Chapter 26

Zane’s POV

"I’m responsible for her," I said, my voice steady despite the tension coiling around us.

Vivian and Tyler shot each other skeptical glances, their eyebrows lifting in unison. They were waiting for the rest of the story, but I wasn’t in the mood to give it all away. Not yet.

"Lydia was in my room, and this girl... interrupted," I continued, trying to keep it vague but still paint the picture. "Because of that, she ended up like this."

Vivian’s eyes narrowed, piecing things together. "Is she the Omega you mentioned? The one who took a beating from Lydia?"

I nodded.

Tyler was more blunt. "Why do you make it sound like you’re responsible?" He was always like this, always looking for clarity, even when it wasn’t clear. "Lydia has a temper. If you were involved or not, it was bound to happen."

I held up a hand, silencing him. "That was the first time," I said. "Then I went to Alpha Gregory. Told him some Omegas were being punished physically, and he needed to talk to Lydia about it. After that, this girl got hit again."

Vivian and Tyler exchanged looks that told me everything. They knew something was missing.

It didn’t matter if I didn’t mean for her to be hurt. Mabel didn’t deserve this, and yet she had been caught in the middle of it. In this pack, Alphas ruled everything—even who got punished and who didn’t. And now, I had taken someone from Alpha Gregory’s pack. That wasn’t a small thing. No matter how minor the girl was in the pack, Alphas saw their members as belongings—part of their strength. By taking her, I’d weakened the Silverwood pack.

Tyler broke the silence with a low sigh. "You know Alpha Gregory can turn hostile if he finds out she’s with us, right?"

I rubbed my face with a force that didn’t calm me down. I knew. I knew all too well. But I couldn’t forget where I found her. "You didn’t see where she stays," I muttered, my voice quieter. "I found her in the attic. Bruised, bleeding. Among broken furniture and rags. No one cares about her."

Tyler’s gaze hardened, but it was Vivian who spoke up this time. "And you do?" she snapped, her eyes flashing. "You know our relationship with the Silverwood pack is strained. Alpha Gregory is working in the shadows to take you down. And now you’ve just given him a reason to go after us openly. Is she really worth the risk? Jeopardizing the Stonebrook pack? You know this could lead to war, right?"

Her words hit like a slap, but I couldn’t just sit back and ignore what had happened to Mabel.

"What do you want me to do?" I growled, my anger building. "Leave her there to rot? Wait for another beating?"

Vivian cut in, her voice steady but urgent, trying to ease the tension. "That’s not what Tyler’s saying. We need to do this right. We can’t keep hiding her. Alphas don’t tolerate this kind of interference. We’ve had situations before, but this..." She glanced at Tyler before meeting my gaze again. "We need a cover story. When Alpha Gregory finds out she’s gone, we’ll be the first suspects. He’ll send people after her. We need to be ready."

The thought of someone from the Silverwood pack coming for Mabel made my gut twist. They could take her back, and I couldn’t let that happen. Not after what I saw.

"I’ve got an idea," I said, an idea taking form in my head, one that might actually work. "She didn’t have the mind-link. She was brought to the Silverwood pack when she was a kid, and she never went through the acceptance ceremony. Technically, she’s a rogue." I looked at them, waiting for their reactions. "We can say she grew up with her grandparents. When they died, she came to this area, and we found her on our way home."

Tyler looked skeptical. "Who’s going to believe that?"

I snapped, irritated. "Make it believable!"

Vivian raised her hands, trying to calm me down. "Alright, alright. A rogue we found. We can fill in the details to make it sound real. But we can’t just make up a story and hope it sticks. What about why she came to us, not another pack?"

I nodded, my thoughts racing. "Something’s off with her wolf. Not many packs would take someone like her, especially not in top form."

Vivian glanced at me, narrowing her eyes. "But will she play along? Will she cooperate with this story?"

I shrugged. "If she doesn’t, then it’ll cause trouble for all of us. And she’ll go back to the Silverwood pack."

Tyler's voice cut through the tension, sharp with frustration. "You should’ve talked to me first. She's just an Omega. Alpha Gregory doesn’t care much about them. We could’ve made a deal to take her without causing all these complications."

"I didn’t stuff her anywhere," I snapped, the irritation building. "She came with us willingly. We didn’t have time for a plan."

Before Tyler could respond, a sudden noise from his phone made me freeze.

My heart dropped.

The bed was empty.

Mabel was gone.

I rushed out of the room, panic flooding my veins. I ran to my room, praying I wasn’t too late.

When I saw her, sprawled on the floor, asleep, I let out a breath of relief.

She’d fallen off the bed.

I couldn’t help but shake my head. She was so damn adorable, hugging that pillow like she owned it. And here I was, panicking like an idiot.

I knelt down next to her, gently pulling the pillow from her grip and lifting her into my arms.

Mabel stirred, adjusting in my arms to find a more comfortable position, and I froze, feeling sparks shoot through my body.

I laid her back on the bed, my mind racing. We needed a plan. A place for her to stay. But in that moment, I couldn’t stop staring at her, her soft breath warming my neck, making my heart race for all the wrong reasons.

Mabel was exhausted. I hadn’t slept either. I knew that.

But right then, none of it mattered. I was holding her, and I couldn’t bring myself to pull away.

In Tyler and Vivian’s room, the two exchanged quiet words, their eyes locked on Tyler’s phone.

"Did Zane get hit with some kind of split personality disorder, or did we pick up an impostor?" Vivian asked, her voice heavy with disbelief.

Tyler chuckled. "Maybe someone drugged him with a ‘love potion,’ and now Lydia’s pulling her hair out because Zane ran before the drug took full effect."

Vivian shot him a look. "You’re not worried?"

Tyler shrugged. "He seems to care. And that’s a good thing. We don’t need to make a big deal out of it."

Vivian’s brow furrowed. "But remember who Zane is. The same Zane who uses ‘girlfriend’ like a curse word. The Zane who keeps women at arm’s length. Are you really telling me his ‘tender side’ suddenly showed up? This doesn’t add up."

Tyler thought for a moment. "It didn’t happen overnight. I noticed it after we arrived at the Silverwood pack. He asked me how I felt when we met."

Vivian blinked in confusion. "Zane actually asked you about mates?"

She glanced back at the phone where Zane was lying next to Mabel. Her eyes widened. "Call me crazy, but I think that girl might be his mate."

Tyler snorted, shaking his head. "You’re crazy. If she was his mate, Zane would’ve rejected her. He doesn’t do ‘mates.’ He’s running for the hills, not cuddling."

Vivian smirked knowingly. "So, how do you explain this?"