Ch. 546..550: The Alpha Contract Chapter 546-550

Chapter 0546

We will figure it out. Somehow.' Lyall mutters

"Maybe she was asked to keep quiet." Damien offers

*She only spends time with the other Witches."

"Maybe he threatened her before he left."

*I would have felt it if she was scared." I shake my head, so much has come to light in the last few days. From meeting Neah, I didn't expect my life to unravel so hastily. "My family is trapped. I am happy to help with Serkan, but..."

"You need to help them."

*Or at least find a way," I frown.

Thalia and Quinn were everything to me. When she made me a father, my life turned upside down, but in a good way. I never blamed her for what happened to Jarret. She was caught off guard and she had punished herself ever since by refusing to use her gift after what she did.

Even Serkan had paid his respects. Allowing me time off to be with my mate and Quinn.

We both grieved and I'm thankful that I still see Jarret in Quinn. I wasn't losing both of my pups. I couldn't. I refuse, but no matter what angle I look at, I can't see a way to get them out safely without someone dying.

Serkan had made himself look like the almighty one. And it worked, but the more I think about things, the more gaps there are. As I grew older, I was moved out of the castle, but with no explanation.

There were people that would go into the castle who never exited, but nothing was discussed and there were no announcements of missing people. No one cared. It was just another day in White Cliffs. It was normal. But I see now that it is the furthest thing from normal.

I glance at Damien. "I can guarantee Serkan would have got word to the guards." I try to swallow the lump in my throat. Lyall didn't have any ideas of what we could do. "Even if she changes her mind. They don't stand a chance of getting out, not now."

"I can go get her." Brax tells us as he moves down the steps. In his hand is a photo frame, the one I keep by my bed. "They don't know me. I'm a Wolf. I don't belong to a pack. It's what Serkan likes, isn't it."

"Yes, but he isn't there."

"Even better."

"You are not just a Wolf, are you?" I ask

*That's nothing for you to worry about." He places the photo frame on the table. "This them?"

"Yes." I murmur, looking into the eyes of my family

"That's a big risk." Damien tells Brax.

*Maybe it is, but I like risks. Just make sure my baby girl is kept safe. And Madison. I will be pissed if something happens to either of them."

"You know I won't let anything happen to them." Damien tells him.

I glance between them. I was certain Damien was mated to that other girl, Samara. Brax had also mentioned someone, yet the men in front of me also seemed like they were in some sort of weird relationship. I shake my head, it wasn't my business.

"I will come with you." I offer

Brax raises a finger at me. "No, you will do no such thing. This is going to be tricky as it is, I don't need someone that can screw it up."

*How are you going to convince her?" I ask. "She is dead set that I am wrong."

"Who said anything about convincing her?"

*His methods may not be standard practice, but he will get it done." Damien informs me

"You will kidnap them?" I mutter in shock

"Do you want my help or not?" Brax stares at me

I look at the picture on the table. Even with the burn marks up the side of Thalia's neck and face, she still smiled. I wondered if she was happy now or if she was trying to figure out what was wrong with me. She had refused to speak to me since I told her she needed to get out.

*I assume it comes with a price?"

*You said you would help with Serkan. That is the price." Damien tells me

*And if you try to fuck any of it up, you will find my gun pressed against your asshole."

Chapter 0547

Neah

"Athena is happy to have the boys another night." Dane tells me as he takes off his shirt.

"I should be with them." I frown

"Another night is not going to hurt them." Dane replies as I start to get out of bed. "And you need to rest." He leans down and softly kisses me. Lifting my tee, he tugs at it and kisses my bump. "Now tell me, why are you wearing clothes to bed?"

"Just in case." No one wants to be caught out in the middle of the night while naked.

"You won't need them." He smiles at me

I tug the tee back over my bump, "It's hard to rest when I know that Serkan is somewhere nearby. He can't have just disappeared into thin air. Have you heard anything?" As much as I trusted Damien, I knew he would link Dane and not me if there was a problem. Especially while I was supposed to be resting.

'It's like they have forgotten that we have been pregnant before. Nyx murmurs in annoyance

I know. But I guess with everything that happened last time, everyone is just being extra cautious.'

She huffs, though I felt the exact same. Apart from being ridiculously tired all the time, I felt fine.

After years of being left to battle through life on my own, it was still hard to accept that there are people who care for me.

I look over to Dane and watch him in silence as he finishes undressing. When he gets into bed with me, his hand plants itself on my lower back and he pulls me in closer, until his face is inches away from mine.

"Whether you are pregnant or not, I would still want to make sure you are safe." He whispers in the dark. "And before you tell me that you can protect yourself, I already know, but it doesn't change my desire to keep all of you safe."

