Chapter 41: Chapter 41

Jason's POV

Ever had troubling thoughts that kept you awake all through the night? I just happened to have had the most troubling night of my life.

Getting to know that Alexander is alive came as a huge shock to me as I was told by Derrick that Alexander had been killed.

With Alexander still alive, there is little or nothing I can do to claim Ashley, she is still mated and soul tied to him.

But again Ashley is too powerful to be let free.

I have been thinking about what to do with her all night, as much as I want her to become part of my pack, become my mate, I don't see that happening anytime soon.

The only option left now is to kill her and her child because letting her go with Alexander is like creating a power couple that would be too powerful for any mortal to take down.

Alexander is a one-man army, with Ashley by his side he becomes indestructible.

But killing her could send Alexander over the edge, and in his rage, he becomes vulnerable and anyone can take him down.

Also being that I have been keeping Ashley alive against Derrick's wish would also not look good on me by the time Derrick gets to find out.

Although in all of this, I wish there was a way to keep Ashley alive, she is too powerful to be wasted just like that. Only if I could acquire her powers before killing her.

how I thought I had hit the golden buzzer by finding out that Ashley had magical powers and I had thought of how I was going to manipulate her into falling in love with me.

She was just the right person that would have helped me expand my pack and make me more relevant in the alpha's ranking.

And I would have been able to do that, if not that her ex refusal to die.

“Peek-a-boo”, I heard an unfriendly voice say behind me.

I turned and was surprised to see that it was none other than Derrick and I panicked.

He walked in with about six heavily built rogues and from his expression and tone, it appears he already knows that I did not carry out his orders.

But what would he be doing here, Derrick hardly ever leaves his pack? Has Alexander chased him out of the bad moon pack or is he here to punish me for disobeying him.

“Are you not going to ask us to sit down,” Derrick asked skeptically.

“Huh, sorry, you are welcome, it's just that I was not expecting you, please sit down,” I said to him, trying not to show how intimidated I was around him.

He looked at me with a half-crook smile as he makes to make himself comfortable on the chair. While the rogues positioned themselves behind him.

“So where is she?” he asked after he had made himself comfortable on the chair while looking at me suspiciously as if wanting to see if I would lie to him.

I swallowed an invisible lump that got stuck in my throat as I thought of the best ways to reply to him. My brain thought of a thousand and one lies I could tell him, but again I was scared of not pissing him.

Derrick is very influential and being on his wrong side is not what anyone would want fir themselves.

“They are fine” was all I could say and I know it sounded dumb but it was the only thing that came to my mind.

He looked at me and smiled evilly shaking his head as disappointed at me. Every one of his actions made me nervous as I waited eagerly for what he had to say next.

“Do you know how angry I was to know that you didn't carry out my orders,” he finally said and paused as if waiting for me to say something.

But when I didn't say anything he continued.

I was furious and I thought of ways of punishing you for your disobedience. But it happened that you were so smart to think that killing the slave girl would totally work against us, and for once even though I hate to admit it, you were smart to think that way,” he said and honestly, I was baffled as I was not expecting to hear what he just said.

How did my not killing Ashley work to our advantage especially now that we both know that Alexander would not rest till he finds her?

And does he even know that I have decided to kill ashley since she will be of no use to me now?

“I don't understand” I stuttered with the hope that he throws more light on what he was saying.

“What I am saying is that you unknowing just saved us all by sparing the life of that slave girl," he said with a bit of laughter that seem to come only from his lips.

“I'm glad you see it that way,” I said trying to force a smile to my side lips and taking a chair to sit opposite where he sat.

“I'm sure you have heard that Alexander is alive,” he questioned returning his gaze to me.

“I only got to know that yesterday” I admitted genuinely

“Yes, I heard you tried forcing the slave girl to become your mate also,” he said casually, and that right there confirmed all my suspicions about Derrick.

There have been allegations that he normally sends spies to live with the various packs under his command to help keep him updated about the various activities.

How would he know that I was going to forcefully mate ashley if wasn't informed by whoever his spy is that he has implanted here?

“I was not forcing her, she loves me, and wanted us to be mated...” I was saying in my defense when he interrupted me.

“Keep quiet and let me finish what I was driving at, he said casting a mean look at me.

While the rogues behind him flexed their muscles and that was my cue to shut my mouth.

“Alexander is alive and he has reclaimed his pack with the help of some rogues I do not know where he got them from, but it won't be long before he will know that you are hiding his mate here in your pack and he would come to get her,” he said.

Okay, from his narration it is apparent that he ran away from the pack to save his head and that he might be the one to bring Alexander's attention to this pack.

“So what do you suggest we do?” I asked him after some time.

“You are going to challenge him to a till-death combat,” he said blankly.

His words hit me hard because he was indirectly sending me to my death. Alexander is one of the strongest alpha make in the entire kingdom if not the strongest.

He's asking me to go and fight him in combat is like sentencing me to my early grave.

“But you know I am no match for Alexander,” I said calmly finding it hard to control my nervousness.

“And yet you want his mate, how ironic?” he said teasingly.

“That's by the side anyway, Don't worry, I have already made all the arrangements for the combat. I will lace your sword with poison so that all you would have to do is just give him a cut, the tiniest of cuts will transfer the poison to his body and he will be dead in no time,” he said proudly, sounding satisfied with his plans.

Even I must admit the plan does sound good and if it works my name will go down memory lane as the one that killed the almighty Alexander.

“What if he refuses to take the bait,” I asked Derrick.

“Oh, he will take the bait, trust me. He is going to be very furious when he gets to know that you have been keeping his mate hostage the entire time. When he comes just make sure you say things that would hurt his ego, things like you love his mate and that you are willing to die to protect your love for her. No alpha would want another mate to challenge him over his affection for his mate and from what I have seen, Alexander is so much in love with that slave girl he calls mate, that he would kill anyone who comes between them,”

“But what happens if I die during the combat,”

“Trust me you won't, there will only be one death on the day of that combat and that person won't be you, it would be Alexander,” he said confidently.

Even though I still had my reservations about how the plan was going to be executed, I know that it was my best shot at staying alive because I know Derrick would not hesitate to kill me if I refuse his proposal.