Ch. 146..150: The Alpha Contract Chapter 146-150

Chapter 0146

Neah

Raven practically breaks down the bedroom door as she comes flying in. I had never seen her look so flustered. Her eyes are wide and she is breathing as though she just ran a marathon.

She's flapping her hands, trying to calm herself down.

"I assume you are not okay?" I mutter

"He's here."

She had to be talking about Damien. "You saw him?"

"Yes, wait, you know?" She stops to stare at me.

"One of the guards interrupted us to tell Dane. What's he like?"

"I didn't talk to him."

"Okay."

"He looked directly at me."

"Do you think he knows?"

"Of course he knows Neah! I panicked. I literally dropped everything and I came here."

She shakes her head. "With Salem, we both gravitated towards each other. When I first scented him, I followed my nose and Salem was doing the exact same. With this guy, he just stood there, staring at me while talking to Dane. Acting like he couldn't even smell me! Or maybe he was disgusted by me. Whatever the reason, he didn't look happy!"

"Maybe he was surprised. You have known this guy is your mate without having seen him. The first time he realised he was mated was when he arrived here."

"You are not helping."

I couldn't control the laugh.

Raven points a finger at me. "Don't! This is not funny Neah. Do you think it's because I am a Wolf?"

"I don't know."

"It is, isn't it? He's probably grossed out."

"Where is he now?"

"I don't know. I told you, I came straight here. I figured you would be the only one to understand this."

"What does he look like?" I ask calmly, hoping it would rub off on her.

She stops pacing and turns to look at me. "Like a God." She falls down on the bed next to me, giggling and letting all that panic disappear. "Do you think he will like me?"

"I'm sure he will." I couldn't understand how anyone would not like Raven

She rolls on her side, with a frown etched into her face and sighs. "He is Mallory's best friend."

"You spoke to her, didn't you?" I mutter, looking away from her

"I was curious about Damien, but yes."

"Do you believe that she is sorry?" I whisper while staring up at the ceiling.

"I really want to say no, Neah, but when she spoke of what she did, there was so much sorrow in her voice."

"You think I should speak to her?"

"Maybe hear her out and then make your decision." She shrugs her shoulders. "If you still think she is lying, then do what you need to do."

Raven sits with me for a few hours. She flicks the television on but her topic of conversation keeps circling back to Damien.

"Raven, just go and speak to him."

"I can't. I've been with you for hours now and he hasn't even come to find me."

"You are in my bedroom. In the packhouse. Do you really think he is going to come in here to find you?"

"You are right!" She jumps up off the bed and hurries to the mirror, checking herself out. "I can do this. I can seek him out. Women are just as powerful as men." She turns to me, her eyes wide. "What if he rejects me?" "Do what Jess did!"

"Refuse?"

"Why not? It seems to have worked for Jess."

She nods and hurries out of the room.

'You should have told her.' Nyx mutters

'I'm fine.' I mutter back

'Just because you are ignoring the pain in your body, it doesn't mean that you are fine!'

'I'm carrying twins. It's just uncomfortable.'

'Raven's a doctor!' Nyx argues.

'I know and she is caught up in the whole new mate bond stuff. I will be fine. I will get something to eat.'

Chapter 0147

I swing my legs over the bed and push myself up. It took more effort than I expected but as soon as I am up, I made my way out into the hallway. Now I had thought about food, I realised I was starving. Heading towards the stairs, my legs give out from under me, plummeting me down each step. My head hits something and everything goes dark.

******

"Ow!" I mutter, stretching myself out. My hand automatically goes between my thighs. No blood, thank fuck for that. These pups were stronger than expected.

There's a knock on the front door.

"Come in." I mutter from the floor.

"Shit. Are you alright?"

Unfamiliar dark eyes appear and a hand slides into mine, helping me up.

"You must be Damien?" I mutter, noticing his neck tattoos while rubbing the back of my head. If I had a wound, it would have probably healed by now anyway.

"I am, though this was not the way I intended on introducing myself. You should get checked out."

"I'm fine."

"You are pregnant though. I can smell it."

"I will be fine." I spit out the final word

He nods his head at me as I sit on the bottom step. "You may think so, but you should still get yourself looked at. You are the female Alpha."

I roll my eyes at him. "Is that why you are here? You are looking for someone to lead you?"

"I'm looking for the only person that can lead us." His dark stare is intense. If I didn't know better, I would say he had learned it from Dane. But something tells me it was the way he always looked at things, even when he was human. "And I want to offer you my protection." Nyx snorts and I almost do too. But his face is serious. "From what?"

"Whatever is coming."

