Page 6 of Chained By the Alpha
My father laughs and shakes his head. “I have no alliance with your pack!”
“Regardless, if you bothered to go out to your borders for once, you would see my patrols. Every pack here is under my pack’s protection, and I will revoke it if you don’t sit down!”
“Samuel’s men help patrol my pack borders, not yours,” my father snaps, gripping my arm and yanking me to my feet.
I curse, hitting my knee on the table. Great, why am I involved? I’m nearly tossed to the ground, at the force of which my father grabs me and pulls me up beside him. My chair tips over, and I stumble over the top of it. A menacing snarl leaves Alpha Zayn’s lips.
“Samuel, would you enlighten this old fool,” Alpha Zayn growls. My father stops, his grip on my arm becoming crushing.
Now I wish I had paid attention. My father never puts his hands on me, so something has gotten under his skin for him to grab me like this.
Alpha Samuel shrinks in his seat as my father’s gaze turns to him.
“What he says is true. I haven’t had the numbers after the last attack. I asked Alpha Zayn to patrol the pack’s borders,” he explains, looking embarrassed.
Alpha Samuel’s pack is the second largest and typically handles the city’s protection and border patrols. That is what my father pays him for: his protection.
“Excuse me? I pay you every fucking month,” my father spits at him, but it is Alpha Zayn who answers.
“Now, you pay me. So sit down and unhand your—” he pauses, looking me over, having lost his train of thought.
“My daughter, Cleo,” my father answers. The Alpha nods once, his eyes on my father’s hand that is still locked onto me in a death grip. What is going on here?
“I know who she is.”
My father growls, and I cry out as his grip crushes my arm. The other Alphas stare in shock. Alpha Zayn’s eyes blaze, a snarl on his lips.
“Dad,” I plead. “Let go! What’s going on? What are they talking about?” I say, feeling like there’s something big I’m missing.
“Let her go,” Zayn commands, voice holding a deadly lilt. “You’re hurting her.”
My father blinks, glancing down at the bruises and scratches already forming on my skin where his claws had slipped out and scratched me. Horror floods his face, and his hand falls away.
My cheeks burn. I am embarrassed as my father releases his grip on my arm, the intensity of it leaving behind the clear outlines of his fingers.
“Cleo? Crap, I’m sorry, sweetie,” he apologizes, the tone of his voice changing abruptly from venomous to remorseful. I feel like some prize or trophy, one he nearly damaged with his careless actions and temper.
“I’m fine. Just leave me,” I whisper, trying to hide my humiliation from him and the others in the room.
Swatting his hand away, I sheepishly try to hide the bruises on my arms. I’m acutely aware of the attention being placed on me as the weight of their gazes bears down on me. I refuse to look at any of them. Instead, I focus on keeping my thoughts and emotions in check, remembering the countless lessons I have learned about controlling my reactions.
“Now, sit down. We must finish. I haven’t got time for another meeting later,” Alpha Zayn snaps. My father’s head whips in his direction.
“You are all fools, giving this lunatic control of the city and our packs,” my father says through clenched teeth at Alpha Samuel, before turning to glare at Alpha Zayn. “Shove your protection up your ass. I will not bow to the likes of you!” he glares at the Alpha before tugging me from the room.
“Dad!” I hiss, still confused about what’s going on. Even I know the importance of having those patrols.
“We need his help,” I grit out, but he isn’t hearing it. Instead, he rips me away from the meeting room and moves toward the stairs leading to the restaurant.
“Dad!” I snap when we reach the bottom and are out of earshot.
“No, Cleo, I am not leaving my pack in the hands of that monster,” he rumbles, stopping so abruptly I slam right into hisback. He grips my shoulders and looks at me with a sigh and drops his head.
“Look, one day you will understand, for—” Sirens suddenly go off, ringing from everywhere. My dad straightens, his eyes dart around as the sirens grow louder, signaling the city is under attack. My eyes widen, as people panic and screams ring out from outside. My father shoves me behind him.
“Cleo, go, find somewhere to hide!” My father screams before shifting into his huge gray wolf. My heart beats like a drum, panic, and fear filling me. I take off only to be knocked down by the stampede of panicked humans. I crawl to a nearby table, and duck under the tablecloth, when the windows all around suddenly shatter. Gunshots ring out, and the roars and growls only get closer and louder.
“Cleo, run!”my father screams through the mindlink when a giant malt-colored wolf upturns the table. I scream, scrambling back on my hands and knees, only for my father’s wolf to attack the other. Turning, I try to get to my feet when teeth rip into my arm, sending jarring pain through me.
