Page 87 of Malcolm

Still, despite Malcolm’s assurances, she felt anxious.

Something wasn’t right, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

Malcolm stood opposite Belial;she could feel the tension in the air. Her lips were pressed together as she watched the two circle each other.

“Do you know if it’s first blood or death?” Jamie asked Archie, from where they stood a bit away.

Surprised, she asked them, “What are you talking about?”

The two shared a sheepish look. Robert cleared his throat. “Sorry, Eliza, we didn’t see you there.”

“Whether you saw me here or not doesn’t matter. What did you mean when you asked him, blood or death?” She demanded, turning away from the fighting ring.

“When two Alphas fight, especially when another demands a blood price, the Aldermen give them two choices: They can fight until the first person draws blood or…to death,” Jamie explained awkwardly.

She stiffly turned to watch Malcolm dust sand off his arms. Eliza wanted to scream at him, but unfortunately, all she could do was curl her fingers around the railing. “And what did he say he would do?”

“Beliel, the new Alpha of Dougal, said he would fight to the death,” Jamie answered solemnly.

She scoffed. “And Malcolm agreed to this?”

Both Jamie and Archie said nothing. Each already knew that the mate for their Alpha was upset; her lips were pressedtogether, and her eyes were narrowed on Malcolm. “What would happen if I stopped it?”

Robert tensed, whipping his eyes to her face only to drop them out of respect. “Y-you can’t; if you did, it would…” He trailed off.

“It would bring dishonor,” she finished, drawing his gaze.

She shook her head. “I am growing sick of hearing about this honor issue with your people,” she said, anger coating her voice. “Your honor allowed his sister to live in hell, and now she can’t even find another mate. Your honor drove him from your lands and now once again. This honor is why his life is on the line.”

Jamie frowned at her. “Outsiders couldn’t possibly understand, but honor for our kind has been the decider of life or death for our people.”

“You don’t like me,” she said, her voice cold. “And I don’t have an issue with that; plenty of people hate me for something I have no control over. But the same could be said about you; beast shifters aren’t liked much in Veil City either.”

She didn’t flinch from Jamie's hateful look and wouldn’t be afraid. “I am who I am, but I am the mate of Malcolm first,” she lifted her chin. “I will choose for him if it comes between his life or his honor.”

With that, she gave them her back and returned to her chair.

Jamie's eyes narrowed. “I don’t understand what our Alpha sees in her.”

“You don’t, and you shouldn’t,” Archie said softly.

Jamies glared at him, “Is that what you think?”

“We can’t have more than one man finding her impressive,” Archie smirked. “Our Alpha would rip their head off. You should also be thankful Malcolm didn’t see that exchange either.”

Jamie glared at him. “I guess.”

With that, Archie turned his attention back to the fight before him. “Will is ready with the others; they will move in when Malcolm wins.”

“Do you think the plan will work?” Jamie asked.

Archie gave a short nod, “It will. Malcolm has always been good with sneaky plans such as this.”

Malcolm

Malcolm grunted as his body was lifted in the air and he was thrown down. Hitting the packed dirt, his body rolled. He’d known Beliel had strength as the man had shown it when he’d participated in the tree-throwing competition.

“Come, McLaren, don’t tell me you’re already tired?” Beliel taunted from a few feet away. His skin exposed to the sun, gave Malcolm the view of his clan tattoos. He frowned at them as he rose back to his feet.

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