Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! novel Chapter 219

Chapter 219: Chapter 219

Kael’s POV

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The walk back to the command tent was silent.

Aria’s hand was in mine. I could feel her pulse through her wrist—steady, controlled, but faster than it should be. She was thinking. Processing. Turning over what we’d just witnessed in that corridor.

Two men dead. Poisoned by their own side.

Magnus didn’t leave loose ends.

We reached the tent. I held the flap open. Aria walked through first, and I followed, letting it fall closed behind us.

The map table was still covered in markings from this morning—defensive positions, patrol routes, supply lines. All of it suddenly felt inadequate. Like we’d been playing checkers while Magnus was setting up a chess board.

And Rebecca was helping him.

The thought sat in my chest like a stone.

I moved to the table. Braced both hands on the edge. Stared down at the map without really seeing it.

Aria came to stand beside me. Close enough that our shoulders touched. She didn’t say anything. Just waited.

Smart woman.

She knew I needed a minute.

I took a breath. Let it out slow.

"Talk to me," I said finally. "Tell me what you’re thinking."

She was quiet for a moment. Then: "Rebecca doesn’t know military strategy."

I looked at her.

She was staring at the map, her expression thoughtful. Focused. That particular look she got when she was working through a problem piece by piece.

"She grew up in a powerful family," Aria continued. "She’s been around warriors her whole life. But she’s never commanded soldiers. Never planned operations. Never studied terrain or tactics or any of the things Magnus would actually need to run a guerrilla campaign."

She traced one finger along the northern border.

"So if she’s not providing military expertise—what is she providing?"

I straightened slightly. Watched her work through it.

"Information," she said. Soft but certain. "That’s what she’s good at. Reading people. Manipulating situations. Finding weaknesses and exploiting them." Her finger stopped on the camp’s position. "She doesn’t know your soldiers. She doesn’t know your defenses. She doesn’t understand how you run operations."

She looked up at me.

"But she knows *you.*"

The stone in my chest got heavier.

"She spent years watching you," Aria said. "Learning your patterns. Your habits. The way you think. The way you react under pressure." Her voice stayed steady but something flickered in her eyes. "She knows what makes you angry. What makes you reckless. What you’d do anything to protect."

She touched her stomach. Just briefly. An unconscious gesture that made something sharp twist in my gut.

"She knows about me," Aria said quietly. "About the girls. She knows exactly where to hit you to make it hurt most."

I closed my eyes.

Exhaled hard through my nose.

She was right.

Of course she was right.

I could feel it through the bond—that absolute trust, unshakeable and warm, sitting right at the center of her chest. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

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