbling inside of her.
“What is wrong is Avery! Mother. Avery is what is wrong this time and every other freaking time. I can’t stand this any longer. I don’t understand why we can’t just finish this! Why is that little wench still breathing? She’s a problem–a distraction. Every second she stays alive is a problem. Her existence is what is wrong with me.” She all but screamed.
Carol stared at her, “And every time you lose your temper like this, Kendra, you’re the one who’s at risk. Calm yourself. Recklessness will undo everything we’ve worked for.” “Calm down? Avery is in pre–heat, Mother! Pre–heat. Do you understand how insane that is? Am I going to sit still while she spends her heat with Cain? Is that it, m
er?
Kendra stopped pacing, her chest heaving as she glared at Carol. “Tell me, mother. Why can’t we be rid of her once and for all? Why do you have to drag this out so hard? I’m losing Cain by each passing minute, and I can’t do anything about it. He’s slipping through my fingers, and you’re watching, Mother! When exactly are you going to act for me? Everything we’ve done up till now has been futile. I can’t continue this any longer. I want Avery dead. I want her out of Cain’s life.”
“Calm down, Kendra. Avery is only in pre–heat yet. It’s not like she’s already in heat. You need to calm down and think. After everything we’ve done so far. We have to be careful; the situation is not under control yet, Xander is still in the dungeons, and Cain is watching everyone like a hawk. Do you honestly believe you can act now without. drawing suspicion?”
Kendra’s eyes burned with frustration. “If we wait any longer, we’ll miss our chance. Cain’s obsessed with her–if she shares her heat with him, there’ll be no way to break their bond. He’ll never reject her, and you know it.”
Carol sighed, standing from her chair. She walked over to Kendra, placing a hand on her shoulder, “I understand you, but this isn’t the time to act. The tension in the pack
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is still high. The assassin, Xander’s situation, and Cain’s anger. All of it is unstable. If we make a move now, we’ll be exposed. And that, Kendra, will ruin us both.”
Kendra’s eyes burned with tears; she ran her fingers through her hair frustratedly, almost pulling her hair. “What do I do then, mother? What do I do?” She choked out.
Carol stared at her for a second longer then shook her head, gently wiping the tear off Kendra’s cheek. “Leave it all to me. I promise you, Avery is never sharing her heat with Cain. Not when I’m alive. It’ll never happen.”
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