Page 213 of The Alpha's Pen Pal

I expected some sort of reaction from the Wainwrights upon seeing Haven or the king, but they gave us nothing. Their faces were blank. Dead. Emotionless. Like there was nothing left inside them, nothing they had to live for. Not even a hint of remorse at seeing Haven, or a glimmer of hope that maybe she’d let us go easy on them, or a flash of fear when the king walked in. Just nothing.

Haven stood in front of me, the same iciness back in her eyes that had been there when we’d questioned Lennox. When she’d shown us how strong she truly was, how perfect of a luna she would be. She had truly removed them from her life as people who mattered to her.

I linked my hands with hers from behind, letting her decide how much more of me she needed, how much of my touch she wanted. As strong as she was, I would only strengthen her, just as she would strengthen me. Just as she already had strengthened me.

Nobody said a word. The only sounds were our varied breaths and the faint beatings of our hearts as we all waited. I gave Seb a look and a nod, telling him I was fine with him taking the lead on this one. For now.

He walked to the tray of tools and began circling it, picking things up and putting them back. Each time he angled the tools so the light glinted off them, and they were in Melissa and Matthew’s direct line of sight.

“You didn’t need to bring the king,” Melissa scoffed, breaking the silence. “We’re not under any alpha commands. And you don’t need to torture us. We’ll tell you whatever you want to know. We have no reason to lie.”

“We’ll see,” Sebastian sneered, tossing a knife and catching it by the handle. “I’ll keep this nearby. Just in case,” he told her with a wink. “What are your real names?” he asked, stepping up in front of her chair with his arms crossed and the knife visible.

“Melissa and Matthew Blaine,” Melissa told him.

“And what pack are you originally from?”

“Faithful Wolves in Wyoming. Near Yellowstone. But we renounced the pack over twenty years ago.”

Seb glanced over his shoulder at the king. “I know the pack,” he confirmed. “I’ll mindlink Frederick to check their membership records.”

Seb nodded at him, then looked back at Melissa and continued. “Why did you adopt Haven?”

“Lennox’s father made us. He wanted us to raise her so Lennox could mate with her.”

A growl escaped me at that. From me and from my lycan in my head. The thought of someone else claiming what we now knew had always been ours was not something we wanted to think about.

Haven squeezed my hands and rubbed her thumbs on the inside of my wrists, right over my pulses. Her warmth and the tingles reminded me she was still mine, and no one was going to take her from me.

“How was the adoption closed so quickly?” I asked them.

“I don’t know.” Melissa shrugged. “I would guess bribes, or maybe magic, or both. But I honestly don’t know how he managed it.”

I refrained from glaring at my dad through the glass, even though I wanted to. If we had just done the same, used our connections and our money, then maybe none of this would have happened. Maybe Haven would have grown up here, been my friend our whole lives. Been safe and happy.

“Did you really send my letters to Wes?” Haven asked her.

“No,” Melissa admitted.

“What did you do with them?” Haven asked.

“I put them through the shredder.”

Haven’s eyes narrowed, and it was my turn to soothe her. I stepped in closer so my chest brushed against her back every time I breathed. She inhaled and closed her eyes, then exhaled. “Why didn’t you send them?”

“Lennox’s dad made us sign a blood contract.”

“What’s a blood contract?” Haven asked with a wrinkled nose.

“It’s a magical contract created by a witch and signed in blood. It’s what Imogen signed when she learned about what we are. It’s what you would have had to sign if you weren’t my fated mate,” I told her.

“And they’re supposed to be monitored by the thirteen crones. Of course, just like with any group of people, there are good witches, and those with ill intent.” The king sighed, rubbing his temples and shaking his head. “What did this contract bind you to do?”

“We were to raise her and keep her away from any wolves and lycans or other packs except Lennox while she was growing up.”

“Why did he want her to be with Lennox so badly?” I asked.

“He wanted them to be mates.”

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