Fated To the Alpha by Jessica Hall
Chapter 160: Sage POV
Andrei was gone for three days, I hadn’t seen him and I was starting to worry. After the second day my anger diffused and I wanted to understand, tried to understand. Every morning Zane let me out of the Packhouse with Casen who had been training me with Zane.
I liked Casen, he was easy to get along with and Zane was more relaxed around him and not so on edge. In fact the entire pack was more relaxed with Andrei gone making me realize how much his behaviour was affecting his pack too.
Slipping on my runners quickly, I glance at the alarm clock to see Casen and Zane would be here soon. I rummaged through the bathroom drawer looking for a hair tie before tying my hair up in a ponytail.
Rushing down the steps, I wait by the door. This was my favourite part of the day, I got out for a few hours before being escorted back.
I asked Zane when Andrei would be back because being locked up was driving me nuts, though he went against Andrei letting me out the other night while everyone was drinking and playing cricket out the front of the Packhouse.
I felt a bit awkward though once they were all drunk and stumbling over each other and asked Zane to let me go home. He surprisingly never drank and neither did Casen, Vince or Malik which I was surprised about. From what I could tell Zane was running things but a*s*sured me Andrei would return, though I was nervous about seeing him again after our argument.
Casen and Zane tried over the last few days to explain his obsession with K*lling rogues but none of it made sense to me because I saw no end to it.
The door opens and I see Casen and Zane waiting out the front before doing a double take of Casen. “ Vince?” I ask, there was something off about him. Casen was more bubbly, and always wore his signature smirk which wasn’t in place today.
“Ah I thought we could trick you Luna” He laughs.
“Where is Casen?” I ask, I usually train with Casen not Vince, not that I minded but I had grown used to his outgoing personality. Vince was a little more quiet but when Casen and Vince were together they were little jerks always shoving each other and clowning around.
“Patrol duty with Malik” Zane answers as I follow him to the clearing that was used for a training ground.
It was already warm this morning, the sun already out and beaming brightly, not a cloud in the sky as we trekked up the hill to the training ground where everyone else was training.
“Will you be ok training with Vince?” Zane asks and I nod.
“I will go easy on you?” He laughs and I roll my eyes. I was getting used to defending myself against a wolf, the hand to hand stuff though had caused a few freak outs.
I start stretching when we reach the spot, Vince doing the same making me stop and look at Zane. “ I know you hate it, Luna but you can’t just train against a wolf, ” Zane says, making my heart skip a beat.
“They won’t hurt us” Sierra reminds me and I knew they wouldn’t but certain things trigger my memories shoving me back to the past. I couldn’t control it, though Zane was quick to notice and so was Casen but Vince I hadn’t trained with him before.
“Maybe we skip today?” I tell him already feeling anxiety creep up and start to set in.
“No, you need to learn to adjust Sage, if you really have to defend yourself, it won’t be Casen you will be defending yourself from or me” He says.
Vince continues stretching and I mimic him until Zane tells us to take our stance.
2 hours later I was drenched in sweat, my muscles aching as I tried to defend myself against his attacks, Zane correcting my movements when I got them wrong or showing me new ways to get out of different scenarios.
I took my position again but I was growing sluggish, the heat becoming too much so when Vince lunged at me and knocked me down. I barely feel it, until his weight is pressing down on my back.
I try to roll to get him off my back and swing my arm back trying to elbow him when he catches my arm before grabbing the other pinning them behind my back. I could feel Vince’s breath on my neck. Sierra doing her usual chanting in my head when I start to feel claustrophobic and start freaking out.
“It’s Vince Sage, just Vince, just a 17 year old boy who is our friend” She repeats over and over in my head. I hated being pinned, and hated feeling weight pressing down on me.
I had gone the entire session without one meltdown and now I was tired. I was losing focus, and also losing it, being plunged back to being with my captors. My breathing becomes shallow as I start to panic when suddenly Zane drops down on his stomach near my face.
“Think Sage, think about the position you’re in”
“I am thinking about the position I am in, Zane ” I snap at him trying to keep focused. I try to wiggle my arms free but he pulls them higher up my back making me cry out before he loosened his grip instead holding me firmly, his knees digging into the back of my thighs.
“Think Sage, you can get out of this” Zane says but I was going into panic mode. Shutting down, as I tried to push up on my knees, he had me pinned and I saw no way out, I wasn’t strong enough to lift his weight, not without at least one arm out. I could
hear Zane talking to me, trying to tell me what to do but I couldn’t understand him as his voice became softer and further away.
“Off her, stop, she is done for today” I hear Zane yell before his weight lifts. Zane starts clapping in front of my face trying to bring me back to the present.
“Luna right here” I hear him trying to get my attention. I could hear Sierra telling me to breathe and I rolled on my back draping my arm over my eyes shielding my face from the sun and trying to catch my breath.
“Ok, no more training until Andrei comes back unless it is training with your wolf” Zane says. Vince was sitting beside me, with his knees bent with his arms resting on them. He was covered in sweat too as I tried to calm myself and he tried to catch his breath.
