Chapter 436
Four hundred and thirty eight
Charlie POV
Weekend dinners at Lisa’s were usually non-negotiable, and missing them always felt like leaving a week feeling completely undone.
Mom and Dad were completely unaware of the absolute mess I was bringing to the table. I had introduced Emma to them, but they didn’t know she was pregnant, and now she was actively aiding a condemned rogue and throwing her entire future away for a killer.
The disgust made my throat burn every time I hit the gas.
A blast echoed through my cabin, and the steering wheel jerked to the left.
“Damn it!” I swore, wrestling the truck to the shoulder.
A blown front tire.
I slammed the gear into park and pulled out the jack, my hands getting covered in grease and grit as I cranked the metal frame up. In the middle of loosening the lug nuts, my phone buzzed in my pocket.
“Charlie, man, where are you?” Wesley’s voice came through the speaker. “Are you on your way over already p>
“I’m stuck on the access road,” I grunted. “Blown tire. I’m fixing it now p>
“Could you stop by my house first? I want to show you the blueprints for the border expansion before we head to the Alpha House for dinner p>
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes p>
I hung up and finished swapping the tire. I wasn’t about to blurt Emma’s treason over the phone. Wesley was going to be furious, and I wanted to be standing right in front of him when I laid out every single lie she had fed us.
Ten minutes later, I pulled into Wesley’s driveway.
He was standing near the porch, looking up at Maverick, who was perched on the railing, jabbering away about swimming lessons. Wesley gave me a wave and a nod of acknowledgment while answering the boy.
I watched them for a moment, and my anger grew.
Maverick was Alpha Desmond’s biological son, a child born from pure corruption. Yet Wesley had taken him in and was raising him as their own.
That was the exact stability I was offering Emma, but she kept pushing me away with flimsy excuses, choosing instead to dive headfirst into a pit with a murderer.
It made no sense.
“Go inside and wash up for dinner, son,” Wesley said, patting the boy’s shoulder as Maverick scrambled down and ran into the house.
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Wesley turned to me. “Good to see you, Charlie. Let’s head over to the study to look at those maps p>
Keep the maps for later, Wes,” I cut in. “There’s something very serious I need to tell you. You need to brace yourself p>
“What is it p>
“Emma is helping the rogue,” I said, my adrenaline spiking as I laid the accusation down. “She’s been sneaking into Zachary’s pack. She asked me for access to the archives to dig up the rogue’s/family files. She’s actively trying to exonerate him p>
I waited for the shock. Instead, Wesley just stood there.
Eerie silence stretched between us.
“Wesley?” I frowned. “Didn’t you hear what I just said p>
“I heard you,” he said quietly.
A sick drop hit the bottom of my stomach.
“Wait… you already knew p>
“I didn’t know until an hour ago,” Wesley admitted, shifting his weight. “She told me everything p>
“Right,” I spat out, my temper flaring at his deadpan response. “So how are we stopping this madness? She’s completely lost her mind over this rogue. Just because she got pregnant doesn’t mean she can burn down her entire family’s reputation p>
“Charlie, calm down p>
“Calm down?!” I barked. “She used your name to sneak into a maximum-security prison, trying to overturn a high council patricide verdict. Is she under a spell? Did that filthy rogue’s cock mess with her head p>
Wesley sighed.
“She’s not under a spell, Charlie. They’re fated mates p>
The words hit me like a punch to the gut.
“What?” I choked out.
“They’re fated mates,” Wesley repeated. “I’m as shocked as you are. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. But she’s carrying his child, and the bond is already active p>
“That… that makes it ten times worse!” I stuttered. “If it’s a fated bond, she’s not thinking straight at all! We have to pull her away from him right now before she ruins her life completely p>
“You can’t just ‘pull’ someone away from a fated bond, Charlie,” Wesley said, his voice laced with grim reality. “If something happens to Alexander, the bond strain could kill her or end the pregnancy. She’s already losing her mind because she claims someone tried to assassinate him in his cell last night p>
I let out a harsh laugh. “An assassination attempt in an alpha prison? Please. His past catches up with
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him, that’s all. The man murdered his own father. Why should any of us feel a shred of sympathy for
“Look, we’re going to tell the family tonight. But you need to keep your head clear, Charlie. Don’t go in there swinging p>
The front door opened. Emma walked out onto the patio, flanked by Isabella and Anita. Her eyes were swollen and bloodshot. The moment her eyes locked onto me, she broke into a run, rushing down the steps straight toward me.
