Chapter 34: Chapter 34: Gamble

Asher

Leaving Rose after finally confessing what, apparently, both of us had been holding back felt like worse torture than the flogging. But knowing what I’m walking towards makes the situation even worse. I left the warmest bed I’ve ever known, the woman of my dreams tucked away safely in my arms, to go back to a living hell.

Rose knew better than to beg me to stay. She knew that if she asked me not to go back to Gen this morning, she’d be asking me to make an impossible choice, only torturing me further. And, even though I saw the reluctance in her eyes, Rose would never torture me like that.

Which made leaving even harder.

I can’t believe we’re leaving our mate after she told us she loves us last night. Why can’t we figure things out with her? Away from Gen?

You forget that Gen has our family. We are responsible for taking care of Mom and Dad. They are older; they can’t fight for themselves like they used to. And as the eldest sibling who is the one who got them into this mess, we can’t abandon our younger brothers and sisters.

I would never suggest that we should. I’m just angry that we have to play house with a terrorist.

Trust me, I’m not looking forward to that either. But we have no other choice.

We should check on Margaery.

Shit… I can’t imagine what kind of fallout she must’ve experienced when she came home. I’m hoping that maybe Genevive went to one of her boy toys and spent the night with him and never noticed I was gone. It’s not entirely impossible since I doubt she’d care where I went or how I got medical treatment. Hell, she may not even care if I got medical treatment.

In that case, maybe she never asked Margaery where I was.

But something in my gut tells me that’s not the case.

I approach the front door, my heart racing. My back stings, almost like I’m being lashed again when I know I’m not. I can feel the night air around my skin, the smell of the wooden pole, and the taste of blood in my mouth from biting the inside of my cheeks.

I can sense it all as if it’s happening in real-time, my eyes already brimming with tears and my hand shaking as I lift it to open the door.

I have to see Margaery. That’s the only way I’ll push through this fear and do what I must. She’ll be my motivation today. We may not be blood-related, but she might as well be my sister. I feel that way about her, which is all that matters.

Today, I’m living for my sister. I’m breathing for her and walking through this door for her. She needs me, so I need to be strong for her. Just for today. Hopefully, tomorrow, too.

But today feels manageable.

Before I know it, the soles of my shoes are planted against the linoleum atrium floors. We’re only a stone’s throw away from the packhouse where my closet office and Genevieve’s lavish one is. Margaery could be in her office, which is only slightly nicer than mine, there. But I have a feeling she may be hiding her face today upon Gen’s instruction.

That’s her MO. She abuses but then coerces us into hiding it so we protect her image. It all happens behind closed doors, smoke and mirrors. I’m surprised by how blatant and out front she was yesterday, but she did it under the guise of selflessness. I’m sure some saw through it, but does that matter?

“If she’s willing to almost kill her mate in public, what would she be willing to do to us?” I’m sure that’s what they’re thinking. And I’m positive that was part of her reasoning for doing that.

She wanted to assert her control over me and reinstate it over the pack. Make sure they know this is her regime, and everyone will fall in line. The Alpha won’t save you.

He can’t.

At least for now.

My bedroom with Genevieve is upstairs, taking up that entire floor between her second office, the bathroom, and our lavish bedroom. Gen has champagne taste.

The living room, guest bedroom, kitchen, and other entertainment rooms are on the middle floor.

The basement is Margaery’s. She doesn’t spend much time there unless she’s hiding since she prefers to stay away from Gen. She’ll sleep in her office most of the time.

I glance up the stairs, remembering how I was filled with such bravery and conviction when I was there last time. Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

I quickly open the door to the basement, realizing Gen might be home, and no part of me wants to face her right now. Maybe later, but not now.

“Marg?” I call. “You home?”

“Yeah,” she answers, her voice meek.

“You decent?” I ask as I wait in the stairwell. The whole basement is her bedroom. It’s not huge, but it’s still very nice. I’m surprised Gen was so generous. However, I’m sure her ulterior motive was to ensure she could always keep an eye on Margaery.

“Yeah,” she answers. “You can come in.”

I step out of the stairwell and lock eyes with her, my heart dropping.

Her eye is swollen and purple around the socket and cheekbone.

“Margaery,” I sigh, making my way toward her hastily to hug her. “I’m so sorry. What happened?”

It’s a silly question to ask because I know what happened. There’s nobody else that could have done this to her.

“I came home, and Gen was here, drunk, asking where you were. I told her I dropped you off with a healer, and she demanded to know where. I refused to tell her and said you’d be back in the morning.” She gestures to her face. “She didn’t like that.”

“Where is she now?”

