Page 7 of Alpha's Revenge Luna

Before closing the door, I go to the bookshelf and grab the false book off the shelf holding the safe’s key. The safe sits on the wall behind the door.

“You don’t need money,” he says.

“It’s not for me; I need to give it to my grandmother,” I tell him, unlocking it with the key and putting in the code. The door makes a clicking noise, and I open it when Alpha Dion grips my shoulder, jerking me back. He pulls me back when he notices my father’s gun.

I stare at it, knowing he will probably hurt me if I reach for it.

Instead, I motioned for him to grab it. He tosses it on the armchair, and I fill the bag with cash and everything else, like my mother’s jewelry and some documents I figure are important if kept here.

When I am finished, I zip up the bag and stand, kicking the door of the safe shut.

Alpha Dion grabs the bag from my hand and motions toward the door.

Leaving out, he passes the duffle bag to one of his men before grabbing my arm. “You’ll do it,” he told me, and I furrow my brows in confusion. I said I would go with him, what more does he want? He passes me a Zippo lighter, and I stare at the silver metal glinting in the light.

“Burn it,” he tells me, and I step back, shaking my head.

“I said burn it. This is no longer your home,” he snarls, grabbing my hand. He turns my palm up, forcing my hand around the lighter and nudging me toward the porch and open door where one of his men is dousing the stairs in fuel.

He strolls out and down the steps casually as if he didn’t just order me to destroy my family home.

My eyes prick with tears as I peer up at my home before flicking my thumb over the flint.

The flame sparks, burning high, and I toss it through the door onto the hallway runner that leads up the stairs.

It catches alight, and I shut my eyes, not wanting to watch the flames lick up the staircase and the walls, devouring my home.

Turning around, I see Alpha Dion is watching me.

I glare at him before stalking past him and ripping the door open.

Climbing in the car, I give his driver the address for my grandmother’s house.

The car ride is almost silent, the tension thick in the air. Caleb dozes on my lap while Alpha Dion sits across from us, his eyes never leaving me. The occasional glance I send him is met with a cold, unnerving stare. He holds my future, my life, in his hands, and he knows it.

My maternal grandmother lives just outside of town in an old cottage.

She always despised my father but loved us regardless.

I know she will raise Caleb with all her heart.

We reach my grandmother’s place quickly, nestled in the forest, with its cozy cottage design and colorful gardens with a white picket fence.

The car drives up the long dirt driveway, and as we approach, she steps out of her house, shotgun in hand, aimed directly at the approaching vehicle.

She may be old, but the woman is fierce.

Her wiry white hair blows in the breeze as she glares down the end of the barrel, arms strong, her lips pulled into a snarl.

“If the old bitch shoots. She dies, Emery. That’s the only warning I’ll give,” Alpha Dion says, and I swallow.

“Tell your men to stand down then because she will,” I tell him, and he growls, spinning in his seat as the car stops, and I reach for the handle.

Before I get out, I cast a quick glance at Alpha Dion, almost as if asking for permission. He merely grunts, his silence haunting, the same as his next words.

“You try anything, and I will make you slit her throat,” he warns me as I grip the handle.

“Emery!” he roars at me, and I nod once, tossing the door open and climbing out.

“I won’t try anything,” I reply.

“Grandma, it’s me!” I yell out, putting my hands up and stepping past the door. She lowers her weapon.

“Emery, is that you, dear?” She exhales, moving toward the steps when the Alpha opens his door. His shoes crunch on the gravel, and he grabs my arm as I go to move past his door. My grandmother instantly raises her gun, pointing it directly at him.

“Grandma!” I panic as I feel his grip on my arm tighten.

“Emery, who is that?” she says, moving down the steps when the doors to the other cars open.

“Grandma, stay where you are,” I warn her, and she stops; eyeing the men piling out of the cars and surrounding her.

“Where are your parents?” she asks warily, looking around. Grandma isn’t part of my father’s pack; she refused to submit to him. She never approved of him, so she wouldn’t have felt the downfall of our pack or the silence of the mindlink.

“Please, tell them to stand down,” I whisper to Alpha Dion, praying he doesn’t kill the only family member I have left besides my brother.

His eyes glaze over, and the men climb back in the cars, and Alpha Dion turns back toward the car, letting me go as he opens the back door.

He grabs my brother, who is still fast asleep, making me wonder if they gave him something.

