Free Web NovelChapter 14: Chapter 14 Knight in Shining Armor
Ronan’s POV
For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.
Jade was walking toward us, no, being pulled toward us by that glowing red thread wrapped around her wrist. At first I thought it was some mistake, some glitch in the ritual. She couldn’t be coming to us. Not us. Not me.
But she kept moving, her steps small, hesitant, terrified. My heartbeat picked up. Ryder stiffened beside me. Renzo didn’t even blink, but his jaw tightened, that tiny tic he only had when he was genuinely shaken.
And then it happened.
The red thread reached our table....and split into three blinding strands.
One attached to Renzo’s wrist.
One to Ryder’s. frёewebηovel.cѳm
One to mine.
A searing warmth shot straight up my arm, into my chest, like a bolt of lightning exploding inside me.
My wolf roared.
A soundless, primal thunder that shook me so deeply my knees almost buckled. frёeweɓηovel.coɱ
Mate!.
He twirled, slammed against the inside of my ribs, claws scratching in exhilaration.
Mate. Our mate. She’s ours... Ours... Ours....
I couldn’t think. Couldn’t speak.
My eyes were locked on Jade, the same girl who had ruined us, betrayed us, standing there wide eyed and trembling as the entire hall gasped.
It made no sense.
None.
Jade? The traitor’s daughter? The girl I hated more than anyone?
The girl who made our lives hell for months?
My wolf didn’t care.
My wolf wanted to tear through my skin and go to her, claim her, shield her, fuck her.
I was still trying to process the impossible truth when suddenly....
There was a loud splashing sound.
My eyes snapped to Jade.
Cold water drenched her from head to toe. Her hair plastered to her cheeks, her dress clinging to her body, water dripping onto the floor.
And standing behind her, holding an empty metal bucket, was....
“Linda?!” I choked out in disbelief.
She had tears in her eyes, fury carved into her face.
“What the hell are you doing?!!” The words flew out of me before my brain caught up.
The entire hall stilled.
Jade stood there shaking, frozen in shock, drenched and humiliated.
Before she could react, Ryder moved.
Fast.
He took off his coat, without hesitation and draped it around her shoulders.
And Jade... Jade just stared at him in complete disbelief.
Linda stared too, mouth parted, eyes filling with betrayal.
“Ryder...?” she whispered, voice cracking.
She turned immediately to Renzo, desperation replacing anger. “Renzo? Say something! Aren’t you going to tell them to stop? Aren’t you going to defend me like you always do?”
But Renzo just stood there, stone faced, his cold midnight eyes locked solely on Jade.
He didn’t even glance at Linda.
It was like Linda wasn’t even in the room.
“Unbelievable....” Linda backed away a little, clutching her chest. “Is this all it took? A stupid mating bond?”
The whole hall murmured.
“When Jade betrayed you, who stayed?” Linda shouted, her voice trembling. “Who took care of you? Who supported you? Me. Only me!”
Ryder flinched.
I felt guilt punch me straight in the gut.
She was right.
Everything she said was true.
Linda had been there, during every dark moment, every painful night
She comforted us. Defended us. Loved us.
We owed her.
So why.... why was my wolf still howling at me to go to Jade?
Linda shook her head, tears falling freely now. “And now you just throw me away for her?”
The crowd murmured sympathetically, heads nodding, faces softening. People adored Linda. They always had.
They didn’t adore Jade.
“And here I was thinking tonight would be perfect...” Linda whispered. “But I guess I was wrong.”
She wiped her face and straightened, or tried to.
“If you three choose her....” she said shakily, “...I can’t do anything about it, right?”
Her voice broke.
She turned around and started walking toward the exit, shoulders trembling.
Something in my chest twisted. Hard.
This was wrong.
This was cruel.
This was....
“Linda....” I called, stepping forward.
But before she made it halfway to the door.....
Her knees buckled.
And she collapsed onto the floor.
Jade’s POV
I didn’t even realize I’d stopped breathing until the hall erupted into chaos.
