Fated To the Alpha by Jessica Hall
Chapter 189: Andrei POV
I felt Donnie’s relief at completing the bond, his tether to Sierra blown right open and I could hear her purring through him. Sage’s soft body tucked snuggling against my hard one felt right.
Everything about her was fragile, I was petrified of breaking her. One slip and she was right back with them. I hated seeing the way her body locked up, her muscles tensed and her face got that faraway expression like she was being transported back to a time before us. I expected it to happen but it didn’t, which was a relief. I hated feeling her slip away from me.
All made worse by feeling her emotions when she got trapped in her head, It was like I was living the horror with her and it sickened me. The things they did to her, I could almost see it in my head just through what she felt at the time, her pain becoming mine.
The scars on her body are the only traces left of what they did to her physically but her mind, I struggled with the most, wounds heal but the mind relives and remembers long after the damage is done, those scars don’t heal it. Instead it tainted her and her soul.
Blackened parts of her, making her ashamed of what she saw in the mirror. Yet I looked in awe of her strength. She was broken, maybe irreparably in some ways but she survived. She endured and she survived, lived through unthinkable horror.
She carried the burden of their t*ortur*e alone atleast she thought she did, now I carry the burden of never letting her know that I know what they did because I could feel it through her each time she was f0rced back there. I couldn’t tell her and I wouldn’t unless she told me herself and I would never drag up her past to ask.
I never understood PTSD until I watched her relive the things they did, taken back in time it was like she was right there, transported back like it was happening all over again.
She is a warrior, she sees herself as broken and ugly while I saw her as delicate and soft, yet strong, withstanding all that life tossed at her, there’s beauty in her pain because on the other side of it. I saw her, I saw how amazing she truly is, how strong she is, how patient and understanding she is.
She has something I will never have and that is a gentleness and softness despite everything that should have made her angry, bitter and cruel.
Instead she possessed an inner strength and resilience, along with pure determination to be better than them, better than I was when led by my own pain.
Sage is the flower that bloomed without water and sunlight, without care or love to nurture her, yet still she blossomed into the woman she is today, despite the storms harsh wind and everything that tried to destroy her beauty she stood and endured and stayed strong.
She bloomed instead of letting her petals wilt and d*ie, by giving up. She became a warrior in her own right and I am blessed to call her mine. I stared down at the woman beside me.
Climbing out of bed, I gently pull my arm out from under her head trying not to wake her.
Walking into the bathroom, I grab a cloth and w*et it with warm water and rung it out before scrubbing my thighs of the secretions that leaked on them. Walking back into the bedroom I tug the blanket back that was covering her.
“Make sure you let her know what you are doing” Donnie mumbles at me like I didn’t already know that, I knew that better than anyone else not to touch her.
Leaning down I kiss her, nibbling on her bottom lip. “Sage” I whisper, running my hand across her stomach gently, she mumbles incoherently against my lips in her sleep making me laugh.
“Sage, I am going to clean you” I tell her, dipping my face into her neck and licking her mark. She M0@ns softly, turning her face into mine, my stubble brushing her cheek.
“Let me sleep, ” She mumbles. I pull away and chuckle as her nipples harden from me touching her mark.
“I am about to touch you, so don’t freak out” I tell her, pecking her face as she tries to swat me away.
“Damn I hope she doesn’t sleep like this everytime, it’s like trying to wake the dead” Donnie mutters.
“Andrei it’s cold, get back in bed and be my hot water bottle” She pouts half asleep, turning into m e where I sat on the edge of the bed. I lean down nuzzling her neck and she growls at me wanting to sleep.
“Touching you now” I tell her and she mutters something that sounded like do what I want just let her sleep. I roll my eyes before moving the washcloth between her legs, she reacts to my touch instantly and I froze for a second when she M0@ns softly. I quickly clean her before walking to the bathroom and tossing the cloth in the hamper.
Walking back into the room she was laying in my spot and I move her over before climbing into bed beside her, eager to sleep myself. Sage dr@ped her limbs over me and pressed closer when she began to purr, the sound she was making putting me at ease and I yawn, closing my eyes and letting sleep take me.
I slept heavily with Sage wrapped around me, her scent sticking to my skin. Rolling her on her side, I tuck my body around hers as I try to figure out why I had awoken. I was still tired when I hear it, my phone ringing and vibrating on the bedside table. Sitting up, I reach for it and don’t recognise the number.
“Hello?” I ask bleary eyed.
“Hi, is this Mr Andrei?” A man’s voice says, only one person calls me that and that is Jonah.
“Yes, who is this?”
“ He said you’re his dad, is this correct because I have a small boy here with me, he said you would come and get him”
“Yes, put him on” I hear the phone change hands.
“I want to come home, please” Jonah’s frightened voice comes through the other end.
“Where is Clive?” I ask him and I see Sage stirring on the bed, my heart hammering a million miles and hour.
“I ran away, he was drunk. He wasn’t supposed to drink but he stunk and pulled my hair please, please come and get me”
“I will be right there, put the man on for me” I tell him.
