Chapter 4

Rashel seemed to have a thing for passing out easily recently.

Her eyelids fluttered lazily, her curious gaze darting around the large room where she lay. She jolted up to a sitting position.

"Where am I?" Her panic seemed to lessen when she realized she wasn't in a dungeon like the other day. She was in a large, luxurious room, more beautiful than any room she had ever seen.

Images of the previous night came flooding in. The image of Alpha Jethro beating those cruel men up and teaching them a lesson she would have gladly taught them herself.

She had been too exhausted and had slid into unconsciousness in his arms.

"No..." She stood up on her feet, a dizzying sensation washing over her.

"You want to be careful there, mate." His familiar voice made her freeze. He was sitting right there, just behind her.

His presence was both commanding and demanding. She turned in his direction, her plump lips partly agape.

"Alpha... Alpha Jethro?" She called, willing herself to wake up from this dream. It couldn't be a reality.

Alpha Jethro? Her mate?

This was something any woman would kill for. But why was she unfazed? Why did her heart feel empty? Yearning for another man who didn't give two shits about her?

"I... I'm sorry to have bothered you, Alpha. I'll just be on my way now..." She stuttered, pretending not to feel the bond between them.

"Are you dumb? This is our mate!" Ash yelled at the recess of her mind, but Rashel shut her up instantly.

"I need to speak with Seth. I can't accept a total stranger over the man I love," she retorted.

"The same man who ran into the arms of another woman without blinking an eye? Come on, Rashel!" Ash was pissed, but before she could say another word, Rashel shut her out.

"There was an intense argument, I must say," Alpha Jethro said, leaning gracefully on the chair he sat on.

His long, straight leg was placed across the other. His deep, blue eyes regarded her carefully, taking in her disheveled state.

He seemed to feel her every emotion, including that of Ash.

"I'm sorry, Alpha, for any inconveniences I may have caused." Her eyes scanned the neatly arranged room.

Just as she was about to step away from the bed, her eyes caught something on the large vanity table just beside the bed.

It looked too familiar to ignore. She instinctively reached out for the familiar file and picked it up. She almost forgot to breathe for a second.

"Where did you get this?" She asked, stretching the file toward him.

"Oh. Seth and his new Luna sent that across to me. "It's quite an interesting project," Alpha Jethro said casually, standing up from the chair.

"What? No. This... This is mine. How could he?" She cried, but Jethro snatched the file from her feeble hands.

"Isn't it too early to start laying claims on things that aren't yours?" He smirked, looking down at her with slight disappointment.

"No. I swear. I've been hoping to see you. To give this to you... I..." She knew she sounded stupid, but she kept blabbing.

"I didn't see you as one who would be this desperate to make an impression," Jethro's gaze hardened. "Quit with the drama." His tone left no room for argument.

Rashel bowed her head. "I'm sorry." Thank you for your hospitality. But I'm sure my husband would be worried sick, looking for me already." She couldn't wait to leave his presence, to put an end to this madness. Seth and his new mate were trying to put on a display.

Rashel felt a rough hand pull her harshly by her arm. A loud gasp escaped her lips.

"You must be high on something cheap, Rashel..." Jethro said through clenched teeth. From the way he spoke, Rashel could feel how much control he had over his anger. "Are you so dumb not to realize we are mates?"

She struggled against his grip, but it only intensified her agony. His nails dug deep into her pale skin.

"Please. I love my husband. I have to go. This..." She gestured between both of them, "Can't work. I am already in love with someone else. I am sorry."

There was a deafening silence between them just before Jethro let go of her arm, to her surprise. She had expected a little more resistance from him, but he was just willing to let her go, just like that?

Whatever it was, Rashel was happy. She couldn't imagine starting a life afresh with a total stranger. She had a beautiful life with Seth and wasn't willing to let it go for any reason. Not even the mate bond.

Rashel ran toward the door, but Jethro's words halted her.

"You'll be needing this," his calm, baritone voice said, throwing a bunch of keys to her. "Take the car. It would ease the pain."

What pain was he talking about? She pondered, but didn't have the luxury of time to think it through.

She picked up the keys. "I'll have someone bring your car to you as soon as I arrive, my pack," she said and turned on her heels without hesitation.

Rashel wished she could make the car develop some wings to fly. Although the sleek Aston Martin DBX707 SUV gave her a near-flight experience, she hoped it could do more. She was in a hurry to see her husband again.

The tires screeched to a stop in front of the fortress. She had a little bit of a hard time at the border. The warriors on patrol seemed not to recognize her. They had to seek permission from Viola before letting her in. Funny.

Rashel barged into the place she once called home, despite the guards who tried to stop her outside the door.

"Let her be. She is our guest," Viola said to the guards, who bowed and left the living room.

"Where is my husband?!" Rashel asked, screaming at the top of her voice. She had endured enough humiliation for one day.

"Keep calm, Rashel. You are creating a scene," Viola said, approaching her from the dining area with her usual smile plastered on her face. "You came in time to join us for dinner."

"Keep your dinner to yourself! Where is Seth?" Rashel yelled again, her legs propelling her toward the stairs when Viola ran after her.

"No, Rashel. You can't go in. This is no longer your home. Kindly respect that." Viola held onto Rashel's hand, but Rashel pulled away, heading up the stairs when Viola's loud cry halted her midway.

Rashel turned and saw Viola on the floor, clutching her stomach.

She hurried down and crouched beside her. "Viola. What's wrong?" Rashel panicked.

"What's going on here, Viola?" Rashel heard Seth call from up the stairs as he hurried toward the wailing Viola.

"I... I tried to stop her. She pushed me off. I should have just let her be. "It's my fault," Viola reported, almost as if she had it all planned out.

"What? No..." Rashel argued, short of words, when Seth closed the distance between them, his hand finding her slender neck.

"How dare you come back here after all you've done? After trying to kill Viola? What did she ever do to you?" Seth asked, pushing her harshly against the wall. "You've got some nerve, you lying, cheating whore!"

"Seth... I... can't breathe..." Rashel choked against his firm grip.

"I wish you'd die by my hands!" He spat, letting go of her harshly.

Rashel coughed, struggling to catch her breath, when Seth pulled out an envelope from the table at the mini wine bar and flung it at her.

Rashel picked it up with trembling hands, opening it curiously. She caught Viola from the corner of her eye, staring with satisfaction. She could swear she saw Viola smirk at her.

Photos. A lot of them. Her hands trembled. Her heart raced. She was with a man in one set of pictures and another man in the other set.

Those were photos of her in bed with two different men at different intervals.

"No..." She muttered, almost in a whisper, as she recognized the men in the photos. Those were the men who had kidnapped her. She was certain. How did she end up in bed with them? "I... Seth... These were the men who abducted me. They..." The dam broke, and tears flooded her cheeks.

"Enough with your lies!" Seth yelled at her, his eyes holding sheer disgust as he beheld her. "Guards! Lock her up in the dungeon! She will pay for every sin she has committed against my pack!"