Chapter 27
Lucas
The moment James pulled the car to a screeching halt outside the grand hotel, my pulse kicked up into a full sprint.
From where we sat, the light spilling out from the ballroom's arched windows pulsed like a heartbeat, warm and golden and wrong.
I could already hear the distant hum of music, the laughter, the clinking of glasses.
And beneath all of it, I could feel it—Victor's presence, the smug bastard, moving in on what was mine.
"You ready?" James asked, eyes flicking toward me as he reached for the glove compartment and retrieved a compact earpiece.
I was already out of the car, coat flaring behind me like wings. "I've been ready for five years. Get everyone in line. Victor's men might cause a trouble or two. I want them handled."
"You got it," James said.
James followed me to the side entrance. He had pulled some strings to ensure that the entrance would remain unguarded and provide us access with no trouble.
We'd had very little time to prepare for this, but he'd done very well.
James was resourceful and reliable, and that was why he'd been my best friend and Beta since we were kids.
We slipped through the service corridor, up a back stairwell, and into the side hallway just off the ballroom.
The moment we cracked open the doors, I heard Victor's voice rise above the hush.
"Alison Black, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
I saw red.
He was on one knee. Right there in the middle of the stage, lights catching the damn diamond in his hand. Alison stood frozen, her lips parted, her eyes wide. My heart slammed into my ribs. My wolf howled within me, eager to claim what's mine.
"Not tonight," I growled, pushing the doors wide.
Gasps rippled through the room as I stormed in, the crowd parting like a wave.
A couple of Victor's security detail noticed me and tried to intercept, but James moved faster.
He landed a punch square in the first guy's jaw, sending him sprawling into the dessert table.
I took the second, slamming his back into a pillar so hard he crumpled with a groan.
Quickly, the rest of my pack filled the room, subduing all Victor's men who might cause trouble.
The crowd was in chaos now, people backing away, phones coming out.
But I didn't care. My eyes were locked on her—on Alison.
She looked like a painting in that gown, midnight blue against the white of the spotlight.
Her hand hovered near her chest, and when her eyes met mine, something shattered in me.
"Alison," I said, my voice loud but shaking, raw from everything I hadn't been able to tell her. "Don't listen to him. Don't say yes."
Victor rose slowly, slipping the ring box back into his pocket, trying to mask the fury tightening his jaw.
"Lucas," he said with practiced civility. "You're making a scene."
"Shut up," I snapped, stepping between them. "You don't get to lie to her anymore."
He took a step forward. "You disappeared. You abandoned her. You don't have the right—"
"The letter never reached her. Because your people intercepted it. Because you made sure she'd never know why I left. You are a snake posing as a saint. You do not deserve her!"
A whisper moved through the room like wind rustling through leaves.
Alison stared between us. Her voice was soft, but steady. "Victor, what is he saying? What letter?"
Victor didn't answer. Not fast enough.
I turned to her. "Please. Just let me explain. Not here. Not with him breathing down our necks. Just you and me, Alison. That's all I'm asking."
Victor stepped forward. "That will not happen."
But Alison raised her hand. And with a determination in her voice, she spoke.
"It will," she said. "I want to talk to Lucas. Alone."
Victor looked stunned, and for a second, I thought he might argue again. But the way Alison held his gaze—calm, unwavering—made it clear she wouldn't bend.
James stepped between Victor and me as a buffer, in case things turned ugly.
Alison turned to me, eyes searching mine. "Let's go."
We left the stage in silence, the eyes of the entire gala pinned to our backs. I followed her out of the hall and into a quiet lounge off to the side. The lights were dim here, the world outside the windows a blur of city lights.