The Alpha Kings And Their Stripper Mate

Chapter 165: Chapter 164: Guard her with your life

Damian’s wolf form made a sound that was part question, part warning.

"I know you don’t want me near her unsupervised," Raphael said, meeting the massive wolf’s steel-gray gaze steadily. "I know you three have.....understandable concerns about any male in proximity to your unconscious mate. But consider the alternative."

He gestured back toward the house. "Eve is currently alone in that bedroom. Unconscious. Vulnerable. The wards are strong, yes. But you had strong wards last time too, and an assassin still got through. This estate is now full of pack members responding to the power surge....most of whom you trust, but all of whom felt that wave of energy and know something significant just happened."

His expression became more serious. "If I were Malachai....if I had people embedded in pack territories throughout multiple regions.....tonight would be when I’d strike. While everyone is distracted by the Court arrival. While the Alphas are occupied at the border. While the Luna is alone and defenseless."

The silence that followed was heavy with implication.

"You want us to leave you with her," Damon said slowly. "Alone. While she’s unconscious."

"I want you to make a strategic decision," Raphael corrected. "You can either spend the next hour trying to diplomatically handle a Court representative while worried about Eve’s safety, or you can leave someone you trust....someone with two centuries of combat experience and a vested interest in keeping her alive....to stand guard."

He held Damon’s gaze. "I’m not asking because I want time alone with your mate. I’m asking because leaving her unguarded right now is a an error you can’t afford."

Damian’s wolf form looked at his brothers. The communication that passed between them was silent and complete....the kind of conversation that only happened through years of shared bond and absolute trust.

Silas spoke first. "He’s right. We can’t leave her alone."

"We could post guards," Damon said.

"Guards who would have to stand outside the bedroom door," Silas countered. "Who couldn’t respond immediately if something happened inside. Who don’t have Raphael’s specific abilities to detect Seraphim Court magic."

He looked at Raphael. "You stay in the room with her. You don’t touch her unless there’s a threat. You contact us immediately through the estate wards if anything changes. Clear?"

"Completely," Raphael agreed.

Damian’s wolf form growled again...longer, deeper, carrying every ounce of territorial alpha warning he could project.

The message was unmistakable: I am trusting you with the most valuable thing in my world. Do not make me regret it.

"I understand," Raphael said quietly, with a seriousness that matched the gravity of what was being asked. "I’ll guard her with my life."

Damian held his gaze for another long moment. Then he turned and continued toward the eastern border, his massive form moving with predatory grace.

Damon lingered a moment longer. "If anything happens to her....."

"It won’t," Raphael interrupted gently. "I’ve been protecting her for twenty-three years. I’m not stopping now."

Damon nodded once, sharp and final, and followed his brother.

Silas was last. He looked at Raphael with those golden eyes that were slowly, gradually resolving back toward brown but weren’t quite there yet.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "For understanding what she needs. Even when it’s complicated."

"She’s family," Raphael said simply. "That’s never complicated."

Silas’s expression shifted fractionally....something warm and genuine breaking through the protective intensity. Then he too turned and jogged after his brothers, leaving Raphael alone in the shadow of the oak tree.

Raphael watched until they disappeared into the darkness toward the eastern border. Then he turned and made his way back to the main house, moving quickly but without the urgency that would attract attention.

The master bedroom was exactly as the brothers had left it....softly lit by moonlight and the steady golden glow from Eve’s mark, quiet and warm and carrying the particular quality of a space where something profound had recently occurred.

Eve lay exactly where Cain had positioned her, surrounded by pillows, covered in blankets, her breathing deep and even. The mark over her heart pulsed with steady light.....one pulse per heartbeat, visible even through the fabric covering her.

Raphael closed and locked the door behind him, then moved to the chair that Silas typically occupied during his observation sessions. He pulled it closer to the bed....close enough to respond immediately to any threat, far enough to respect the brothers’ clear boundaries about proximity to their unconscious mate.

He settled into it and allowed himself to truly look at his niece.

She looked peaceful. Younger than she typically did when awake....all the careful control and strategic thinking smoothed away by unconsciousness, leaving just the young woman beneath the Luna, beneath the Seraphim heir, beneath all the roles and responsibilities.

The mark was extraordinary up close.

Raphael had seen claiming marks before....they were common enough among mated wolves. But this was different. The perfect wolf paw print glowing with golden light, surrounded by the intricate green and gold knotwork that represented the succubus-wolf bond....it was beautiful and powerful in equal measure. freewebnσvel.cѳm

And it was complete.

He could feel it through his own Seraphim perception.....the mate bond fully activated, sealed, permanent. All three wolves connected to her now with ties that couldn’t be severed by anything short of death.

She was thoroughly, completely, irrevocably claimed.

Raphael found himself smiling despite the circumstances. His brother would have loved this....would have loved seeing his daughter so fiercely protected, so absolutely chosen, so surrounded by males who considered her safety more important than their own pride.

Azrael had always said that the best protection for a Seraphim heir wasn’t power....it was loyalty. Being powerful enough that people feared to attack you was useful. But being loved enough that people would die to defend you was survival.

Eve had that now.

Three alpha wolves who would tear apart anyone who threatened her. A pack that had accepted her as Luna with genuine devotion. An uncle who had given up two decades of his life to keep her safe.

She was protected in ways that went beyond wards and weapons.

Raphael settled deeper into the chair and extended his awareness outward....not aggressively, but perceptively. Monitoring the room’s energy, the hallway beyond, the estate’s wards for any fluctuation that might indicate threat.

He would sit here until she woke or until the brothers returned. Whichever came first.

On the bed, Eve stirred slightly....not waking, just shifting position, one hand moving unconsciously to rest over the mark on her chest.

Even in sleep, she was reaching for it. For the physical proof of what she now was.

Claimed. Bonded and Complete. ƒrēewebnovel.com

Raphael kept watch over her while she slept.