Page 111 of Alpha's Redemption

“We will. And Zoe won't. Besides, you're her mate,” I tell him, and he laughs.

“Idiot. There’s a reason Macey didn't tell them. She knew what their reaction would be and that Zoe and Everly wouldn't allow it. She knew Zoe would sacrifice her own mental health by allowing him to live so Macey could. Those girls are a package deal, John. Their bond outweighs any mate bond,” Marcus tells me, and I nod.

I swallow as I go in to pay for the fuel. He’s right; I can't return home to my daughters without Macy. I owe them both this much.

I owe my Claire to fix what I broke, owe her for destroying our family—and her; something I will live with for the rest of my life—but I will not live with knowing I destroyed Everly more.

Macey isn't just a rogue friend. She’s as much a sister to my daughter as Ava is. Therefore, she’s mine, too. And I won't make the same mistakes of the past. I protect what's mine.

As I head back to the car, the weight of the situation sits heavily on me. We can't fail. I have to bring her home to her daughter—to mine.

Starting my car again, I pull onto the old highway heading for the defunct power station where we’re meeting up with Kalen.

“If we can't pick up her location by the end of the weekend, we tell Valen. Just give them the weekend. They don't need this stress right now.”

“No, you have twenty-four hours, or I’m going to Valen with this myself. I can hold Zoe off for a day or so, but after that, she’ll go to Everly,” Marcus says, and I suck in a breath before nodding. Kalen will be angry, but it’s looking like we have no choice. We need to find Macey and bring her home.

Macey didn't have to fight for me and save me in the forsaken attack, yet she did. I owe her my life, and I will lay it down for her if needed, just like I would give my last breath if it meant bringing my Claire back. Now we just need to find her.

ChapterForty-Eight

Macey

The following morning, I wake to a pinch in my neck. I hardly slept all night as I fought the urge, yet my attempts to stay awake were unsuccessful; exhaustion eventually took me.

“Shh, my love, it is just a sedative,” Carter murmurs as he pulls the syringe from my neck. My fingertips touch the spot. He handcuffed me to him during the night. I had tried to shift out of my restraints, yet he pounced on me before I even made it a step from the bed, which earned me the handcuffs for my efforts. He had also drugged me the moment he wrestled me back into the restraints. I cursed myself all night. I should have held out longer, earned his trust. All night I had stared at the ceiling, completely paralyzed. Panic courses through me as he stabs me again.

“It’s just a precaution. This won’t paralyze you completely, only stop you from shifting mostly and is more of a muscle relaxant. My father’s invention; shitty man, but a smart one,” he says.

There’s so much I could say about his father’s intelligence, or lack thereof, yet, I hold my tongue.

Carter waits for the drug to start taking effect, watching me as he gets changed. My limbs become heavy, though I still have feeling in them. He sets a bucket by the bed and my brows furrow.

“In case you need to use the bathroom. It should start to wear off just before I get back,” he says. I growl at him, disgusted that he would even think I would use it. If that fucker thinks I’m using that, he is sorely mistaken. I would rather shit my pants and watch him clean me with no working water here; payback for keeping me locked up like a dog.

“I know it isn’t ideal, but it’s just in case. I won’t be long.”

My tongue feels thick in my mouth, so I smile at him, cursing him to the Goddess. He leans over the bed as if he sees nothing wrong with the entire scenario and pecks my lips.

I hate how the bond reacts to his affections. The Goddess really fucked up when she created us. No matter how vile and despicable our mates are, our bonds flourish and get excited from any form of attention. All I know is when I meet her in the afterlife, I have a few choice words for her about this entire mate bond bullshit.

One thing I’ve always envied the humans; they seriously have no idea how lucky they are to be able to choose their own destiny and who they allow in it. But no! We shun our fated mate and are punished with death, unless you're an Alpha and pack tethered. What a crock of shit that is. You really fucked that up, Moon Goddess! Shouldn’t the Goddess be a feminist? She is a woman, after all!

“I won’t be long. There’s a town about an hour away, so try to rest, because tonight we complete the mate bond,” he tells me, brushing his knuckles down my cheek. I turn my head away from him and he growls.

“We will complete the mate bond, Macey. I would prefer if you willingly accept that, but if not, I will make you submit,” he says, and I turn back to look at him. He growls at me, forcing his aura out to show he is perfectly capable of what he threatened.

“Choose wisely, Macey. Sometimes it is better to give in,” he says before walking out.

Yep, well, he just solidified it now. If I can’t find a way out of these restraints, I am shitting myself. Let’s see how willing he is then!

Whatever he gave me works pretty quickly. I find even lifting my head difficult, yet I can move a little, so that’s something. After several tries, I manage to roll off the bed and hit the floor with a hard thump. I groan; the floor is harder than it looks, or maybe it’s because I feel like dead weight. Once on the ground, I try to sit up, managing to prop myself up against the bedside table. Man, I feel so heavy, and my body tingles like it has pins and needles.

I glance around the room for the hundredth time, yet I know it’s pointless. There’s nothing here that would break the thick chain. And then what? Even if I could break the damn thing, I can’t walk. I could try to roll my way out of here, or army crawl? I would be lucky to make it off the porch.

I stare at the plastic bucket before growling and smacking it with my hand and it skids across the floor by the fire. That took far too much effort for such a small movement.

Minutes pass as I look around the room before I finally give up and rest my head back on the bedside table, the angle making me stare off at the ceiling and fireplace. My mind wanders to Taylor.

---