Chapter 446\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
69%\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI-it was just a misunderstanding!\u201d one of the women stammered, her face stiff with a fake smile. \u201cWe heard she seduced Alpha Lucien and acted in the heat of the moment. It wasn\u2019t personal! We meant no real harm- surely you can forgive that?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another immediately chimed in, nodding fervently. \u201cYes, yes, exactly. We were misled. Please, Miss Vale, we didn\u2019t know who you were\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their mates-those smug highborn Alphas who had stood by as I was dragged and beaten-now stepped forward with practiced ease, their faces full of hollow remorse.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha Lucien,\u201d one said with forced humility, \u201cwe\u2019ve already scolded them. They understand they were wrong.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lucien didn\u2019t respond.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So I did.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took a single step forward. The echo of my heels on the marble silenced them faster than a roar ever could.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cScolded?\u201d I repeated, my voice low, measured. \u201cThat\u2019s your idea of justice? They shredded my robe. Left me bloodied and exposed in front of a pack of strangers. And you think a few hollow apologies will erase that?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The women paled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their husbands faltered, unsure whether to beg or bargain.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lucien stayed silent beside me, a looming shadow of power-but he didn\u2019t interfere. Because he knew. This was mine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou should have thought of consequences,\u201d I continued gaze like a blade, \u201cbefore you raised your hands against an Alpha\u2019s daughter. Before you laughed while I pled.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The first woman\u2019s face crumpled. \u201cPlease, Miss Vale-have mercy. We know we were wrong!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I tilted my head, letting the silence stretch. Letting their fear ferment.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou all seem so sorry now,\u201d I mused. \u201cBut I\u2019m a believer in balance.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
They looked hopeful for a heartbeat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then I spoke again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou like using your hands so much? Then you\u2019ll pay with one finger each. Strip them, too-let the rest of the world see what happens when wolves attack their own.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Screams erupted instantly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The women clutched their husbands in terror. The men began shouting, begging, stumbling over one another to shield their wives from the guards who stepped forward at my command.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo-please! That\u2019s too much!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 446\u00a0<\/p>\n
*69%\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn\u2019t mean it-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll pay any fine! Just not that!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I was done with fines.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I was done with weak men and their excuses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the husbands dropped to his knees before Lucien-Alpha of Stormridge, judge of war councils, and now, my silent enforcer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAlpha Lucien, please, this punishment is too cruel! My wife was ignorant. I\u2019ll offer compensation-land, silver, whatever you ask.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lucien arched an eyebrow. He hadn\u2019t moved. Hadn\u2019t even unsheathed a claw.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But his voice, when it came, was ice:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said anything?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYes!\u201d the man gasped. \u201cAnything!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A pause.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEven bankruptcy?\u201d Lucien asked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dead silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Every breath in the banquet hall vanished.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even the chandeliers seemed to dim.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The man froze, as if struck by lightning. The light in his eyes died a slow, sputtering death.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wives could be replaced.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But an Alpha\u2019s empire? That was irreplaceable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I saw the moment greed triumphed over love. The subtle clench of his jaw. The way his hand slipped from\u00a0<\/p>\n
his wife\u2019s.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I gave a sharp nod. \u201cDo it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The guards surged forward. The women screamed, struggled, cried. Tears streaked their powdered faces. leaving trails of ruined vanity behind.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were dragged to the side of the hall and forced toneel beside a long, polished table.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I followed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
One of the guards held down a trembling arm. Another placed a blade-silver-plated, ceremonial, glinting cruelly under the lights-onto the polished wood beside t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I picked it up.\u00a0<\/p>\n
14:57 Wed, Jan 14\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 446\u00a0<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t Lucien\u2019s hand that reached for justice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was mine.\u00a0<\/p>\n
69%\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked toward the first man, the one who had groveled seconds before, his eyes wide, sweat beading at his temple. I offered him the blade.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stared at me as though I were a ghost.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDiscipline your mate,\u201d I said coldly. \u201cThis time, you\u2019ll take responsibility.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He reached for the knife with a trembling hand, but pulled back at the last second, too afraid to act.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His wife sobbed. \u201cDon\u2019t-don\u2019t do it! Just let them punish me, not you!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked at her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then looked at me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then slowly-pathetically-offered the knife back.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I met Lucien\u2019s eyes, then turned to the guards. \u201cDo it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The woman shrieked as they forced her arm down again. I didn\u2019t look away-not once-as the blade came down.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was a cry. A splash of crimson.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A silence deeper than death.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lucien stepped beside me, his scent like pine and winter steel, calm and quiet and deadly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou didn\u2019t flinch,\u201d he murmured.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t afford to,\u201d I replied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He said nothing for a while.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then, softly, \u201cThey\u2019ll never forget this night.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d I said. \u201cBut neither will I.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because this was the night I stopped being their prey.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The night Riley Vale reclaimed her place in the bloodline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I wasn\u2019t done yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Send Gifts\u00a0<\/p>\n
992\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Pack\u2019s Daughter\u00a0<\/p>\n
Joseph King is an editor and storyteller who ensures every chapter is clear, polished, and engaging for readers.<\/p>\n
Midnight Letters by Daniel Crowe 446 Chapter 446\u00a0 Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0 69%\u00a0 Finished\u00a0 \u201cI-it was just a misunderstanding!\u201d one of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pack-princess"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20721"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20721\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}