“Linda!!!!” Ronan’s voice tore through the air like a whip.
My head snapped toward Linda just in time to see her collapsed body lying limp on the polished floor.
Everything after that felt like a blur, the triplets moving in perfect sync, panic distorting their faces so intensely it almost didn’t feel real.
“Linda, hey, can you hear my voice?” Ryder’s voice shook as he knelt beside her.
Renzo didn’t waste a second. He scooped her up into his arms like she weighed nothing, his jaw clenched, eyes blazing with fear as he rushed toward the exit. Ronan and Ryder flanked him on both sides, speaking to her in frantic, low tones. The crowd surged forward, gasping, whispering, following them out like sheep running after a shepherd.
And I just.... stood there.
Dripping cold water.
Holding Ryder’s coat around myself.
And watching my supposed mates disappear after the girl who hated me.
A dull ache throbbed in my chest, slow at first, then sharp, then crushing.
They don’t like us. They don’t want us, my wolf murmured inside me, her voice soft, sad, unbearably gentle. We shouldn’t have hoped.
I swallowed hard as pain twisted itself inside my ribcage. It hurt worse than anything I felt tonight. Worse than the bucket of water. Worse than being publicly whipped. Worse than the humiliation. Because deep down.... my wolf was right. They fonet want us. They don’t want me.
Just then, footsteps approached.
Mr. Hart.
Linda’s father
His expression was ice cold, cruel, dripping with disgust so blatant it burned through me.
“You are a pathetic attention seeker,” he spat. “Just like your traitorous father.”
The words hit like physical blows. I opened my mouth, desperate to say anything, anything at all, but nothing came out. Not even air.
Before I could gather myself, a calm, sharp voice cut in.
“Shouldn’t you be with your daughter who just overdramatically collapsed?” Mr. Valerio stepped into view, completely unbothered, hands tucked neatly behind his back.
Mr. Hart stiffened, turning slowly as though forced. His eyes flicked between the two of us.
Then he sneered.
“I have my eyes on you,” he hissed at me. “And if you think, in your wildest dreams, that you will be mated to Alpha Ashridge’s sons, the future Alphas of our pack, you’re hallucinating.”
He turned sharply on his heel and stormed off.
I stood frozen in place, Ryder’s coat heavy on my shoulders, water still dripping from my hair. Something inside me cracked, not a loud, dramatic shatter... but quiet. Numb. Like breaking from the inside out.
Mr. Valerio’s presence softened. He extended his hand toward me.
“Let’s go, darling.”
I blinked back the tears threatening to spill. My fingers trembled as I placed my hand in his. He held it gently, leading me firmly through the hall and into the cool night air. His driver rushed to open the back door of a sleek black car.
“Drop Jade off first,” Valerio instructed as we slid in.
The ride was silent except for the sound of my wet clothes dripping onto the leather seats. My heart refused to steady.
When the car finally stopped at my place, I turned to him quickly.
“I....I’m really sorry about your dress,” I whispered. “I’ll wash it and return it tomorrow, I promise.”
Valerio chuckled softly, waving a hand dismissively.
“There’s no need. The dress is yours now.”
My head snapped up. “Why? Why are you being so kind to me? You didn’t even accept payment for the makeover too.”
He studied my face for a moment, like he was searching for something he already knew he’d find.
“Let’s just say....” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a sleek black card with a silver crest. “Your father was a good friend of mine.”
My father... was his friend?But I had never seen him with my Dad before.
My voice barely came out. “R-Really? How?"
Valerio only smiled, cryptic, warm, and slightly nostalgic, before gently placing the card in my hand.
“Whenever you need help,” he said softly, “show this card to the receptionist at the beauty parlor, and she’ll bring you to me. No questions asked.”
My fingers curled around the card, holding it like a lifeline.
“Happy birthday, Jade.” he said and finally closed the door with a soft click
And then the car rolled away, leaving me standing alone beneath the dim streetlights, soaked, shaken, wrapped in Ryder’s coat... and holding the first real gift anyone, apart from Mum, had given me since my father was framed.
