Chapter 124

••• Elijah’s POV ••• They thought I was desperate. They thought I was broken. Let them. Let Martin believe I came crawling to him, that I begged for scraps of alliance to regain what I lost. He sees a wounded Alpha trying to survive the new order. But I’m not here to survive. He was a fool. He spoke like a king and planned like a cornered dog, his threats loud but brittle, cracking at the edges. Still, I smiled through every meeting, every toast, every word laced with false camaraderie. Let him believe I was his ally. Let him think I’d help him bring down Damien. But I was not here to survive. I was here to take everything. Martin was just a blunt weapon, useful but stupid. He underestimated everyone, especially Damien. He thought sheer numbers would break the Infernal Shadows Pack. That a few well-timed attacks would topple the Alpha King’s pet. He was wrong. And when his pack member lay in heaps on Damien’s border, bleeding into the earth, I’d sweep in as his loyal partner—and slit h