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Chapter 17

Author: Benita Abel
last update Last Updated: 2025-12-12 22:35:03

Ryker POV

The Council chamber was empty when Marcus led us inside, which told me everything I needed to know. This wasn't about the meeting at all. This was a trap, a private confrontation disguised as official business. I kept my expression neutral, but every instinct I had screamed danger.

Marcus closed the door behind us with a soft click that sounded too much like a lock engaging. Maya stood close to me, her body tense, her breathing shallow. Something had happened while I was in that earlier meeting with Marcus. Something that had shaken her badly. I could feel her distress through our bond, sharp and electric.

"Please, sit." Marcus gestured to the long conference table that dominated the room. Chairs lined both sides, but he positioned himself at the head like a king on his throne. I guided Maya to a seat on the opposite end, putting as much distance as possible between her and her uncle. Kade and Owen flanked us, their presence a silent reminder that Maya wasn't alone anymore.
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  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 23

    Ryker POV "Tell Alpha Marcus we accept his invitation." I kept my voice steady and calm, projecting confidence I didn't entirely feel. "We'll be there at eight."The servant's footsteps retreated down the hallway. Owen locked the door again, then turned to face me with concern written across his features."You know this is a trap.""Of course it's a trap." I returned to the documents spread across the table, studying them more carefully now that the immediate danger had passed. "But refusing would show weakness. Marcus would use it against us, claim we're hiding something or afraid to face scrutiny.""So we walk into his trap and hope we can survive it?" Kade shook his head. "That's a terrible plan, Alpha.""We walk into his trap with conditions." I pulled out my phone, composing a carefully worded message. "Marcus wants a dinner, he gets a dinner. But Maya sits beside me at all times, surrounded by our people. No separated seating, no opportunities for him to corner her or poison he

  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 22

    Maya Pov "Father, what's happening?" Leo's voice carried clearly down the hallway. "Why are there armed guards surrounding our guests?""This doesn't concern you, Leo." Marcus didn't take his eyes off me. "Return to your quarters."But Leo didn't move. He stood there in the hallway, looking between his father and the trapped guests, and I saw something shift in his expression. Decision, maybe. Or defiance."Let them go." Leo spoke quietly, but with unexpected firmness. "They're under Council protection. If you harm them or detain them, you'll answer to more than just Alpha Ryker."Marcus's head snapped toward his son, genuine shock breaking through his controlled mask. "What did you say?""I said let them go." Leo moved forward, pushing through the gathered pack members until he stood beside me. "I'll vouch for them. Whatever they found, I'll testify it existed. I'll tell the Council everything I saw."The gathered pack members murmured their agreement, a ripple of support spreading

  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 21

    RykerI heard the commotion before I saw it. Raised voices, the heavy thud of boots on wooden floors, the sharp command of guards moving into position. Every instinct in my body screamed danger, and I was running before my mind fully processed what was happening. Maya was in trouble. I could feel it through the bond we shared, that invisible thread connecting us across distance and walls.The hallways blurred past me as I ran. Pack members pressed themselves against walls to let me pass, their faces confused and alarmed. I didn't stop to explain. I just followed the pull toward Maya, toward the escalating tension I could feel building like pressure before a storm. Owen and Kade were supposed to be with her, supposed to keep her safe, but something had gone wrong. Something had drawn Marcus's attention and anger.I rounded the corner into the old servant quarters section of the packhouse and stopped. Six guards in black uniforms blocked the narrow hallway, their bodies forming a wall b

  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 20

    Maya Pov Heavy footsteps pounded in the hallway outside. Not just one person, but several, their boots hitting the wooden floor in synchronized rhythm. Guards. Marcus's personal security team.They appeared in the doorway behind Sienna—six large men in black uniforms, their expressions hard and hostile. They fanned out, blocking the only exit from the room, their hands resting on weapons holstered at their belts.We were trapped.The lead guard stepped forward, his eyes scanning the scattered documents, the open wall panel, the folders Kade held. "Alpha Marcus has been notified. You're to remain here until he arrives.""We're guests of the Moonstone Pack," Owen said calmly, though I could see the tension in his shoulders. "We have every right to be in this packhouse.""This is a restricted area. You're trespassing." The guard's hand moved to his weapon. "Put down the documents and step away from the wall."Kade didn't move. "These documents are evidence of crimes committed against pa

  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 19

    Maya Pov The sitting room felt too small, the walls pressing in from all sides. Ryker held my hands, his grip steady and warm, but I could barely feel it. My mind kept circling back to Marcus's words, to the photographs of me as a child surrounded by medical equipment, to the horrible possibility that I wasn't who I thought I was."I need air." I pulled away from Ryker, standing on shaky legs. "I need to think.""Maya, we should stay together until the Council meeting—" Ryker started, but I was already moving toward the door."I just need a minute. Please." My voice cracked on the last word. I couldn't break down here, not in front of everyone. I needed space to process everything Marcus had told us, to try to make sense of the impossible.Kade caught my arm gently. "I'll go with her. Just a quick walk, clear her head. We won't leave the packhouse."Ryker looked like he wanted to argue, but Owen put a hand on his shoulder. "Let her breathe, Alpha. We've got thirty minutes before the

  • The Alpha's Prisoner    Chapter 18

    Ryker POV "I salvaged what I could." Marcus straightened his jacket, his composure returning. "And I've been trying to unlock what's left inside her ever since. The second binding wasn't punishment, Alpha Ryker. It was research. Every time Maya endured pain, every time her wolf tried to emerge and couldn't, I gathered data. Five years of data on how modified genetics respond to suppression."Maya made a small sound, something between a gasp and a sob. I pulled her closer, wrapping my arm around her shoulders. She was shaking, her whole body trembling with shock and horror."You used her like a lab rat," Owen said, his voice thick with disgust."I used her like what she is—a scientific resource." Marcus's eyes never left Maya. "And she still is. That contract you're so proud of, Alpha Ryker, doesn't change her fundamental nature. She's not just a wolf. She's something more, something unprecedented. And eventually, that's going to become very obvious.""What does that mean?" I demanded

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