Usually, he is up by now and running amuck.

Tears prick my eyes when realization dawns on her face when Alpha Dion steps out for her to see him.

My grandmother knows these men aren’t my guards; she knows there is no way my mother or father would let strangers take my brother or me. She may have thought I was running away from my father’s control, but she knows I would never endanger my brother by running off with him.

“She’s gone, isn’t she?”

I barely hear her whisper as she refers to my mother. My lip quivers as I stare up at Alpha Dion, whose face is completely expressionless. I race to the back of the car, grabbing the duffle bag.

I make my way over to her, and she hangs her head. “Always knew your father would one day get her killed; I am just thankful you two survived,” she whispers, cupping my face with her hand. Tears glisten in her eyes as she motions toward the door, trying to hold in her heartbreak.

“Emery,” she gasps, ushering me inside. “What happened?”

I briefly explain that I am leaving Caleb with her, not daring to glance back at Dion, knowing the danger grows each second I delay. I hand her the duffle bag, explaining that it contains money, jewelry, and important documents. However, she doesn’t seem to understand that I won’t be staying.

“Come, come, I will get you kids settled,” she whispers, not realizing I’m leaving, and these people aren’t merely escorting me to her.

“Emery is not staying, just the boy,” Alpha Dion says, and she stops on the last step. I grab her arm, my hand sliding down to grab the shotgun in her hand. I swallow, feeling the tremble in her hand.

“Don’t, he will kill you both,” I whisper to her, and she reluctantly lets it go.

“Toss it, Emery,” Alpha Dion warns behind me, and I see one of his men from my peripheral vision move closer. His hand wraps around mine in a punishing grip, and I grit my teeth, feeling my fingers crush.

“Let it go,” Dion snarls behind me, and I do. Allowing the man to take it. My grandmother peers down at my torn dress, and the filthy state I’m in. “Please, Grandma, don’t try anything,” I whisper to her, knowing if she does, he’ll kill her and probably Caleb.

I nod at Grandma, indicating for her to step inside her cottage.

Lavender and citrus fill the air, a smell in which I always find comfort.

I can smell the freshly baked cookies sitting by the open window in the kitchen to cool.

Grandma loves jam drops and chocolate chip cookies; she always had an assortment of treats for us.

She spoiled us rotten, however money is tight for her so I know she needs my father’s money from the safe.

It will tide her over until I find a way to get us out of this mess.

We step into the living room, which has a large window with drapes on either side.

The furniture is antique, the couch and chairs a rich red velvet.

A soft rug with a floral pattern adorns the floor.

The curtains match the sofa, a thick royal blue with white flowers.

My grandma’s home is always immaculate; it’s hard not to feel safe in her presence.

But tonight, I don’t feel safe anywhere.

Alpha Dion walks into the living room and places Caleb on the red plaid, velvet pattern couch, and I set the duffle bag on the hall stand noticing grandma watching Alpha Dion with suspicion.

“What are your intentions with my granddaughter?” she asks, staring at me in panic.

I’m surprised by the gentleness in his voice as he speaks to her.

“She is to become my Luna,” he tells her. My grandmother’s face doesn’t change, her eyes don’t widen, she doesn’t gasp, or suddenly back up in fear. She just stares at him, her face blank, her dark hazel eyes widen the slightest at what he is telling her.

My grandmother looks at me curiously. “And you agreed to this?” she asks.

“She doesn’t have a choice,” Dion answers before I can try to placate her with a lie she’d probably see straight through.

“But she isn’t even of age; she won’t even have her wolf for a few more days,” she pleads with him.

Her words fall on deaf ears. He claims I am his mate, and I know with such claims, he will not let me go.

If legend is true, finding your mate gives an Alpha insurmountable strength and purer bloodlines.

However, Alpha Dion being Hybrid, I am not quite sure how things will change for him.

“Once she shifts, she will provide an heir,” he tells her like it is simple and expected of me. But becoming a mother is one thing I didn’t want at the ripe age of nineteen.

“But… she–”

“She will provide an heir once her wolf comes in, and we can complete the mating ritual,” he tells her, his voice changing to more of a warning.

“Now, come, Emery. I did as you asked, I didn’t kill him. Now we leave,” he tells me, grabbing my arm.

“Wait!” my grandmother shrieks. He growls in annoyance. However, he does stop.