Page 58 of Sold to the Alphas

I turned back toward the settlement, my steps slower this time, weighed down by the heavy, gnawing feeling of helplessness.

The house came into view, dark and quiet, the tension in the air just as suffocating as when I’d left. August was still out there somewhere, chasing a ghost, and I was no closer to understanding what the hell he was thinking.

But I couldn’t leave. Not tonight. Not now.

I stepped inside, the warmth of the building doing little to thaw the icy knot in my chest. I didn’t bother checking on Finn—his frustration still radiated faintly through the bond, sharp and simmering—but I did pause outside my bedroom door.

Elisabed’s scent was faint, her presence a fragile thread that kept me grounded even as everything else threatened to spiral out of control.

I leaned against the wall, letting out a heavy breath as I tried to calm the restless energy coiling beneath my skin.

August had better come back soon.

Because I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold it all together on my own.

32

Finn

The door buckled beneath the force of my hands, and the sound of splintering wood was sharp in the silence. My wolf snarled within me, demanding freedom, demanding I fix what had gone so horribly wrong. Marshall thought he could lock me away like a caged beast, but he didn’t understand—I couldn’t stay in that room while she was out there, hurt and vulnerable.

August’s actions replayed in my head like a curse. His claws. Her blood. The way she’d crumpled and the scent of her pain had filled the air. My chest burned with the memory. He’d lost control, but I hadn’t. I knew what I was doing and would do whatever it took to protect Elisabed, even if that meant leaving everything else behind.

I stormed down the hallway, the walls narrowing with the weight of my rage. It was unbearable—the thought of her lying in some room alone, bearing the consequences of the chaos we’d letswallow us. The house was too quiet, the absence of her voice grating on my fraying nerves.

The moonlight spilling through the windows did little to calm me. I needed to see her, touch her, and know she was still breathing and here with me.

My hand pushed open Marshall’s door, and there she was.

She lay curled beneath the blankets, her dark hair splayed out on the pillow like a river of silk. Her face was peaceful, even as shadows of exhaustion clung to her delicate features. The sight of her should have soothed me, but it only made my anger boil hotter. Marshall had left her alone—again.

“Elisabed,” I said, my voice low and strained.

She didn’t stir.

I moved toward her and knelt beside the bed. “Elisabed,” I tried again.

Her eyelids fluttered, and she finally blinked at me hazily. “Finn?” she asked, confused.

“Yes, it’s me, sweetheart,” I murmured, brushing a strand of hair from her face.

“What...what’s wrong?” she asked, clearly seeing my emotions written across my face.

“Everything,” I answered, my voice thick with frustration. “You shouldn’t be here. Not like this.”

Before she could question me further, I slid my arms beneath her, lifting her from the bed as carefully as I could manage. She was light in my arms. Her warmth grounded me even as my wolf growled with the need to get her out of this cursed house.

“Finn,” she murmured, her voice soft but confused. “What are you doing?”

“We’re leaving,” I said firmly, cradling her against my chest.

Her eyes widened slightly. “Leaving? Why? What about Marshall? And—”

“Marshall will understand,” I said, cutting her off. “And August...” My teeth clenched, his name a bitter taste on my tongue. “He doesn’t deserve to be near you right now. None of us do, not after what he did.”

Her hands clutched weakly at my shirt. “My sister...”

“We’ll find her,” I promised, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. “But first, I need to get you somewhere safe.”

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