Blood filled the floor, and for some reason, nobody was remotely startled. All they did was shift out of the way so that they wouldn't get touched. It seemed I was the only one who was even terrified.Everybody wore faces of complete and utter understanding; they watched what happened, covered the eyes of the younger ones, but basically, there was no difference from their usual expressions.With just a move, Philip had cracked the man's head open.I was shocked.It all happened so suddenly that I didn't even know how to react. I didn't know what to think or how to feel about seeing my groom just kill someone in cold blood like the man was a full watermelon that could just be easily squashed.Philip turned around, and just like I guessed, his eyes had changed, and he was looking around with so much rage in his eyes."Find the others, Tessa, and kill them." His voice was loud and clear, instantly instilling fear in me.I panicked.I wasn't terrified of him; I knew damn well that Philip
Lyra's POVThe celebrations kicked off, and it became as if we all had not noticed the death of a random man. His betas had been taken away and obviously slaughtered, knowing Philip.The only thing that made the atmosphere a little serious, giving off the idea that something terrible and life-threatening had happened, was the security that filled the place.According to my deductions, guards were not a thing that existed on this island, and it was a rarity for there to exist such an air in the place.No matter how I tried to let go, to just focus on having fun like everyone else, I was reminded of what was going on, of the fact that there would always be danger lurking in the darkness, in the secret place.There was no way that there would just exist peace here, knowing that the death of Tristan wasn't going to bring about such.Something in me thought if I had known that this was how the world was going to be after his death, then maybe I wouldn't have killed him.That was a lie.I w
Philip's POVI took in a deep breath as I tried to massage my temple, hoping that the headache I was feeling would disappear like it was never there. But the longer I sat here on this chair, the more intensified the headache became.I was expecting to see blood dripping down my nose soon because from the way my head banged, that would not be far away.It hasn't even been two days since Lyra gave birth, and instead of it being a time of joy and celebration, we were mourning.Two of the triplets she gave birth to had been taken from us.It had been done so surreptitiously and dexterously that I was sure the person who did this was a professional. Maybe not someone who stole babies as a livelihood, but someone who was good with children. He was sure to take the babies away, babies that were supposed to be in the bosom of their mother.The last thing I wanted was Lyra waking up and seeing that the babies were gone; there was no way she wouldn't blame me."Philip."I lifted my head."Are y
Philip's POVI took in a deep breath as I tried to massage my temple, hoping that the headache I was feeling would disappear like it was never there. But the longer I sat here on this chair, the more intensified the headache became.I was expecting to see blood dripping down my nose soon because from the way my head banged, that would not be far away.It hasn't even been two days since Lyra gave birth, and instead of it being a time of joy and celebration, we were mourning.Two of the triplets she gave birth to had been taken from us.It had been done so surreptitiously and dexterously that I was sure the person who did this was a professional. Maybe not someone who stole babies as a livelihood, but someone who was good with children. He was sure to take the babies away, babies that were supposed to be in the bosom of their mother.The last thing I wanted was Lyra waking up and seeing that the babies were gone; there was no way she wouldn't blame me."Philip."I lifted my head."Are y
Philip's POVTessa blinked several times to show how stunned and generally taken aback she was. It was a very weird request; I'll admit it. Seeing as she had no way in hell of infiltrating an entire pack, and given the amount of time we had, it was almost impossible.She knew no one there, and if anyone saw her, they would know instantly that she was there under my command, given that Emily would probably be aware that we're searching for the babies. So that mission, that request was somewhat impossible.However, I had hope. This was Tessa. She had a higher body count than anyone else, then both Matt and I combined, and those were girls we see every day but can never point them out. She was a flirt, and it was backed up with a good amount of aesthetics; she was perfect to infiltrate in that manner.But, of course, saying that I was advising her to sell out her body was out of the question. I wasn't going to say it; even thinking about it was offensive. I only thought if she wanted to
Philip's POVWhat she proposed seemed like a good idea; bringing them in, giving them the one thing they desperately needed. The only problem was that I wanted them nowhere near me or my people. They were barbaric, had no loyalty, had the ability to switch up as fast as light, and even though they would love the food, they were not going to settle for it.Sure, it was a great idea when you're looking at it from afar, but these people would want something more. They would ask for more since we're proposing a deal to avoid war. They had a peanut-sized brain and would think the reason we're avoiding war is generally that we're scared, and they wouldn't even ask themselves if there may be other reasons.However, Lyra shook her head, "they are not going to move in with us, what are you thinking? If they move in, pretty soon they'll be thinking that this place belongs to them; you were the one who said they were barbaric."I nodded my head, seeing as she was on the same page with me about t
Philip's POVI wanted to run fast straight to the other side where the hut was located. It was from there I could see the figures, and I knew that it was proof that there were people in there.However, I couldn't run as fast as I wanted to because we were investigating, and I wasn't about to leave them. There was the uncertainty of what was waiting for me ahead as well, so I had to be cautious in my movements. And also, this was something like Lyra had said to me: she wanted me to change how rash and impulsive I was.It was going to be hard, it was going to be very hard, but this was what I had to do to become not just a better ruler but a better husband and a good father.I was those things now, immediately thrown from the life of a bachelor and tossed into this one where I had to protect my kids against the enemies I had gained in life.If I had not been the impulsive brat who wanted to pay back every punch, maybe I would not have acquired so many enemies, maybe life wouldn't be so
Philip's POVSuddenly, everything grew quiet, save for the crickets chirping, the wind in between the leaves of the trees, and the croaking of the frog.My betas walked like ghosts, not one twig breaking upon receiving the heaviness of their steps. They walked like predators, exactly how I have taught them. And under the leadership of Matt, they surrounded the hut in inconspicuous areas.It was left for me.I walked to the door and placed a knock there. Matt was standing against the wall right beside the door. If the person opened the door, they wouldn't be able to see him; he blended perfectly with the night, looking like a shadow rather than a person.His eyes were fixated on me, but I knew his attention wasn't. He was more focused on trying to overhear any form of conversation inside the house, listening for footsteps and heartbeats as faint as possible.This was important because we had no idea if he had any other person in the house; probably, the person who had kidnapped the bab