Page 52 of Claimed By the Alpha Wolves

She rolls over to look at me. “What do you think will happen, then? Since the council isn’t going to do anything about it?”

I release a slow breath. “Well, Kurt stood before the council and denied everything, suggesting that I’m making things up because I have some kind of grudge against him, and they seemed to believe everything he said.” I bite the inside of my cheek, trying to forget that moment. “So, I think Kurt will keep doing what he always does, whatever he wants, without any consequences.”

The bodies will pile up, but everyone will look the opposite way… unless he kills someone more important than betas andomegas. I almost hope he does, so we can finally get justice, which is a terrible thought.

She hesitates, then pushes forward. “Do you think he’s going to find a way to be worse to you now?”

Of course I do.

I see Kurt’s cold eyes behind my eyelids and my spine goes stiff. Kurt has already been targeting me since the moment I showed up at The Selection, but I have no doubt it’ll get worse with this new accusation. I absolutely have a target on my back now, and there’s no escaping it.

But I can’t freak out. If I do, he’ll already win.

“I just have to stay safe, make sure I’m not selected by any alpha, and get out of here so I can go home. Hopefully, with Kurt’s alpha duties, he’ll forget about me and leave me alone.”

After the scene in the woods today, I can’t shake the feeling that even when I’m back at my cabin, I’ll just be a sitting duck for Kurt to come and shoot whenever he feels like it. Because if Kurt could kill Miles and Serra over absolutely nothing, I’m sure he’ll kill me over this without hesitation.

Am I safe anywhere now?

For a fleeting moment, I think about what it would be like to have Cayson and Ezra with me, like I did in the woods today, but I push that thought away. Ezra isn’t looking for an omega. I’m not looking for an alpha. And Cayson doesn’t seem like the kind of person who can commit to something for breakfast, let alone spending the rest of his life with another shifter.

I’m on my own in this. If I survive, if I die, it’s all on me.

“I’m afraid,” I admit, after a long moment. “I’m afraid that there’s nowhere I can go now that Kurt won’t be able to reach me. My only possibility of a happy ending is getting back to my cabin and never seeing Kurt again.”

As long as Kurt leaves me alone there.

“It will all be okay,” Addilyn says, pulling on my hand and twining our fingers.

She’s trying to sound convincing, I know, but there’s an undercurrent of fear in her voice I’m not sure she could cover with all the positivity in the world.

Not that I blame her. I’ve gone ahead and further pissed off a psychopath.Lucky me.

TWENTY-TWO

Ezra

The picture in my hands is worn and frayed, and I know that taking it out and looking at it just makes it degrade faster, but I can’t help it. I’m afraid that if I stop looking at it, I’ll forget about my feelings.

And I can never forget about her.

In the picture, Katie and I are sitting on the beach in the sand. Her long brown hair is messy. There’s sand on her face, and her dark eyes are full of amusement. And there I am, smiling, like an absolute fool. Unaware that in a few short months she’ll be lost to me forever.

But that was two years ago.

Right now, with thoughts of Faye running through my head non-stop, it feels like I’m betraying Katie. Negating the love I have for her to something secondary.Most people only have one love of their life, and I had mine.I’ve known deep down inside that I’m meant to spend the rest of my days alone.

So why is some nagging feeling telling me differently now?

I can’t help it. Every time I think of Faye, I feel strange. Different. Changed. I think of her, sitting in that boat with me, bickering with Cayson, playing and jumping around in her tinywolf form, and something in my chest gets warm. Warm in a way I’ve missed.

But I’ve had one love. I lost it. That chapter of my life is closed. Isn’t it?

It is. It should be. Besides, Faye will definitely find an alpha. I find it hard to believe that there’s not a single other alpha at The Selection who’s failed to notice how intelligent, beautiful, and intriguing she is. She’ll have men fighting over her. She doesn’t need some heartbroken wolf like me, who isn’t even sure he’s capable of loving her the way she needs to be loved.

That’s right. Faye can do better than me.

One day, Faye will live in a beautiful house with the man of her dreams. They’ll have a handful of kids together, and they’ll all love her unconditionally. Her alpha will rid her of the ghosts of her past and make her feel safe and protected at all times, just like she deserves.

---