86

Ethan’s POV
“It doesn’t matter. You won’t see her again.” Jessy’s reptilian voice echoed through my head, sending waves of pain through my chest. From the look on Kieran’s face, he felt the same. Jessy might’ve been cruel and slightly insane, but she wouldn’t lie. She was smart enough to tell the truth.
I could see Kieran’s self-control slipping, his eyes darkening murderously. Kieran always struggled with self-control, rarely thinking things through. I liked to believe that was why we worked so well together. Kieran was brutal and animalistic, while I was cunning and calculated. Two sides of the same coin, the same person split into two.
Before Jessy could speak further, a deafening crack sounded in the house. Jessy slumped to the floor, her head bouncing against the hardwood. For a second, I thought Kieran had killed her. Her eyes rolled back, her eyelids fluttering shut. The side of her face was red, already beginning to swell. Kieran had knocked her out with little thought.
Hitting women never sat right with us, but this was different. Jessy had hurt Sophia, had scared her into silence. As far as I was concerned, Jessy was a traitor.
I watched as Kieran’s form shook with fury, his fists clenched into tight knots at his sides. His control was slipping, and I knew if I didn’t intervene, he would surely kill Jessy.
“Not yet,” I told my brother, my hand firm on his shoulder. “She still has useful information.”
“Are you trying to save her life?” Kieran snarled, his back facing me.
I knew Kieran was speaking thoughtlessly. He knew I had no qualms with killing Jessy, but time and place were crucial.
“Jessy deserves to feel everything we put her through, don’t you think, brother?” I murmured, my eyes flickering down to Jessy’s unconscious form. “She still has information about Sophia.”
“Then what do you suggest?” Kieran’s voice was a rough growl. He was slipping, but managed to hold on tight enough to hear my words.
“Let’s drop her off at Jake’s. He and Justine can leave her in the dungeons. We need to talk with Sebastian, see if Sophia really left,” I told him, silently thanking the heavens when his form stopped shaking. Once Kieran fully lost control, nothing would stop him. That was what made him so useful in battle. His rage and brutality overwhelmed him, pushing his humanity aside to kill.
“Let’s talk to her mom first,” Kieran grunted. “If she left, she might’ve stopped there first.”
“I’m not sure she would,” I frowned, remembering her strange aversion to her mom and stepdad. “But we can still go there first.”
Kieran grunted in approval, then turned to leave the house. I scooped Jessy up like a sack of flour, cringing at the overwhelming scent of her perfume. I tossed Jessy in the trunk, slamming it shut without looking back.
‘Are you with Jake?’ I asked, forming a mind-link between the four of us.
‘Sure am,’ Jake called out, the sound of video games in the background. ‘Hanging out at my place. You two coming over?’
‘We’re bringing a prisoner. We’re going to need you to put her in the dungeons until we come back,’ Kieran growled, gaining some control over his voice.
Jake and Justin went silent for a moment, undoubtedly picking up on Kieran’s anger. Jake and Justin were the only two who knew about Sophia. They had seen her a couple of times in school but always maintained a distance.
‘Come outside,’ I called through the mind-link, severing it once I finished.
Jake and Justin were outside in under a minute, both their faces stern. Kieran remained in the car, fighting with what little self-control he had left.
I opened the trunk and watched as surprise crossed Jake and Justin’s faces. It was no secret Kieran and Jessy had screwed around a lot, as Kieran was never one for secrets. He had always made it abundantly clear that there were no strings attached, but Jessy refused to listen.
“Whoa, what happened?” Jake gaped, his blue eyes wide with surprise.
“Did she piss Kieran off or somethin’?” Justin chuckled lightly, his smile fading as he noticed the expression on my face.
“This has something to do with Sophia, doesn’t it?” Jake frowned, always quick to catch on.
“Yes,” I nodded, anger flashing in my eyes as I looked down at Jessy’s form. “Put her in her own cell. Keep her weak, but alive. I mean it, don’t let her die.”
