Page 216 of The Alpha's Pen Pal

When I looked back at Melissa, she stared at me, and her eyes flashed with guilt or regret for a split second, but then it was gone. I didn’t know if it was real or something I imagined. But I didn’t care. Even if it was real, it was too little too late.

They’d made their choice. They’d made it when she told Lennox’s father she would do whatever he asked to prove she was innocent. They could have lived their lives peacefully, and I would have been left alone. Or they could have been kinder to me. They could have figured out some way to go against him.

So I felt nothing when I saw that look in her eyes. She could roll around in her own filth for all I cared. She was nothing to me.

Sebastian glanced over at me, as did the king. “I’m fine, Sebby,” I muttered, and he smiled and winked at me before turning serious again.

“So let me get this all straight before we continue,” Sebastian said. “Lennox was your son, but he was raised by John and Mary. His real father was a douchebag alpha from an unknown pack, and he had you sign blood contracts agreeing to do nefarious and shady shit for him, including raising Haven to be your son’s baby maker.” He glanced at the king. “Did I miss anything?”

I could feel Wesley’s amusement mixed with exasperation, but the king just shrugged. “Yes. I think that’s what she told us.”

I furrowed my brow, though. Something wasn’t adding up for me. There was a gap in their story.

“How did you end up here? In California?” I asked them. “You said you woke up in cells with no idea where you were or how you got there, but Sarina said they found you at our borders.”

A small swell of love and pride hit me through the bond when I said “our borders,” and Wesley’s thumb stroked my upper arm.

“When we woke up in the cells, Lennox’s father was there. He told us we’d failed by letting you leave Salt Lake City and move to California. He said there were too many packs near your new company and that we should pray to Selene that Lennox would still be able to claim you.”

“But how did he know I was in California? How did he know I was near Crescent Lake and the other packs? And how did you end up at our borders?” I repeated, standing up straighter, my questions fueled by the roiling in my stomach that had morphed into an angry fire.

“I don’t know how he knew. We didn’t tell him. John and Mary may have, but you’d been gone for months before he found out, so I don’t think it was them.”

“What about Lennox? I’m sure he’d do whatever Daddy wanted if it meant he’d get to be alpha,” I snorted.

“Lennox hadn’t spoken to him since he was a small child. When we ended up in his dad’s pack, that was the first they’d seen each other in a very long time.”

“You’re still avoiding my question. How did you end up here?” I practically growled, shocking even myself with the level of my anger.

“Lennox’s dad took us from the cells several nights ago. We’ve been camping in the woods, moving around every night, and we caught a whiff of this pack’s scent. We snuck away so we could find the borders again and find help.”

Wes and Sebastian looked at each other. I could feel Wesley’s mind working through her words and see Sebastian doing the same.

“Pierce,” Wesley growled, and King Malachi turned to look at him. “He has twins. And we know he’s not the cleanest of alphas. Ben and Nicole confirmed he’d cheated on their mom. It wouldn’t shock me to learn he had pups with other she-wolfs.”

“This is the alpha you tried to catch?” I asked.

“Yes, but he got away. We’ve been looking for him but haven’t found him yet,” King Malachi replied. He turned to Melissa. “You don’t know his name or his pack’s name, but if I showed you his picture, would you be able to confirm if it’s him?”

Melissa laughed again, a hopeless, crazed, hollow laugh. Tears from her mirthless laughter, or maybe from her desperation, streamed down her cheeks. Matthew sighed and closed his eyes, his chin dropping to his chest.

“You’ll find out for yourself soon enough, I’m sure,” she spat out through her laughter. “He’s on his way, or possibly already here.”

Wesley’s arms around me tightened like a python, holding me to him protectively, and three growls echoed around the room. Sebby stood in front of Wesley and me, blocking me from Melissa and Matthew’s view as her maniacal laughter continued.

“How? How is he getting onto Crescent Lake packlands?” the king roared, his power pulsing out of him and filling the room.

“His transport stone. He gave me the other half, and I dropped it somewhere on the ground while those stupid rogues brought us to the packhouse.” She cackled. “He was going to wait a day or two, until he knew Wesley and Haven were back from wherever they’d gone when they left.”

“Shit!” Wesley exclaimed, and his panic and fear hit me harder than a trained fighter hitting their opponent.

Sebastian’s facial expression matched the level of worry I felt coming from Wesley as he looked back at us. It was an expression I’d only seen from him once in the short time I’d known him the night Lennox attacked me.

“No!” he cried as he sprinted to the door and yanked it open with his full strength, disappearing out of the room before any of us could say anything to him.

“What’s going on?” I asked, looking up into Wesley’s worried eyes as he grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the door with haste.

“Reid just mindlinked us. Pierce is here. And he has Maddie.”

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