Defying the Rogue Alpha-Chapter 27: Smuggler

Ava gasped and scrambled to cover herself. Kade stood at the entrance of the garden, his head bowed in an effort not to meet Lucas's furious gaze. She took a look at Kade and guilt at how she had dismissed him earlier burned in her stomach.

Lucas clenched his jaw. "This better be important."

Kade kept his eyes trained on the ground. "We found a smuggler sneaking supplies into Dennis's encampment."

Lucas's anger melted into something far more dangerous...a wicked smile.

Ava's stomach clenched. She knew that look.

Lucas stood instantly, taking Ava with him. "Go to your room, Ava."

"Lucas..."

"Now!"

Ava grabbed his arm. "Lucas, don't..."

"You don't even know what I'm going to do."

She met his gaze, unyielding. "I know you."

Lucas's nostrils flared. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying... think about this."

Lucas's grip tightened. "What are you insinuating?"

She inhaled sharply. "Lucas, your go-to move shouldn't always be bloodshed. Not with people in your own pack. This person has only smuggled supplies..."

His expression darkened. "You think I'm a monster too, don't you?"

"Lucas, I didn't..."

"Go to your room," he snapped. "I won't say it again."

Ava swallowed hard. "Manic... Manic... listen to me... Don't let him..."

"Kade!" Lucas barked. "Take her away. Now."

Kade hesitated before stepping forward. "Ava..."

"Get away from me!" she hissed, glaring at him before turning back to Lucas. "Lucas, please..."

But he was already walking away.

Kade exhaled heavily. "Ava, there's nothing you can do. That's who he is. You cannot change him." he said as soon as the alpha was out of earshot.

She clenched her fists. "I can try."

"No," Kade whispered. "You have to face facts. The man you so desperately want to be yours is... a murderer."

The words hit like a punch to the gut.

Ava stood frozen, her heart pounding.

Because Kade was right.

And it terrified her.

Lucas was a storm. Unpredictable, violent, and impossible to contain. But she had tasted his gentleness, his protectiveness, his fire. And she wasn't willing to let go just yet.

Ava inhaled sharply.

She had made her choice.

She would be his Luna; one way or another.

And when the time came, she would make sure Lucas was the Alpha his pack truly needed.

*****

Lucas walked toward the dungeons, his mind a storm of thoughts.

Ava wanted to change him.

She didn't understand.

She thought mercy was a kindness. But kindness got people killed.

He clenched his fists.

He had spent years shaping himself into a weapon. A leader who didn't hesitate. A man who made the hard choices.

He couldn't afford weakness.

But when he closed his eyes, all he could see was her.

Her fire. Her defiance. Her belief that there was something worth saving in him.

Lucas exhaled slowly, his fingers twitching at his sides.

Ava.

She was a distraction. A temptation. A future he had no right to want.

And yet...

And yet, he found himself gripping onto her words.

She thought he could be more.

Lucas wondered if she might be right.

*****

Ava paced her room, rage curling through her veins like wildfire.

She had begged. She had pleaded.

And Lucas had walked away.

She ran a hand through her hair, her fingers shaking.

Why was she even surprised? He was Alpha Lucas Raventhorn. Ruthless. Unforgiving. He wore cruelty like a second skin.

But she had seen something different.

A flicker of hesitation. A moment of doubt.

And now he was gone.

Ava spun on her heel and stormed toward the door.

She didn't think. She didn't hesitate.

Lucas was going to hear every word she had to say.

*****

"Zari!" Ava shouted across the hallway to her bedroom. Seconds later, Zari appeared.

"Is everything alright?"

"Take me to the dungeons!" Ava commanded.

"I'm sorry, Ava. I cannot."

"Zari... I need to stop him."

"That's the thing, you cannot. Ava, please. The alpha may value you above the others but don't push your limit. You should know when to stop. This is one of those times to stop."

"But I can't Zari. I cannot sit back and let him brutalize his own people. There should be due process."

Zari chuckled. "This isn't the human world Ava. The alpha is responsible for his pack and will do anything , no matter how unsavory to protect his pack." Zari held her ground against Ava.

"Take me to the dungeons now Zari."

"No!"

"I'll go find Kade." Ava stepped out and began heading down the hallway.

