Page 63 of Wolf Tormented
“I need the alpha,” he says.
Angela steps up next to me. There is definitely something going on that I don’t know about because Angela shakes her head almost imperceptibly.
“Didn’t you check your messages, Patrick? The alpha had to go into the city,” Angela says.
“Wait? What? He went into the city?” I ask.
Pain lances through my chest. Is he cheating on me? I thought he’d gone for a run or something. I never thought he would leave the territory.
Why didn’t he tell me he was leaving, where he was going, or give me a simple goodbye? Wasn’t that what got us into the mess with Grayson in the first place?
“Jara, it’s not like that.” Angela squeezes my arm.
“Then what is it like?” I ask.
“I can’t tell you that.” She glances away.
The stench of her guilt fills the room. What the fuck is going on?
“You really expect me to believe it’s not what I think without telling me anything?” I plant my hands on my hips.
Anger courses through me even as my heart breaks a little more. I didn’t think it was possible for it to break again, but obviously there was still one tiny glimmer of hope that we could work things out.
False hope. That’s all it was. And my heart hung on to it as long as it could.
“It’s alpha’s orders, Jara,” Angela says with a sigh.
“I don’t want to hear about the fucking alpha and his damn orders.” I stomp past Patrick to the stairs. “Just leave me alone.”
Patrick’s whisper meets my ears as I stomp up the stairs. “I need you to come with me. There’s been a… new development.”
“Okay, let me talk to Jara first,” Angela says.
“No. I’m fine. I need to be alone,” I call over my shoulder as I storm through the kitchen and back up the stairs to my room. My prison.
What the hell is the point of all this? Did he meet someone in the city when he was trying to get me back from Grayson?
If that’s the case, why didn’t he just leave me to be tortured and executed? A manic laugh bubbles out of me as I slam my bedroom door.
Why does Archer do anything? To keep from appearing weak. He’s so obsessed with strength and what others perceive him to be that it borders on insanity.
No, I’m the only insane one. I was insane for agreeing to the deal from the beginning, I was insane for not leaving and going rogue the first chance I got, and I’m still insane for ever hoping things can change.
The en suite is immaculate—just like I left it—and I turn on the water in the tub. I need a relaxing soak to get my stupid brain and heart to stop thinking about what Archer is doing in the city.
I pour in some citrus and vanilla bubbles as the steam from the water floats above the tub, then take off my clothes. I ease my tired body into the hot water and sigh as my muscles relax.
Closing my eyes, I try and fail to forget about everything, but different scenarios play behind my eyes on repeat.
Did he go to the city to see some rogue he met that works for him? Is he going to have an affair with some other shifter while he treats me like I don’t exist?
I finish the bath quickly since it’s impossible to relax. My own thoughts are my enemy. They hound me with every possibility. However, my wolf is oddly silent, and I can’t help but wonder if she’s finally given up on him too.
I really will be driven to insanity soon.
Stepping out of the huge tub, I grab a towel to dry off, then stroll to the closet.
I can’t just sit here and wallow.