"Do you think he will try again soon?" I ask quietly. I hadn't seen Serkan at the gas station, just the aftermath. Only Dane had managed to get a small glimpse of him. While I hid in the bathroom like the scared little girl I used to be.

"He knows that you are pregnant. Thankfully, he still doesn't know about the boys. If he wants you dead, he will probably try again while you are pregnant."

"And if he finds out about the boys, he will come after them." I mutter and see him frown.* Before that happens, I will rip his heart from his chest. I mumble and curl into him.

The bed is empty when I wake. Letting me sleep in had become a new habit of his. Sometimes I liked it, other times it was frustrating. At least this time, I was in Black Shadow and not some random hotel.

From the dim light creeping in around the curtains, I could tell it was early. I had probably only been asleep for a couple of hours.

Yawning, I creep across the floor, trying to remember where the squeaky floorboards are as I tiptoe around them. I didn't want to wake Mallory or Eric this early, not when they had stayed up with us to talk things through.

Silently making my way down the stairs, I almost miss the bottom step when I realise I could scent Silas. Peering around the comer, I see him sitting at the kitchen table, casually drinking coffee like he had been here his whole life.

"What are you doing here?" I splutter, feeling the pressure of my claws against the tips of my fingers.

"Arrived ten minutes ago. If you are looking for Dane, he is outside talking to Damien." "Why are you here?" I demand

"Brax has gone to White Cliffs to retrieve my mate and child. Damien brought me here on the agreement that I would help you guys. That was the deal I was offered and I took it."

"Just like that?" My hands move to my bump as one of the girls gives my bladder a sharp kick.

"I figured this would be the best choice."

"Why would he do that?" I ask

"I guess he follows his Alpha and likes to make deals."

"Not Damien." I speak through my clenched teeth as my bladder is booted again, "Why would Brax go to White Cliffs?"

"Thalia wouldn't leave." He lowers his eyes. "She didn't believe me. But then again, why would she? I'm making her leader suddenly sound like a monster. Brax went because he said he isn't tied to the pack, they would be more accepting of him."

"But she's your mate." I frown

"If I go, we will all be killed."

'Brax must believe him if he offered to go.' Nyx sighs

"Why didn't she believe you? You are mated. You have a child." I demand

"Apparently that stands for nothing when I am trying to take her away from the home she knows and loves." He scowls. "Believe me, it doesn't make sense to me either, not after everything we have been through."

"So Damien thought it was a good idea to bring you here? To our home?"

He dips his head and then locks his crimson eyes on mine. "I'm sorry if you disagree,"

"What if Thalia..."

"She won't." He mutters before I get a chance to get my question out.

"You don't know what I'm going to ask."

"You think she is working with Serkan." He stares at me.

"It wouldn't be the first Witch who has worked with him." I snap. "A fated mate bond is supposed to be the strongest thing in the world. It should outweigh what your Alpha wants or needs. She shouldn't have even questioned you."

Chapter 0548

He stares back at me. "I know that. And that is why I am confused by her reaction. Now she refuses to speak to me. I have no idea if Quinn is okay. I don't know what is happening up there. Though I do know they are alive."

"Why is she refusing to accept what you are saying?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. And I don't think I'm going to know until she is here." His tattooed hand wraps around the mug and he takes a long swig.

"Remind me how you knew you were mated to her." I press

'Shit, do you think she tricked him?' Nyx whispers. Just like Cooper did it to the others?" We are about to find out."

He rolls his eyes at me, "I was coming back from a run and she was just walking up the road. Her scent hit me like a tonne of bricks. She denied it, but in the end, she couldn't fight it." He stops and looks at me. "Why are you asking me this, when you already know? Do you think I'm lying?"

"Curiosity." I mutter. "You had a set of twins?"

He dips his head again.

"What happened to the other one?"

"Thalia..." He closes his eyes. "She was at home with Jarret, alone. I had taken Quinn to run some errands. The boys were a year old but Jarret was acting more clingy than usual. He wanted Thalia and no one but Thalia. If I hadn't taken Quinn with me, we might have lost them both."

I drag out a chair and lower myself into it. Quietly waiting for more.

"She was exhausted. Jarret hadn't been sleeping, but the healers could find nothing wrong. Serkan said it was probably a phase." He shakes his head. "I shouldn't have gone out." He lets out a heavy sigh and closes his eyes. "Jarret had finally settled and Thalia fell asleep. An alarm went off and when I raced back, our house was a ball of orange flames. Thalia escaped with just a burn mark up her neck and face. Jarret didn't survive." His face hardens. You wanted to hear the story, are you happy?" He stares at me. "Is that what you wanted to hear?"

"I'm sorry." I mutter, I couldn't imagine losing any one of my children. But what if the story he is telling is wrong? He wasn't there at the time. He only knows what he has been told.