Justin visibly gulped, looking down at Jessy with a mix of anger and pity. They knew we would not show her mercy, that Kieran was slowly losing his grip. Another perk of being friends with Jake and Justin was their loyalty. They already held respect for Sophia, knowing she would be their future Luna.
Kieran and I headed to Sophia’s house, the one she had lived in before Sebastian came along. It was hard to imagine anyone living here, with the cracked and withered boards, and peeling paint. The house looked nearly abandoned, yet Sophia had lived here for weeks.
Keeping in front of Kieran, I knocked on the front door. With each passing minute, Kieran’s patience waned. Stepping in front of me, he threw his fist forward. The crappy wooden door splintered and snapped from the hinges. Neither Kieran nor I blinked as the door clattered to the floor.
“What the fuck!” A gruff man slurred from the recliner in the living room. “Get the fuck outta my house!”
“Kieran, don’t,” I shook my head, hand tight on his trembling shoulder. I turned my attention to Sophia’s stepdad, noting the scent of stale beer and liquor thundering around the house. “Have you seen or heard from Sophia?”
“Why the fuck would I hear from that bitch?” Her stepdad half snarled, half slurred. He stood from the recliner and stumbled towards us.
A defeated sigh left my lips as her stepdad edged closer to Kieran. From Kieran’s shaking hands, I knew it was no use. Before her stepdad could take another step, Kieran lurched forward. Her stepdad was on the floor in under three seconds, his thick neck under Kieran’s hand. His claws were lengthening, pressing into the drunk man’s flesh.
“He’s useless,” I scoffed, watching as Sophia’s stepdad’s face turned red. “Too drunk to know anything.”
“Then it will not matter if he dies,” Kieran snarled, his eyes locked on Sophia’s stepdad. His grip tightened around his neck, thick beads of blood sprouting from where Kieran’s claws pressed into his skin.
“I think we should let Sophia decide what to do with him,” I mused, wondering what our kind-hearted mate might do.
After all but prying Kieran’s hands away from the man’s neck, we left his house. Her mom had not been there, presumably at work.
We pulled into Sebastian’s driveway, and Kirean jumped from the car before I could put it in park. My heart thundered in my chest, a feeling I wasn’t familiar with.
She’s here, she hasn’t left. She’s here, she hasn’t left.
I swore Kieran’s frantic thoughts matched my own. Duty and respect had left long ago, leaving the frantic need to find Sophia. Showing up at another Alpha’s house without notice is disrespectful, regardless of whose territory they’re on.
We hadn’t called Sebastian ahead of time, nor did we knock on his front door.
A plump blonde woman emerged from the kitchen, her eyes wide as she noticed Kieran and me standing in the foyer.
“Where is Alpha Sebastian?” I asked, ignoring Kieran as he strolled into the house. He didn’t wait for her answer and headed straight for the stairs.
“His office-second floor, third door on the right,” the woman stammered, clearly startled by our abrupt behavior.
Kieran was up the stairs before the woman finished speaking. By the time I reached the top and ran down the hall, the door to Sebastian’s office was already open. Kieran stood in the doorway, his hands balled into tight fists.
“Where is Sophia?” Kieran growled, struggling to keep some semblance of control.
“She’s here, obviously,” Alpha Sebastian scoffed, standing to adjust his crisp suit.
“We were told otherwise,” I added, my face hardening as I noticed the similarities between Alpha Sebastian and his daughter. No matter how similar they looked, Sophia was nothing like her father.
“And who gave you that information?” Alpha Sebastian scoffed, shaking his head as if he were talking to two delusional children.
His condescending look tested my patience, anger flashing through my eyes. Kieran and I had stepped into the role of Alpha as soon as we were able. We trained and studied for countless years. We were not children and would not be treated as such.
“Show us to her room, or you can get the fuck off our territory,” Kieran snapped, visibly shaking as he stared down Alpha Sebastian.
