Page 52 of The Alpha King's Fate

Lincoln’s eyes widened as he looked back at Hugo. He must not have known that. When he turned back to them, he wasn’t even trying to hide his anger. He continued walking withoutanother word. Hugo bowed slightly before he followed, and the man who’d had his head down during the whole exchange rushed after him as if he didn’t want to be left alone with them.

They disappeared through the same doors the other Circle members had gone through.

‘I think I’m right about this. Lincoln told them what you did, but they still referred to you as human and ignored his report. They’re curious about you, Layla. They want you under their thumb.’

So why had they sent a killer to their room?

Her brows furrowed with irritation because she was caught in a game she didn't understand. Why couldn't they just state what they wanted directly and stop all the guessing?

Jax linked their arms again and walked towards what had to be the restaurant on the other side of the large lobby. The scents of pastries and meat filled her nose and made her stomach growl.

‘I’ll get you something to eat as soon as I can. I’m sorry, Layla. I can’t trust even a glass of water from them. We’ll meet our counsel in the restaurant, and after that, we’ll drive to—’

“Mr King.”

They turned around to see the young man from the front desk standing behind them with his hands clasped in front of him. He still had that creepy smile that made her take a small step back from him. It was bizarre, the feelings he brought up in her. She had never been so blatantly rude to anyone, yet she couldn’t stop feeling disgusted that he was even standing so close to her.

The man noticed, and his smile faltered a little.

“They’re ready for you.”

“We haven’t seen our counsel yet,” Jax growled.

“The Circle will consider that when they make their ruling,” the man said.

Jax put his arm around her and growled.

“No! You keep changing the rules, disregarding the sanctity of a process that has been in place for generations,” Jax said. “I won’t let you take my mate in before our counsel properly briefs her.”

The man’s smile brightened again, and he looked her in the eyes.

The next thing she knew, someone grabbed her arm from the back. She turned to fight them off, but when she looked around, she was no longer in the hotel lobby. And she was alone.

Her heart hammered against her chest as she looked around the room. Stark-white walls and a high ceiling. It was only about a couple of square metres with no windows, and she could see the lines on one of the walls that showed where the door was, but there was no handle on it. Though the walls didn’t move, she felt suffocated.

“Jax!”

She banged on the door and called his name, but she knew he wouldn’t come for her. The Circle had done what they’d tried to do from when they had arrived.

They had separated them.

She was going to face the Circle alone.

Chapter 24

Jackson turned the moment someone somehow snuck up on him and grabbed his hand. His claws extended, ready to rip their throat out, but he slashed through... nothing.

A spotlight came on and blinded him for a moment before his eyes adjusted. Layla was not in his arms anymore.

Lead settled in his stomach when he realised what had happened. His rage ripped through him instantly, and Cain wrested control from him, half-shifting as he looked around the circular prison that was the main attraction in all Circle trials. It was a raised stage made of silver, surrounded by an invisibleward of dark magic to keep him inside it. And he knew from experience that the Circle’s witches would have also warded the whole room.

His jacket and shirt started to rip at the seams, constricting him. It took him seconds to get rid of both as he met the gazes of the people who sat around the stage, only feet away from him.

“What are you doing?” he snarled. “Give my mate back to me.”

It was no longer him talking. His voice was deeper and raspy. By the frisson of fear that he sensed in the air, they were all aware they had come face-to-face with the beast. The only beast among them that could half-shift to speak his mind. For the first time in his life, he was the one boiling in his anger, unable to control himself, while Cain contained his rage.

The Circle had many branches worldwide, but only the ones that represented the continent sat at the tables set around him in their groups of three. They had refreshments in front of them as if they had come to watch a show.

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