“Where are you?” I ask, He tells me his address and it was a Chinese restaurant around the corner of the Casino. He a*s*sured me he would keep Jonah with him and give him something to eat. Jonah tells him he was hungry because Clive didn’t feed him dinner.
Hanging up, I can’t help the growl that rips out of me. I was going to f*uc*king K*ll the bastard. Sage jumps up at the noise and I feel terrible for waking her. I felt terrible that I couldn’t stay snuggled next to her but our son needs us and she would understand, she always understands.
“ I need to go, stay here ” I tell her, grabbing my jeans and slipping them on.
“What’s going on?” she asks, rubbing her eyes. “Jonah needs me, I am going to go get him”
“What?’ She says, instantly alert at his name and she starts tossing blankets back .
“Stay here, I will be back soon”
“But Jonah” She says and I grip her face before kissing her cheek.
“I will bring him home with me, I promise. I will get him back to you” I tell her before letting go and heading for the door, a furious growl escapes me that echoed off the walls in my anger.
“I am going to f*uc*king K*ll him” I growl rushing down the steps. He was going to f*uc*king d*ie for touching my boy.
Opening the mindlink I search for my fathers link now that he was initiated into our pack as well it was so much easier then ringing. I feel his mind come alert as I f0rce the link while unlocking the front door and grabbing my keys.
“What’s wrong”
“ meet me at the car, Jonah is in trouble” I tell him.
“On my way” he says instantly before cutting the link. I pull my shirt on as I head toward my car before seeing Malik’s porch light turn on and he and my father rush out of the house pulling clothes on while jogging over.
“What’s going on?” Malik asks, reaching for the back door, I see Zane’s light turn on before he rushes over to. “Andrei” Zane asks.
“Keep an eye on Sage, and ring if anything happens while we are gone” I call out to him.
“Yes Alpha” He says and I climb in the driver’s seat. My father hops in the passenger seat and Malik gets in back.
“Where are we going, is he alright?” My father asks.
“We are going to get my son back, then I am K*lling that bastard Clive” I tell him. He growls at the edge in my tone.
“ Is my grandson, okay?” He asks as I tear out of the driveway heading for the highway.
“He is safe for now” I tell him, the car sliding onto the bitumen road as it leaves the gravel. I floor it heading toward the Safari casino.
It would take at least 2 hours and the longer I drove the more anxious I became. It was a little after midnight already and I had my father text the owner of the restaurant to let him know we were on our way.
He said he lived above the restaurant and Jonah was watching TV with his wife.
“P@ssme my phone, ” I tell my father. I flick through the contacts looking for Dominic’s number. I was f*uc*king livid. The phone rings and I growl as it rings out before hitting redial.
I listen to it ring but this time he answers.
“Who the f*uc*k dares to ring me at this ungodly hour” He snaps into the phone.
“It’s Andrei, did you see Clive today?” I ask him.
“Yes this morning, why the f*uc*k are you ringing me what time is it?”
“After midnight”
“Yesterday morning then, the boy is fine Andrei” Dominic growls.
“If he was fine, why the f*uc*k did I just get call from a stranger saying they have Jonah?”
“What, who has the boy?” Dominic says and I could hear him moving around whatever room he was in.
“Where is he?” Dominic asks.
“Not a chance, I am getting my son. We got the laws changed Dominic it will be changed Wednesday, we got the signatures Kat needed for the pet*ition, if you try to stop me”
“I am getting dressed now, tell me where he is”
“You should know, he was trusted into the care of a man you f*uc*king vouched for” I spit at him.
“I will head over and check in on them, Tanya watch Kyan for me” Dominic calls out.
“Don’t do anything stupid Andrei”
“Too late, tell Clive his time alive is ticking away because when I get my f*uc*king hands on him, there won’t be much left of him when I am done, no one touches my kid” I snap at Dominic before hanging up.
I toss the phone in my fathers lap while trying to contain my anger. Donnie pressed beneath my skin and the closer we got to our destination, the more my anger increased. He was going to pay, he was going to pay for taking him, for hurting him, and he was going to pay with his life no matter the consequences afterwards. I would deal with Dominic afterwards.
The city was alive, neon lights were seen as we came over the hill heading toward the city limits. I didn’t slow, I needed to make sure he was okay, I needed him where I knew he was safe and loved back in our arms, in Sage’s where she would nurture him and love him. He was ours even if not by blood, I loved him just as much as if he were.
“Next left” My father says and I see the Safari Casino come into view. The streets were crawling with people, clubs were pumping and packed full, all shop lights on and people moving about. The place never slept.
“Should be on the corner on your right”
“He crossed a road by himself,” I growled, looking at the traffic. I stop double parking and cars honk their horns.
“Malik, find a parking spot and meet us inside ” I tell him, climbing out of the car. Malik jumps over the seats and into the driver seat and my father climbs out and walks over to the curb. Malik pulls the car away looking for a parking spot.
Walking over, I looked at the restaurant windows, red lanterns hung from the inside and Chinese writing I couldn’t read was scrawled in gold along the black walls as we stepped inside the dimly lit restaurant.
A woman greeted us as we stepped in. My father talks to her, giving the woman the owner’s name who we were looking for.