Page 60 of Framed and Forgotten
Kael’s wolf tilted his head, eyes gleaming.“What, no tears? No outrage?”
I found my voice.“He was a tyrant. He got what he deserved.”
Kael snarled.“So much for loyalty. I might’ve been the better son, but he still chose you.”
“Maybe he saw what you’d become,”I said.“A psychopath in the making.”
“I was stronger!”Kael barked.“I should’ve been the one to lead!”A grim smile tugged at my lips.Good.I hit a nerve.He recovered fast, though.“At least I wouldn’t have let Whispering Hills fall.”
Those words landed with a different weight. They were sharp, surgical. Too accurate. And then he confirmed what I already feared.
“Ever wonder how you survived the attack, brother? The lone alpha, the last one standing?”he mocked.“Bet you thought it was because you were the strongest, didn’t you?”
My heart slowed. Col tensed beneath my skin.
“You survived because I wanted you to,”Kael revealed with a grin.“I pulled the strings. Orchestrated the attack. Made sure you lived. It was all part of the plan.”
I said nothing. I couldn’t. Shock churned in my gut like poison.
“Finally - a reaction!”Kael crowed, delighted.“So, there you have it. The grand plan. First, strip you of everything. Then, get you back with Nerine. That would restore your claim over Whispering Hills, Midnight Sun, and Crystal Pond. Once you were at the top again, I’d kill you and take your place. Your name, your power, your pack. Everything you built, I’d claim as mine.”
I stared at him, breath shallow. The sheer madness of it all - how long he’d been planning, how far he was willing to go. My twin brother was completely deranged.
“You’re sick,”I muttered.“You could’ve killed me years ago. Why go through all of this?”
He shrugged with maddening calm.“Because it wouldn’t have been nearly as fun. Making you lose everything - your father, your pack, yourmate… That was the icing on the cake!”
Before I could process the insanity of it all, Kael’s grin returned, colder this time.“But since you’ve become a liability, I might as well kill you now.”
Without warning, he lunged. Col, ever watchful, reacted in an instant, crashing into him midair. The earth beneath shuddered as the two beasts collided, the weight of an ancient prophecy unleashed.
From the moment twin alphas were born, they were fated to fight - and neither of us would stop until one lay dead.
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K O E N
Kael slammed into Collike a freight train. Before we could think of bracing ourselves, we were crashing through underbrush, bark splintering around us. We barely had time to find our footing before he was on us again. In a feral match, claws raked against flesh, and fangs snapped at anything they could find.
Col tried to pin him, but Kael twisted under us with impressive speed, throwing us off and sending us airborne. Our spine struck a jagged rock, knocking the wind out of us, but we couldn’t afford to stay still. My wolf rolled, fast, before Kael’s claws could meet our throat.
Col sprang back, creating just enough distance to catch his breath and reassess. Kael didn’t follow, meeting our gaze head-on instead. A grin spread across his lips, fangs dripping with saliva and fresh blood -my blood. He was showing it off, like a trophy. A twisted little piece of proof that he’d gotten us. There was no rush in him, his movements carrying the ease of someone who believed he’d already won. He was toying with us, pushing and probing.
Testing us.
Maybe I had underestimated how easy this fight would be. Kael had never been an alpha, but it was evident he had combat experience - more than that, even. It was like he’d been training all his life to face and defeatme.
In that brief moment of stillness as both beasts just panted and waited for the other, my thoughts wandered back to Avril. I could see Kea from the corner of my eye, passed out on the ground. The bond we shared let me know she wasn’t in any pain, but I was still desperate to end this and get her out of here.
“It can be over in a minute,”Col reminded me, the shadows within us expanding as he relished the thought of setting them free.
“No!”I insisted. It was too dangerous.“Not unless we absolutely need it.”
“Fine,”he growled, ego bristling at my hesitation.“Take as long as it takes, I’ll win. I’ll keep mate safe.”
Kael snarled, as if sensing my focus had slipped - like he was offended I wasn’t giving him my full attention. Without hesitation, he sprinted toward us again, jaws wide. Col ducked under the bite, using his proximity to try and snap at his hind leg, catching fur, not flesh. Our brother yelped in surprise, clearly not expecting us getting that close, but he recovered instantly. Pivoting and delivering a precise blow to our shoulder.
