Chapter 94

Xavier

When the guards entered the room with the figure in tow, it took no more than two seconds to recognize him as Dowson. I had not seen him in a decade, and yet I knew him like I knew my own nightmares. His rugged appearance, his uneven jaw line, his receding hairline and beak-like nose.

He was not dead as my father had claimed.

Dowson seemed to recognize me as well. The moment he saw me, a cheesier grin swallowed his face, stretching from ear to ear. “Ah, the great and mighty Alpha Xavier. I heard you’re making quite a mess of the palace these days.”

I did not hesitate to ask, “Where is she?”

Dowson’s expression tightened, his smile growing wider. He seemed even more keen to see my desperation. “I haven’t the slightest idea what you’re referring to,” he said.

I approached carefully, watching his every movement with cautious eyes. He was a man of war, and I knew what he was capable of. “I was told you were dead,” I said. “So why, exactly, are you alive and skulking around my