Defying the Rogue Alpha-Chapter 28: Burn

Ava scowled. She had heard that before. Everyone in the Crimson pack would shout it to the high heavens. Would Lucas finally believe the same as Leon did? Had she sacrificed her goal for a man she didn't even know?

Ava glanced at the prisoner, who was barely conscious.

She swallowed hard. Her stomach twisted.

She turned to walk away.

"You know," Dorian called after her, "the stronger Alpha Dennis gets, the weaker Alpha Lucas becomes."

Ava froze.

Dorian's voice lowered. "Makes me wonder... why did Alpha Leon choose you?"

Ava turned slowly, giving him an unimpressed look. "I'd love to stay and entertain your conspiracy theories, but I have better things to do."

Dorian took a step closer, lowering his voice. "I'll find out your real reason for being here. And when I do?" His smirk vanished. "I'll end you myself. Because Alpha Lucas Raventhorn is no woman's simp."

Ava tilted her head, her lips curving into a slow, taunting smile.

She reached up, patted his cheek lightly, and whispered, "And yet, here you are, spending all this time with me."

Dorian's eye twitched.

Ava winked. Then she turned on her heel and strode out.

*****

Lucas stood by the window, watching the night sky.

His jaw clenched.

He wanted to forget her. To ignore the way her voice haunted him.

But his body refused to comply.

He could still feel the warmth of her skin under his hands. The way she had fit so perfectly in his lap. The scent of her lingering in his head.

His fingers flexed at his sides.

A knock on the door.

"Enter," Lucas growled.

Kade stepped in hesitantly. "Alpha... Ava is back in her chambers."

Lucas nodded.

Silence.

Kade hesitated, then cleared his throat. "Is there anything else you want?"

Lucas exhaled sharply. "Get someone to fetch me Sarah."

Kade nodded his head and left.

*****

Ava lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

Her heart felt too full.

Too much emotion. Too much frustration. Too much everything.

And now Dorian's words rattled in her head.

I'll find out your real reason for being here.

Lucas is no woman's simp.

She groaned, flipping onto her stomach.

Then came the knock.

Ava sighed.

The door swung open, and in walked Sarah.

"Sarah, seriously I do not have the time."

"I just came to check in on you." Sarah's smile was sharp. "I figured you might be dying again, seeing as our alpha just sent for me tonight." She let out a little laugh. "Turns out you just don't know how to please him."

Ava clenched her jaw.

Sarah leaned in, her voice dripping with sugar and venom. "We'll see who's forgotten soon."

Then she strutted off, her hips swaying.

Ava sat there for all of two seconds before she lost it.

"FUCK!!!!!"

She shoved everything off her dressing table, sending perfume bottles and hairbrushes crashing to the floor.

This was not how it was supposed to go.

She had come so close.

She had touched something deep inside Lucas, something raw and untamed.

But in the end, her humanity had betrayed her.

Had cost her a few crucial steps.

A bitter thought slithered into her mind: Was brutality the only way to forge ahead? Was being blind to violence the only way to realize her ambition?

She sank onto the floor, fists clenched, breathing hard.

No. No, there had to be another way.

*****

Sarah arrived at Lucas's quarters with one goal.

She wasn't going to be replaced. Not by Ava. Not by anyone.

Lucas was hers.

She had clawed her way to where she was, made herself indispensable. And now some self-righteous nobody thought she could waltz in and change things?

Not a chance.

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So tonight?

Tonight, she wasn't just going to be another distraction.

She was going to give Lucas a night he would never forget.

The moment she stepped into the room, though, she knew something was wrong.

He was brooding.

Dangerous mood.

Melancholic mood.

Perfect.

Normally, she'd undress, slip into bed, and let him take what he wanted.

But tonight, she needed to make him want her.

She let her robe slide from her shoulders, pooling at her feet, and climbed onto the bed.

Lucas barely reacted.

Alright, time to turn the tables.

She started slow, kissing from his feet upwards, worshiping him with her lips.

Her hands slid over his thighs, her breath teasing against his skin as she worked her way up.

Lucas remained silent, watching.

Sarah smirked. Patience.