"Then there is his mate.' Nyx tells me, 'She can control fire, but she burns?'

"Are you saying she shouldn't? I ask her, confused.

'A bit of a weird ability to have if it can hurt you, don't you think?"

You think she killed her son? I was about to ask what kind of parent would do that, but I already knew the answer to that.

'I think there is a lot we still don't know.'

I silently wished that Klaus was still here. Not because of him being a Witch Hunter, but because he could research it. He would know where to look. I will ask Dane to link him. Maybe Klaus had discovered some things on his journey already.

"Are you talking to your Lycan?" Silas asks. "Your eyes went dark."

"Yes." I mutter, but don't say anything more about Nyx. "What happens if Thalia refuses to leave with Brax?"

"He has a different plan in place."

"I just..." I start moving around the table towards the door and his eyes follow me. "I just need to speak to Dane." I don't know why I was justifying myself to him, this wasn't his pack or his home.

"I will be here."

Damien has his arms folded across his chest while Dane has his back to me as they discuss Silas.

"You thought bringing him here was a good idea?" I snap, just as I'm booted in the ribs by one of the girls. These girls are a lot more active in the womb compared to the boys.

"Best thing for now, unfortunately." Dane replies

"I need to talk to you." I mutter back

"Damien and I have already had the same conversation." He tells me unexpectedly. "Oh. About Cooper?" I ask, confused.

"About Thalia burning when her gift is fire." Damien tells me with an equally confused look

I shake my head and glance back at the house, dropping my voice to a whisper. "I don't think Thalia is his true mate. I think somehow, Silas has been led to believe she is, just like how Cooper got his prisoners."

"It's possible that you are right. But we don't know for sure." Dane mutters. "Not yet anyway." "They had kids together." Damien mutters with a cocked brow. "That is one hell of a scam." "A long con." Dane tells him. "Especially if it was to keep him under the thumb."

"Brax has no issues with Silas." Damien adds. He turns his attention back to Dane. "How the hell you two are twins is beyond me. He may look like you, but he certainly does not possess the ability to think like you."

"The first night I met him, he seemed... powerful." I frown, "He sort of still does."

"A front." Dane tells me. "The same way Beta's carry an aura of power."

"And because he carries Black genetics?" I ask

"Yes."

"I need you to link Klaus."

Chapter 0549

Dane

"Neah," I sigh, knowing she wasn't going to like my answer.

"He can help. He knows where to find information. He might have already leamed something. It's what he is good at."

"I know but I haven't heard from him for over a week."

"Well donel' Aero snaps in annoyance

Neah's lips part as she gazes at me. There is a brief flicker of hurt in her eyes and in that moment, I felt as though my soul was being crushed. Of all the things she had learned lately. this was the thing that had hurt her. She wasn't even upset when she found out I was a twin or that I had kept the information from her.

I didn't like that I had hurt her. I didn't like the way she was looking at me. It hurt deeply, right down to the core. My chest is tight and there is a strange tug at my heart that I couldn't explain. It's not a nice feeling and something I never wanted to feel again.

She glances over her shoulder at Eric's home. Her blue eyes return to me. She shakes her head and strides past me without muttering a word.

"Do you want me to go after her?" Damien asks.

"No, I know exactly where she is going." She doesn't even look back as she continues to stomp across the grounds in the direction of Athena's home. "I'm just going to give her a few minutes."

"I told you that you should have told her."

"I was just trying to protect her. She is supposed to be taking it easy." I mutter, watching Neah disappear around the comer and out of sight.

"After all this time, you still can't see that she isn't like other women. She likes to know what's going on. She has her own way of dealing with things that neither of us will understand."

"I know!" I snap in irritation. "Just keep an eye on Silas will you?"

"Is Mallory home?" He asks

"Yes, asleep."

"Then I will be taking Silas to my place."

I glance at him. "You two really need to sort it out."

"I'm not the one with the problem." He tuts as he moves to the house and pokes his head in through the door, calling for Silas. I watch as Damien leads Silas in the direction of his home.

Neah is sitting on the bench outside of Athena and Sebastian's house. A hand circles her bump as her eyes flicker between blue and black.

Sitting down next to her, I let her have her conversation with Nyx until she sighs. "You should have told me."

"I should have." I agree

"But you didn't because I'm supposed to be resting." A small crease forms on her brow.

I nod, taking her hand in mine. "It's a shit excuse, I know."

"You don't have to treat me like I'm going to drop dead at any second. I'm not going to run off, or try to do something stupid. Klaus is family." She turns her face in my direction. "No more secrets."

"No more secrets. "I confirm.

