Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce!-Chapter 161

Kael’s POV

The whiskey burned going down.

Good.

I needed something to feel. Something other than the hollow emptiness that had settled in my chest.

Damon sat across from me. His third glass already empty. Mine was still half full.

We were in my private study at the Alpha mansion. Dark wood. Leather chairs. The kind of place designed for exactly this—drinking away problems that wouldn’t stay buried.

"So." Damon leaned back. Studied me with those sharp beta eyes. "You found the person who hurt Aria. Exiled her. Defended Aria in front of the entire pack. Basically declared to everyone that she’s under your protection."

He paused. Took another sip.

"And yet you look like someone just killed your dog. What gives?"

I didn’t answer. Just stared at the amber liquid in my glass.

"Kael." His voice got sharper. "Talk to me. What’s going on in that thick Alpha skull of yours?"

Still nothing.

He sighed. Long and dramatic.

"You’re not actually upset about Rebecca, are you?" The question came out skeptical. Almost mocking. "Please tell me you’re not sitting here feeling bad about exiling the woman who tried to MURDER your—"

"Don’t." I cut him off. My voice came out rougher than intended. "Just don’t."

Damon’s eyebrows shot up.

"Wow. Okay. Touchy subject."

I took a long drink. Let the burn spread through my chest.

"I’m not upset about Rebecca." The words came out flat. Final. "She got exactly what she deserved. Less than what she deserved, honestly."

"Then what’s the problem?"

I set my glass down. Too hard. The sound echoed through the room.

"The problem," I said slowly, "is that she was right."

Silence.

Damon stared at me like I’d grown a second head.

"She was... what now?"

"Right." I ran a hand through my hair. Felt the tension coiling tighter in my shoulders. "Aria suffered because of me."

The words hung in the air between us.

Heavy. Undeniable.

Damon opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

"Kael—"

I cut him off. "It’s true. Rebecca attacked Aria because of her jealousy over ME. Because she saw Aria as competition. As someone who’d stolen what she thought was hers."

I stood. Started pacing. Couldn’t sit still anymore.

"If I’d never gotten involved with Aria, Rebecca would have left her alone. Aria would still have her wolf. Would still be whole. She wouldn’t have spent three years broken and alone."

My hands curled into fists at my sides.

"The person who hurt her was standing right beside me for YEARS. At pack gatherings. At ceremonies. Smiling. Pretending to be loyal. And I never suspected a thing."

Damon was quiet for a long moment.

Then he did something unexpected.

He laughed.

I spun around. Glared at him.

"What the HELL is so funny?"

"You!" He pointed at me. Still grinning like an idiot. "You’re sitting here wallowing in guilt because you didn’t magically know Rebecca was a psychopath? That’s what this is about?"

"She hurt Aria because of ME."

"No." Damon stood. Walked over. Jabbed a finger into my chest. "She hurt Aria because SHE is a terrible person. Because SHE made terrible choices. Because SHE decided that her jealousy mattered more than someone’s life."

He jabbed again.

"You didn’t poison Aria. You didn’t attack her. You didn’t steal her wolf. REBECCA did. All of that. Not you."

I opened my mouth to argue.

He jabbed harder.

"And you know what else? You’ve spent the last three years searching for her. Going insane trying to find her. And when you finally did? You protected her. Defended her. Made sure she was safe."

His voice got softer.

"So stop sitting here feeling sorry for yourself. Because the Moon Goddess didn’t give us the gift of foresight for a reason."

I stared at him.

"What?"

"The Moon Goddess." He said it slower. Like I was stupid. "Remember what the elders taught us? Don’t grieve for the past. Don’t worry about the future. Because neither one is in your control."

He dropped his hand. Stepped back.

"You can’t change what happened three years ago. Can’t undo Rebecca’s choices. Can’t give Aria back what she lost."

A pause.

"But you CAN do something about right now. About the present. About what happens next."

The words hit me like a slap.

"I’m saying," Damon crossed his arms, "that you’re wasting time. All the problems between you and Aria? They’re basically solved now."

He started ticking off points on his fingers.

"Rebecca’s gone. Exiled. Never coming back. That threat is eliminated."

One finger.

"The pack knows Aria is under your protection. No one will dare mess with her now."

Two fingers.

"You found out who attacked her. Gave her closure. Justice."

Three fingers.

"And most importantly..." He grinned. "You’ve proven to her that you’re not the same asshole who paid her off three years ago."

I blinked.

Was he right?

Were the obstacles really... gone?

"So what are you still doing here?" Damon gestured around the study. "Drinking alone? Feeling guilty? Being an idiot?"

He walked to the door. Pulled it open.

"Go."

"Go where?"

"To HER, you dense Alpha!" He threw his hands up. "Go to Aria! Talk to her! Tell her how you feel! Do SOMETHING other than sitting here drowning in self-pity!"

"But it’s late." Even as I said it, I was already moving toward the door. "She’s probably asleep. With Lina. I shouldn’t just show up—"

"Kael." Damon’s voice stopped me. "When has timing ever mattered when it comes to fate?"

I looked at him.

He smiled.

He was absolutely, completely, one hundred percent right.

I grabbed my coat. Headed for the door.

Damon was grinning like a maniac.

"Damn it, such a life mentor am I."

I didn’t respond. Just ran.

Down the hallway. Through the mansion. Out the front door.

Rain hit my face immediately.

Cold. Sharp. Soaking through my shirt in seconds.

I didn’t care.

Didn’t even slow down.

Just ran.

Through the rain. Through the empty streets. Toward the only place that mattered.

Toward HER.