Chapter 8 Misunderstandings

• RYLEE
• All of this was a bad dream, so I thought. My knees had just buckled and I felt like time had come to a halt.
• "You have nothing to say, do you?" Alpha Vincent said and I shook my head.
• "You're talking about Rose? She went missing?" I said.
• "That's right. Where did you take her?" Jared asked.
• "I didn't kidnap her, I swear. I wouldn't do such a thing. We talked about flowers that day. We didn't do anything special. You have to believe me"
• "Rose is sixteen. She's an unmated omega. You have to tell us where you kept my child, you wench!" Rose's mother yelled at me.
• I lowered my head, squeezing my eyes shut. Why was things never going my way?
• "You heard her. Tell us where Rose is" Alpha Vincent said, a blank look on his face.
• I stared at him, mentally pleading for him to believe me this time as well.
• "I didn't kidnap anyone. I talked with her. But, that was it. It's the truth!"
• "You liar! Where have you kept my daughter?! Where is she?!" Rose's mother was filled with so much rage. I was worried that she would make her way to me and hit me.
• "Jared, take her to the cell. Make her tell you everything she knows about Rose's disappearance" the brusqueness of the Alpha's tone brought tears to my eyes. I was stupid to have believed that he would vindicate me.
• A tear of betrayal rolled down my left cheek as my gaze met his cold gaze right before Jared grabbed me by the forearm and led me out of the hall.
• I was locked up in a cell. I didn't bother to argue or struggle. I plopped down on the ground with my back to the wall. I didn't realize that Jared was still standing in front of the cell until I heard his voice.
• "For someone who has just been accused of kidnapping, you are very quiet" he said.
• I kept my gaze on the hard ground, my fingers tracing irregular shapes on the floor.
• "What's there to say? No one believes me, not even your Alpha" I said.
• "Did she act or say something strange the day you two talked?"
• "We talked about flowers. Nothing strange about it" I said and he sighed.
• "Until we find her, there's a chance you'll spend some time in this cell"
• I didn't respond. So, he left. I sat there on the cold, hard ground trying to hold back the tears that were now threatening to flow. I squeezed my eyes shut, refusing to give in to the urge to break down. I didn't do anything wrong. Why do I have to suffer for it?
• I remained in the sitting position as hours slipped by. Night fell and my stomach wouldn't stop grumbling. I curled up in a ball and started to hum in order to distract myself from the gnawing pain in my stomach. I fell asleep despite my discomfort. The next day, I didn't get any visitors until in the evening. Sky was whining in my head. She wasn't happy about our situation. Ava was the one who stopped by in the evening. She brought me a drumstick.
• "I'm sorry I couldn't bring you more food. You are supposed to be starved until the truth is discovered. I know you didn't kidnap Roselyn, but my brother won't do anything to vindicate you. I feel really bad" she said and I gave her a smile.
• "It's okay. I'm okay" I lied.
• "No, you're not! You could spend months in here, Rylee!" she whispered as I munched the drumstick she'd brought.
• "I guess I'll just have to get used to it" I chuckled.
• "You don't have to smile and laugh to make me feel better, Rylee. It's only making me feel worse" she said.
• "I'm sorry" I mumbled.
• She gave me a sad smile.
• "You don't have to be. I'll see you later, okay? I don't want my brother to become suspicious" she said and I nodded.
• "Be strong, Rylee" she said and hurried away.
• 'How can our mate be so indifferent?' Sky said in my head.
• "I know, right? He's so selfish," I muttered.
• 'Maybe, he doesn't know that he's our mate, yet. We should talk to him. He's our mate after all'
• "No. He's going to reject us. He clearly doesn't fancy us," I said.
• 'You don't know that,' Sky said. I was still not convinced that he would accept me as his own mate. Why would he?
• Several hours later, I was awoken from my slumber by Alpha Vincent's cold voice.
• "For someone who has been accused of kidnapping, you sleep well"
• I blinked at his intimidating figure standing in front of the cell door. At first, I thought he wasn't real. It didn't seem likely that he would visit the cell.
• "Are you ready to talk now?" He asked, his piercing gaze trained on me.
• His hair was in a high ponytail and he look so handsome. For a moment, I was distracted by his bulging biceps outlined by his black T-shirt.
• "What else is there to say? I don't know what you want me to say. She told me about her favorite flower and I told her about mine. She asked me if I'd seen the flower anywhere in town. I told her I'd seen it at the ornamental store, once. Then, we talked about other species of flowers" I said.
• Alpha Vincent stare became so heavy that I could no longer make eye contact with him.
• "You should have said this before now. How stupid of you" he said and I gaped at him, bewildered.
• "What?" I breathed, still confused.
• "You-" he was interrupted by the loud noise that erupted in the yard. Someone came running to the cell and I looked up to see a blonde haired male with glowing green eyes.
• "Rose has returned. She's not injured. She said she wandered off to get some flowers but ended up getting lost"
• I sighed, feeling relieved that she was okay. I should have known that she would try to get me the flowers.
• Alpha Vincent looked like he was going to say something to me, but decided against it.
• "Let her out of the cell" he said to the person standing beside him. Then, he walked away.
• "I'm sorry you had to go through all that" the blond said as he opened the door to the cell.
• "It's fine. I've never seen you around before. Who are you?" I asked.
• "You can call me Zeke. I'm the pack's Gamma" he said and I nodded in understanding. Still, he just seemed to be an ordinary werewolf.
• "True. That's what everyone think when I introduce myself to them"
• My eyes widened.
• "You have psychic powers?" I gasped and he shrugged.
• "I'm also the oldest werewolf here. I'm part fae" he said and I stared at him, stunned.
• "That's amazing"
• He smiled.
• "Do you want to go to your newly assigned room or do you want to go and see Rose?" He asked.
• "I'm hungry and cold. I'd rather eat and sleep" I told him.
• "Fair point."
• ...
• After eating, I tried to get some sleep. My thoughts wouldn't let me. Sky continued to whine about how much she wanted to be with our Alpha. My mind was clouded by doubts. I couldn't make up my mind. It was such a tiring ordeal. When Sky's whining became too much, I decided to take the bull by the horn. I walked out of my room and went in search of Alpha Vincent. I was distracted at the same time. I ended up bumping into him, my forehead colliding with his hard chest. He gripped my forearms, our gazes locked. I was very much aware of the fact that my hands were resting on his chest but I couldn't move. I could feel our fated bond. The pull made me a little dizzy.
• "What are you doing?" He asked and I swallowed hard, my legs feeling like jelly.
• "I-I-I"
• Heat pooled in my stomach at the sound of his sudden growl.
• "Get your hands off me, right now" he said and I nodded. When I still didn't move, he pushed me off him. I watched him walk away while my yearning for him grew stronger. I was embarrassed, but there was a part of me that wanted to chase after him.
• Frustrated, I ran my fingers through my brown hair. I went back to my room, still brooding. It was at this point that I realized why I was still feeling horny. I was about to go into heat. Tears filled my eyes at the thought of it. I knew I had to tell Alpha Vincent about it. There was absolutely no way I was going to stay in his quarters while in heat.
• I took a deep breath and headed straight for his study. I didn't bother to knock on the door because of how urgent the situation was. As soon as I opened the door, I found a woman in his office. They were having a conversation and I just happened to arrive at the moment when she said:
• "Marry me, Vincent"
• My heart shattered into a million pieces at the spot.