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Home / Werewolf / THE ALPHA’S DEBT / Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

All Chapters of THE ALPHA’S DEBT: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

70 Chapters

41

“Don’t spiral, Lanka. You weren’t hunting—you were surviving. You did what any wolf would do to protect their throat. That filth had it coming the moment he laid a hand on you!”Julian pulled me into a hard embrace, his scent of cedar and rain act-ing as a balm to my fractured nerves. Gradually, the tremors racking my spine began to subside.A female officer approached us, her expression softening. “He still needs a full forensic and medical clearing. He wasn’t exactly cooperative when we brought him in.”Julian stroked the back of my neck, his thumb grazing my pulse point. “Don’t be clawed by fear. I’m staying right here. I’m not leaving your side.”I nodded, my lashes spiked with salt. “I can do this.”Julian released me and stood, shedding his heavy trench coat and draping it over my shoulders. The scent of him wrapped around me like a second skin as he helped me to my feet. I tried to find my balance, but my knees felt like water, buckling instantly.Julian caught me before I hit

42

I was just about to find some semblance of peace as I prepared to say goodbye to Julian, but a sudden prickle of alarm shot up my spine. The air shifted, growing heavy with a familiar, oppressive scent.I turned in a haze of shock, only to find that Andrew had doubled back. Without a word, he reached out and yanked Julian’s trench coat off my shoulders, tossing it back to him like it was a piece of refuse. Before my concussed brain could even process the movement, Andrew scooped me up into his arms again.His skin was like ice, his jaw a jagged line of tension. He fixed Julian with a look so freezing it could have halted a blizzard. “Aren’t you overdue for a departure, Park? Or do you require a formal summons to leave my territory?”His disdain was thick enough to choke on. Julian, for once, seemed at a loss for words.“Speaking of territory,” Julian said, taking a wary step forward. “I’ve been away for years. You and Lanka finally bonded, yet I’ve never once been invited for a simple

43

I watched Margaret Wolfe’s face through a haze of exhaustion. She looked like she’d been struck. When she had called Andrew earlier, he had dismissed her questions, but she had clearly interpreted his secrecy as an admission of guilt. In her mind, the pup was undoubtedly a Wolfe; he just wanted to keep the scandal quiet until the divorce was finalized."The child isn't yours?" Margaret hissed, her voice echoing in the marble foyer. "Then whose could it be?"To Margaret, the narrative was simple. Serena was Andrew’s fated ally, the one who only went to the northern territories because I had "snared" Andrew with the ruins of my family name. Now, Serena was back, flying on the Wolfe private jet. If the child wasn't his, whose was it?Andrew’s brow furrowed, his grip on me tightening until it bruised. "That’s a bizarre question, Mother. I am a bonded man; my mate is standing right here. You should be asking me that when Lanka is the one carrying an heir."My heart hammered against my ribs

44

I let out a shaky breath, pressing my face into the solid, warm expanse of Andrew’s chest. My damp hair clung to his skin, the cold droplets creating a sharp, stinging itch against his collarbone.Andrew’s jaw tightened, his pulse drumming a steady, heavy rhythm beneath my ear. "Stop the performance, Lanka. It won’t work this time. Do I really need to catalog every one of your recent stunts?"I didn't answer. I just wound my arms tighter around his waist, letting the sheer furnace-heat of his body seep into my bones. The scent of him—pine needles, expensive cedar, and the metallic tang of an Alpha—was so familiar it felt like a physical weight lifting off my soul.My eyes burned with unshed salt. "I don't want to talk."As my temperature finally began to climb, a delayed, bone-deep shiver racked my spine. I burrowed deeper into his embrace, clinging to him like a lifeline. Andrew looked down at me, his silver eyes dark and unreadable, but for once, he didn't push me away.His body fel

45

I finished my meal in a hollow silence. The moment I climbed into my car, my phone vibrated—it was Carllo. He had seen the chaos on the pack’s internal link and was frantic, having bolted from the training grounds to find me.I met him at a small tavern on the edge of the territory. We had barely traded greetings when the landlord called, her voice a shrill howl, demanding Carllo return to the settlement immediately.I followed him back to the housing block, only to find our belongings strewn across the dirt path like discarded bones. To make matters worse, the landlord was refusing to return four months' worth of silver credits."This den was nearly cursed by your presence! I’m being merciful by not reporting you to the Council for inviting such darkness into my property. Renting to omegas like you was a stain on my karma! You want your credits back? Dream on!"The landlord was a massive beta woman, nearly two hundred pounds of solid muscle and fury, standing with her hands on her hi

