They walked quickly with Lexi taking the lead and Greyson and Adam following closely behind. By the time they reached their destination, Allen was standing idly chatting with a few scouts and a captured male that smelled like a Lycan on his knees at their feet.
His hands were tied and if anything, he looked angry more than afraid.
Greyson stopped in front of him and glared downwards.
"Name."
The soldier spat blood onto the ground and sneered up at him.
"You don't need to know my name. You need to know your fucking place."
Allen crossed his arms and shot Greyson a look.
"He's been like this the whole time we've had him. He even tried to bite me twice."
"Alright fucker, listen her," Lexi snarled as she pointed at the soldier. "Say something useful or I start peeling off armour."
The soldier glared at her and swallowed nervously but shifted his focus back to Greyson.
"You're a fucking disgrace. What the fuck makes you think that a half-breed will ever be able to lead purebloods?"
Greyson didn't move, but the muscle in his jaw clenched tightly for a moment before releasing.
"You were found on our land, near the old royal routes. Why?"
"Because we have orders you fucking idiot, why do you think?" the soldier snapped, "Real orders. Not from you. From the true heir."
Adam stiffened then and narrowed his eyes.
"What do you mean the true heir? Who?"
The soldier grinned then, clearly satisfied with the reaction he had got.
"Sebastian. He has the castle fortified well, you'll never break through. He commands the loyal packs and he was right when he said you'd come crawling back here…we didn't think you'd be that craven though…"
Greyson's jaw tightened.
"Sebastian is alive and hiding inside the castle?"
"Hiding?" the soldier laughed. "He's fucking ruling it you delusional half breed. And before you realise what's happening, he'll tear out your throat the second you walk through his gates."
Lexi stepped closer, her eyes already a mixture of the fiery fury that people were beginning to recognise her by.
"Straight answer fucktard," She hissed, "Is he there right now?"
The soldier swallowed and visibly shrank back from her as his bravado cracked.
"Yes."
Greyson rolled his shoulders and took a deep breath, clearly struggling not to pummel the living shit out of the insolent man in front of him.
"How many packs?"
"Three. Maybe four. He's calling for more."
Adam turned toward Greyson at once and shook his head.
"No. Before you say anything, no, not a chance."
Greyson didn't even look at him.
"He has the castle. The last stronghold. If he rebuilds, he'll try to claim the throne."
"And you walking in there right now is exactly what he wants," Adam said. "This is a trap. A chaotic fucking mess and you are not chasing him into it."
Allen nodded in agreement.
"He's right. Sebastian's banking on your temper winning over any logic."
"And he'll be hoping that I egg you on so you sprint straight through the front door." Lexi snorted, crossing her arms in front of her.
I know what you all think, " Greyson said as he finally looked up. "I'm not going after him just for revenge."
"Then what else would it be?" Adam pressed, his eyebrow raised.
"For restoring order to this mess of a fucking kingdom." Greyson sighed in exasperation. "He cannot lead, Adam, you know that. He'll tear what's left of our people apart and if he claims that castle, I know for a fact that he'll call the old laws back. The hunts. The executions. The purges. I won't let him do that."
Adam frowned as he realised the implication of what he was saying and his tone softened slightly.
"Look, we don't even know where Ely and the King are presently. They vanished before dawn and until we find out where they are, that alone should slow you down."
"If the King fled, it means he's either regrouping or he's dying. Either one is a dangerous option." Greyson frowned.
"Which is why we don't chase after anything blindly," Adam said. "We need to hold this line first."
Greyson looked back toward the castle ruins as a dark expression crossed his face.
He could see the broken towers from here and he could almost picture Sebastian inside them, waiting for them to come to him instead of facing them fairly, like the coward he was.
"I'm not angry," Greyson said quietly. "I am done with the old ways. I refuse to chase him into a mindless slaughter. Not today at least, but at some point, I will go there and I will put things back to how they should be for my people."
Lexi exhaled in relief.
"Well that's a relief because the second you decided to sprint into an ambush, I was going to drag you back by your hair and you've already lost buff boy points by crying on the dragon.."
Allen snorted.
"Buff boy points?"
Greyson gave them both a look.
"Ignore her, she's lying. Your objections to me storming the castle have been noted as have the consequences."
Adam stepped forward with a long sigh.
"Okay. So we'll hold the perimeter and wait for Ann's next orders. We can break Sebastian's support while we wait instead of letting him lure us into his throne room."
Greyson nodded.
"Fine. We'll do things slowly."
Adam turned to the scouts.
"Process the prisoner, get whatever other information from him that you can, and then hold him under guard."
The scouts nodded and dragged the soldier away, his curses fading into the distance.
Lexi leaned her shoulder into Greyson's lightly.
"He's scared of you, you know."
"Which one?" Greyson asked flatly, his eyes fixed back ont he tower.
"All of them," she said. "But mostly Sebastian."
Allen rolled his eyes.
"He's just scared because you're prettier than him although I bet he doesn't cry on dragons."
Lexi flicked Allen's shoulder.
"Shut up."
Greyson rubbed his face in irritation.
"Look, can both of you please just give it a rest for a minute?"
Adam grinned as he looked between them all.
"You signed up for this when you mated them," he smirked
"First of all, I didn't mate Allen, I don't swing that way, and secondly, I did not sign up for both at once," Greyson muttered.
"Too late for that." Lexi smirked.
Greyson looked back toward the castle one last time. He wanted to run straight at it. If Sebastian was in there, Greyson wanted to end it. But Adam was right. That wasn't leadership, that was being reckless and in all the years of training he had received, that had never been something he had been known for.
Lexi patted his chest gently.
"Don't worry about it for now. Bella will watch from above and if Ely or the King move anywhere near that castle, we'll see it."
Allen cracked his knuckles. "I'll check the west tunnels out as well. Some of them look unstable. If Sebastian tries to use them, we'll have already blocked them."
Greyson looked at the three of them, his mate, his closest friend and rival, and his commander and he felt the weight of responsibility even out just a little.
"Let's make sure that we finish this right the first time then," he said, "I don't want the new Lycan throne to be built on the bones of those it serves."