The Raven Wolf King: Wolfless novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Valeria

I squirm around like a worm, trying to get close to the wall so I can somehow bang on it.

I can’t believe Raphael went to these extremes. Fucking psycho! I’m going to ram my damn fist into his beautiful face when I see him! I can’t seem to reach the wall, so instead, I do my best to turn around, and when my back is flat on the ground, I lift my legs and slam them against the floor in hopes someone will hear me. I have to do this over and over until finally the door opens.

“The hell?!” To my embarrassment, it’s Grimm with his friend Elsie. “Valeria?!”

“Hm!” I nod and moan.

He quickly releases my mouth and asks, “What the hell happened?”

“I’m going to kill him!” I scream.

If I’m not mortified enough, Elsie adds, “Uhm… smells like sex.”

Murder. There will be murder tonight!

They help me take the rope off, and I take off running back to my room, where I quickly wash myself, change into another dress, and head back down–trying not to run into Raphael just yet because I’m sure he’d hold me hostage again. I don’t see him, but I do encounter a familiar person on the way. Tobias’s mate. She stops in front of me.

“You’re heading to see my mate?” She speaks to me for the first time, and it doesn’t sound friendly in any

way.

I pause, feeling the tension. “You aren’t okay with this at all, are you?”

“What I want doesn’t matter.” She looks calm, even composed, but there’s a coldness about her. The beautiful woman walks stiffly, almost mechanical, like she’s holding something in.

She appears soft–spoken, kind, even meek, but there’s something unsettling beneath the surface, something I can’t quite place.

After the awkward encounter, I arrive at the ballroom where I’m supposed to meet Tobias. It’s completely empty except for him. At the heart of the room, a round table glows with candlelight, flowers spilling fragrance into the air, and a feast laid out.

This guy makes me a romantic dinner while the other one ties me up and leaves me in a closet. I think I know exactly who the better man here is.

Tobias laughs nervously. “I really thought you weren’t going to come.”

He pulls a chair for me to sit.

“I’m sorry, I got… tied up.”

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“Oh, I see. Was this time inconvenient for you?” He leans forward, now seated across the table, his gaze steady on mine.

“Oh, no. I mean, I was actually tied up. Your damn brother, Raphael, tied me up and locked me in a closet.”

Tobias looks at me, blinking a few times. “Are you serious?” His voice is low, as though testing if I’m joking.

“One hundred percent. He’s nuts!”

Tobias begins to laugh so hard.

“It’s not funny!”

“But it is!” His laugh echoes through the empty room.

I can’t help it. I start laughing too. Maybe it is kind of funny. But even as the laughter fades, I still don’t forgive him.

“Raphael is always so impulsive and does things normal people wouldn’t,” he says. “Was he preventing you from getting to me?”

“Yeah. But I’m so angry with him, so let’s not talk about him. This is nice, by the way.”

“I’m glad you like it.” His fingers close around mine, rubbing gently. “If we weren’t in the middle of a war, I’d take you out instead.”

This feels nice. We eat and talk. He’s sweet to me, gentle in a way I didn’t expect, and I’m starting to like

that.

“I wanted to speak to you about something else,” he says when dessert arrives. “You do know that if you decide to be my mate… you’ll have to stop sleeping with my brother.”

For a second, I’m stunned, panic rising fast. Uh! I want to scream! How does he know that? But of course, he knows. Damn it, Raphael!

Not a single word escapes my throat. I can’t even nod. All I can do is stare at him, wide–eyed, frozen.

Slowly, I force myself to breathe and gather my composure. There’s no point in lying. He already knows the truth. So I decide to play it off, as if it means nothing, as if I’m unfazed.

I clear my throat. “If… I decide to be your mate.”

He slowly nods. “Have you given it some thought?”

Glad to steer clear of any talk about Raphael, I steady myself and keep my voice calm. “I have,” I admit, meeting his eyes. “But I hope you’re not expecting an answer right now. I’m still trying to decide.” The words hang between us.

“No rush.” He smiles.

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He’s very sweet.

Then the doors burst open with a rush, slamming against the walls. Raphael storms in, his face twisted with fury, eyes burning.

I rise to my feet, pointing at him with all the rage I can muster. “You bastard!” I shout, my voice echoing through the empty ballroom.

