To ruin an Omega

Chapter 127: Covert 2

FIA

The terror slammed through me so hard I thought I might collapse.

Aldric wanted to stay behind. Wanted to be here while everyone else was at the wedding. While the estate would be nearly empty. While Morrigan would be most vulnerable.

This was it. This was his move.

My hands trembled. I clenched them into fists and tried to keep my breathing steady. Tried to keep my face neutral. But the fear was suffocating. Overwhelming. I couldn’t think past the screaming panic in my head.

I dropped the shield and let everything I felt crash through the bond.

I let Cian feel the absolute terror coursing through my veins. It was a gamble. A desperate attempt to communicate what I couldn’t say out loud. Because how could I? When he was here being humble and smiling and pretending to be anything but a snake?

But I had to try.

Cian went still. His eyes found mine across the room and something shifted in his expression. Recognition maybe. Understanding. I didn’t know. But he looked at me like he was seeing something he hadn’t noticed before.

“That isn’t necessary, Uncle,” Cian said.

My breath caught.

Aldric’s smile didn’t falter. “It is not a bother at all.” His gaze slid to me for just a second. It was still pleasant. It was still kind. But I saw something flicker beneath the surface. Rage. Cold and calculating rage that made my blood run cold.

He was furious that I had somehow interfered.

“It will be weird if you aren’t at Julius’s wedding,” Cian continued. His voice was casual but firm. “You two and Father were close after all before the rift happened. I would rather let sleeping dogs lie especially now that Julius was the first to toss the white flag.”

“Who cares what they think?” Aldric kept his tone light yet dismissive. He had a way and an art with his words. “Morrigan is the priority.”

“I’ll have Ronan stay back.”

The relief that flooded through me was immediate and just as intense. Ronan. Beta Ronan would be here. Someone strong. Someone capable. Someone who could fight if Aldric made his move.

I breathed out slowly and tried to steady my racing heart.

“Cian, it is not a bother,” Aldric said again. His smile was still in place but I caught the edge in his voice. The annoyance he was trying to hide.

“I insist.”

The silence stretched. Aldric’s jaw tightened. Just barely. Just enough for me to notice. He swallowed like the words tasted bitter.

Then he smiled again. Wider this time. More forced. “Of course.”

“I will leave now,” he added.

“No problem at all,” Cian replied.

Aldric turned and walked out. The door closed behind him with a soft click. The moment he was gone I felt like I could breathe again. Like the oppressive weight pressing down on my chest had lifted just enough for me to function.

Cian crossed the space between us. His eyes searched my face. “Do you feel alright now?” He paused. “Did I do well?”

“Yes.” The word came out steadier than I expected.

“But why did you do it?” I asked. “It looks like you trust him deeply and nothing I say seemed like it would change your mind.”

Cian’s expression softened. “Because I want you to see that Aldric is nothing like what you seem to also believe.”

I didn’t know what to say to that. I didn’t know how to explain that his faith in his uncle was exactly what Aldric was counting on. That trust was a weapon. And Aldric wielded it better than anyone.

“We should continue dancing,” Cian said. He reached for my hand.

“I’m actually a bit famished.” The lie came easily. Too easily.

“I will get the Omegas. They can get drinks.”

“I actually want to lay down.”

Cian tilted his head and studied me with an intensity that made me want to look away. “Are you being dishonest again? Your shields are up.”

Damn it. I hadn’t even realized I had thrown them back up. The habit was so ingrained. So automatic. Protecting myself was second nature.

“I guess it is just a bit hard,” I admitted. “Being vulnerable.”

His expression shifted into something gentler. There was more understanding.m in his gaze.

“But I am not hiding anything from you,” I added quickly. “I promise.”

Cian closed the remaining distance between us. He took my hand and turned it over. He studied my palm like it held answers to questions he hadn’t asked yet. His thumb traced the lines there. Gentle yet reverent.

“Should I join you?”

Heat rushed through me despite everything. Despite the fear still coiled tight in my chest. “I’m sore.”

He chuckled. The sound was warm and entirely too pleased with himself. “I didn’t say I want to do anything.” He tapped my forehead lightly. “You sure have a dirty mind.”

A knock echoed through the ballroom before I could respond.

“Open,” Cian called out. “It is open.”

Two Omegas walked in. They bowed slightly. “Aloha Cian, we apologize for disturbing but the tailored piece is ready and they are ready for the fitting in case there is a need to make quick adjustment.”

Cian sighed. “Well, I guess I have to go.” He looked at me. “See you.”

He pressed a quick kiss to my temple and left. The door closed behind him and the silence that followed felt heavy. Suffocating.

I walked to the record player and turned it off. The music died and the quiet that replaced it was almost worse. My thoughts were too loud now. Too chaotic.

I had to talk to Beta Ronan.

The realization settled over me like a weight. I barely knew the man. Our one conversation had made it abundantly clear he didn’t like me. Didn’t trust me. Probably wished Cian had chosen someone else as his mate.

But I had no choice.

This witch that Aldric had found. I didn’t know what to think about her. She could be legitimate. She could be someone genuinely trying to help. Or she could be working with Aldric. Another piece in whatever plan he was putting together.

I had to warn Ronan. I had to make him understand that something was wrong even if I couldn’t prove it. Even if it made me look paranoid or crazy.

How would I even start that conversation? How would I look him in the eye and tell him that the Alpha’s beloved uncle might be planning something terrible? That the man everyone respected and trusted was actually a threat?

I shook my head. I was overthinking this. Overthinking how Ronan would react. How he would look at me. What he would say.

I just had to fucking do it.

I left the ballroom. A sentinel stood in the hallway and I turned to him. “Do you know where I could find Beta Ronan?”

“Beta Ronan is at the training grounds,” he replied.

I thanked him and headed in that direction. The walk gave me too much time to think. Too much time to second guess myself. To imagine all the ways this could go wrong.

The training grounds were behind the estate. Set back far enough that the noise wouldn’t disturb anyone inside. I could hear the sounds before I saw anything. Grunts. The thud of fists against flesh. The scrape of boots against packed earth.

I asked around until someone pointed me toward the back section. Away from the main area where most of the sentinels trained.

The scene that greeted me was brutal.

Beta Ronan was in the center of a cleared space. Two sentinels circled him. Both looked experienced. Both moved with the confidence of trained fighters.

Ronan moved like water. He was fluid in his movement, yet controlled and mostly devastatingly efficient.

He ducked under a punch then drove his fist into the first sentinel’s ribs hard enough that I heard the impact from where I stood. The sentinel staggered back. Ronan pivoted, caught the second sentinel’s arm mid swing and twisted. The sentinel went down with a pained shout.

The first sentinel recovered and came at Ronan from behind. Ronan spun at the last minute. His elbow connected with the sentinel’s jaw. The man dropped like a stone.

The second sentinel was back on his feet. Determination written across his face. He lunged. Ronan sidestepped, grabbed the sentinel’s wrist and used the man’s momentum against him. The sentinel went airborne then crashed to the ground hard enough to knock the wind from his lungs.

Ronan was on him in an instant. Knee pressed to the sentinel’s chest. Hand wrapped around his throat. Not choking. Just holding. Establishing dominance.

“Submit,” Ronan growled.

The sentinel tapped twice against Ronan’s arm. The universal signal.

Ronan released him immediately. Stood. Rolled his shoulders like he had just finished a light warm up instead of taking down two trained fighters at once.

Then his eyes found mine.

He smiled.

It wasn’t friendly. It wasn’t welcoming either. It was the smile of a predator who had just spotted prey wandering into its territory.