Knotted By The Devilish Alpha Brothers

Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Sour mood

The discussion that followed was long and uneven—raised voices, sharp disagreements, reluctant concessions.

Eventually the remaining points were settled, the meeting was closed, and the subjects filed out. Dylan left the chamber in a foul mood.

By the time he reached his private quarters the exhaustion had settled deep in his bones. He shut the door, crossed the room, and dropped flat onto the bed without bothering to remove his outer clothes. The ceiling stared back at him, making him feel more helpless.

Nothing was going the way it was supposed to. The plan to elevate the Blacksmith Territory into one of the strongest on the continent kept slipping further out of reach. Every alliance, every quiet deal—somehow it all kept fraying. He couldn’t even pinpoint the exact moment it had started to unravel.

The Ellington brothers were supposed to have been removed over a month ago. Amelia was supposed to have died in their cell. Instead she had walked back into his wedding, then somehow ended up claimed by the very men meant to kill her. And now those same men were coming here.

A presence registered too late.

Dylan’s head snapped to the side. Someone was already standing near the foot of the bed. A raw sound of fright tore out of him as he scrambled off the mattress, heart slamming against his ribs.

"Fuck—?!"

Recognition hit a second later. The blood drained from his face. He dropped to one knee so fast his joint cracked against the floor.

"M-my lady— I didn’t realize—"

The woman looked down at him with open contempt. "You couldn’t even sense me the moment you walked into this room. What kind of Alpha are you?"

Dylan kept his head lowered and swallowed the insult. Offending her was not an option. The Underworld did not tolerate wounded pride from their tools. "I received word that the Ellington brothers are coming to your territory."

"Yes. We’re already preparing their welcome. The Underworld will finally be able to take their lives the way you’ve wanted for so long."

Her expression remained cold. "Do you genuinely believe the three of them will simply be subdued once they arrive?"

Dylan forced a careful, respectful tone. "Your people are more than capable of handling them. The last operation only failed because of unexpected interference. This time the ground is ours. We control the territory, the routes, the timing—"

A thin, chilly smile touched her mouth as she began to circle him slowly. "Then explain why my subjects failed to finish them at the ceremony. We had the gas, the meteors, the numbers, and the element of surprise."

He had no answer.

She continued. "We had one chance. Years of preparation. We were close—closer than we had ever been—and then someone interfered. That interference didn’t just save their lives. It strengthened their fate more than before. The thread around those three is tighter now. Harder to cut."

Dylan frowned, still not fully understanding the weight of what she was saying.

"I don’t believe they will come alone," she went on. "They will bring their partner."

"You don’t need to concern yourself with her," Dylan said quickly. "Amelia is wolfless. She has no combat value. She isn’t a threat. If anything, she’s a liability they chained themselves to. We can use her as leverage or simply ignore her—"

The woman’s footwear connected hard with his side. Pain flared white-hot across his ribs as he pitched forward onto one hand, breath punching out of him.

"That exact reasoning," she said icily, "is why the Ellington brothers are still breathing. You looked at the girl and saw something disposable. We looked at the same girl and saw the variable that ruined years of work."

Dylan pressed his forehead closer to the floor, breath short, ribs throbbing. "I apologize if I spoke out of place. I didn’t realize she was... significant to the failure."

"You didn’t realize because you never bothered to look past your own wounded ego," the woman replied.

She walked to the tall window and stood there for a moment, looking out over the territory. "When they arrive, make certain Amelia stays distant from the brothers. And keep her in a good mood to."

Dylan didn’t understand the order. He also knew better than to ask. He simply bowed his head lower.

"Yes."

"I can’t even fully blame you for the plan you set in motion," she continued. "You saw a disposable wolfless girl and treated her like one. The problem is that we also didn’t see her as anything special at all." Her voice cooled further. "Amelia is the reason years of preparation collapsed. We discovered too late who she actually is. She anticipated what we would do if the Ellington brothers were ever found... and she built a countermeasure into her own body. That is why the last operation failed."

She turned her head just enough to look at him over her shoulder.

"Do not underestimate that woman again. You are nowhere near her level." A thin pause. "Good day."

Her form shimmered and vanished, leaving the room emptier and colder than before.

Dylan stayed on the floor for several seconds before forcing himself upright. Pain flared along his ribs, already knitting under his accelerated healing, but the confusion sat heavier than the bruise.

What did she mean? Was she confusing Amelia with someone else? It had to be a mistake.

Except the Underworld did not make mistakes of that scale.

He dragged a hand down his face, irritation rising. Her name again. Always her name. A woman he had discarded without a second thought was now being guarded, claimed, and apparently treasured by the three most dangerous men on the continent. It made no sense.

The door opened.

Jade stepped inside, then stopped short at the sight of him—disheveled, still slightly bent from the lingering pain, and with a dark expression on his face. Alarm flashed across her face as she hurried closer.

"What happened? Who attacked you?"

"Forget it." Dylan’s coldly said. "My body is already healing. Why are you here?"

Jade paused, looking genuinely hurt even as she tried to show concern.

"I came to check on my husband. We’re barely together at college, and it’s the same at home. You’re always distant. Is it because of Amelia?"

Something in him snapped.

"Can all of you please stop bringing that name to my face?!"

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