Chapter Five

Ace was taken aback when I told him we were leaving right away, but he didn't want to intercede, as I had warned. Alpha Liam tried to persuade me to give Shirl more time to say goodbye to her friends, but nothing they said changed my mind; I'm clinging to the last strand of patience I didn't realize I had, and I'm not willing to put myself through the test to see what happens if that last strand of patience wears off.

I sat in my car, waiting for Amelia and my friend to come so I could leave immediately. Why do people keep drawing parallels between me and my parents? Unfortunately, I strive every day to avoid becoming like them; my mantra, for fuck's sake, is "I am not like my parents and I will never be like them," but based on how people constantly compare me to them, it appears that I'm slowly transforming into them, or perhaps I already am.

"How do you intend to deal with other people's negative impressions of you?" my wolf queried.

"Do I have to do anything? Let them think whatever they want," I grinned, "but that only makes me more terrifying and dreaded."

"Please don't give her the wrong impression of us," my wolf muttered.

"I don't care if she's wrong or not, and before you ask why she's just my fated mate, I didn't choose or ask for her, so I won't be involved with her. It's even better if she dislikes me; that way, she'll know where she stands and avoid appearing in front of me at all costs. We can live in harmony as long as I don't see her; she will avoid me and I will avoid her "....

"Please, Zane, she's our best friend and half of us..." My wolf wailed in agony, but I did my best to drown him out, even if I couldn't totally. Interfering with my mind would only weaken me, and I wasn't ready to show weakness.

****Flashback concludes****

Shirley's previous glance at him replayed in his head; she looked at him as if he were an animal that needed to be tamed or else he would savagely devour her, and then she looked at him as if she felt sorry for him, and he felt like a kitten abandoned in the pouring rain at that moment. He swiftly averted his look from her; he'd be damned if he let her pass through him; he doesn't want to be pitied.

He wanted to show her what a beast he could be, and he wanted to see if she could still stand up to him.

He looked at her and noticed she was sleeping; he studied her intently and noticed she looked even more attractive while sleeping; she appeared to be at peace and relaxed; she didn't appear to be in any danger; she didn't appear to be someone whose life had suddenly turned upside down. She looked venerable and innocent in her sleep. He didn't know what it was, but everytime he stared at her for an extended period of time, something in the pit of his stomach shook, then tugged at his heart; it was a new sensation, and as much as he wanted to know what it was all about, he chose to look away for the time being. Her very presence is a sensory overload. He'd figure out why his stomach and heart were racing in her presence, but he wasn't in a rush. He'd take his time because she's his "forever."

***

Ace  paced around the room, feeling guilty, angry, and helpless all at once.

He felt guilty for not being able to protect his younger sister given what she had gone through at such a young age, angry at himself and Liam for letting Zane take her away so easily and without resistance, and helpless because no matter how guilty or angry he felt, there was nothing he could do at the time. While a result, he was powerless to intervene as his younger sister was kidnapped.

"You have to calm down, Ace," Rosie said.

"Didn't you just tell me to unwind?" He asked, his eyes focused on her. "You want me to be calm when my sister has just been abducted by a monster? She wasn't even given the chance to properly say goodbye to everyone because all she had to do was open her mouth, which enraged him even more.” He spit out furiously.

"I know," Rosie explained, "but pacing wouldn't bring her back, and I didn't anticipate he'd hear what I said, and what I said was the clear truth, he just won't accept it."

He lunged at Liam, their pack's Alpha, and grabbed him by the collar when he discovered he and Shirl  were Exes and he had said nothing to stop her.

“How could you do such a thing? You, of all people, should understand how she is, how fragile she is, and how long it took us to get her out of her shell, yet you just let her go when you clearly know she would suffer in hell there, and that beast would even kill her so he is no longer linked to her!" Ace removed his hand from his collar and informed him that if anything happened to her, he would never be forgiven.

“Did you think I didn't want to stop him? You're supposed to understand that if we try too hard to keep her, he'll be much more motivated to steal her, and he might even bar us from entering his territory, therefore ending our chances of ever seeing her again.” Liam replied. “Zane always gets what he wants, and fighting for her would just enhance his passion for her, but it's all for his ego.”

Because Ace could see the truth in his eyes, he groaned in surrender and plopped down on the couch.

'How are we going to proceed?' " Ace inquired in quiet tones.

"I'm not sure," he replied. "For the time being, let's just hope she's okay until we can come up with a strategy."

"Is there anyone out there?" Liam called.

A security guard burst through the door.

"Yes, Alpha," he answered, bowing.

"Please notify Gamma Jakob of the cancellation of the ceremony."

"Yes Alpha," he said as he bowed and ran away.

"Wait a minute, what were you thinking?" Hana inquired about him.

"You don't think I'm so cruel and selfish to keep celebrating even if my best friend and a member of our pack is in danger, do you?" He inquired about her.

"No, that's not what I was implying," she clarified.

"We can't be rejoicing when one of our own has been kidnapped," we all said sadly, and then we were all free to think.

***

"We've arrived at our destination, sir," said Fred, Zane’s Beta.

he'd been lost in thought for a long time. He got out of the car after crossing the border and was heading straight to his office when his sister called out.

"Does Shirley need to stay somewhere?" She was curious.

Zane thought about it for a moment before making a decision.

"She needs to stay in the room at the far end of the corridor." He asked for a guard to help her with her luggage.

"Yes, Alpha," the guard said.

He turned around and walked away, not looking back.