All Chapters of Chosen By The Alpha, Bound By Desire: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

42 Chapters

The Hidden Network

Sloane's POVBy the time I reached the front entrance of the Alpha's residence, the morning air was still cool enough to carry the scent of pine through the courtyard.I expected another trip to Blackstone Company.After everything I'd witnessed yesterday, I had spent half the night replaying every conversation, every expression, every tiny detail I could remember. There were still so many questions I wanted answered, especially about how Lucien managed an empire that seemed to extend far beyond the pack itself.So when Lucien stepped outside dressed in another perfectly tailored black suit, I instinctively moved toward the waiting SUV."You won't be coming with me today."I stopped mid-step."What?"His expression remained calm, but I recognized the firmness in his voice."Ryan has prepared a different schedule for you."I frowned."I thought we were continuing my training at Blackstone.""We are," he replied, "just not today."He adjusted the cuff of his jacket before meeting my eye

A Dangerous Invitation

Lucien's POVBefore sunrise, I was already inside Blackstone Pack's Security Headquarters.The building was silent except for the steady footsteps of the guards patrolling the corridors. That silence never bothered me. If anything, I welcomed it. The quiet gave me room to think, and after everything we'd uncovered in the last twenty-four hours, I needed every bit of clarity I could get.I pushed open the reinforced door to the strategy room.Ryan, Vince, the Head of Security, and our two investigators were already waiting around the conference table. Thick files, surveillance photographs, and maps covered nearly every inch of the polished surface. The expressions waiting for me told me everything before a single report was spoken.No one had good news.I took my seat at the head of the table."Let's begin."One of the investigators slid a folder toward me."We maintained surveillance on Elder Theodore's secretary throughout yesterday, Alpha."I opened the file and studied the photogra

More Lessons, More Observations

Lucien's POVThe uncertainty she'd carried when she first arrived at Blackstone Pack had begun to fade. In its place was a quiet confidence that seemed to grow stronger with each passing day.One of the village administrators sighed heavily as he flipped through a stack of documents."I don't know how much longer we can keep up with these monthly resource requests. Every department asks the villages for nearly the same information, but each uses different forms. By the time everything reaches us, half the reports are already outdated."Several others murmured in agreement.Sloane glanced toward him."May I see the reports?"The administrator slid the documents across the table.She spent several minutes reading through them, occasionally comparing one form against another. Her brow furrowed slightly as she reached the final page."I think I see the problem."The room grew quiet.She looked up."These departments are requesting almost identical information, but they're doing it separate

Behind Closed Doors

Lucien's POVBy the time I returned to my room, it was well past midnight.The entire pack seemed to have gone quiet. After a day filled with meetings, reports, security arrangements, and the growing threat surrounding Theodore, I should have been thinking about the Council meeting.Instead, the first thing I noticed when I entered the room was Sloane.She was sitting near the window with a book resting in her lap. Her hair fell loosely around her shoulders, and she looked far more relaxed than she had when she first arrived at Blackstone Pack.She looked up when she heard me.."You're late." She said and I laughed."I know." I replied, standing there as I stared at her. I closed the door behind me and loosened the collar of my shirt as her eyes moved over me."You look exhausted." She whispered softly as I gave her a tired smile. "Apparently, everyone has decided to tell me that.""Maybe because you're not listening." She added.I walked toward the table and placed the files I was c

The Silent Call

Sloane's POVThe ringing of my phone pulled me out of sleep. I groaned softly and reached blindly across the bedside table, barely opening my eyes as I searched for it.The room was still dark, the curtains blocking most of the morning light.The phone kept ringing, and then I finally found it and looked at the screen. My heart immediately tightened.Dad's house? Why would they be calling me this early? I answered without thinking."Hello?" Silence greeted me as I sat up."Hello?" I pulled the phone away from my ear and checked the screen to make sure the call hadn't disconnected, but it hadn't."Hello? Dad?" I said and still got nothing. A strange feeling settled in my stomach."Is anyone there?" The call ended as I stared at the screen, and for several seconds, I couldn't move.My first thought was my brother. He had been sick for some time, and although I had been reassured that his condition was being managed, I knew how quickly things could change.I immediately called back, and

