Page 23 of The Alpha's Forbidden Heir

The words knock the air from my lungs.

“Where?” My voice is low, but my wolf growls just beneath the surface, restless and impatient.

“She’s in a small town up north,” Vincent replies. “She’s been laying low. She has a new name, and she goes by Anna Greene now.”

“What other details do you have?”

“She’s teaching at a school. Keeps to herself most of the time. She has no close ties, no friends. At least none that I have found.”

Something about that doesn’t sit right. Aria was never the type to fade into the background. She burned too brightly, commanded too much attention. She wanted to be an artist.

“Are you sure it’s her?”

Vincent chuckles. “Are you paying me to guess?”

I ignore the jab. After five years of searching, of coming up empty-handed, the thought of finally seeing her again feels like a live wire in my chest.

“What’s her location?”

“I’ll send over all the other details to your email,” he says. “I expect my balance as soon as possible.”

The line goes dead, and I lower the phone, staring at it like it holds the answers to all the questions I’ve been too afraid to ask.

I finally found her after five years. I must give her flowers for hiding that long and successfully avoiding her father and me. Now that Vincent has found her, it means her father might be closer too. I need to get to her first. I need to find her first.

Liam catches me as I’m heading out.

“Where are you going?”

“Out.”

“I noticed.” He steps in front of me, blocking the door. “Do you care to elaborate?”

“No.”

He folds his arms, his stance firm. “Look, I get that you’re all broody and mysterious, but the pack has real problems right now. You disappearing for God knows how long isn’t helping.”

“I’ll handle the pack.”

“You’re damn right you will,” he snaps. “Because it’s your job. You’re the Alpha, Bane. You don’t get to run off every time your past comes knocking.”

“I’m not running off.” My voice is sharp, “I’m handling something. Something that doesn’t concern you.”

He stares at me for a long moment, his jaw tight. “This is about her, isn’t it?”

I don’t respond, but the answer is written all over my face.

“It’s been five years, Bane,” he says, his voice quieter now. “Five years, and you’re still chasing her like she’s the only thing that matters.”

“She is.”

The words slip out before I can stop them, and Liam’s expression softens, the fight draining from his shoulders.

“Then just… be careful,” he says finally, stepping aside. “The pack needs you. Don’t let this; whatever this is pull you under.”

I nod, my hand on the door. “I won’t.”

Chapter Eight

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