“I hope that is bloody soon” I hear Vince say, making me look at him.
“I spoke to Derrick, he will be here tomorrow”
Zanes says.
“Alpha know?” Vince asks.
“ I mindlinked him, he didn’t reply but I know he heard me”
“Did he say when he would be back?” I ask but he shakes his head sadly.
“No, but he will come back Sage” Zane says and I nod while sitting up before getting to my feet.
“Where is your drink bottle?” Zane asks and I sigh.
“Forgot it” I tell him and Vince hands me his, I squirt some water in my mouth and hand it back to him before holding my hand out, he takes it and I pull him up to walk back. I needed a shower, my clothes sticking to me and I was covered in gr@sswhich was making me itchy.
Zane and Vince walk me back and I head straight for the shower letting them lock me in my concrete prison. I spend the rest of the day and most of the night watching TV before crawling in bed around 10 PM.
It was still dark when I woke up to hands grabbing me. My eyes fly open to the darkened room and I start hitting and kicking my attacker. “ It’s me Sage, it’s Andrei” Comes Andrei’s deep voice in the darkness. I stop thrashing my heart rate slowing and I s*ck in a breath to find him hovering over the top of me.
“When did you come back?” I ask him, he was covered in dirt and shirtless, I could just make him out with the help of the bathroom light that I left on. His hair is a mess like he just rolled out of bed himself, though rolling in mud would probably be more accurate.
“An hour ago, sorry I was trying not to wake you, but I need your hand” He says before scooping me up.
“You need my what?” I ask him. I look to the window to find it still dark outside, making me wonder what the time was when he starts walking down the stairs.
I try to stand but he maneuvers me instead so my legs are wrapped around his waist. I give up too tired to argue with him but glad to have him home. “Earth to Sage, he wants our hand?” Sierra says to me.
“He said that?” I yawn telling her and resting my chin on his shoulder.
“You’re not going to question that, what if he wants to chop it off?” She asks, making me sit up in his arms.
“Why do you want my hand?” I ask her words like a bucket of cold water being tossed on me.
“Not to cut it off” He says, reaching the bottom floor.
“Freaked me out for no reason Sierra”
“Well I was just making sure, he has a fetish for K*lling remember” She retorts.
Andrei stopped by the front door holding me with one arm while he tapped some b*ttons on the panel. “I probably should have done this before I left, I didn’t think Zane would take my words so seriously and only let you for training with Casen,” he says.
“And yet it couldn’t wait till daylight hours?” I mutter as he presses my hand against the panel,
rolling it slightly to make sure it gets my entire hand.
“Hmm I wanted to do it while I remembered, besides now I can go to sleep and not worry about you trying to hack one of mine off” He says, kissing my cheek.
“There now you can come and go as you please” He states before tapping some more b*ttons on the panel before it makes a beeping noise.
“Where did you go?” I ask him.
“The mountain, I wasn’t far” He says, dipping his face into the crook of my neck. I was angry with him but I really missed him over the last few days. This place was lonely without him here and I was relieved he was back, a few times I worried he wouldn’t return.
“ I saw you training with Casen yesterday. I was watching you” He says. I nod trying to get down out of his arms but he hoists me up higher.
“Please don’t be angry, I am sorry Sage. You were right I didn’t need to K*ll Lior”
“Lior?”
“The rogue, that was his name” He whispers before heading back toward the stairs refusing to let me walk. “He missed us,” Sierra says and I nod at her words.
“Are you going to stop?” I ask him, afraid he will say no.
“I am going to let my father take over the pack for a while, ” He says.
“That’s not what I asked Andrei” I tell him as he walks into the bathroom and places me next to the sink basin.
“I know, I can’t promise that Sage, but I can promise to not look for them, or to K*ll any rogue that means no harm. I will only K*ll them if they attack our pack. Is that good enough for you” He asks, I chew my lip before Andrei tugs my lip from between my teeth with his thumb waiting for my answer.
“Only if they attack the pack, the rest you will leave alone?”
“ I promise, no more Rogues, I will even clearout the basement if you want me to”
“Yeah the t*ortur*e chamber needs to go” I tell him and he chuckles but nods his head.
“So am I forgiven?” He asks moving to stand between my legs.
“Almost” I tell him, wrapping my arms around his neck. He smiles, leaning his face towards mine.
I lean forward kissing him, his lips moulding around mine perfectly before he slips his tongue into my mouth. He kisses me deeply, his tongue tasting every inch of my mouth and I tug him closer before running my fingers through his hair but then pulling away.
“You need to shower” I tell him, my fingers covered in dirt and dried mud. He laughs pecking my lips a couple of times.
“Join me?” He asks, gripping his shirt I am wearing. I lift my arms letting him tug it off, his hands gently caressing my sides and he kisses me once more before turning and starting the shower.
“No more rogues?” I ask again.
“No more rogues, Sage. I swear to you” He says looking over at me while he checks the water temperature and I sigh before jumping off the bench and tugging off my cotton shorts. Andrei removes his before stepping in the shower and pulling me in with him.