Lahat ng Kabanata ng Shifted Fate: The Alpha Begs Me Back: Kabanata 191 - Kabanata 200

ANDREA’S POVThe air felt too thick. I couldn’t breathe. My legs locked in place, as if moving might somehow make the nightmare more real.That file—the file of all the fucking missing people—was in my office.How the fuck had it gotten there?Behind me, I heard Kade’s breath catch—a sharp, bitten-off inhale that told me exactly how bad this looked. Worse than bad. Catastrophic.Not just for me—but for everything I’d built in New York.Red Water Pack's relation with all the other packs. My factory. The shaky, fragile threads of trust we’d spun with the human world.Gone. All of it. With a file folder and four vials of goddess-knows-what.“I want the lab results expedited,” Blackstone was saying, addressing his aides like some smug CEO of justice. “Chain of custody needs to be airtight. I want analysis within 48 hours.”“Mayor Blackstone—” I tried, stepping forward.“No.” His voice cracked across the room like a whip. “You don’t speak right now unless it’s to admit how deep this goes.”

ANDREA’S POVThe dining room looked like a war room.Maps and reports covered every inch of the table, the TV was muted but still playing the news on loop, and the weight of the stress was so heavy that every one of us looked like we hadn’t slept in days.The scent of cheese and tomato sauce hung thick in the air, but despite how delicious Fabio’s lasagna looked, no one seemed to be able to stomach food.“I still say we push for a public statement,” Gina said, arms crossed over her chest. “Control the narrative before the mayor does any more damage.”“No.” That came from Kade, low and firm. His secretary, David, and the head of his sentinels, Richard, stood quietly behind him, observing, waiting for orders.“We don’t have proof. Not yet. If we speak now, it’ll only draw more attention to the factory and its staff. We can’t counter shit if we don’t have concrete evidence.”“Then we sow discord,” Fabio said, fingers tapping restlessly against his coffee mug. “Just enough to discredit th

NATASHA’S POVThe light was blinding.After so long in the dark, even the flickering beam from a flashlight was enough to send daggers through my skull.I flinched instinctively, vision swimming, and tried to lift my arms to shield my face—only to remember, too late, that my limbs barely obeyed me anymore.“Natasha?!”That voice—Andrea’s—splintered something in me. Not because it was familiar. Because it wasn’t supposed to be here. None of this was supposed to be real.I opened my mouth, but only a rasp came out. The last time I’d spoken, it was to beg for my life. Or maybe I’d been screaming. I couldn’t remember anymore.I tried to focus, but everything hurt. My skin felt stretched too thin. My throat was cracked and raw. My joints creaked like old wood, and my muscles trembled just from the act of pushing myself up.The floor beneath me felt colder than anything I’d ever known. The chill seeped through my skin, gripped my bones.“Help her up,” Kade barked. The voice was sharper than

ANDREA’S POVAs full as the house was, it was quiet. Somber.Gina and Julia offered me gentle smiles as I walked into the kitchen.“Morning, amore,” Julia said as she moved around the island to hug me. “Sleep well?”I shrugged, feeling a little guilty that with Kade’s arms around me, I had, in fact, slept well.I perched on a stool and smiled gratefully when Gina pushed a coffee mug my way.“Where’s the Velcro Alpha?” Julia asked. “Odd for him not to be by your side.”I snorted. “Back at the lab site.”We’d left abruptly with Natasha the day before, without a chance to see if there was anything we could salvage, any clue that might have been left behind.Kade had gone back with a team, promising that if there were any clues to uncover, he would find them. He’d been gone less than an hour, and I was already feeling his absence.I took a sip of coffee and sighed as warmth spread through my body. “Where’s everyone else?”“Fabio is checking in on Natasha,” Gina answered. “Bella and Nico—”

ANDREA’S POVI heard the front door open just as I was pouring my third cup of coffee—though I’d stopped tasting it after the first.My heart jumped, unreasonably hopeful, and then settled the moment I heard the steady weight of his footsteps.Kade.He entered the kitchen first, covered in a thin layer of dust and soot, the sleeves of his shirt rolled up and streaked with grime.His eyes landed on me immediately, and relief flooded through me like a bath. His presence alone made things bearable.He didn’t say anything at first. Just walked across the space, cupped the side of my face, and pressed a kiss to my forehead.“I missed you so much,” I murmured.He pulled back, his eyes glinting with affection that warmed me down to my toes as he searched my face, and then my body.“Are you okay?”I laughed softly, leaning up to peck his lips. “You should look in a mirror before you ask me that question.”He chuckled, and I yelped when he pulled me to him, and I got a mouthful of dust. I melt