Chained By The Alpha Jessica Hall

Chapter 140 Zayn

The walls of the old city council chambers in the City close in on me, as I peer around, disorientated from the wolfsbane. When I heard Alpha Dane wanted to buy this run-down place, I never thought this would be beneath its office buildings. Once a place where laws were made and packs formed and shaped, now it serves as my prison. Shackles bite into my wrists, yet even bound, I still laugh at the men who fear me even bound. They wouldn't be so daring if I wasn't drugged on wolfsbane and shackled

My breaths come in shallow puffs, each one laced with pain. My arms are bound above me, chains rattling with every breath I force through

lungs constricted by pain, the handcuffs shackled to my wrist cutting deeper with each movement. The stench of mildew hangs heavy in the air, mingling with the metallic tang of my own blood. It's dark, save for the light dangling from the roof near me

Fists pummel against my torso, and each hit a dull thud against the agony that sings through my veins. But I can feel it burning itself out, leaving behind the fiery trail of my impending resurgence. Zarek, my wolf, churns beneath my skin, a storm of fury waiting to be unleashed

"Come on, Alpha," Dane's voice cuts through the haze of pain. "What's the grand plan? Are you and Greyson cooking up a little rebellion?"

I lift my head, silver eyes meeting his cold gaze

The taste of iron fills my mouth, but my smirk 1s unwavering. "You think you've won, always so

foolish." I rasp, my voice echoing off the stone walls

Dane steps closer, the scent of his arrogance washing over me. "You're in no position to keep secrets. It's over. The City will be mine, and your seat revoked on the council."

"Keep dreaming," I manage to spit out

His laugh 1s sharp, like the crack of a whip

"You and Greyson, teaming up it won't change a thing. You can't stop me now. You underestimated your enemies, Zayn."

I laugh, even as another blow lands, stars exploding behind my eyelids. "T know you, Greyson, and Joseph met up today. Just tell me why, and I may think about letting you live." Alpha Dane sneers. I remain tight-lipped. He thinks he has won, little does he know I am

precisely where I want to be

As Alpha Dane's words slither through the air, a cold, grim smirk etches itself onto my battered face. Each jarring blow that crashes into my body only sharpens my focus-pain as a catalyst, not a deterrent. He sees a beaten man before him. But my plan is unfolding, albeit through a haze of agony

In this dank, dark cell, each moment stretches, yet I cling to the clarity of my strategy. Dane believes he's cornered me, that he's cut off all my exits. But what he doesn't realize is that I'm not fighting to escape. I'm manipulating the

chessboard from a position he doesn't even know I hold

My body may be trapped here, shackled and subjected to his petty displays of power, but my people are moving, unseen. While Dane gloats,

his gaze fixated on his perceived victory, his pack remains unguarded, his territory vulnerable because he thinks he already won. But he's wrong-it's about ensuring that every second I spend here under his watch is a second that my people use to dismantle his

A distraction... that's all I need to be right now

If Dane pours his resources into breaking me, and searching for Cleo, which I expect he's already found. Greyson knows what to do; we've orchestrated this dance of deception and division with meticulous care. Joseph knows his part too and should have Cleo to the safe house waiting for Dane's call

The sharp, copper taste of blood keeps me grounded as Dane leans in, his face twisted in a grotesque mask of triumph. He thinks he's reading fear in my eyes, but it's anticipation he's mistaking. Every word he spits, every threat he

throws, just confirms how blind he is to the counterstrike waiting beyond his walls

'Patience, Zarek,' I remind my wolf. 'Let him revel in his illusion of control. With every minute he wastes here, Vance is closer to breaking through his firewalls and our people breaking in and ransacking his packhouse.'

"Your silence won't save you," Alpha Dane snarls, stepping back. "Nor will it save her

Keep your secrets, it changes nothing."

"Careful, Dane." My voice is laced with venom now, the threat unmistakable despite my position. "Your ambitions might just be the end of you."

He leans in, his breath hot against my ear. "You were taken down so easily, Zayn. It's almost disappointing."

"Too easy, don't you think, Dane," I spit out the words with a chuckle despite the throbbing in my jaw from where his fist last connected. Dane watches me, his eyes a stormy promise of more pain. He smiles, but it doesn't reach his eyes

"Tell Boyd if he lays a finger on Cleo, I will kill him," I continue, the threat simmering in my throat like a promise. "And I will make you watch."

His reaction is a dark chuckle, a sound that grates against my heightened senses. "Say what you want. Soon it won't matter," Alpha Dane boasts with a malicious grin. "Boyd will marry Cleo, and the combined strength of our packs will make ours the largest in the city, it will also give me the majority favor in the council."

"Really?" I challenge, my head throbbing with each heartbeat. "Why would Cleo need to marry

Boyd when you already claim to own the Pack?" I observe his posture stiffening and the flicker of uncertainty in his eyes. I've hit a nerve, and it feels damn good

"Because you don't, do you?" I taunt, twisting the knife deeper. "You know it will be revealed that Joseph never truly owned it, to begin with, and that's why you need Cleo."

The silence that follows is heavy, charged with unspoken threats and the weight of secrets teetering on the edge of exposure. Dane's face contorts with rage as he leans in close enough for me to see the veins bulging at his temples

"Well, I will tomorrow when it's official," I say, my voice dripping with confidence and dark amusement

The door creaks open again, and several bulky

figures step into the room. Each one is a testament to brutality. Their faces twisted with malice and anticipation. They circle me like predators, eager for the kill

"Looks like it's time for round two, boys," Dane tells them

One of them growls, cracking his knuckles

Their laughter reverberates off the stone walls, chilling despite the sweat that beads on my brow

"Make sure he lives long enough to witness the wedding, don't let him die beforehand, she will feel it." Dane says. The men nod, moving around me

I let the laughter roll over me, feeling Zarek stir within, straining against the wolfsbane's weakening grip. My wolf yearns for the hunt,

for the freedom to protect what is ours. But not yet, I need to hold off

With each aching breath, I focus on the burn of the wolfsbane dissipating from my system, its toxic presence fading as I try to focus on the bricks of this place and not their fists pummeling my body. Every cell in my body screams for release, for the chance to shift and let Zarek take over

But not yet. Not until the perfect moment

For now, I bide my time, feeling the raw power coursing through my veins, ready to unleash the beast within. And when that moment arrives, once Vance has found what we are looking for

They'll regret ever thinking they could use Cleo as a pawn in their twisted game