"What is coming?" I ask

He just stares at me. Dark and mysterious. Exactly how Dane was when I first met him.

"And what about Raven?"

"What about her?"

"She's your mate." I mutter

"I am aware."

"Are you going to reject her?"

"I don't know her well enough to make a decision."

She didn't go to him like I suggested. Maybe I could force them together. "Actually, can you take me to the hospital? Maybe I should get checked out."

He walks with me, stopping when we are just outside the hospital doors. "Is something wrong with Raven?" He asks with a frown.

"No, she's the pack doctor."

His face is unreadable, but he still follows me inside.

"Ne...." Raven's voice fades off to a squeak as she focuses on the man who is her mate.

"I fell down the stairs." I mutter and explain to her about the pain. She beckons me in for a scan and Damien follows. He stands in the doorway watching, but now and again, his dark eyes would move to Raven. Raven tried her best not to look at him, so much so that beads of sweat were forming on her brow.

The heartbeats of the twins flood the room just as Dane comes charging in. He pushes past Damien with a frown and presses his lips to mine. "Sorry, we were cutting Roan's fingers off. Are you okay?"

I nod.

"Tell Nyx to stop blocking me."

"She needs to rest." Raven snaps at him "Both boys' heartbeats are strong. But you must rest. It is still a risky pregnancy." Raven warns me. "And I don't want to confine you to the bed just yet."

"Out of curiosity, can you tell what they are?" It was Damien's first words to her. "Wolves or Lycans?"

"No." Her answer is far more abrupt than usual. Was she annoyed with him?

Chapter 0148

Damien

She was a pretty little thing. I thought that the moment I first laid my eyes on her. My mate. A Wolf. Though she didn't deserve someone like me.

I watch her move around the Alpha. She is quick and thinks on her feet.

Her dark hair is loosely pulled back into a hair bobble with a few escaped hairs at the top of her neck. As her dark eyes catch mine, I notice a fleck of light brown just under her left pupil. She quickly looks away, returning all her attention to the Alpha, smiling as the heartbeats fill the room.

Her happiness makes her scent of strawberries explode and for a brief second, I wondered if she would taste of them too.

I barely notice Dane pushing past me. I just watch her lips move as she scolds them both.

When the all clear is given, I finally ask the question that had been playing on my mind since I first scented Neah's pregnancy.

Raven shoots daggers at me, like I had asked the worst question in the world. She gives me a short and sharp "No!"

Dane's strange red eyes find mine and I remember what he told me earlier. Raven isn't a fan of us. Maybe she hated the idea of being mated to me.

I step outside the room, leaving the three of them alone. Though I don't leave completely, standing guard over her room instead. I will protect the Alpha even if she doesn't want me too.

Dane steps out, closing the door to the room. "The question you asked, it's been asked multiple times by the asshole in my dungeon. That's why she is so short with you."

"Sorry." I wasn't the type of person to apologise, but he had to know it was a genuine curiosity, nothing more. In theory, if I don't reject Raven, they become my nephews too. They become my family.

"The guy in the dungeon, he's the one who wants the pups?" I ask

He nods his head at me. "He was also the one who had Jess removed from the house. It was his brother that you left for the Rogues."

"Right."

"Thanks for convincing her to be checked out." Dane mutters. "Just give my sister time, she was rejected by her first mate."

"You know?" I ask surprised. My intention was to keep it quiet, at least until I had figured out if we were compatible.

"She's my sister, of course I know." He slaps me on the back. "Like I said, give her time."

Her first mate was an idiot for rejecting her.

He heads back in the room and Raven takes his place. She stares at me with those beautiful dark eyes and I can't help but glance over the rest of her. The blue shirt she is wearing, hides her frame. Yet the skinny black jeans shows off her legs and ass. "You want to protect Neah?" She asks quietly

""Yes."

"Why?" She raises her brow at me and presses her lips together. "She has Dane. she has the entire pack."

"She is our life line. The only pure blood left."

"Right." Her brow creases as she folds her arms up over her chest. She sighs. "If you are going to reject me, can you get it over with? I have stuff to do."

I keep my mouth shut and just watch her. I could see the anger bubbling up in her eyes, the longer I didn't speak, the more irritated she grew.

"Fucking Lycans!" She growls and storms off

With a quick glance back at the Alpha, I follow Raven. She marches across the grounds and into the forest. Is that what they do here, they don't tell anyone where they are going?

Trekking after her, I keep my distance. She winds through the trees, dragging her hands across each trunk. It took me a minute to realise she is marking them with her scent in case anything happens. "He's an asshole!" She speaks openly to herself.

"No." She mutters

Who the hell was she talking to? There was no one here.

