Chapter 78: Chapter 78: The Weight of the Bond

RAMON’S POV

I threw a glass cup on the walls of the dinner room, and it shattered into pieces. The loud crash echoed through the empty space, followed by the sharp tinkling sound of tiny shards scattering across the polished wooden floor.

Some pieces bounced near my boots, catching the warm glow from the overhead lamps and the flickering fire in the hearth. The rich smell of roasted meat and spiced wine still lingered on the long table, but it turned my stomach now, heavy and cloying in the air.

The chairs were empty. I had sent all the maids out so I could have dinner in peace. The silence felt heavy around me, broken only by the distant crackle of the fire and the occasional pop of burning wood. My mind kept replaying the images from earlier , Liam’s arms around Sonia, her body pressed close to his. It made my blood boil hotter with every passing second, a slow burn that refused to die down.

Daisy did not join me, and—My thoughts were interrupted when the door pushed open, and Daisy strode in. Her footsteps were quick and angry, heels clicking sharply against the wooden floor like warning shots. She marched straight toward me, lifted her hand, and slapped me across the face.

The impact stung hard, a sharp burn spreading across my cheek. My head snapped to the side from the force, and for a moment the room tilted. I staggered back a step and held my face, feeling the heat rise on my skin where her palm had landed. The taste of blood touched my tongue from the inside of my cheek.

"What are you going to do? Hit me back?" She challenged, as I straightened up. Her eyes blazed with fury, chest rising and falling fast. Her face was flushed, and strands of hair had come loose from her usual neat style.

"Don’t be dramatic, you know I wouldn’t." My voice came out low, but the anger still simmered beneath it.

"But you did to Liam! You fucking dickhead! How dare you hit him? How dare you send him out of your pack when he came all the way to visit you? Have you lost your bloody mind?"

Her words hit harder than the slap. I felt my jaw tighten, teeth grinding together. The memory of Liam’s arms around Sonia flashed again, making my fists clench at my sides.

"He was in a compromised situation with my mate when I walked into them! My mate!" I retorted furiously. My voice rose, echoing off the walls of the dining room. The air felt thicker now, charged with tension.

She laughed bitterly, and it just made me more furious. The sound was cold and sharp, cutting through the room like glass. It grated against my ears.

"Do you really think Liam would want anything to do with your mate? I can guarantee the only reason he was there was to talk you up. That’s the kind of person he is. It used to be you, until you let the hatred in your heart consume you, and that bloody wench in your ears and your bed!"

"You will not speak about Lorena anymore, when she’s the only person that has given me an answer as to what the fuck happened in my pack!" My voice rose even higher, echoing off the walls. The anger felt like fire in my veins, burning everything else away. My claws threatened to extend, but I held them back.

"What are you? You call yourself an alpha and you can’t even do your own investigations?" She gave me a disgusted once over, and I felt my chest tighten. Her eyes were full of disappointment, like I was a stranger to her now. "Shame on you for letting that filthy pig into your brain. The only reason you allow her is because she justifies your hatred, and you know it. Shame on you!" She spat to the ground. The sound was wet and sharp on the polished floor.

"I don’t care what you think. If you don’t like the way I’ve handled things, then you can leave. I never asked any of you to come to my pack. You did so of your own volition. Leave!" I pointed to the door, my arm steady despite the storm inside me. My finger trembled slightly from the force of my emotions.

"Gladly. But first, I must see the girl. I must make sure she’s alive before I leave. I would not see a corpse." Her voice was cold, final.

"If she survives the beating I ordered, then you can see a living body." The words left my mouth before I could stop them, bitter and sharp.

Her eyes squinted in disbelief. "Who are you? What is wrong with you? You’re not the Ramon I know. What have you done with him?"

The door pushed open, and one of my guards came in. His boots were muddy from outside, and he carried the faint scent of smoke on his clothes. His face looked tense, eyes lowered.

