Page 28 of Alpha Reid

I see Serena’s body go rigid, and there’s that nervous look again. “W-what kind of questions?” she asks carefully, lifting her glass of juice and taking a sip.

I heave a sigh, staring into Serena’s blue eyes over the top of her juice glass. She sets it down and swallows, swiping her tongue between her lips as her eyes flicker with an intensity that makes my dick grow harder. Damnit, I’ve gotta stay on task here, stop thinking about those eyes, those lips…

I clear my throat, setting my fork down. “Questions that you might not want to answer. About what happened before you came here.”

Serena’s eyes flutter down to stare at her plate. “Yeah, okay,” she breathes, eyes flickering back to mine. “I knew this was coming. I mean it’s not every day a girl just wanders into your territory, right? So, what do you wanna know?”

For some reason, I’m relieved by her response. She could’ve pushed back or refused to talk about it, which would only arouse more suspicion. I want to trust her, and her being open to having this conversation is a step in the right direction.

“So you said your pack was attacked,” I begin, treading carefully. “Your family?”

“Dead.” Serena stares down at her plate again, pushing around a piece of French toast with her fork.

I blow out a breath, reaching over for her hand that’s resting on the table. I cover it with mine, giving it a little squeeze. “I figured. I’m sorry. Do you wanna…”

She shakes her head. “No. Maybe sometime, just not…” Serena looks up at me, her eyes welling with tears. The sight and scent of her tears sets my wolf off- he starts rattling my cage, clawing at the inside of my chest. I’m overwhelmed with the urge to comfort our mate, soothe her. Take her tears away by any means necessary.

“Hey…” I say gently, scooting my chair closer to hers. I grab the bottom of her chair, pulling it so that it’s right in front of mine, her knees resting between my own. I reach up to cup her face in both hands, staring into her blue eyes, shiny with tears that she’s obviously forcing back. “We don’t have to talk about that right now,” I say, rubbing my thumbs soothingly against the smooth skin of her face. “But whenever you’re ready, I’m here to listen, okay?”

Serena brings her hands up to circle my wrists, giving me a little nod of her head. “Okay,” she sniffles. She takes a few deep breaths and I lower my hands from her face, taking hers in mine instead and holding them between us in a show of support.

Serena looks down at our intertwined hands, giving mine a little squeeze with her own before her eyes lift to lock with my gaze again. She blows out a shaky breath. “What else do you want to know?”

Damnit, I hate this. I feel like I’m torturing the poor girl. Still, these are things I need to know, especially considering the impending war with the shadow pack. I’ve given her a few days to settle in, and now it’s time to ask the hard questions- both for information on the shadow pack and so I can get to know her better as a person, too. Try to really understand her, because clearly I’ve been way off in that department.

“So they took you as a captive…”

Serena nods slowly, her jaw clenching. “Their alpha has a thing for females that meet certain…criteria. As the daughter of an alpha, I guess I met it.”

“Yeah,” I mutter, staring down at my lap. “We kinda know about that, from when they captured Astrid.”

“So then you know that he basically kidnaps alpha females to use as brood mares,” Serena scoffs, her distaste evident. “It’s disgusting.”

I suck in a breath, pressing my eyes closed. Not wanting to ask, but also needing to ask. “Did he… to you…?”

Serena shakes her head quickly. “No. He was supposed to come for me on the full moon shortly after I was taken, but something came up and he never did. I put it together later from the bits and pieces I heard from my guards that it was because he had Astrid in captivity. And then the next moon… well, I was here. I only met him once in between, and it was brief and unpleasant. But he didn’t fully…”

“So were you in the same place as Astrid?” I interrupt so she doesn’t have to finish that sentence. The thought of Xavier touching Serena in that way- of anyone touching her in that way, for that matter- makes me murderous.

“I don’t think so?” Serena heaves a sigh, pulling back one of her hands from mine. She lifts it to her face, rubbing her temple. “Honestly, I don’t know. Where they were holding me… there weren’t any windows. It was just four concrete walls and a door. I didn’t even realize how long I was there, every day just blended together. And when I got out I just ran like hell, I couldn’t even tell you what direction it was in.”

I nod slowly.Fuck, it hurts to hear this. I didn’t realize how much it would. It feels like my heart’s being torn open as she describes what she endured, and I can’t help but feel some sort of responsibility for it. Like I should’ve known somehow and saved her.

“Are you alright?” I ask, watching as Serena grits her teeth and her jaw ticks. Dredging up this shit obviously isn’t easy for her, but it doesn’t seem like she feels sorry for herself having endured it. Instead, she seems…mad.

Her eyes return to mine and she gives a curt nod, determination flickering in her eyes. “Yeah. What else do you wanna know?”

I ask the question that has been nagging at the back of my mind since that first night I brought her home- the one piece of the puzzle that I haven’t been able to put together. I was involved in Astrid’s rescue, so I know how tight the shadow pack’s security is. There’s no way Serena could have waltzed out of there unassisted… right?

“How’d you escape?”

Serena pauses, her eyes flickering away. She gnaws at the inside of her cheek like she’s considering her answer. “The guards got sloppy. I guess they forgot to lock my cell door, and nobody was on patrol since it was the full moon.” Her eyes return to mine. “I got lucky.”

I nod slowly. Honestly, I was expecting something more, but is it really fair to be suspicious given what she’s been through? Blindly trusting her would be foolish, but damnit, Iwantto trust her. I want that more than anything.

“Anything else?” Serena asks, lifting a brow.

“Nah. That’s enough for now.” I reach up to cup her cheek again, smiling fondly. “You did great. Thank you.”

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