Chapter 3

Harper’s POV

Suddenly, before I can answer Alpha Lucas’s question, Sierra shoves me out of the way. My body collides with the wall as she steps between us. Nora catches me before I can fall, and I mutter my thanks as I straighten up.

“Harper is delusional,” Sierra barks, blocking Lucas’s view. “She’s lying like she always does.”

Me lying? I almost laugh at the lie. If anyone here is a liar, it’s clearly Sierra.

Beyond annoyed, I pull out of Nora’s arms and step around Sierra. I won’t let her drag me down any further than she already has. Everything that has happened in the past year is her fault.

When I move to Sierra’s side, Alpha Lucas looks at me, his eyes on my neck that’s concealed by my turtleneck.

“Alpha Lucas,” I start with a respectful bow. “My name is Harper Lewis, and I’m here to interview for the healer position.” I pull my resume out of my bag and pass it to him. Silently, he takes it, but his eyes stay on me.

A jolt of awareness runs through me as he watches me. There’s a reason an Alpha is the top of the pack. They’re intense and acutely aware of a lot going on around them. They’re strong and fast, able to deal with problems faster than anyone else.

And this man definitely has the strong Alpha aura. I almost feel like a bug underneath a microscope with the way he’s studying me. It’s like he’s trying to see through my soul… which probably wouldn’t be difficult with his sharp blue eyes.

He glances at the resume before his eyes find mine again.

“What did Sierra say about a stranger’s mark?”

Sierra stiffens beside me, visibly tensing up. Her reaction is odd, and as annoying as ever. Instantly, I want to thrash my stepsister. She had no right to bring that up, especially since it put me under scrutiny with Alpha Lucas.

“Expose your neck and show me this mark,” he orders when I don’t answer. I may not be part of the pack anymore, but something in me jumps to obey the command.

Slowly, I pull the turtleneck down, revealing the place between my neck and shoulder where the stranger bit me. If they’d asked me this months ago, there would be something for him to see. However, now, as Alpha Lucas focuses on my neck, he finds nothing.

The mark is still there, but because I spent months trying to heal it, it’s no longer visible. I can still feel it when someone, especially a man, touches me there, and I know it’s not gone because of the weakness I feel.

My heart thrums wildly in my chest as Alpha Lucas steps closer to examine my neck. He doesn’t touch me, but my skin heats and my heart pounds as if reacting to a physical touch.

“As you can see, there’s nothing there,” I say after what seems like a century, interrupting the awkward silence. I release the collar of my shirt as Alpha Lucas averts his gaze and nods expressionlessly.

Sierra, acting like the spoiled child she is, snatches my resume from Alpha Lucas’s hands and spins to sneer at me. She nearly knocks me over when she slaps my resume to my chest.

“Harper isn’t a healer at all,” Sierra hisses venomously. “There’s no need to look at these credentials because they’re either fake or stolen.”

Alpha Lucas looks between the two of us, asking, “And why would you say that?”

“Because she’s a rogue who made a serious mistake and was kicked out of the pack before you became Alpha,” Sierra lies. I grit my teeth, but she speaks before I can. “We can’t rule out the possibility of her being a spy.”

“A spy?” I laugh. “Sierra, you know very well that I didn’t make any mistakes.”

“You wouldn’t have been kicked out if you hadn’t,” she fires back.

Alpha Lucas steps in, gaining my attention as he looks me over again. There’s something about his eyes that draws me in. I should be afraid, but the calculative and cold gaze doesn’t scare me. Maybe he’ll listen to what I have to say and give me a chance.

“How long have you been a rogue?” He asks, frowning slightly. If you weren’t looking closely, you’d miss the miniscule downturn to his lips.

“A year,” I answer him honestly.

If I want to start this job well, lying wouldn’t help me at all. Not that I would lie in the first place. I’m not like Sierra.

Alpha Lucas hums before lifting a hand and waving it dismissively, “You can leave now.” He then waves at the warriors behind him, and they walk forward. Two position themselves at my sides and take hold of my arms.

They begin to drag me away, and if I let them, I’ll lose my only chance to stay. I’ll miss my chance to find whoever marked me.

“Wait!” I cry, reaching out. I grab Lucas’s hand in a moment of desperation, letting my healing energy flow into him as proof. A faint silver light glows between our hands as I continue, “I have been living in the human world since I left the pack. How would I dare come back if I don’t have a healing ability?”

Sierra sucks in a sharp breath and tugs at my hand.

“Let go of him!”

Though, I’m not the one who doesn’t want to let go. Alpha Lucas’s hand is curled around mine, locking me in place where the warriors can’t even move me further away. A strange look crosses Alpha Lucas’s face, almost like he’s trying to hold himself back. The hard expression doesn’t conceal the look of dismay flickering through his eyes and across his features, though.

It takes a moment, but he eventually releases my hand.

The weighted warmth that covered me falls aside as he turns away. I shake off the odd feeling, only looking up when Alpha Lucas glances over his shoulder to say, “You can stay, but know that you will be under surveillance. Don’t do anything unsavory, and you won’t have anything to worry about.”

With that, he walks away.

Sierra, on the other hand, screeches in disbelief, “What? No way!” She rushes off toward Alpha Lucas, worming her way under his arm and plastering herself to his side. “She’s a rogue. There’s no telling what trouble she’ll bring.”

I scoff at her words. I wouldn’t be a rogue if it weren’t for her. I wonder if Alpha Lucas knows that. Is he aware of just how deceptive and snake-like Sierra is?

“She can stay and prove her worth. If she can’t, she’ll leave,” Alpha Lucas says, the slightly cold tone giving Sierra no room to protest. She sighs and moves in front of Alpha Lucas, throwing her arms around his neck and leaning in to kiss him.

When their lips meet, she glares at me from over his shoulder. It’s a territorial glare- one that screams ‘he’s mine!’ I don’t quite understand her reasoning, though. Does she think I’m an imaginary enemy?

Just to get on her nerves, I cock my head to the side and give her a faint smile.

Turning, I head back toward the door when a sharp pain stabs at my insides. Blackness seeps into my vision and my knees give out, sending me to the floor.