NovelGoldThe Alpha King is unavailable 146
"Are you absolutely sure that's what happened?" | pressed gently.
Victoria's fingers tightened around mine. “Ethan, please. Why are you questioning her like this?
She was traumatized by that incident."
"| just want to understand-"
"Why don't you ask Lily then?" Victoria suggested, her tone innocent despite the cruelty of her words. She knew
perfectly well that Lily was no longer alive to defend herself.
Emma's eyes filled with tears. "Alpha, don't you believe Emma? Do you think Emma is a lying bad girl?"
The sight of her distress made my resolve crumble. | reached back to pat her knee
reassuringly.
"No, of course not. | believe you, Emma."
Victoria relaxed beside me, her thumb stroking the back of my hand. "It was probably just a
misunderstanding between children. These things happen."
| nodded, though doubt lingered. Perhaps that was all it had been-a childish misunderstanding that | had blown
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtout of proportion due to my own prejudices. | had been quick to believe the worst of Lily, assuming she had
inherited Olivia's supposed jealousy and
vindictiveness.
< Chapter 88 Divided Loyalties
+15 Pomis
But the surveillance videos had showna different Olivia than the one | thought
| knew. Patient, loving, protective-nothing like the manipulative woman Victoria had described to me
over the years.
Had | been wrong about both of them?
We arrived at Rosewood Haven, Victoria's elegant residence on the outskirts of Shadow Creek. Emma, still upset
from our conversation, clung toas | carried her inside.
"Don't go yet, Alpha," she pleaded, her small hands fisted in my shirt. "Stay for dinner. Please?"
Victoria smiled apologetically. "You don't have to if you're busy. | know you have pack
responsibilities-"
"I'll stay," | decided, unable to resist Emma's pleading eyes. "For dinner."
Dinner stretched into the evening as Emma insisted on showingher latest drawings, her school projects, her
new toys. By the tVictoria suggested it was bedtime, Emma was
yawning but still reluctant to letleave.
"Will you reada story, Alpha? Please?"
Victoria intervened gently. "Emma, Alpha Ethan needs to get back to his duties. | can read to
you tonight."
"But | want Alpha to do it," Emma insisted, her lower lip jutting out stubbornly.
| found myself agreeing, following Emma to her bedroom while Victoria watched with a mixture of amusement
and something else | couldn't quite identify.
Emma's room was a child's paradise-filled with toys, books, and a canopy bed fit for a princess. She climbed into
bed and patted the space beside her expectantly.
"This one," she said, handinga colorful storybook about a wolf pup who discovers his
special powers.
| read slowly, watching as Emma's eyelids grew heavier with each page. By the t| reached
the end, she was fast asleep, her small face peaceful in repose.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm
Carefully, | extracted myself from the bed and tucked the blankets around her. For
a moment, | simply stood there, watching her sleep. She looked so innocent, so vulnerable. It was hard to
imagine her deliberately pushing another child into a pool.
Yet Lily had seemed equally sincere in her denial.
It was almost nine o'clock when | finally left Emma's room, gently closing the door behind me.
4/5
< Chapter 88: Divided Loyalties
As | walked down the hallway toward the stairs, Victoria's bedroom door opened.
She stood in the doorway, her hair loose around her shoulders, wearing a midnight blue nightdress that left little
to the imagination. The silky material clung to her curves, the neckline plunging dangerously low.
+15 Points>
| averted my gaze, uncomfortable with the intimacy of the moment. "Emma's asleep. | should get back to the
pack house."
Victoria stepped forward, closing the distance between us. Her arms slid around
my waist, her body pressing against mine as she looked up atwith undisguised longing.
"Ethan..." Her voice was husky, inviting. "Stay tonight, okay?"
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