Everyone stiffened.
Jeremy looked in the direction of the arrogant speaker. It was him. The naked werewolf. The man who had taken down their Alpha.
Jeremy furrowed his brows. He knew Byron was a very skilled fighter, and it would take an extraordinary opponent to defeat him.
The man was young, and he stood naked as the day he was born. But he didn't seem bothered by his nakedness. Nor did he care about his pack losing. He sounded like he was the one winning.
Jeremy didn't know him, but he knew the naked man should not be underestimated.
The naked man should be the Alpha of the enemies. The idea seemed ridiculous judging by how careless the man looked. But when Jeremy saw hatred and determination deep and unsurpassed in his eyes, he understood.
But Jeremy was equally confused. What had they done? What had the pack done to ignite such hatred from the man?
"If you don't want your Alpha dead, let my wolves go," the naked man repeated in an equally confident tone. Although he had shifted back into his human form, his fingers still bore the pointed claws of a wolf. One end of the claws was pressed menacingly against Byron's neck.
The naked man's eyes raked over the pack as he waited for their response. The eyes were filled with undisguised confidence as if he was daring any one of them to say no.
But when his gaze fell upon the woman behind Jeremy, his seething gaze was subdued by a fleeting, almost imperceptible expression of … guilt and regret?
Jeremy did a double take, utterly bewildered by what he had just seen.
What the fuck? Did the naked man know Celeste? How? And what had he done to her?
Confusion, anger, and jealousy consumed him, making every inch of his body tense up. His knuckles turned white from clenching his fists so hard.
But the look in the man's eyes vanished immediately. For a moment, Jeremy wasn't sure if he was reading too much into it.
"We trusted you, Kent!"
"You're a fucking lair!"
"That's how you pay us back? That's how you pay Byron's kindness back?"
One after another, accusations erupted from the midst of the pack. The air was thick with tension as the wolves glared at the naked man with murderous intent. If looks could kill, he would probably have died countless times by now.
Kent? That was when Jeremy realized that the naked man was the rogue the pack had just taken in.
He didn't know what to make of it.
Kent didn't show the slightest hint of guilt when the accusation was fired at him. He simply shrugged and sneered, "You're all ignorant. Pathetic. You don't know anything about the truth. I pity you."
"What the fuck do you mean?" a man asked.
But his only answer from Kent was a shrug.
Before the man could say anything, Kent picked up their severely wounded Alpha with no effort. There was no strength left in Byron as he gave in to the pain, allowing himself to be humiliated by the young man.
"I won't say it the fourth time. Now. Let. My. Fucking. Wolves. Go." The words came out of his mouth one by one.
The wolves responded with a menacing hiss, ready to strike at any moment.
But Kent dug his claws deep into Byron's fur, a clear threat directed towards the pack. While he was doing so, his eyes flickered with provocation, daring them to challenge him.
"How can we be sure you won't kill Byron after your wolves are released?" Jeremy asked in a low voice.
"You can't." His mouth twisted into a crooked smirk. The mother fucker was cocky. He believed the pack would obey him completely.
Jeremy snorted. "Except we can. You can't outrun us if you kill him, considering the strength you've spent in the fight against him."
The confidence in Byron's face swayed a little. But it was put away very soon.
He shrugged. "Don't underestimate your enemies, kid."
His attitude upset the pack even more. But as expected, no one made a move toward him.
Kent could be bluffing. But they wouldn't risk their Alpha's life. Byron was their Alpah not only for his power but also for his kindness. He won the pack with his power and his love. And everyone loved him back.
What surprised Jeremy, though, was that the wolves from his pack all turned their heads at him as if waiting for his decisions.
To his further surprise, he nodded as if he was supposed to be the one making the decision, even though he had just shifted not too long ago, and he was only twenty.
The pack made a way for the enemies automatically. The five rogues took the chances and ran for their lives, as if afraid of Jeremy changing his mind at any moment. Once the rogues were out of the immediate threat of the pack, they leaped into the cover of the forest.
But Kent didn't go with them. He didn't show a sign of vulnerability either, because Byron was still at his mercy.
"Your wolves are gone," Jeremy said in a low voice. "Now release our leader."
Kent fixed his gaze on Byron, considering whether he should tear the man into pieces. But Jeremy's previous warning must have had some weight in his decision-making process.
Kent said nothing. He cast a glance at Celeste.
Jeremy frowned, his nostril flaring in anger. He took a possessive step forward to block his view. Kent looked up to meet Jeremy's death glare and curled his lips into a smirk.
Just as Jeremy was running out of his patience, Kent left Byron to the ground, transformed into his wolf, and fled into the dense forests without a thought.
Jeremy debated the idea of pursuing him, but he knew he had no time to waste. His heart was on the woman lying on the ground behind him.