Bulwark swung wild.
Caidrik ducked under his brother’s arm and drove his forehead into Bulwark’s nose.
The crack echoed through the raging wind.
Bulwark reeled back, and his hands flew to his face. Caidrik didn’t give him time to regroup. He stepped in and landed a brutal punch to Bulwark’s temple. Bulwark’s knees buckled.
Caidrik caught him by the shoulders and slammed him down onto the icy turf.
Bulwark went still.
For a second, no one moved.
“End it,” Solomon shouted.
Nadia collapsed back against the bench with her entire body shuddering. Bussy pulled her into a half hug. Margaret cried openly now. The pack roared like the field itself might split.
Caidrik stood over Bulwark with blood dripping from his hands. He looked down at his brother, who was unconscious in the snow. Then he staggered away and motioned for two of the enforcers. “Take him to the edge of the land and let him go.” Bleeding, gasping, and barely standing, he looked at the pack. “I won’t kill a son in front of his mother.” He ducked his head toward his mother, where she stood, tears on her face.
The enforcers ran to do his bidding.
“Wait!” Solomon raised the grimoire. “The old laws are clear. You have to kill him.”
Caidrik turned to face the librarian. “No.”
Panic engulfed Nadia. “There’s a chance even you aren’t interpreting the passages perfectly, Solomon. Surely mercy was part of the culture, even millennia ago?”
“Yeah,” a male down the bleachers roared before many of the pack members yelled in agreement.
Solomon paled and looked at the loud crew. “I guess that’s fair? I mean, this was a clear win, even without a death. I could’ve taken that part of the grimoire a little too literally. “ He took a step back. “Everyone quiet down. I’m agreeing that we have a champion. Tonight we will declare you as our Alpha. Caidrik? Would you like to choose your mate?”
Caidrik’s gaze met hers. “Already have. Nadia?”
Solomon lowered the book. “Oh, no. Sorry. I thought you knew. You were allowed back in the challenge because of the trials today. The trophy who broke the chastity rules? She’s disqualified for life.”
Nadia dropped back onto the bleachers. Was that true?
Caidrik’s lips curled in a snarl. “Too fucking bad. We mated. She’s mine.”
Bussy gasped next to Nadia. “You mated?”
Nadia nodded, her entire body numb.
Margaret hugged her. “That’s perfect. There’s no going back.”
Solomon’s shoulders sagged. “Why didn’t you say so? You’re disqualified as well. You didn’t need to go through any of this.” He looked down at the book. “There’s no way for me to find a different interpretation this time. The grimoire is clear.”
Nadia stood. “What does that mean?” So there was no Alpha?
Solomon sighed, turning to look at the bleachers. “The grimoire states that if no Alpha survives the challenges, then the librarian becomes Alpha of the pack, with the enforcers ordered to protect him or her at any cost.”
Taryn strolled down the bleachers, reaching his side.
He slid an arm over her shoulder. “For the record, I do not want to be the Alpha of any pack. Honestly, I didn’t figure this would work out this way, but here we are.”
She lifted up on her toes and kissed his cheek, turning to face everyone. “I planned on it.”
Chapter 32
