Semua Bab The Alpha’s Rejected Mate: Bab 71 - Bab 80

But only for a second.Sharp teeth clamp around my ankle, making me scream with pain, but also with relief, because I know without those teeth, I’d still be on my way to the bottom of this cliff.I try to ignore the increasing pain in my ankle, knowing from the liquid sliding down my leg that I’m bleeding, as one slow inch at a time, I’m dragged backward.Finally, with my body mostly on the ground, desperation takes over, giving me the strength I need to propel myself the rest of the way.With my breath nothing more than heavy pants, I roll over. And come face to face with a large blond wolf with blue eyes.Surprise holds me immobile because the last person I ever expected to save me would be my former mate.Neither of us moves. While shock has me frozen, I’m not sure what Shane’s excuse is.I last saw him two months ago, and he was trying to kill Mack—and probably me as well. But now he’s here to save me?When he lowers his muzzle, I freeze, thinking he was only saving me from the cl

Sometimes there are no handholds at all. Just when I start to panic, my voice turning shrill at the realization that there’s nothing there, that I can’t go any further, Mack speaks. His voice is calm and full of assurance that I can do this. He reminds me to breathe, to take my time looking, that he’s not in a hurry to get back to our brawling fathers so if I want to hang out for a while, that’s cool too.He gets me laughing, and breathing again, and relaxing enough that the panic subsides and the terror that blinded me eases. That’s when I see I was wrong about having nowhere left to go. It’s not the best place, but with my small fingers, it’s enough, and so I climb.I take my time because I don’t want to make a stupid mistake, and also because climbing is so new to me that I’m straining muscles I’ve never used before, so I get tired a lot faster than I thought I would.I breathe a little easier when Mack tells me Bennett has returned with rope that we might not even need, that I’ve

Mack gazes at his father for several seconds without speaking. “Given the way you treated Mom, leaving her so unhappy that she felt the only way to escape her miserable life was through death, you’re one to talk about family.”My heart bleeds for Mack, and I squeeze his hand in comfort.Connall’s face turns white. With rage, I think, until he speaks. “It wasn’t my fault.”“You always put her last, that’s if you remembered to think about her at all. You abandoned me as well as your pack when you couldn’t deal with the guilt. Now that you want something from me, you’re here. Leave. Now. Everything I want and will ever need is right here.”Anger and pain flare hot and bright inside Connall. As I watch it rise, I squeeze Mack’s hand and wait for the inevitable explosion.What I’m not expecting is for Connall to turn around and walk away.“You’re bleeding.” My father’s words draw my gaze from the retreating figure.I find his eyes on my hands with their torn and broken nails. He’s not the

My steak takes up nearly three-quarters of the plate, leaving just enough space for a small baked potato dripping with butter and chives tucked alongside it. I know it’s strange to focus on the contents of your plate when a stranger rips you from your home and leaves your mate for dead. That’s if he wasn’t dead already. But the alternative is worse. So, instead, I focus on the food. Although the rich scent of grilled meat tickles my nose and makes my stomach grumble, I don’t do as everyone around me is doing. I don’t eat even one mouthful. All around me, the scraping of knives and forks on plates grates at me. Energetic chewing has me fighting the urge to scream. Occasionally, someone gulps from their glass of water. Those are the only sounds that accompany every meal here. No one ever talks. Not because the food is just so good that no one wants to ruin it with conversation. The reason no one ever talks is because of the man sitting in the seat opposite me. No, that’s not

Fortunately, I don’t have to go far to discover why a woman would gasp in pain.Yet again, it’s another of Nolan’s enforcers who all seem to take after their Alpha. I don’t know all of their names, but I remember this one because he was laughing with Stewart in the den. Liam. He’s like a dark-haired version of Shane Dacre, beautiful, but cruel.“Leave her alone,” I order.The man turns from the dark-haired woman he has pinned to a tree by her throat.His lips curve in a smile. “And just what—”I don’t bother with words this time. I reach for the pain and the anger that lives inside me now and I let it loose.With a muffled groan, he stumbles back from the woman and drops to his knees, as he grabs his head.Since I still have no idea how to control this strange, curse-like gift, he isn’t the only one I hit.The woman cries out as she sinks to the ground and lowers her head.I rush over to her side. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hit you too. Are you okay? Should I get—”The woman, with h