She makes her way to a stream. Pulling her boots and socks off, she rolls up her jeans and wades into the water. Her eyes are glazed as she continues talking to herself. Mostly complaining about me.

I listen to her one sided argument with amusement. She couldn't be linking the Alpha. Only her mate and other Lycans could do that. Yet it sounded like it was someone who knew we were mated. So who was she talking to?

With her eyes glazed over, she is oblivious to me watching her. Even when I step out from the trees in full view, she doesn't notice me or the creature that is hunting her.

I had been so concerned about making sure the Alpha was protected when Raven seemed like she needed it more.

The crack of a twig draws her attention back. Her glazed eyes focus on me, but I hadn't moved. I wasn't the one responsible for the sound.

"What do you want?!" She snaps at me

I hold a hand up. Listening to the sounds of the forest. It takes me a second to hear the erratic heartbeat. Shit, it must have tracked me here.

"Raven, get out of the water and move towards me."

She doesn't move and glares at me

"Raven. You need to move now!"

She turns to look behind her. The leaves of the bushes start to move. Raven starts to back out of the stream in my direction.

Spinning her around to look at me, I see the panic written on her face.

"Run, find Dane."

She takes off running as the Rogue Lycan shows itself to us. It's on all fours as it creeps forward. The Rogues had found it easier to move that way, Using four limbs to propel itself even faster.

Drool hangs from its bared teeth. The snout is wrinkled up as it growls at me. Its claws pierce the dirt as it slowly makes its way to the stream.

It sniffs the air "A whole place full of Wolves."

It was something I should have told Dane. Not only had they become feral to the point that they could no longer shift back, but they had learned to speak.

"You are not welcome here." I growl back. "You need to leave before you end up like the others!"

It laughs at my words, yet it backs up into the bushes where it came from. The erratic heart fading until I could no longer hear it.

"FUCK!"

The surviving Rogue was the worst one of all. It had a hunger unlike the others. I had seen it make its food last for days on end. Enjoying the screams of its victims, torturing them as it ate a tiny piece at a time. But I was partly responsible for that. I brought them food when they couldn't find any.

I hear footsteps, quickly moving through the forest. I smell Raven but she is accompanied by others. Dane appears first, closely followed by a couple of other men and Raven.

Her dark eyes scan me, like she is checking me for wounds.

"Where is it?" Dane demands.

"It backed off." I mutter.

"You brought it here? It followed you?" Dane presses

"Apparently."

"Why didn't you kill it?" A man with long dark hair asks me

I sigh, only Mallory knew the truth but I had to tell them "He was my younger brother."

Chapter 0149

It had been two days since Damien had announced that the Rogue is or was his brother. He hadn't said anything more about it, and could often be found following Neah around. Whether she wanted him to or not.

It made it impossible for me to spend time with her, when I was constantly being distracted by his scent.

And still, he had barely spoken to me. He watched me when I was present. Still keeping his distance like he was concerned I was going to attack him. The moment Eric or Dane were around, he would disappear to Mallory's home. 'He's being an idiot.' Midnight mumbles as I enter the packhouse

'Tell me about it!' Midnight was more frustrated than I was.

"She's getting dressed." Dane mutters to me with a frown as he strides by and towards the front door. "Damien is outside the bedroom."

"Are you really doing this? You are letting him guard her. We don't know anything about him!"

He stops and rolls his eyes at me. The same way he had done for years when he thought I was panicking about nothing. I wish he knew how irritating it was.

He turns around properly and rests his hands on my shoulders. "Raven, speak to him. He is your mate."

"I don't understand why you are being like this. I thought you of all people would hate this. Especially after everything the pack has been through."

"Things change. He isn't here for me. He wants to protect Neah." He sighs, running a hand through his short hair

"What if he is like Devon. What if it's a trap? And you are just walking away, leaving him watching her."

"Just because he hasn't explained the situation to you, it doesn't mean he hasn't explained himself to me." Dane tuts

"Oh. He's told you?" I ask, surprised.

"Out of respect for my position, yes. Now go and spend some much needed time with my mate before she has another wave of hormones."

I frown, but he just shakes his head and walks out of the door.

Damien is literally stood like a soldier in front of her bedroom door. His hands are clasped together and he stares straight ahead. I try to move silently, but his head slowly turns in my direction. He does not speak.

"I'm here to see Neah." I whisper. It felt like I had been caught trying to steal

The way he stares back at me makes it sound like I've just told him I have a bomb.

He steps to one side, watching me approach.

With one hand on the door handle, I turn my face to him. "Why are you treating me this way?"

"What way would that be?"

