Page 22 of Chained By the Alpha (Claimed Duet #1)
Lydia’s footsteps echo behind me, her breathing shallow and uneven. I can sense her desperation growing with each passing second, matching my own mounting fear. The house feels empty, void of any signs of life. Where is he?
We both move from room to room, meeting back in the foyer. “Maybe he stayed with friends, his car isn’t even here,” I tell her, yet the sinking feeling in my stomach causes knots of anxiety.
“Or maybe he didn’t make it home at all. Maybe he is dead in a ditch somewhere,” she retorts, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. “Maybe you’re the one who’s lying, Cleo. Did you do something to him?”
“Why would I lie about that? And why would I do something to my boyfriend, Lydia? Just shut up, you aren’t making any sense!” I snarl incredulously, my anger rising at her accusation.
“Where were you, Cleo? I saw Deacon leave with you! Don’t lie to me, I know you’re lying!”
“Are you really going down this road right now? I told you I never left with him? Is that so hard to believe?” I ask, my disbelief growing by the second.
“I saw you!” she screams, her face turning purple in her anger as she clenches her fists glaring at me.
“Fine,” I snap, my patience wearing thin. I can’t deal with this anymore, now isn’t the time for it. “No, I wasn’t with Deacon last night. I was with someone else.”
My words seem to shock her, she flicks her long hair over her shoulder and crosses her arms. “Who?”
“None of your business!” I refuse to give her any more ammunition against me.
She opens her mouth to speak again, and I cut her off.
“Lydia, I swear,” I start to explain, my voice shaking with emotion, “he left me at the club; I don’t know where he went after that. Last time I remember seeing him, he was dancing with you and Maya!”
“Of course you don’t remember, how convenient. I don’t believe it,” she snaps, rolling her eyes. My gaze flickers over her body, taking in her disheveled appearance – the smeared makeup, tousled hair, and rumpled clothes. Her gaze goes to me. She sneers, eyeing my clothes suspiciously.
“Clearly you were up to no good. Look at what you’re wearing. Where did you get the money for that dress? Are you whoring yourself out now?”
“I’m not doing this with you, think what you want,” I wave her off dismissively.
She really grates on my every nerve.
“You managed to find your way into someone else’s arms, didn’t you? I wonder what Deacon will think about that. You’re nothing but a slut. Who else are you screwing? Does Deacon know what a whore you are?” She keeps pushing, her words laced with malice and accusation.
“Wha—?” I stammer, caught off guard by her claims. It isn’t entirely baseless. Last night, in my drunken haze, I ended up entangled with Zayn, just not in the way she is suggesting.
“Lydia, it wasn’t like that,” I say defensively, my fingers twisting nervously in the fabric of my dress. “Let’s just inform my dad and organize a search,” I say, trying to keep the quiver out of my voice.
“Fine,” she begrudgingly agrees, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. “You still haven’t answered my question, Cleo. If you weren’t with Deacon, where were you staying last night? Or should I say, who with?”
I feel my cheeks heat, knowing full well no answer will be good enough for Lydia. But there’s no escaping this conversation now. Taking a deep breath, I muster all my courage and admit, “I stayed with Zayn.” She stops beside my car staring at me.
Nervousness creeps into me, fuck I am so busted. My father is going to kill me.
“I tried to drive home, and Zayn ran into me,” I tell her truthfully, and she scoffs. “You were with Zayn? As in, you spent the night with him?” she asks, shocked.
“Zayn found me outside the club, alone and wasted, trying to drive home. He helped me back to his place. Deacon was not with me.”
“Wait, so you were gallivanting around with a rival pack Alpha the same night Deacon goes missing, and I am supposed to believe that is a coincidence!?”
“Lydia, I don’t care what you believe, just get in the car so we can find him. We’ve wasted enough time.” She huffs and does as she is told, then throws another accusation my way.
“Do you think your new boyfriend, Zayn, had something to do with Deacon’s disappearance? He doesn’t like him,” Lydia points out, pursing her lips as she cocks a brow as if I would know the answer to that, after spending a little time with Zayn.