“I don’t know,” Margaery answers. “She left the house after that, and I haven’t seen her since.”

“Shit,” I hiss, resting my hands on my hips. “I’m so sorry, Marg. Thank you for covering for me.”

“Least I could do,” she murmurs, sitting on the edge of her bed, burying her head in her hands.

I sit beside her, rubbing her back as we take a minute to soak everything in.

“How’re you feeling?” She asks.

“Physically, I’m good as new.”

She smiles half-heartedly. “At least we have that going for us.”

“Hey, don’t sound so discouraged,” I ease. “I love you, and I’m here to fight this fight with you, okay? I promise I won’t leave you with Gen.”

“You have no choice now,” Margaery replies. “She’s got your family on surveillance twenty-four-seven. Your parents are basically on house arrest.”

“Even if that weren’t the case, I’d still be here. It was foolish of me to reject her without thinking first. I shouldn’t have tried to leave so abruptly when I know how dangerous she is. I put us both in a bad situation and paid the price.”

“It’s not your fault, Ash,” she soothes. “I understand why you did it. Especially since I know you have strong feelings for Rose.”

I blush. “How long have you known about that?”

“A week or two,” she answers with a smirk. “For what it’s worth, I think you two make a great couple.”

I chuckle. “Yeah, I hope one day I can fully commit to her. My life is so complicated right now that I know I’m holding back.”

“How’d it go with you two last night?” She asks. “Did you tell her how you feel?”

“Yeah, I told her I was falling in love with her.”

“And what did she say?” She asks, her eyes bright with excitement. It’s nice to see a genuine smile on her face. It’s been a long time.

“Well, she told me she loved me first, and that’s when I said that I wasn’t all the way there yet, but I was falling. She said she understands why I have to take my time.” I pause, running my hand through my hair. “Honestly, I can’t help but think she deserves a lot better than me.”

“Stop it, you’re an amazing man,” she chastises.

“Yeah, but I have so much baggage right now. I don’t want to bring her into this fight,” I argue. “I don’t know if I can be strong for her when I can barely do that for myself.”

“That’s Gen’s voice in your head,” Margaery replies, her voice full of conviction. “You’ve never been weak. Do you think a weak person could have made it through all the shit you have and still be standing? Still, have room in his heart for love and trust? Still altruistically fighting for his family and pack? No. A weak person would have given up.”

“I suppose you’re right,” I reply, relaxing my shoulders. “I don’t know. It’s just hard because she’s amazing and deserves the world. I know I can’t give that to her right now.”

“But you will,” she soothes, squeezing my shoulder. “Once all of this is over, you will. Rose loves you, I believe that. She’ll be patient.”

“I want to be with her more than anything,” I confess, my bottom lip trembling. “My wolf says she’s my mate.”

“What?” Margaery gasps. “Is that why you rejected Gen?”

“My mark from Gen was disappearing before I rejected her,” I explain. “I felt disgusted even being around her. The mate bond was gone before I severed it.”

Margery strokes her chin, her brows furrowed. “What could that mean? I’ve never heard of someone having a second mate. Especially a wolf with a vampire.”

“Beats me,” I answer with a shrug. “Either way, it’s torturous being away from her, but, at the same time, I can’t let myself think about her. I can’t let my mind and heart go there, or I’ll go crazy.”

“I can’t even imagine being forced to stay away from my mate,” she sympathizes. “My only consolation to you is that it will be temporary. We need to come up with a plan to get rid of her.”

“Agreed,” I answer. “But how? We can’t do it by ourselves. We need to get some higher-ups on our side before we do anything, or she’ll easily take power back.”

“There have been whispers recently,” Gen replies. “There is a handful of former Council Members before Gen abolished the Council who want her out. I can arrange a meeting with them and see if we can put our heads together.”

“Are you sure we can trust them?” I ask. “What if they’re spies for Genevieve?”

“What have we got to lose?” She asks. “As you said, we need allies. And I’ve heard these things by eavesdropping, not from people approaching me. That would be suspicious.”

“If you feel good about it, I’ll trust your gut,” I reply. “Arrange the meeting, and we’ll go from there. We can go to the cabin. I don’t think Gen knows about it still.”

“Just another gamble we’ll have to take.”

I scoff, her sentence poignantly on the nose. This is the most high-stakes game of poker one could ever play because instead of chips, we’re playing with people’s lives. And instead of cards, we’re using bloodshed and politics.

I don’t want to overplay our hand; we need a better arsenal. Aces up our sleeves.

All I know is that folding isn’t an option. There’s too much at stake.

“It is risky…Let’s hope we don’t bust.”