All Chapters of The Alpha's Broken Pet: Chapter 171 - Chapter 180

MarissaI had never felt so empty. Time dragged, and everything felt pointless.Doubts about being unlovable gnawed at me as I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, too tired to move. I had cried, stayed silent, and felt an exhaustion no amount of sleep could fix.When Brian and Sydney worried, I hid behind forced smiles and “I’m fine,” deflecting their questions. Deep down, I resented and feared that my love would always come with pain.I lay back on the bed, staring at the muted TV as the banner screamed: King Alaric Secret Family Exposed.What the fuck?I shoved the duvet off my legs and grabbed the remote, cranking up the volume. The female anchor rattled on about palace scandals, names I barely knew.Worry for Justin and his mother twisted inside me, mixed with guilt for staying away. Who had leaked this?Instead of turning on my phone, I borrowed Shelby’s laptop. Social media was flooded with the story. I shut it, telling myself I wouldn’t shrink or feel guilty—not until I knew th

Sunlight sliced through the balcony glass and landed across my face.I winced at the brightness. My stomach twisted, a sour taste already crawling up the back of my throat. Every sound in the room seemed louder than it should have been; the hum of the AC might as well have been a loud engine. My shoulders ached, my lower back too, as if I had slept on a rock.The other side of the bed was empty, but the dent in the mattress was still warm. A half-finished glass of water sat on the nightstand beside some pills. I rolled over and groaned. Maybe it was stress. Maybe breakfast would fix it. I moved slowly, as if any sudden motion would flip my stomach.The bath didn’t help. Brushing my teeth didn’t help. My body was still fighting me, and I was determined not to lose. I threw on a robe, lay back down, and stared at the ceiling. Anxiety sat heavy in my chest, but I tried to swallow it.The door opened an hour later. Justin walked in. He stopped moving and whistled. I had forgotten my robe

NormaThe midnight air clung to my skin. My mother had dragged me here, saying we needed protection as our plans began to fray. We sat among shadowed women whose eyes held the power to twist fates. An elder with gnarled fingers handed me a rune-carved calabash filled with oily ointment meant to shield my family from Justin's attempt to break the curse."This must ferment for four days," she instructed. "On the fifth, anoint the king and your sons. It will bind the darkness tighter and repel any attempts to undo your work."I clutched the calabash, its cool surface pressing into my palms. Time was slipping away from me."I don't have four days," I said. "The boy is closing in on solutions. We've heard from reliable sources that they are seeking out banished elders and piecing together the truth."The Queen Mother, seated at the head of the circle, fixed me with a glare. "If you knew there might be a way for the boy to break free, why did you not act faster? You could have secured the t

MarissaI stood rooted at the cave’s entrance, watching Justin and the elders disappear into the black mouth of the cave.My body refused to move. Fear coiled in my gut, making it hard to breathe. Queen Mallory stood beside me, her eyes bright with feverish intensity. I felt her fear as sharply as my own.She forced a smile and grabbed my hand. “He’s coming back, Marissa. I know it. Call it a mother’s instinct.”I wanted to believe her, but dread crushed me. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might break my ribs.I squeezed her hand back. We leaned into each other, two women carrying the weight of our terror. The guard assigned to us, a burly man named Torin, waited by the rented SUV. I forced my legs to move, and we climbed into the vehicle. The engine growled to life, headlights cutting through the northern caliphate’s eerie gloom.Inside, the queen’s phone buzzed. She answered it, her voice smooth and diplomatic despite the tension in her posture.“Yes, I understand. Please conv

MarissaThe wind tore at my jacket and whipped my hair across my face as we stepped out of the hotel. My boots hit the pavement, each step echoing the fear knotting my stomach.One of the elders, Kael, had come to pick us up. He said we needed to get to the dock where anyone who survived the forest and the ancestral sea would wash up.Queen Mallory sat beside me in the back seat. Her hands twisted together in her lap. I could feel her fear radiating like heat. My own terror mirrored it and made my chest tight. Justin was out there fighting for his life and I couldn’t move past the thought that he might not come back.The drive to the dock felt endless. Rain streaked the windows and blurred the caliphate’s glowing ruins outside.Nobody spoke.When we arrived, the sea roared in the distance and waves slapped the rocky shore like angry hands. We climbed out and the wind pushed me back. I steadied myself against the SUV. The elders and the others who had gone with Justin stood near the wa