I feel a surge of anger at her suggestion.
“Zayn wouldn’t hurt Deacon,” I snap back.
“He has no reason to. Besides, he is probably fine, you’ll see all this worry will be for nothing.
” I snap back at her, and she falls back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest. My mind goes back to what Zayn said about how he saved me, he never said from whom.
I shake the thought away, Deacon would never.
Right? The thought has been embedded into my mind, and for some reason I can’t shake it off as we continue the drive home.
Once home, Lydia rushes inside and I see my father is now home. I am dreading going inside now, I know Lydia will blurt to my father about me being with Zayn, and I can already see the fight this will cause.
Once Lydia is inside, I pull out my phone and send a message to Zayn. My fingers hesitate for a moment before I type.
Me: Deacon is missing. Can you check the club’s footage from last night? Maybe it can help us find out where he went.
I hit send, feeling a mixture of hope and desperation. Zayn might be my only chance at finding out what happened to Deacon. As I wait for a response, the weight of the situation settles heavily on my shoulders. For now, finding Deacon is my priority, and everything else will have to wait.
Zayn replies a few seconds later.
Zayn: Deacon is missing? I saw him last night before I left. He was dancing with Lydia. I can meet you at the club later, and we can go over the footage together.
I quickly agree to meet him when the front door bangs open, and my father is glaring at me from the front porch.
Great, now I have to deal with him, and he’ll be furious when he learns who I was with last night.
Climbing out of the car, he storms down the steps toward me with a furious look on his face.
His eyes flash with anger as he confronts me, his voice laced with disappointment.
“Cleo, what the hell were you thinking? Spending the night with Zayn, of all people!”
Of course, Lydia couldn’t wait to throw me under the bus. His words pierce through me like hot iron, igniting a mixture of fear and defiance.
“Dad, it’s not what you think,” I stammer, attempting to defend myself. He doesn’t seem interested in hearing any explanation.
“Not what I think? You’re fraternizing with the enemy!” he growls, his face turning red with anger.
“I know, I know,” I stammer, my heart sinking at the disappointment in his voice.
Once again, I’ve let him down. Great, thanks, Lydia.
“It wasn’t like that, Dad. I was in no state to drive, and Zayn found me outside the club. He brought me back to his place to make sure I was safe. That was all. Nothing sordid, I swear!” I try to explain myself, hoping he listens.
My father’s expression softens slightly, though his disapproval is still evident. “And where was Deacon during all this? He should have been the one taking care of you, not Zayn.”
I swallow hard, my throat dry with guilt. “I don’t know, Deacon left me at the club earlier in the night. I haven’t seen him since.”
His eyes narrow as he studies me, searching for any signs of deceit. “You expect me to believe Deacon just abandoned you in that state?”
“I wouldn’t lie about this,” I say firmly, meeting his gaze head-on.
“Deacon disappeared, and we need to find him. Ask Lydia, we just returned from his house; can we argue about this after we find him, please?” And for the first time ever Lydia comes to my defense against my father, even though she is the one who clearly told him where I was.
“She’s right, Joseph, Deacon wasn’t home. We can’t find him,” Lydia adds, and he peers over his shoulder at her, then looks at me.
“And nothing happened between you and Zayn?” he questions. My brows furrow in confusion. “No, I just told you that!”
“So you didn’t fuck him?” my father accuses, and my eyes widen, appalled.
“Excuse me?” I splutter.
“Answer the question, Cleo, or I will have the doc check you. If I want this alliance to go well with Alpha Dane, you’d best still be pure.” I stagger back, and even Lydia seems disgusted at his question, which says a lot because that bitch revels in my discomfort.
“For your sake, I’m going to pretend you did not just ask about the state of my virginity. And Alpha Dane can go fuck himself if he thinks I will marry his son,” I snarl angrily, stomping off toward my car.
“Where do you think you’re going?” my father yells at me, and I stop flinging my car door open.
“To find Deacon, my boyfriend and future mate!” I yell at him before climbing in my car. I start my car and slam it in reverse, tearing out of the driveway and back toward the city.