A House Full of Secrets

Sloane's POVI couldn't get the man's words out of my head. “Don't trust your father.”Even after the call ended, those four words continued replaying in my mind.I didn't tell Ryan what the man had said. I wasn't even sure why. Maybe because I didn't know who he was, and I didn't want to create panic over something that could have been a cruel prank.Still, something about his voice had frightened me. I sat in the library with an open book in front of me, but I hadn't turned a page in nearly twenty minutes.Ryan looked at me, but he didn't ask questions. He simply continued reading across from me, occasionally glancing in my direction, and I appreciated that.A few minutes later, the library doors opened, so I looked up and found Lucien walking toward us.His eyes immediately settled on me and immediately he knew. He always seemed to know when something was wrong.Ryan quietly closed his book. "I'll leave you two."He stood and walked away before I could respond. Lucien pulled out th

What Her Brother Knows

Lucien's POVThe drive back to Blackstone Pack was quieter than usual.Sloane sat beside me, staring through the window. She hadn't said much since we left her father's house, but I could see the questions running through her mind.Her brother's warning had shaken her.So had mine.I glanced at her."What exactly did he tell you?"She turned toward me."He said my father isn't who I think he is.""Nothing else?""He told me to be careful about everyone."Her voice dropped."He looked terrified, Lucien."I tightened my grip on the steering wheel."I know.""What do you think it means?""I don't know yet."She looked frustrated."You always say that.""Because I won't give you an answer before I have evidence."She sighed and looked away.I understood her frustration, but I wasn't going to let fear push her into making a dangerous decision.When we arrived at headquarters, I took her directly to my office.Vince was already waiting.I looked at him."I want everything concerning Sloane'

What the Contract Didn't Say

Sloane's POVI heard the car before I heard him. First the tires on the gravel, then the front door, then his footsteps on the stairs, unhurried, as if nothing was amiss. I had learned the difference without intending to learn it during the last week.I said to myself, I am reading. The book had been open for an hour on the same page.The door opened and Lucien walked in, loosening his tie, and I didn't look up quick enough to pretend that I hadn't been waiting.I said, "You're late.""I know." He didn't say sorry for it. He never did anymore, never for the hours, but for the things that mattered, and that made it worse.He began to undress, but he didn't look at me; he put his jacket over the chair and his cufflinks on the dresser. I watched him, and I hated how much I missed watching him. A week ago I would have had a comment on that, something biting enough to make him look at me rather than through me. Tonight I watched and let him not look, and I told myself it didn't matter.It

No One Leaves This Room

Lucien's POVThe chamber had a smell of polished oak and old power, the same it had when my father sat here. I had never used that power against a man before in front of the rest of the people at this table. Today I would, and some of the faces watching me knew it before I did."Border security," I said, and started opening the first folder. "Rogue activity has doubled on the eastern line."We discussed patrols and manpower and nothing else for half an hour. Two seats away, Theodore was sitting back, enjoying a glass of whiskey he was not entitled to drink in my home. He nodded, as if he had already won."Reasonable concerns," he said. "By the end of the week I will have double the number of patrols.""Generous." I closed the folder. "Vince."Vince stood at the far wall and turned the screen toward the table."This council had a private session two weeks ago," I said. "Every device in this room is logged. Every device but one."The footage played. A hand holding a phone, angled low ag

While the Doors Were Locked

Sloane's POVThe library was too still. I had read the same page four times and still couldn't tell you what it said, my eyes reading the words but my mind two floors down and half a mile away in a chamber where every fighting wolf Lucien trusted was locked up, making a man like Theodore disappear.Emma was seated across from me, pretending to organize threads by color. Nora stood by the door as she always did, straight as a ruler, eyes on the hall, the kind of stillness that meant she was never really resting. Two floors below us, a room full of men were deciding a traitor's fate, and up here the house had gone quiet in the way houses do when they're listening.Emma said, "You've been on that page for a while.""It's a good page."She smiled, but it was not a smile in her eyes. She was as nervous as I was. Everyone in this house was holding their breath today, waiting to see if the man who walked in walked out again.A knock. A young beta I half recognized leaned in. "Message for you

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