He acknowledged the both of us with a bow, before stepping forward.

"Alpha Ramon, there’s a problem," he said. His voice was low, careful, like he was walking on thin ice.

"Speak." I urged, my patience already worn thin. My claws itched to extend again.

"The wolves you asked to discipline the girl, Sonia, they’re the ones being disciplined instead."

I frowned, confused as to how that could have happened. I was very clear with my message, and couldn’t even remember changing my mind. The words felt heavy in my throat.

"How did that happen?"

"Beta Blane. He took the girl away, and asked that the wolves be punished instead."

My fingers instantly shifted into claws, sharp and ready. I was out the door in a heartbeat, my heart pounding with fresh rage. The hallway blurred past me as I moved, fury fueling every step.

"Where do you think you’re going, Ramon?! Blane did the right thing!" I heard Daisy’s footsteps behind me, but ignored her. Her voice faded into the background noise of my fury.

I was an alpha with a mission. It was one thing for my mate and my best friend to go behind my back and behave so passionately toward each other, after her family had just attacked my pack, which led to my sister being in a critical condition. But it was a different thing for my own beta to thwart my orders.

That I absolutely could not stand for, and he was going to get it hard this time around. The betrayal burned like acid in my chest, hot and corrosive.

"Blane!" I growled at the top of my voice as I walked around in search of him. My voice echoed down the corridors, deep and threatening. Wolves passing by pressed themselves against the walls, eyes lowered, bodies tense. They knew better than to get in my way when I was like this. The air felt charged, heavy with the scent of fear and smoke from the earlier fire.

Daniel made the round just before I could scream out for Blane again. He stopped dead on his tracks before me, panic floating through his eyes. His face paled slightly under the hallway lights.

"Where is he?!"

"Don’t answer him," Daisy, who had caught up to us, said. Her breathing was heavy from trying to keep up.

"I won’t ask you again, Daniel. Where is Blane?!"

He quickly pointed to a door farther down the hall, his hand shaking just a little. I marched toward that direction without another word, my claws still extended, ready.

"You fool!" Daisy hissed, and continued after me. Her footsteps were fast behind mine.

As I drew closer to the door, I felt her. Sonia. She was barely visible. Almost completely faded away. In clearer words, she was dying. The realization hit me like a punch to the gut, making my steps falter for half a second. The mate bond tugged hard, a painful pull in my chest.

I pushed open the door, and stepped in to see Blane turned toward the window, while two maids dipped Sonia in cold water. The room smelled of wet cloth, herbs, and the faint metallic trace of blood. Sonia looked small and fragile in the tub, her skin pale and bruised, her body trembling from the cold.

Blane knew I was standing behind him but didn’t dare look back. My plan was to go to him and beat him within an inch of his life, but as soon as my eyes rested on Sonia, I suddenly couldn’t move. Something inside me locked up tight, the mate bond pulling hard against my rage. It held me frozen, stronger than my anger in that moment.

"Get out!" Daisy said behind me. Her voice was sharp, cutting through the tension like a blade.

That was when Blane turned, and our eyes locked. I could see the fear in him, but beneath that was also duty. I could see he really thought he had done right by me.

I couldn’t move, but Lorena’s words pushed fiercely into my ears. A while ago, I had also thought the same way. What if it was true? What if he really liked Sonia?

"Sonia," my mind whispered, and brought my gaze back to her. She could barely stand on her own. I didn’t even know if she knew there were people around her. Her eyes were half-closed, her breathing shallow and weak.

Daisy was clearly waiting for me to set the whole place on fire. That was why she had told Blane to get out. Everyone was.

However, I couldn’t. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t bring my body to move forward. The bond held me frozen, stronger than my anger in that moment.

To save face, I walked to the door and paused. "You’ll hear from me after," I said, and to make sure he knew I was speaking to him, and still save myself from the embarrassment of my mate bond which had rendered me unable to raise hell, I added, "Blane."