Let Them Kneel (kaelani and Julian) novel Chapter 224

“Elara,” he said, his voice low but firm, “you have to understand that things are going to be different now.”

She shook her head through tears. “Okay-okay-

”

“Kaelani is your Alpha,” he continued, not allowing her to rush past it. “And you will treat her as such.”

Her mouth trembled. “I… I understand.”

“Both of you,” he added, lifting his eyes to Brielle.

Brielle exhaled sharply through her nose, pride curdling her expression.

“I understand,” she forced out, the words scraping raw.

Garrick nodded once, something final settling into his posture.

“There are no more free rides,” he said. “No more inherited rank. No more protection from your own behavior.”

His gaze softened slightly as he looked back at Elara, but he did not fold.

“You will earn your keep here. Like everyone else.”

Those words struck Elara harder than exile itself.

Her shoulders folded inward, and this time she didn’t try to swallow the sound that left her throat. The crying wasn’t theatrical now. It wasn’t strategic.

It was the realization that the world she had always relied on where her name shielded her and her father excused her

gone.

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Chater 224-

Chapter 224

Elara’s crying still echoed through the courtyard when Kaelani lifted her hands.

Violet light flared outward from her palms in a sudden, controlled surge, rippling across the pack grounds in expanding waves. The energy arced over rooftops, threaded through the treeline, and sealed overhead in a vast, translucent dome.

For a breath, the entire territory shimmered in violet light. Then it faded–no longer visible, but undeniably present.

Kaelani lowered her hands. “I’ve placed a shield over Silvexedge.”

Her gaze swept the gathered crowd.

“No matter how far I am from these lands, you will be able to reach me through the mind-link.”

The weight of that settled over them. They were not losing an Alpha; they were gaining one who could stand anywhere in the world and still command her territory.

Kaelani crossed the courtyard and stopped in front of Evelyn.

The older woman straightened immediately.

Kaelani placed a hand on her shoulder, her touch warm and deliberate.

“I don’t think I ever properly thanked you,” she said. “For teaching me how to cook. How to bake.”

A faint smile touched her mouth.

“It’s become one of the few things that quiets my head.”

Evelyn’s expression softened.

Kaelani’s gaze shifted toward the main house, then beyond it-toward the cluster of buildings near the treeline.

“The orphanage,” she added. “The food there is shit.”

She let the word sit there. No apology. No softening.

“They’ll have proper meals. Balanced. Fresh. I’m placing you in charge of their kitchen. Garrick will see to it that you’re given a raise. If you need more staff, ask. Anyone who wants to train, let them.”

Evelyn’s eyes glistened.

“Yes, Alpha.”

Kaelani nodded once, then turned toward the packhouse.

“Garrick,” she called over her shoulder.

He gently transferred a sobbing Elara from his arms into Brielle’s and followed.

They stepped back inside the packhouse together.

“I want the orphanage remodeled,” she said as she moved through the kitchen, pulling down a large canvas tote and beginning to fill it. Eggs. Milk. Flour. Sugar. A sack of fresh produce from the pantry.

“New beds. New clothes. A television and gaming systems for the common room. And I want the playground replaced entirely.”

Garrick blinked. “That might cost-

“I don’t care what it costs,” she cut in calmly. “Do it.”

She tied off the bag and lifted it easily.

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“They’re children,” she said. “Not at afterthought.

He nodded slowly.

“It’ll be done.”

“I’ll be visiting frequently,” she continued there are any issues-funding, staffing, supplies-you contact me immediately.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

She adjusted the strap of the tote over her shoulder, violet energy beginning to gather faintly at her fingertips.

“Kaelani.”

She stilled.

66

There was something in the way he said her name this time. Not command. Not correction.

Just…hope.

Garrick cleared his throat, looking less like the apathetic Alpha who had once looked through her and more like a man trying to bridge a distance he had created.

“Maybe,” he said, almost awkwardly, “we could have lunch sometime. You and me.”

He hesitated, then added, “Maybe even Julian.”

For a moment, she simply looked at him.

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