“Charlie!” she cried out. “Charlie, please! I beg you, help me! You know Alpha Zachary-call him! Tell his guards to let me see Alexander! They tried to kill him last night p>
I stepped back, shoving her hands away from my chest. “Emma, stop it! Think straight for once in your life! I am not aiding a condemned rogue p>
“He’s my mate!” she sobbed, clutching her arms around herself.
“I don’t care if he’s your mate!” I shouted back. “He is a convict! It hurts to see you caught in a mess like this, but I am not sticking my neck out to protect a father-killer p>
“He didn’t kill his father!” she screamed, tears streaming down her face.
I grabbed her by her shoulders, forcing her to look at me. “Look at Wesley and Isabella. Look at how they live. I offered to take care of you, Emma. I offered to raise that baby as my own, to marry you, to give you a real family so you wouldn’t have to face this shame! Why are you doing this p>
Emma stared back at me, her eyes cold despite the tears pouring down her cheeks. She pulled herself out of my grip.
“Even if I didn’t have a fated bond with Alexander,” Emma said, her voice dropping, “I would never marry you, Charlie. It’s never going to happen. The more you push it, the more repulsive it feels p>
The words cut deep into my pride. “So you’re choosing a rogue over me p>
“I am choosing my fated mate,” she spat, taking a step back. “An innocent man who is languishing in a cell while people try to murder him. I’m choosing a fair trial over your pride. And I’d do it a thousand times over p>
“If this gets out, you will be disgraced across every pack in the region!” I growled. “Is that what you want p>
“I don’t care!” she yelled. “If you claim you ever loved me, Charlie, then help me get permission to enter that prison! If he’s tried and found guilty fairly, then fine! But condemning him based on prejudice is wrong p>
I turned my head away, refusing to look at her. “No. I won’t do it p>
Emma turned her desperate eyes to Wesley. “Wesley, please p>
“Charlie,” Wesley said, keeping his voice carefully measured. “Just to calm her down… can’t you just make a quick call to Zachary? Ask for an official update on the cellblock p>
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“No, Wesley!” I snapped, turning my fury on him. “I’m not asking Zachary to do favors for a murderer! I won’t be a part of this p>
Emma stared at me, her lips trembling before her expression twisted into pure hatred. “I hate you,” she whispered, her voice trembling with venom. “I hate you so much, Charlie p>
She turned around and stomped away across the lawn toward the guest villas, sobbing loudly. Isabella gave me one last disappointed glare before hurrying after her.
I stood there, my breathing heavy, my chest tight with anger. “Are you serious, Wesley? You expect me to call an Alpha and ask about the man who butchered his own family p>
“Charlie, think about Emma,” Anita spoke up, stepping forward from the porch. “Nobody is saying Alexander is a saint. But Emma is our family. Alexander didn’t kidnap her-she went to him on her own. He didn’t force any of this p>
“Shut up, Anita!” I hissed, rounding on her. “You’re enabling treason! Both of you are sitting here whitewashing a rogue while Wesley ignores his sworn duty as an Alpha to protect our territory from criminals p>
I looked Wesley dead in the eye, pulling my phone out.
“You guys want to play the noble protectors?” I said, my voice dripping with bitter irony. “Fine. Let’s head over to the Alpha House for dinner right now. Let’s see what Franklin and Nadia have to say when they find out their daughter is carrying a rogue’s baby and breaking into archives for him. Let’s see what your father says about you covering it up. Let’s see who looks foolish when the truth comes out p>
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