But before I can take another step, Tobias pulls me behind him, shielding me with his body. That’s when the sound hits. Sharp cracks of bone changing, reshaping. Raphael is shifting.

“Leave!” Tobias shouts at me and turns to Raphael, taking his shirt off and beginning to shift as well.

“No! Stop!” My cry echoes, but the ballroom shakes as both men, fully shifted, launch forward. Their movements blur, raw strength crashing together in the center of the room.

“STOP!” I scream, but it falls on deaf ears.

They rear back on their hind legs, teeth bared, claws flashing, before plunging against each other with savage force. The impact sends them crashing onto the table, candles scattering, setting the cloth on fire. Heart pounding, I snatch the cloth and slam it against the floor, smothering the blaze. The fire dies, but the fight continues.

The doors burst open as guards rush in, their faces pale with shock. None dare move closer. I don’t blame them–two True Alphas locked in combat is a storm no one can come out of unscathed. The air shakes with their fight, claws and fangs colliding hard enough to tear the room apart. Blood stains the marble floor, and panic grips me. I don’t know what to do, but I feel I have to do something.

“Stop them!” I shout.

“Call the King!” one of the men shouts at another.

They’re not going to do anything.

I turn to the rage–filled men. “STOOOOOOOP!” My voice rips through the ballroom in a resonating screech. The lights flicker, glass shatters from a window, and a raven slams to the floor, thrashing. Then more come. A flood of wings and cries as ravens crash through all of the windows.

I duck down, covering my head. Guards do the same, some bolting for the doors. The fight halts just long enough for both wolves to crouch low, shifting back into human form. The ravens sweep the room one last time before bursting out through the broken windows, leaving silence behind. But it doesn’t end there. Both men get up–naked and furious–and start throwing punches. Tobias takes a hit that sends him sliding across the marble, groaning as he tries to rise. Raphael doesn’t wait; he charges straight at him.

“STOP!” I slap my hand on Raphael’s chest, standing in front of him now. “Enough!”

“Not enough! I’m not done with him!” he growls.

“You’re being ridiculous. I don’t want this!”

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He takes me by the shoulder and gets closer. “You are mine, and I’ll fight till my last breath!” I can see his wolf at the surface, meaning he can’t control himself.

“YOU DON’T OWN ME!” I scream and push him away, breaking free of his grip.

“Valeria-”

“No! Don’t! Don’t come near me! Don’t touch me! Don’t speak to me! I’m done with you, Raphael. Done.”

“Valeria!”

“Shut up! Just shut up!” I run out of the ballroom, heart pounding, and don’t stop until I reach my room.

Once inside, I rip the necklace Raphael gave me from my neck and hurl it onto the bed. My chest heaves, my throat is tight. I want to scream, to let every ounce of anger tear out of me.

But then my eyes catch on something else. A small box with a rose on top sits neatly on the bed, waiting. The note reads–From Tobias.

He must have had it sent while we were at dinner. I’m honestly getting tired of the gifts. I barely use what these men give me. But taking a deep breath, I open it. It’s not what I expected. A box of chocolates.

At least this I can enjoy, but not for long. Voices rise in the hall, Raphael and Tobias bickering again. I lock the door immediately. I don’t want to deal with this.

With the box of chocolates clutched in my hand, I slip through the bathroom into Jade’s room. She’s asleep, peaceful, unaware of the chaos outside. The insistent knocking starts at my door. I don’t wait. I ease Jade’s door open and rush out, moving quickly without them seeing me, knowing exactly where I’m headed. The secret tower.

But when I arrive, it isn’t empty. Grimm is there, perched on the window ledge, his silhouette framed by moonlight. He doesn’t notice me at first. His gaze is fixed upward, lost in the silver glow of the night sky. A raven rests calmly on his hand.

I don’t want to disturb him, but I also don’t want to go back to my mess of a life.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he asks.

I guess he did sense me.

“No.”

He turns to me and sees my distress. “What happened?”

Giving a heavy sigh, I sit on top of a trunk and begin unloading everything that’s happened with Raphael and Tobias.

“Are you telling me that the second legitimate prince, Prince Raphael, is your true mate?”

“Was,” I correct him.

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“Damn, and Crown Prince Tobias wants you as his second mate?”

“It seems like it.”

“What a problem to have,” he mocks.

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