"Fine!" Zari shouted after her. "I'll take you. I figured since I became your personal maid, you were going to be the death of me."

Zari walked briskly to catch up with Ava.

The dungeon was damp and smelled of blood and sweat. Ava's stomach churned.

She found Lucas standing over a trembling man.

The prisoner's face was bruised, his lip split. Blood dripped onto the stone floor beneath him.

Lucas was still holding the dagger.

Ava inhaled sharply.

It was always the same.

Violence. Punishment. Control.

She stormed forward. "Lucas."

His grip on the dagger tightened. "You keep defying me Ava. You keep doing the opposite of what I say."

She ignored him. "Is he dead?"

Lucas's jaw ticked. He turned slightly, his eyes dark with something unreadable. "Not yet."

Not yet.

Her heart clenched.

Ava looked at the man in front of Lucas. He wasn't much older than her, his body shaking from pain and exhaustion.

Her fists curled.

"Let him go."

Lucas's head snapped toward her, his eyes flashing with warning. "You need to learn your place, my little virgin."

"My place is with you, beside you. Remember what I said about Leon and the Crimson pack. He broke the hearts of his people. Don't do this."

Silence.

Lucas tilted his head. "What about my heart Ava? Don't you care about that? Or am I just your ticket for revenge against your ex mate."

Ava took a step closer. "I care about you. I care about what your people think of you. And I care about what you think of yourself."

Lucas exhaled sharply, his grip loosening on the dagger. "He smuggled supplies to a traitor."

"I know," she cut him off. "But you don't even know why."

Lucas went still.

Ava's heart pounded. Got you.

"You punish first, ask questions later," she pressed on. "But what if he was forced? What if he was trying to feed a starving family? You don't know because you don't ask."

Lucas clenched his jaw.

Ava stepped into his space. "You think being feared makes you powerful, but what if you were respected instead? What if your people trusted you?"

Lucas let out a sharp breath. "You're asking me to be weak."

"I'm asking you to be better."

They stood there, inches apart, tension crackling between them.

Lucas was a storm barely contained, his dark eyes searching hers.

Ava wasn't backing down. Not this time.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Lucas exhaled.

He turned to Dorian standing by watching the exchange. "Release him."

Dorian blinked. "Alpha..."

"Did I stutter?"

The prisoner slumped forward, barely conscious, as Dorian unchained him.

Lucas turned back to her. His face was unreadable. His walls were back up.

But he had listened.

He had listened.

Ava swallowed hard.

"Thank you," she whispered.

Lucas took a step toward her, his fingers curling beneath her chin.

"This doesn't mean you control me, my little virgin."

His voice was low. A warning.

Ava's heart pounded.

She had won this battle.

But it seemed like she had just started a war.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

Lucas stormed out of the dungeon, his heart thundering with frustration.

This was becoming a pattern. Ava would say something, do something, and suddenly, everything he had built; his discipline, his control would shake.

She had a way of twisting his insides, making him question things he had long since accepted.

He hated it.

No. He hated that he didn't hate it enough.

Lucas exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. He needed distance.

Before he did something reckless.

Ava watched Lucas go, her chest tightening in an infuriating way.

She should feel victorious. She had made him spare the prisoner. She had made him listen.

And yet...

"You are one hell of a troublemaker, you know that?"

Ava sighed and turned to face Beta Dorian, who stood with his arms crossed, smirking.

"Dorian, if you're about to use that oversized mouth of yours, I suggest you shut it," Ava muttered.

Dorian clapped his hands in mock applause. "Oh, I love this." His voice dripped with amusement. "Congratulations, you've officially turned our bloodthirsty alpha into a softhearted fool."

Ava rolled her eyes. "Be a good little dog and get this poor man out of here."

Dorian's smirk didn't waver. "Oh sure, let's free the guy who's been smuggling supplies to Alpha Dennis because that definitely won't backfire."

Ava stilled.

Damn it.

She hadn't thought about it that way.

All she had wanted was to show the people that Lucas wasn't just a monster.

But had she just made a mistake?

Dorian's grin widened at her hesitation. "Ah, see? You didn't think, did you? All heart, no strategy. You'd make a terrible Luna."