Betrothed To The Alpha

CHAPTER 42

I drop my suitcase in my room, my heart heavy with dread as I realize what I must do next. As much as every fiber of my being rebels against the idea, I know I have no choice but to seek out Alice and ask about Alex' whereabouts. His brothers, even if I had their numbers, are unlikely to answer, and calling his parents would only raise alarm before I even know if he's truly missing or just taking a break from the world. That leaves Alice as my only remaining option.

With leaden feet, I make my way to her door. I knock softly, the sound echoing in the stillness. "Come in," she calls, her voice dripping with false sweetness. I step inside, and the stark contrast between her room and mine is like a slap in the face. Hers is a haven of luxury, with a queen-sized bed draped in the most expensive bedsheets money can buy, all in her favorite shade of pink. The sight stirs a bittersweet memory of my own room, once adorned in similar hues until Alice's jealousy forced me to change everything to black. I shake my head, pushing the painful recollection aside. Now is not the time to dwell on past hurts.

"What are you doing here?" Alice demands, shooting up from the pristine white couch that dominates her spacious room.

"I wanted to ask you if you knew where Alex is," I ask as I stop at the edge of the couch.

"Where Alex is?" she repeats, her tone laced with mockery. She stalks toward me, her perfectly shaped brows furrowed in exaggerated confusion.

I swallow hard, a knot forming in my throat as I struggle to maintain my composure in the face of her unsettling tone. Despite the underlying tension in her words, I push aside my discomfort, focusing solely on the matter at hand. "Yes, do you know?" I respond, my voice steady despite the turmoil roiling within me.

Alice throws her head back and laughs, a harsh, grating sound that sets my nerves on edge. "I can't believe you, his mate, are asking me, his ex, where he is? How pathetic.," she gasps, wiping imaginary tears from her eyes.

White-hot anger surges through me; I clench my fists at my sides, digging my nails into my palms until it hurts, using the pain to anchor me. I should have known she would react this way, twisting the knife in my already bleeding heart.

"Yes," I say through gritted teeth. "Do you know where he is or not?"

"Even though your engagement ceremony has already been held, you know Alex' heart still belongs to me. That's why you're here, asking me about his whereabouts."

Her words are like poison, seeping into my veins and corroding the fragile hope I've been clinging to. As much as I want to deny it, a traitorous part of me whispers that she's right. Alex missed work for her and abandoned me on our engagement night to rush to her side. The evidence of his divided loyalties is overwhelming, each memory a fresh wound on my battered soul.

Tears sting my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall. I won't give Alice the satisfaction of seeing me break, of knowing the depths of the pain she's inflicted. Squaring my shoulders, I shake my head, blinking back the moisture that blurs my vision. This vicious, spiteful girl will not wring a single drop of sorrow from me, not if I can help it.

"I can see you don't know where he is," I say coldly. "Goodbye, Alice." I spin on my heel to leave, but her voice stops me.

"Wait," she calls a new note of urgency in her tone. "Is Alex... missing?"

I turn back reluctantly, searching her face. For once, she looks genuinely concerned. "I don't know if he's missing exactly," I hedge. "But no one has heard from him in a while."

Alice's eyes widen. "Let me call his brother," she says quickly, hurrying to snatch her phone from the bed. "Just wait a minute."

I watch as she dials, tapping my foot impatiently. I can't help but wonder what made her take me seriously all of a sudden. Perhaps my stoic reaction to her cruelty has finally penetrated her selfish bubble, forcing her to acknowledge the gravity of the situation.

Alice's face falls as she listens to Cameron on the other end. "He doesn't know where Alex is either," she reports, frowning. "He hung up before I could even ask him to keep me posted."

A trickle of unease winds its way down my spine, but I don't have time to dwell on it. I need to keep searching for answers. I nod curtly to Alice and exit her room, my mind already racing ahead to my next move.

As I make my way back to my own room, my phone buzzes with an incoming call from Bee. I answer, desperate for a friendly voice in the midst of this nightmare.

"Hannah, please tell me what I'm seeing isn't true," she says urgently as soon as I pick up.

"Oh goddess, you haven't seen the pictures," Bee groans. "I'm sending them to you now. Call me back once you've had a look."

She hangs up abruptly, leaving me staring at my phone in bewilderment. A moment later, a message pings through. I open it with shaking fingers, and my heart stops.

There, splashed across the screen, is a photo of me locked in an embrace with Alpha Collins on the mountain, quickly followed by a shot of him and Alex engaged in a vicious fight. The headline screams: "HANNAH ABANDONS ALEX FOR RIVAL ALPHA!"

I skim the article, my blood turning to ice in my veins. According to the so-called journalist, I've left Alex for Collins, breaking my mate's heart in the process. They claim Alex tried to fight for me but ultimately failed because my affections now lie with his rival.

Bile rises in my throat as I process the enormity of this lie. Who would plant such a vicious, damaging story? And why now, with Alex already missing? I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose, fighting the urge to scream. As if my life wasn't complicated enough already...

"Hannah!" a furious voice barks behind me, jolting me from my spiraling thoughts.

I spin around to see my parents marching toward me, their faces contorted with rage. My stomach drops, and a sickening sense of dread settles in my bones. This cannot be good.

"Haven't you caused us enough trouble already?" my mother hisses as she reaches me, her eyes spitting blue fire. "You just had to whore yourself out, didn't you? Couldn't keep your legs closed for five minutes?"

Her hand cracks across my cheek, the sharp sting bringing tears to my eyes. I cradle my burning skin, too shocked to even defend myself. She didn't even ask if the story was true. She just assumed the worst of me, like always.

"You better fix this," my father growls, grabbing my chin and forcing me to meet his furious gaze. "I don't care what you have to do. Lie, beg, whatever it takes. Because if you ruin this pack's reputation and cost us the alliance with the Sky Pack, I promise you will live to regret it."

He releases me with a rough shove, sending me sprawling to the cold marble floor. I watch through a haze of tears as they stalk away, not even sparing me a backward glance.

Sobs wrack my body as I curl in on myself, the pain in my heart eclipsing the throbbing in my cheek. How could my own parents be so cruel, so quick to condemn me without even a shred of trust or benefit of the doubt? Am I not their flesh and blood, the child they are meant to love and protect above all else?

As I lay there, tears streaming down my face, I feel something shatter inside me, the last fragile thread of hope that I clung to in the face of their constant disapproval and neglect. If this is what their love looks like, a love that comes with conditions and threats, then perhaps I am better off without it. Perhaps I have always been alone in this world, a mere pawn in their political games, nothing more than a means to an end. Because, at this point, I don't believe they ever truly loved me. There's no way they would treat me the way they just did.