Chained By The Alpha Jessica Hall

My car is parked a block away, a once-shiny convertible now showing its age under the grime which covers the rust and dents that I can't afford to fix

As soon as I climb into the car, I kick off these heels knowing I will be stuck in heels most of the night. Putting the key in the ignition, the engine coughs to life reluctantly after several attempts, each sputter a reminder of my precarious reality and start heading home

I'm halfway home, my mind already shifting to how much I need to make tonight to cover the electricity bill. I've been without power for a week now, and I would kill for a hot shower

Yet, as I am about to pull off the highway, the

car gives a shudder and loses power suddenly

The lights on the dash light up like a damn Christmas tree, the engine light coming on along with every other damn light

Great. Just what I need

Cursing, I climb out of the car and lift the hood, but 1t might as well be a spaceship for what I know about cars. Slamming the hood shut, I move back to the driver's side. Snatching my heels from the footwell on the passenger side, I grab my phone. Normally, I would call Deacon if I needed something, but I can't even do that now

I still can't get over him being dead in the alpha's freezer for months while Lydia searched for him. I didn't bother, I knew he was dead. I felt the bond sever, felt his pain. Lydia was lucky he never marked her, but he marked me only to reject me. I felt his death, I should have accepted his rejection, maybe I wouldn't feel so dead inside if I did. Although rare for mates to reject each other it does happen, both must accept it and I stupidly didn't. Catching a glimpse of myself in the rearview mirror I stare at his mark which 1s obscured by concealer

Now just a fading stain on my skin

Pulling my gaze away I check my phone. I see it's nearly 5 PM. If1I start walking now, I can get home, catch a bus to work and still get there on time. Now my car is just another thing to add to the bills I can't afford. Grabbing my handbag, I rummage for a smoke only to realize I have no lighter

Today is not my day

Slamming my door shut I'm just about to start walking when a motorcycle pulls up beside me

The rider dismounts, and even before he removes his helmet, I know who it is. Beta Vance, Alpha Zayn's brother

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He pulls off his helmet, his dark hair tousled, and those piercing gray eyes of his fix on me

"Need some help?" he asks

I've had so many run-ins with this man over the past few months that it seems he is comfortable Just approaching me like we are buddies. We are not

I still remember when he kicked my dorm room door in when he needed information on Lydia

They cut me a deal: I would be given immunity if I testified to what she and Deacon did or tried to do

Little did they know I had nothing to do with it

It was all Lydia and Deacon. I was hoping to

convince Deacon not to go ahead with the rejection hoping he wouldn't keep insisting I accept it; I thought 1t was working too, until he disappeared that night. It wasn't until I saw the video pop up on Lydia's screen that I knew he had an ulterior motive for wanting to go out that night. Not that it mattered, I was guilty by association

"I don't want help from the brother of the man responsible for killing my mate," I snap, my voice harsher than I intend

He stares at me for a long moment, his gray eyes inscrutable. He has that ability to hide every thought behind a fagade of calm indifference. I wonder how much he 1s like his brotherNôvelDrama.Org is the owner.

"You need help," Vance says finally, ignoring my hostility. "And see, the problem 1s, I can't Just leave you out here."

"Why not? What's stopping you?" I challenge him, my arms folded defensively across my chest

He brings a hand up to scratch at the shadow of stubble on his jaw. "Because you're pack," he says simply as if 1t should be enough to explain everything. But it isn't to me. Not when it was this same pack that ruined everything in my life

Pack. The word stings more than I care to admit, bringing back painful memories of Deacon and everything I lost. My lips press into a thin line and I turn on my heel, ready to walk away. To hell with him and his misplaced sense of concern