46

The mere thought of Serena’s social media post about tending to Andrew’s wounds made me want to retch. It was a calculated display of intimacy, a flag planted in territory she’d never truly left.When Andrew’s heavy, silver gaze drifted toward our table, I looked down instantly. I focused on the mundane, pouring hot water over the ceramic bowls to sanitize them before placing them in front of Carllo and Julian."Andrew! Are you just going to stand there and watch them treat me like a stray?" Paige whined, her voice a shrill frequency that set my teeth on edge. She had been lamenting her "victimization" for minutes, but Andrew hadn’t even blinked in her direction.His eyes were anchored on me. I could feel his irritation radiating across the room—he had noticed how my smile vanished into the shadows the second he walked in, and how I was currently fussing over Julian Park instead of him.Andrew’s sharp features darkened. He finally withdrew his stare from me and looked at Paige. "What

47

The persistent, musky scent of cedar and shifting fur hit me before I could even process the shadow looming over the corridor. I didn’t need to look up to know it was him; my internal compass always pointed toward his gravity, no matter how much I fought the pull.I furrowed my brow, but Andrew was already reaching out. His large, calloused hand pressed firmly against my forehead, the heat of his palm a startling contrast to my clammy skin."Under the weather, Lanka? You look like death warmed over, yet here you are, parading around a tavern with 'Master Park'."I had spent the previous night shivering in a cold tub, haunted by nightmares of Redstone. Since I’d decided to protect the tiny heartbeat currently growing inside me, I hadn’t touched a drop of concealer or scent-mask, and the exhaustion was etched into my features. Even so, the mirror told me I still carried the sharp, tragic beauty of a ruined Monroe.I brushed his hand away, my voice dropping into a register of cold indiff

48

I didn't want to admit it, but knowing Andrew was taking me home felt like a heavy, invisible chain tightening around my chest. I couldn't stand the way he moved—so sure of his power, so certain that I belonged exactly where he placed me."Let go of me," I muttered, trying to wrench my arm back. "I need to find Carllo."Andrew didn't flinch. He was the Alpha who had just thrown a massive gala at Grand Meridian Hall specifically to launch Serena’s career, only to walk out on his own event. If he wanted to play chauffeur and leave Serena to answer to the Hawthorne patriarchs alone, that was his business. It wasn't my job to protect his reputation anymore.Finally, his grip on my waist loosened. "Meet me at the extraction point in the parking bay."He didn't wait for a reply before heading back toward the private suites. He’d left his comm-unit inside; even a cold CEO like him couldn't function without his digital leash.As I started toward the stairs, I passed two young omegas huddled o

49

Was this what they called having no talent? Just average?I stared at the screen, a bitter taste in my mouth. Serena wasn’t a fool; she knew the value of my work, which was exactly why she insisted on using my arrangements even if it cost her 500 gold per performance. She was buying my soul to decorate her own.Carllo was fuming, his fist pounding the mattress of his bunk. "The pack haters don’t even bother to learn who you are before they start throwing shade! Ugh! I feel like shifting right now and tearing into that viper Serena!"I tried to keep my voice steady, though my heart was sinking. "Chill, Carllo. I’m not even sweating it."But was anyone made of stone? Could a wolf really brush off getting dragged by half the territory?Grabbing his phone, Carllo snarled, "I’m checking if that trending topic was bought. If Andrew paid to smear you, I’m going to lose it."Carllo had some pull; his time at the combat academy and his stunt work meant he knew the pack's digital moderators. He

50

The film crew was a hive of biting whispers. I could feel the jagged edges of their judgment; they were snickering behind their hands, claiming that a "ruined" Monroe was being completely eclipsed by his own shadow—that the stand-in had more grace, better lines, and a more lethal presence than the star himself.Lulu was clearly vibrating with a silent, high-pitched rage. The director’s glowing praise for my performance had been the final spark in her powder keg.She looked ready to shift and lunge at me right there on the obsidian tiles, but Miranda, her agent, caught her by the shoulder."What do you think you're doing?" Miranda hissed."Miranda! That little stand-in is overstepping! He's making me look like a clumsy pup!""The director is a cold pragmatist," Miranda countered, her voice low and sharp. "He detests actors who bring pack drama onto his set. If you want to keep this role, you’ll learn to swallow your pride and play nice."Lulu nodded, her eyes rimmed with a frustrated r

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