"Is he in danger?" She asks with a frown

"No, I don't believe so. I think the freedom of being able to do what he wants has given him a chance to be himself. A chance to figure things out, but he can't do that if he is always helping us."

"But..."

"He said he would contact us if he is in trouble." I confirm. "And he did tell us that he will come back when he is ready."

"So we just figure it out ourselves?" She frowns and her hand pauses on her bump as a small crease appears.

"Maybe with the help of one or two people."

"Silas?" She asks

"And maybe Samara. She seems to be quite good at finding things."

She nods her head at me and grabs her stomach.

"Kicking?"

She frowns. "No, ow!"

The colour begins to fade from her skin. She suddenly doubles over, vomiting in Athena's garden. Sitting back up, she wipes her lips. "Home." I mutter, lifting her off the bench.

"It's okay." she mumbles. "I just feel..."

"You are going home, to bed and I will cuff you to it if I need to."

She doesn't fight it this time. Letting me carry her back to Eric's place. Mallory's eyes are

wide as I push my way in through the door. "Is she okay?"

Neah half waves a hand at her, but doesn't speak as I head directly for the stairs.

"Call me if you need anything." Mallory shouts behind us.

Chapter 0550

Tucking Neah into bed, she frowns at me but doesn't quite look at me. "I'm okay."

"No you are not."

"I just need to sleep." She tells me, closing her eyes.

*****

Six days of sitting by her bed in the hospital and she still hadn't opened her eyes.

Beneath the surface, the girls are active and move like crazy, but Neah remains as still and as silent as the day I brought her in.

Thad been alerted by Aero to go and check on her. I had walked in the bedroom to find Neah coughing and spluttering as she gasped for breath. Fast asleep, she was choking on her own vomit.

The nurses had tested her for every possible thing they could think of, but everything came back fine. They couldn't find a problem with anything in her body. It made it a hundred times more frustrating because there was nothing inside her that needed healing. Apart from being unresponsive, there was nothing else wrong with her.

Ilean forward, resting my elbows on the bed and holding her hand between mine. I had tried linking her, tried searching her mind, but there is just silence. And everyday I beat myself up over it. Flickering between anger and guilt. I had done this by not telling her about Klaus. I had hurt her to the point that she was no longer functioning.

"Neah, you have to wake up." I kiss the hand that I'm holding, desperate for a sign. Just like the other days, there is nothing. "The boys miss you. I miss you."

A knock on the door pulls my attention away. Mallory comes in and hands me a coffee. "You need to keep your strength up." She tells me

"The boys?"

"With Eric and Luca." She tells me as she settles into the chair on the other side of Neah. Evrin is a little more clingy than Logan, but he is okay. Eric is really good at keeping them entertained."

"Thanks." I murmur

"You know you don't need to ask us. We will always help.

"You were supposed to leave with the others." I mutter

"You haven't looked around your pack, have you Dane? None of us left. We all know what it could mean and yet we are ready to stand by you and Neah. All the children will be kept safe. Ryken has been working on something for the past week, in the basement of what's going to be the new packhouse. Besides, Serkan hasn't shown himself since that night."

"That we know of."

"Either way, we are not leaving. Your Wolves follow you. The Lycans follow her. Together, we make a strong team."

She sits quietly, sipping on her coffee as I watch for any signs of Neah waking up.

"Can I tell you something?" Mallory whispers.

"Sure."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but maybe her body can't cope with being pregnant."

She freezes when I look at her.

"I'm just saying. She had problems when she was carrying the boys and now..." she sighs." Now this."

"Damien thinks it's because she is carrying Wolves. She is a Lycan carrying Wolves. It's likely harder on her body. Using up all her energy."

"Wolves?" She raises an eyebrow at me.

"He isn't a hundred percent sure. He says the scent is different, but yes. The boys are Lycans, the girls are likely Wolves."

"Or both." she mumbles

"What was that?" I heard exactly what she said but I wanted her to repeat it.

"It's just a theory,"

"And?"

She blows out her cheeks and gestures to Neah. "She's bigger this time round, almost like she is growing twice as fast. She's sicker. More sensitive to everything. I've said this to her before and now that you have told me what Damien said, it makes me wonder even more,"

"Mallory?!"

"Hybrids." She splutters and tries to hide behind her cup of coffee. "Something that is both a Wolf and a Lycan."

Neah had mentioned it before and I had also overheard both her and Mallory discussing it. But again, it was not something that I thought was possible. We are two separate species.

Just look at the bump. For someone who is only about halfway through her pregnancy, she looks ready to pop. Like she could go into labour at any point."

"It has grown in the last week." I confirm

"Like doubled in size. When she wakes up, she is going to be so confused."

"I don't think that Hybrids are a possibility." I mutter

"You didn't think Lycans were either."