Chapter 501: You, no way!

NOAH.

The dull, throbbing ache behind my eyes pounded in rhythm with my heartbeat as I pulled myself up from the stone bench in the courtyard.

I winced, pressing two fingers hard against my temple. The remnants of the wolfsbane in my system were still fighting dirty, leaving a metallic taste on my tongue and a heavy, nauseating pressure in my skull. I shook my head, trying to rattle the dull fog out of my brain, and let out a harsh, irritated breath.

Dusk was settling over the pack house. The sky above the courtyard had turned a bruised, dark purple, and the freezing mountain air bit into the back of my neck.

All around me, the courtyard was a hive of controlled chaos. Armor clanked, heavy iron boots stomped across the cobblestones, and the sharp scent of polished leather and weapon oil filled the air. My elite guards were lining up in tight, orderly rows, strapping on their silver-and-black chest plates and securing heavy war axes to their saddles.

Standing near the main archway, three of the quadruplets were already fully geared for war.

Aidan, Davian, and Damien looked like bloodthirsty warlords ready to tear the mountains apart. Their dark, heavy steel armor gleamed in the flickering light of the courtyard torches. Aidan was tightening the leather straps on his gauntlets, his face set in stone. Davian was casually testing the edge of his broadsword with his thumb, a vicious, expectant smirk resting on his lips. Damien stood right beside his war horse, adjusting his heavy leather cloak, his golden Alpha eyes fixed on the open timber gates.

They were completely ready. Ready to march, ready to kill, and ready to put an end to Prince Vincent’s army.

I blinked, sweeping my eyes across the crowd, expecting to see the fourth brother strapped into his gear. But my brow furrowed as my gaze landed on Adrein.

Adrein was leaning casually against the stone pillar near the infirmary steps. He wasn’t wearing an ounce of steel. No chest plate, no shoulder guards, no leather armor. He was still wearing his simple woolen tunic and dark trousers, his hands shoved deep into his pockets, looking like he was preparing for a quiet evening by the fire rather than a full-scale battle.

I shoved myself off the bench, my boots crunching heavily against the gravel as I marched straight up to him. The headache slammed into my temples again, making my jaw clench in annoyance.

"What the hell are you doing Adrein?" I demanded, stopping two feet away from him and gesturing sharply toward his plain clothes. "Why aren’t you dressed alongside your brothers? The army marches in five minutes."

Adrein didn’t flinch. He slowly leaned back against the stone pillar, looking at me with a calm, unbothered expression that instantly set my teeth on edge.

"I’m not coming," Adrein said flatly.

I stared at him, letting out a short, incredulous scoff. "You’re not coming? Are you out of your mind? Your brothers are geared up to assault Vincent’s war camp, and you’re planning on sitting this one out?"

"I’m staying right here," Adrein replied, his voice low, steady, and entirely stubborn. "I’m protecting Maria."

I let out another harsh laugh, shaking my head as the throbbing in my skull spiked. "Protecting Maria? Adrein, look around you!" I threw my arm out toward the courtyard, pointing at the towering stone walls and the dozens of heavily armed warriors patrolling the ramparts. "Maria is inside my pack house. She has my guards, my border traps, and my territory surrounding her. She already has me to ensure she stays safe. There is zero reason for you to sit on your hands while the rest of them go to war!"

"I don’t care whose house this is, Noah," Adrein shot back, stepping off the pillar, his calm demeanor instantly evaporating into a hard, defensive edge. "I’m not leaving her. Period."

"You’re being completely ridiculous," I snapped, crossing my arms tightly over my chest as I glared down at him. "Vincent’s entire heavy line is gathering at the ridge right now. Aidan, Davian, and Damien need every single Alpha blade on the front line if we’re going to crush his vanguard before they reach the valley. You’re wasting your strength standing around in a hallway!"

"I don’t give a damn about Vincent’s vanguard!" Adrein growled, his golden eyes flashing with sudden, dangerous heat as he took a step toward me. "The last time we all left her side to play war games, Daniel slipped poison into her drink and Vincent dragged her off into the dark! I made a promise to myself back in that ranger cabin that I would never turn my back on her again while she was vulnerable!"

"She isn’t vulnerable anymore!" I barked, my raspy voice raising over the noise of the courtyard. "Her blood is clean! The physician is standing outside her door, and my head of security has twenty archers posted on the infirmary roof! Nobody is getting anywhere near her... and whereas I am here!"

"It doesn’t matter, Noah!" Adrein yelled back, his chest heaving as he stood his ground, refusing to yield an inch of space. "If Vincent sends a secondary strike team around the mountain pass while your main army is busy at the ridge, who’s going to be inside this room to cut them down?" He paused. "Only you... no way! I’m staying right here, and none of you are going to force me out of these gates!"

"You arrogant bastard—" I started, taking an aggressive step forward, my Alpha power flaring in response to his defiance.

Before the words could fully leave my mouth, the heavy timber doors at the side entrance of the courtyard were violently thrown open.

One of my border guards burst through the doorway, his chest heaving violently, his face covered in a mixture of cold sweat and dirt. He was panting heavily, clutching a bleeding tear in his leather tunic as he stumbled blindly across the cobblestones toward us.

"Alpha Noah!" the guard gasped out, his voice laced with pure terror as he collapsed to his knees right between Adrein and me. "Alpha Noah...!"