Chapter 260: He was trembling

Everything unfolded in a chaotic, split-second blur. The blinding pain Yuki had braced for never arrived.

Before the rogue’s blade could cut into her flesh, a single, hyper-precise suppressed bullet shattered the rogue’s wrist. The brute let out an agonising shriek as his fingers buckled, the dagger clattering uselessly to the floor. As a hail of tactical rounds suppressed the rogue, a powerful arm wrapped around Yuki’s waist, violently yanking her out of the line of fire and slamming her against a broad, solid chest.

A familiar, soothing scent of rich pine and warm cinnamon wrapped around her senses, instantly anchoring her hyperventilating lungs despite the metallic reek of blood clinging to the fabric of his jacket.

"Stop trembling, Snowflake," a smooth, deep voice murmured directly into her hair, his calm tone contrasting sharply with the subtle, violent tremor radiating through his arms. "You can open your eyes now."

Yuki knew that voice instantly. She had recognised him the exact moment her face had been pressed into the heavy weave of his dark coat. She lifted her head, her wide emerald eyes meeting a pair of steady, intense blue ones.

"Killian... What... what are you doing here?"

Before he could answer, a sickening, bone-crunching snap echoed through the concourse, followed by an agonising, throat-shredding scream from the floor behind them. Yuki’s head darted sideways.

The rogue was pinned face-down on the marble tiles beneath the heavy tactical boot of Maverick, who was casually twisting the male’s uninjured arm behind his back with terrifying leverage.

Xavier’s frantic sprint ground to a sudden halt, his breath catching in his throat as he took in the sudden, seamless neutralisation of the threat.

Kaden’s booming, authoritative voice echoed across the mezzanine, addressing the terrified shoppers cowering behind the pillars. "The threat is neutralised! Follow the perimeter guards to the nearest emergency exits in an orderly fashion!"

Dozens of elite Royal Guards, clad in midnight-black tactical armour bearing the crest of the pack Delta, swarmed out of the service stairwells, taking control of the perimeter and clearing the floor with practised efficiency.

Xavier stood frozen, watching Killian hold Yuki against his chest with an unreadable, deeply complicated expression. He had seen the entire sequence play out in a heartbeat.

The moment the elevator doors had opened, Killian had fired the opening shot with surgical precision, disarmed the rogue, and yanked Yuki into his arms before Maverick and the elite unit flooded the space to pin the target. These weren’t standard border soldiers. These were the elite Royal Guards, commanded directly by Maverick’s father, the Delta, under Alpha Alexander’s authority.

A heavy hand landed firmly on Xavier’s shoulder.

"Told you I had everything under control," Kaden said, stepping up beside his best friend and wiping a streak of rogue blood from his cheek with the back of his tactical glove.

Xavier turned his head sharply, staring at Kaden in utter bewilderment. "How... how did they get here so fast?"

Kaden shrugged nonchalantly. "Backup. I contacted Killian twenty minutes ago to get formal authorisation from Alexander to deploy the Royal Guard units into the commercial district. The rogue signatures inside the city were higher than our initial intel suggested." He glanced towards his older brother. "I knew Killian was taking the express transit up to the concourse. I just needed the bastard to stand in front of that specific elevator."

The heavy, suffocating tension in Xavier’s shoulders finally broke, leaving behind a dull, hollow ache in his chest. He felt infuriatingly useless. If Kaden hadn’t used his Alpha command to force him back, his reckless impulse might have gotten Yuki killed.

"Yuki!" Xavier called out, his voice laced with quiet distress as he hurried forward.

Yuki’s gaze shifted to him, and she immediately pulled away from Killian’s chest, stepping towards Xavier and throwing her arms around his waist. "Xavier... I was so scared," she admitted, burying her face into his shoulder.

Killian’s arms froze in mid-air for a fraction of a second where she had just been standing. Something cold and bitter tightened deep in his throat, but he quickly dropped his hands to his sides, forcing his face into a mask of total indifference as he tore his eyes away from the pair.

"Take her away from here, Velmore," Killian instructed flatly, his deep voice carrying a sharp, professional edge. "The perimeter isn’t completely swept yet."

He shoved down the raw, suffocating discomfort twisting in his gut as he watched Xavier gently wrap his arm around Yuki’s shoulders to comfort her. ’This is how it’s supposed to be,’ Killian reminded himself ruthlessly. ’She is safer with him. She gets her normal life.’

Xavier nodded solemnly, placing a protective hand over Yuki’s head. "Come on, Yuki. Let’s get you home."

Yuki nodded faintly, allowing Xavier to guide her back towards the far elevator bank. But just before stepping into the lift, she paused, turning her head back over her shoulder to steal one last glance at the two brothers standing amidst the tactical unit.

Her eyes lingered on Killian’s right hand, noticing the subtle, uncontrollable tremor in his fingers before he shoved it deep into his coat pocket. Why are his hands shaking? she wondered, her brow furrowing slightly. Was he actually... scared?

The silver elevator doors slid shut, cutting off her view.

Once the lift was out of sight, Kaden casually strolled over to where Killian was standing, leaning his shoulder against a marble pillar. He glanced down at Killian’s pocket.

"Your hand is trembling, brother."

Killian immediately clenched his fist inside his coat, forcing the muscle spasm to stop. "It’s nothing," he replied smoothly, his tone dry as bone. "I’ve been on my feet all day."

Kaden let out a short, cynical snort, clearly not buying the weak excuse. Killian Ravencourt never cracked under physical strain, let alone during a simple hostage extraction. But Kaden chose not to push the issue.

"Thanks for the timely backup," Kaden offered, adjusting his tactical belt. "Honestly, I didn’t expect you to show up in person for a perimeter sweep."

Killian’s lips curved into a dark, mocking smirk as he turned to face his younger brother. "I simply wanted to see what kind of monumental operation was important enough to make you alter your priorities for the first time in your life."

Kaden went dead quiet, his jaw tightening as he stared back at him. "I’m a General of the Ravencourt military, Killian. Duty comes first."

"Indeed," Killian drawled, his piercing blue eyes glinting with dry, taunting amusement. "I’m glad to see my little brother finally growing up."