“If you force me to leave, I will take her with me,” Alpha Sebastian’s tone was quiet, calm. I wanted to laugh. If only he knew, he had no claim on Sophia, not while we were her mates.
I knew what my brother was going to say before he opened his mouth. Alpha Sebastian clearly had an inflated sense of self-importance, and it was time to knock him down a notch.
“You will take our mate nowhere,” Kieran snapped, savoring the surprised look on Alpha Sebastian’s face. “You have no claim on her, and now you never will.”
“Mates?” Alpha Sebastian scoffed, his eyes wide as he looked between the two of us. “Both of you?”
“Both of us,” I nodded grimly, impaling him with my gaze.
Alpha Sebastian reluctantly complied, leading us down the hall to Sophia’s room. I could practically hear the gears turning in his head, scrambling to come up with a plan. His high and mighty position was crumbling. Whatever his plans had been were clearly falling apart.
“She’s right in here,” Alpha Sebastian gestured to one of the many doors in the hallway. “Although, I don’t think she’s interested in company.”
“She will be once she sees us,” I snapped, eyes narrowing at Alpha Sebastian.
Kieran had regained enough control to knock on Sophia’s bedroom door, but that was as far as his patience stretched. After ten seconds, Kieran gripped the doorknob and shoved. With a sickening crack, the door swung open. Kieran shot Alpha Sebastian a murderous glare, daring him to speak.
I was quick to enter her bedroom, wrenching open the bathroom door to check inside. Unless she had taken up a liking for hide-and-seek, Sophia was nowhere in this room. Her bed was still messy, as though she had just slept in it hours ago. Upon looking in her closet, most of her clothes were gone. All that was left was an old t-shirt and a used pair of shoes.
I gripped her comforter in my hand, bringing it to my nose and inhaling deeply. If she had just left, her scent on the comforter would still be strong. As I inhaled her scent, a gut-wrenching pain ran through me. Her scent was dull, nearly gone from the fibers of the blanket. Wherever she was, she hadn’t slept in her bed last night.
“She’s gone,” my voice was low but came out in a snarl.
Anger flashed in my veins, but who was at fault? Heart-stopping fear ran through me at the thought of Sophia on her own. She understood the ugliest parts of the world but didn’t know how to defend herself.
“I should have known,” Sebastian sighed, gaining our full attention.
“What did you do?” I spat each word as though it were a weapon able to pierce his skin.
I could now see how Kieran felt when he was losing control. My skin felt uncomfortable and itchy as fur threatened to sprout. My human teeth felt disgustingly uncomfortable, my canines itching to break through my gums. My body was like a cellphone on vibrate, shaking as I refrained from shifting.
“I showed her the truth,” Sebastian spoke plainly, as if he had done nothing wrong. “She needs to know what she is and what her future holds. I do not have the patience for coddling.”
“Coddling?” Kieran scoffed, but the sound was similar to a snarl. “You were absent from her entire life, stole her away from two people who clearly don’t want her, and then told her she isn’t human? And you’re surprised she reacted this way?” Despite the anger that blistered through me, I wanted to laugh. Alpha Sebastian had the nerve to look at us like we were children, yet he had chased his own daughter away.
“I did what I thought was best,” Alpha Sebastian snapped, his eyes hardening as he glared at my brother and me.
“We’re going to find her, Sebastian,” Kieran sneered his name, purposefully omitting his title. “And when we do, you’ll never see her again.”
“She is my daughter and heir,” Alpha Sebastian snapped, “I have a right to see her. She knows nothing of running a pack.”
So that’s why he finally came back for Sophia. I wondered if Kieran had gleaned the hidden meaning in his words.
“She doesn’t need to know how to run a pack,” I lied, letting my lips turn up in a cruel sneer. “She’s our mate, which means your pack will soon be our own.”
Alpha Sebastian’s face contorted in fury, and I knew I had assumed correctly.