She unfastened his trousers, freeing his length, her fingers caressing him expertly.

Slow strokes. Light teasing.

She knew how to get a reaction out of him.

His body responded, but his mind? It was somewhere else.

Lucas shut his eyes. His body was there. His pleasure was there.

But his mind... his passion...

Was with Ava.

Lucas grabbed Sarah, pulling her over him until they were face to face.

His hands roamed, his lips sought hers.

But he was chasing a ghost.

Trying to replicate something that only one woman could give him.

Sarah kissed him harder, hoping to break through the fog in his head.

Love me. Want me. Remember me.

But no.

After a few minutes, Lucas suddenly stopped.

Something flickered in his expression.

Defeat.

Resignation.

"You can leave," he muttered.

Sarah froze. "Alpha..."

"Just go."

His voice was sharp.

Sarah scrambled off the bed, grabbing her robe with shaking hands.

She bit her lip hard, forcing back the sting of rejection.

She had lost.

Ava had taken everything.

And Sarah wasn't about to sit back and let it happen.

She stormed out of the room, fury burning in her veins.

If she wanted to keep her place in this pack, she needed backup.

And she knew exactly where to get it.

*****

Dorian was trying to enjoy the rest of his night.

Feet up. Glass of whiskey in hand. Shirt unbuttoned.

He thought back to his encounter with Ava, the way she had bent the alpha to her will. Something even him had been unable to achieve.

A furious knocking made his eye twitch.

With a deep sigh, he got up and yanked open the door.

There stood Sarah, scantily dressed, her chest heaving, eyes wild.

Dorian lifted a brow. "Uh-oh. Should you be here at this time of the night?"

Sarah pushed past him into the living room.

Dorian shut the door, leaning against it. "Whats going on?"

Sarah whirled on him. "I need your help."

Dorian exhaled dramatically.

Sarah stalked forward. "Ava has her claws in Lucas, and if I don't do something now, I'm done for."

Dorian smirked. "And you want me to...?"

Sarah's smile was slow and sharp. "Help me remove her from the picture."

Dorian whistled.

Sarah crossed her arms. "You want Ava gone too, don't you?"

Dorian hesitated.

Did he like Ava? No.

Did he trust her? Definitely not.

But...

Did he want to get rid of her completely?

That was the question. Alpha Lucas seems to be fond of her and honestly, a little bit of sunshine in Lucas's life would do him good but that sunshine came with it a dark cloud. It was his duty as the beta to protect his alpha even from himself.

Sarah took a step closer, her voice dropping to a sultry whisper. "Think about it, Dorian. I hear the whispers around the fortress. I know what people are saying about the alpha. With Ava out of the way, Lucas stops getting distracted. He focuses."

Dorian tapped his chin.

"Well, then. Whats your plan Sarah?"

*****

Sarah watched as Dorian took a slow sip of his whiskey, his sharp eyes glinting with amusement.

"So? Are you in?"

Dorian twirled the glass in his fingers. "Depends. What's your plan?"

Sarah smirked. "Ava is a weakness to Lucas. We have to make her a liability."

Dorian raised a brow. "Oh? And how do you propose we do that?"

Sarah stepped closer, voice low. "We don't just get rid of Ava."

Dorian rolled his eyes. "Get to the point."

Sarah smiled, slow and cunning.

"We make Lucas doubt her. We make him hate her."

Dorian's curiosity flickered. "Go on."

"We frame her."

Dorian tilted his head. "For what?"

Sarah's smile widened. "For treason. Lucas hates betrayal more than anything. If we make Ava seem like she's plotting against him? If we make her look like a threat?"

Dorian smirked. "He'll tear her apart himself."

Sarah's eyes gleamed. "Exactly."

Dorian let the idea settle in his mind.

Lucas was already on edge. If Ava was made to look guilty of treason, he wouldn't hesitate to act.

It was risky but brilliant.

Dorian sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Alright. But for this to work, we need patience, you need to be able to play the long game. Otherwise, count me out because I am not ready to lose my head."

"I want her to burn so badly. I can wait."

Ava cannot win. Sarah smiled. And Lucas would turn his attention to her again.