Alpha Nocturne's Contracted Mate

Chapter 269 A Fate Worse than Death

“So what do we do now?” Felix asked to no one in particular once they were all gathered in Lord Brarthroroz’s suite.

The guards had been instructed to let them know as soon as Lexi began to stir and Allen stood in the doorway to Lord Brarthroroz’s suite so that he could run to their room as soon as she showed any signs of waking up.

“The first thing we should be doing is getting my stubborn mate back to her bed in the hospital so that she can get the rest that…”

“Not a chance Adam.” Ann glowered, “I’ve been out of action long enough and if I need to rest then I would much rather do so in the comfort of our own chambers.”

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“But, what if you need intervention from the doctors again? Think of the pups. What if…” Adam tried to reason with her but Ann’s loud impatient sigh stopped him in his tracks.

“What if the sky falls and we’re all buried?!” Maeve yelled suddenly in Ann’s head and it took everything in her to not snort loudly.

“Maeve thinks you’re being dramatic, and just for the record, so do I.” Ann answered sternly, “Regardless of whether I am at full health or not, I still have responsibilities to see to. There are far less interruptions in our own suite here, than in the infirmary, and to be perfectly honest, I’m desperate to get back to the palace and begin making it our home.” She continued a little less severely.

Adam was clearly displeased with her stubbornness, but she didn’t care. There was still far too much to be rectified before she could even consider moving them back to the palace and the more time that she

spent holed up at the infirmary, the less time she was able to put into managing and resolving the important issues that needed to be seen to immediately.

“Look, we know that the rogue’s are on the run now, and the last pockets of resistance along our borders are being cleared as we speak. So that’s one major issue resolved, but we still have the escaped convicts and Narcissa, her damn Excidium Coven and your damn brother…no offense Lord Brarthroroz.” Ann continued a little more gently with a nod to Lexi’s father, who smiled gently.

“No offense taken at all. He’s been a thorn in my side for centuries, as I’m sure Jasper was for Felix.” He shrugged casually as Felix nodded sombrely.

“I won’t lie, he was always good to me as a brother while I was small, but I had no idea about his… depraved and violent nature back then. As I got older, we clashed a lot and eventually he was more or less exiled from our family…never officially though. It was an open secret amongst the nobles, one that was never publicly acknowledged, but everyone was fully aware of.” Felix stated quietly, “I’ll await the DNA testing to ensure that it was Jasper that Lexi killed before I notify my parents though. You never know… he was a slippery little bastard and who knows whether or not he had somehow managed to create an impostor.”

“Do you really think that’s a possibility?” Ann asked with a frown.

“Felix is right to be cautious,” Adam added, “I wouldn’t put anything past him. The corpse is too charred for facial recognition, so we’ll be relying on dental analysis and any tissue samples that they can gather for DNA analysis. We should have the results in a day or two.”

“Alright then.” Ann nodded, “So that leaves the issue of the missing reconnaissance team. What do we know about it so far?”

“Not a great deal I’m afraid. I spoke with the commander of our forces here and thanks to being severely underfunded for years under your…erm…” Allen cleared his throat awkwardly as he looked

between Ann and Adam, not wanting to offend Ann nor provoke his Alpha’s irritation by being insensitive.

“It’s okay Allen. I know my father was incompetent.” Ann smiled reassuringly at him for him to continue, but Allen still felt a little awkward and rubbed his neck sheepishly.

“Well, yes… I guess you know where I’m going with that,” He grimaced as Ann smiled gently and gestured for him to continue, “So, essentially, our forces are nowhere near what they should be. With sending so many men already to deal with the rogues and with the party with Greyson … as well as the small reconnaissance team afterwards, well…we’re already under the necessary reserve force for defense of the enclave and palace and surrounding villages. Until the team returns from clearing the last of the rogues, we don’t have any more to send.”

Ann sighed in frustration. “Okay, but my question is, why haven’t they contacted us? Greyson was supposed to let us know when they arrived.”

“We think we know, there’s a dead zone for communications in the area and they seem to be connected to monuments, or ritual sites that surround the area that Greyson and his men will have had to pass through. In theory, if we can destroy the sites, then we might be able to restore communications.”

“Clever bastard.” Lord Brarthroroz chuckled darkly as everyone turned to look at him curiously.

“Do you know what we’re dealing with?” Ann asked as he nodded somberly.

“If it’s what I think it is, yes I do, but you aren’t going to like the options for taking them down.” He thought seriously for a moment, trying to think of a way in presenting the options for taking these sites down in a manner that wouldn’t horrify them, but there was really no way to say it nicely.

“If it’s what I think it is, then those sites are sacrificial altars, or monuments. The barrier is constructed with the energy …souls if you will, of the people that were killed amongst those stones, or are held close by in a state between life and death, their consciousness hanging by a thread.”

The mood turned sour almost instantly as the faces of everyone assembled darkened instantly. “Then how do we stop it? Can we tear the monuments down?”

“You can tear the monuments down, but that won’t be enough by itself. You’ll need to either destroy the souls that are used to create the barrier, or find the captives and choose to end their misery, or sever their connection and allow them to live.”

“Well of course we’ll let them live! Why would we choose anything else?!” Allen snapped.

“Because without their souls, there will be no humanity left in them. No emotions, no feeling. They will remain soulless husks that retain no memories or attachments to their previous lives. Honestly, it’s a fate worse than death.”