Chained By The Alpha Jessica Hall

Chapter 104

"You'll figure it out," he promises, pulling me into a tight embrace. The warmth of his body envelops me, and for a moment, I allow myself to forget the pain and doubt that consume me. I take a deep breath, trying to gather my thoughts

I can feel the warmth of his embrace radiating through me, and I realize I need to trust myself and move on because, at the end of the day, whatever Zayn and I were started as a lie and ended on the truth, no matter how painful that truth is

Despite what the Rogues told us, there are two sides to every story, and I plan on finding out what both sides are. Maybe somewhere in the middle, I will find the truth, but I won't find out by doing nothing. My father's appearance is

unexpected, but 1t might be a way for me to figure out what truly happened all those years ago

"Thank you, Dad," I whisper, my throat tightening with emotion. "I just... I need to know the truth, and what evidence Zayn had wasn't enough; I need more than a video that is obscured and without audio." He takes a deep breath and looks away. I can tell he 1s struggling to find the right words. He takes a moment before he finally speaks

"But what if the truth isn't what you want to hear? What if Zayn is lying? What if he did set all this up to get back at me?" he replies, releasing me from his embrace. I take a deep breath and bite my lip

"I can handle it," I say firmly. I need to know the truth

I sigh heavily; that scares me the most because I truly don't know Zayn the way I should, not enough to say he didn't have a hidden agenda

"But first, let's get you out of this place and back to the pack."

"Back to the pack?" I ask hesitantly, my heart skipping a beat at the thought. "After everything that's happened?"

"Sometimes, the only way to find the truth is to face it head-on," he says, his voice laced with conviction. My brows furrow. "We can still fix this. You can still be alpha. Instead of putting your life on hold, take your birthright, Cleo. I don't want the pack to go to Lydia, but with you gone, who else am I to hand it to?" he mumbles the last part. I chew my lip, unsure because after all these weeks, one thing I know for sure 1s that I can't trust him either, but I know what to expect from my father. Everything with Zayn

came at such a shock and so quickly out of the blue that I can't trust him either

"Zayn claims I am his mate," I tell him, but this seems to take him by surprise. His brows scrunch together, and he seems to think hard for a second

"Well, I guess you'll know in a couple of days." he shrugs

"And if he is?" I ask him

"Do you think he is? Though if he is, that might explain his actions because I know if our roles reversed and this was all happening with Linda, I would destroy this city for the bond. Bonds won't allow you to ignore. Some have successfully, but even taking a mate, you still recognize those bonds; it just depends on how long you've been with your chosen one to see

how strong that bond remains." "And if he is my mate?"

"Nothing stops a mate bond, but you can survive a broken one; I promise you that."

"Like Alpha Greyson and Mom?" I ask, gauging his reaction. He swallows thickly

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"Yes, he survived, but he never got over it

Maybe because he and your mother never made the bond official, they hadn't marked each other

وو

yet

"So you admit Mom and Greyson were mates?" I ask him, wondering how much he is willing to tell me

My father sighs heavily. "I guess we are having this chat now. I was hoping it could wait until

we went home, but if you need to know first, I guess I can tell you," he states, and it is so strange seeing him talk about my mother for so long he refused to allow her to be mentioned because of Linda

"Tt was never a secret, you never asked. You could have looked that information up in the council if you wanted. But yes, they were mates, they were wanting to merge packs." "What would that have meant for you?"

"Not much. Your mother and I had an arrangement; the pack would be hers, but I could still run this side of it, and nothing would have changed."

Planning your weekend reading? Ensure you're on 000005s.org for uninterrupted enjoyment. The next chapter is just a click away, exclusively available on our site. Happy reading! "Coming home? What does that mean? Won't that breach your treaty with Alpha Dane?" I ask him

He pulls me into a hug, his familiar scent of pine and earth calming me slightly. His arms wrap around me, providing a temporary refuge from the chaos outside. "Come back to the pack

Apologize to Alpha Dane, and we can work out the stuff with the marriage agreement to marry Boyd. We can make this right."

My heart lurches at his words, the prospect of marrying Boyd making my stomach churn. My voice comes out in barely a whisper, raw and desperate. "But, Dad... I don't love him. I don't know him."

"Sometimes, love grows with time, and you didn't know Zayn either but took a chance with him," he murmurs, rubbing my back soothingly

"You don't have to say yes right now. We need to know if Zayn is your mate first because a bond won't allow you to marry another, but let's just get you home for now. Let's just focus on

your birthday and getting your wolf in two days, the rest we can work out." I nod, feeling relieved that I don't have to make a decision right away