Page 47 of Alpha's Hated Mate

Aydan. Where’s Aydan?

I take a deep breath, closing my eyes again in an effort to block everything out for a moment. It’s a lot to take in, but I don’t have time to deal with it right now.

The heavy smell of Scarlet wolves and the dankness of a basement surrounds me. I sit up and let my eyes adjust, making out shapes. A hand touches my shoulder. I jump away, startled.

“Hey, it’s all right,” the voice says. “You’re among friends.”

My eyes are still adjusting, but the scent is unmistakable. As the shapes come into dim focus, I realize that the figures around me are other Scarlets . . . the missing Scarlets. “Where are we?” I ask out loud to no one in particular.

“We don’t know,” a voice nearby says. “We all woke up here a day or so ago. Do you know what’s going on?”

I don’t. Not exactly. I shake my head and wince a little at the pain just behind my eyes. Whatever knocked me out was a doozy. “I was attacked by . . . by some kind of wolf monster.”

“Monster?” It’s a female voice, high and panicked. “Oh, Goddess. Is that what’s been causing the terrifying howling outside? What does it want?”

My mind conjures the image of thatthingagain. Red fur. Massive size. Eyes burning with unnatural hatred. Not like any normal wolf. Something else entirely.

Wait a minute . . .

The pieces start to snap together. The laboratory from my vision—the white-haired man injecting himself with that crimson liquid. The giant red wolf that tore through the forest hunting my mother after she hid me beneath those porch steps.

The realization hits me like a punch in the gut. The giant red wolf that killed my mother . . . the same one that attacked us today . . . it’s him. It’s Alton. Aydan’s father. He’s not dead—he turned himself into a monster with that serum. My skin goes cold despite the stuffiness of our underground prison.

My mother died protecting me from him.

And if he’s behind all this, he’s collecting Scarlets again . . .

A figure scoots closer to me. “Are you okay, Saffron?” I recognize the voice. It’s Cyd.

I swallow hard, throat dry like sandpaper. How could I possibly explain?

Hey, everyone, I’m pretty sure my boyfriend’s dad turned himself into a mutant wolf-monster, murdered my mother, and is probably planning to do experiments on all of us.

Oh, Goddess. Aydan. Does he know what his father has become?

“I’m fine,” I manage, pressing the heel of my palm against my temple. “Just trying to make sense of everything.”

“Nothing makes sense,” Robby’s voice says. He sounds a little more assertive than usual, but it’s definitely him. “At least, no one is hurt.”

“It’s those damn purists!” A male scoffs. “Holding Scarlets hostage for no reason.” My brain is finally recovering from being knocked out and my eyes are adjusting to the darkness. I’m beginning to make out some faces through the dim light filtering through a small window. The one that’s speaking is Jack, a Scarlet that was in my First Labor class. He’s hunkered down a few feet away from me, his long red hair in his face.

I’ll let him believe that. Purists sound a lot less scary than a Scarlet-obsessed mad scientist right now. Maybe Alton needs our blood to make more of his serum because it’s the only thing keeping him alive . . . or something like that.

Nevermind why he needs us. We need to get out of here before he comes back and decides to do whatever he’s planning with his collection of Scarlets.

I hear footsteps from outside of the room coming toward us, but they’re normal footsteps. Alton must’ve changed back.

“She’s coming back,” another girl says.

Wait . . . she?

The locks to the door turn and the door opens. The lights suddenly come on, and for a second, I’m blinded. I squint, looking around at all the Scarlets and their various shades of red hair. Some wearing their uniforms. Others in normal clothing.We all cringe from the light, and most of them start to scurry to the back wall like mice.

I pick up her scent first. Jasmine, soft and so subtle that no one ever really notices it until she’s left the room.It can’t be . . .

And as my vision clears, I see a wall of bars between us and rest of the room. Clean white tile and cement block walls. A desk with a computer, various file folders, and a number of notebooks stacked on the edge.

In her black pants and shirt and her golden hair tied back into a ponytail, I see our captor plain as day.

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