"Like I'm some kind of trash you just chucked out your car window? It's not my fault you have been paired to me! I already told you, just reject me and get it over with!"

One side of his lips tug up, but the smirk quickly disappears.

"Is this a joke to you?" I snap "Do you know how much it is driving me up the wall? Knowing that you are about. Smelling your scent everywhere I go and yet you haven't even made a move. I don't know whether I'm coming or going with you! Do you even want me as a mate?"

My heart thuds in my chest as I rant at him.

"You hate Lycans?" He states after a few minutes of silence.

I feel my cheeks flame, who had told him that?

"Neah is a Lycan." My defence was weak. "She's my closest friend."

"You should hate us." He takes a step closer and leans over me. "We are not the same as you. We are dark. We are cold. We are monsters."

His face is inches from mine. I should be scared by his warning. But this is the closest he had been to me since his arrival and I couldn't tell whether he wanted to fuck me or kill me. But I did know what I wanted.

"I'm not scared of you." I whisper, refusing to move from my spot.

"You should be."

My head slightly shakes at him.

Suddenly, he slams me into the wall, pressing his body up against mine. His lips hit mine with force. A deep longing growl rumbles inside of him as his hands slip under my top and grip my waist. He forces a knee between my thighs, pushing himself even more against me.

Chapter 0150

When Neah shouts, Damien pulls away. Forgetting me like nothing had just happened.

My heart is pounding in my chest as he enters her room, leaving me semi aroused in the fucking hallway, with the taste of his lips on mine. 'What the fuck was that?' Midnight gasps in annoyance.

'I have to get out of here!'

Slowly, I back away, reaching the stairs. Tears creep in at the corner of my eyes.

"No, not happening." I mutter to myself as I run down the length of the stairs, wiping my eyes. I'm not a crier and I was not about to start now.

Hurrying across the grounds, I enter the hospital. It was my safe place. The only place where I had control. Where everyone in the pack relied on me. Sinking down behind the station. I sit quietly, letting Midnight calm me. Why had I let myself get sucked into it? Why had I let the bond cloud my judgement? 'We can't help it.' Midnight whispers. 'He brings out feelings that we haven't felt in a long time.'

'He's not Salem.'

'No he's not. Salem did us dirty.' I hear her annoyance, though she will never admit it.

Frustrated, my hand slaps against the tiled floor.

"Angry?" A low voice comes from the other side of the station making me freeze. I thought I was alone.

I couldn't smell anything. I couldn't smell another Wolf. That could only mean one thing.

'Dane.' I link my brother. 'It's here. It's in my hospital.'

'What are you talking about?'

'The Rogue.' I whimper

'We are coming!'

"I would rather you come out." The low voice rumbles. "I just want to talk." The beast speaks

'We should shift.' Midnight mutters

'No, it will attack.'

Slowly, and keeping my back to it, I get to my feet. I had no weapons or anything nearby that could be used to do some harm.

Turning, my breath hitches in my throat. I didn't get a good look at it in the forest but what I see in front of me is so much worse than the Lycans we fought. Damien was right, they are monsters.

It holds its gaze with me. Its nostrils flaring as it tilts its large head to one side. Dried blood coated its sharp teeth and snout. Did it kill someone to get in here?

"You smell of the traitor." It growls

I stare back, refusing to blink in case it moves. A part of me had thought Damien was lying when he said they could speak.

"How...how did you get in here?" I always locked up when I left

"Is that what you will worry about when you are dying Raven?"

"You know my name?" I squeak. My eyes flicker to the door, where was Dane? Or anyone?

"Who are you looking for?" It sounds like it's trying to laugh. "Your new mate? Maybe your big brother? Or perhaps even the female Alpha? None of them can save you, Raven."

'Keep him talking.' Midnight mutters. 'Buy yourself some time.'

"You've been watching me?" I follow Midnight's instructions, maybe then I would stand a chance.

"You can call it that if that makes you feel comfortable."

It hadn't moved an inch since I had been talking to it. Was it trying to freak me out?

"Your eyes keep darting to the door. I assume you have linked one of them." It rises up on its hind legs. "So now it is time for us to leave."

It jumps over the counter at me, its clawed hands locking around me before I have a chance to do anything. It holds something over my mouth. No matter how hard I fight, the more I breathe in whats over my mouth, the more I feel my body getting weaker and weaker. My arms and legs grow heavy and are barely able to move.

It wasn't like fighting one of the bitten where their goal was just to kill in the sloppiest way. This one seemed to know exactly what I was going to try, like they knew me.

I couldn't fight any longer and my head falls back against a solid chest.

"Time for sleep."