Page 75 of Chained By the Alpha (Claimed Duet #1)

· Cleo ·

Nervously, I pace, waiting for Zayn to return, and find out what my father said to him after I spoke to him.

Zayn said we would speak when he is home, and I didn’t want to try to mindlink him when he is driving or call him; he would already be angry, I don’t need to be another distraction.

However, the longer I wait, the more unsettled I become.

Every echo from the hallway makes me jump.

The silence is oppressive, like a heavy blanket smothering me.

I squeeze my hands into fists, trying to dampen the tremors that ripple through them.

Surely my father won’t expect me to marry Boyd after learning Zayn is my mate?

Then I hear it - the soft click of the door. My heart leaps, lodging itself in my throat as I whirl around. Zayn strides in, his face full of fury.

“Cleo,” he murmurs, his voice gravelly from contained rage. He halts as he takes in my worried expression, a fraction of his anger fading away as he reaches out to caress my cheek soothingly.

His gray eyes meet mine, flashing with an intensity that takes my breath away. I stare back, hoping his anger is only directed at the situation and not me.

“I talked to him.” His voice is hushed. He shrugs off my bag from his shoulder and places it gently on the wooden table near the door, his every move radiating quiet command.

“What did he say?” My voice trembles at the edges despite my best efforts to mask my anxiety. The apprehension gnaws at me, festering into something much more dangerous, something almost akin to fear.

Zayn moves toward me, his black hair falling messily over his eyes. He halts in front of me and reaches out for my hand placing it over his heart, and I don’t like the look he is giving me, like he is worried what he says next will rip the rug right out from under me.

“He told me that Dane already owns the pack. And marrying Boyd is the only way to ensure it remains with your family.” His words are measured and calm, but they hit me like a punch to the gut.

I process this revelation. We’re going to lose the pack.

I shake my head vehemently, “I won’t do it, Zayn,” My voice wavers betraying my terror. “I won’t marry him.”

His expression remains unruffled, his eyes hold an intense flame when he replies.

“You won’t have to, Cleo. Nor would I allow that.

” His hand, warm against the small of my back, pulls me close.

His scent envelopes me, wrapping around me like a protective cocoon.

“I will fix this,” he promises yet how can he when it’s already gone and my refusal to marry Boyd ensures that? “How?”

“By proving it was never his to give away.” My brows pinch in confusion.

“That’s not all, though. I saw Vance on my way home. I have a plan; two in fact, just in case the first one fails, but I’m worried how you’ll react.”

My heart pounds in my chest, a dull throb of unease resonating in my veins. This feels dangerous, like skirting the edge of a cliff with nothing but a blindfold to guide you.

“Zayn,” I began hesitantly, “what are you saying?”

“Plan A,” he says, disregarding my apprehension with a wave of his hand. “We challenge Dane’s claim to the pack, prove your mother never signed it over to your father, meaning it falls to you. If we can prove your father manipulated or lied to acquire it, then we can take it back.”

I shake my head, disbelieving. I can’t even entertain the idea. Zayn said it himself, his father never would have gone to witness it if my mother hadn’t signed it over.

“Plan B,” Zayn continues, his voice steady and sure even as doubt gnaws at me from the inside out. “If we can’t beat him fairly, then we use Vance.”

“And that is?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

His eyes flash ominously under the dim light of the room. “Vance,” he says simply. What’s his brother got to do with this?

“He’s your brother,” I gasp out in disbelief, horror knotting itself in my stomach. That Zayn could consider risking Vance seemed unthinkable and also beyond me, what could he possibly do?

“He’s not just my brother, Cleo,” he tells me, only managing to confuse me further. “He’s yours,” Zayn tells me. I scoff.

“Wait, you think we are related, ew. No,” I tell him. Did he hit his head? Mates aren’t mated to family members, geez. I’m pretty sure the moon goddess has limits too, incest nope! I’ve never heard of mates being relatives! Zayn snorts. “We aren’t related, Cleo.”

“Well, duh!” I blink at him.

“Your father is Vance’s father. Vance is only my half-brother; we share a mother. You and Vance share a father,” he explains, dumbing it down like I am five years old, and honestly, I’m thankful for that because what he said initially went way over my head.

“Wait, what?” My mind stutters to a halt, snagging on the implications. The room spins, and suddenly the air seems thinner. “You’re joking,” I stammer.

Zayn’s face remains tight, his silver eyes serious.

“I wish I were Cleo,” he confesses, his hand encircling my own.

The warmth of his touch is both soothing and alarming.

“It’s the truth, my mother met my father through yours.

When she learned my father was her mate, she was already a few weeks pregnant, and your father was blackmailing my mother.

When she died, he told my father, that was the night I killed mine.

Your father I thought initially framed him, turns out he told my father his son was his. ”

“That means… Oh god, that means…” The reality of the situation sinks its teeth into me, drawing out sharp spikes of panic.

My father had another son, one I was completely unaware of.

And I’m mated to Zayn, who shares the same mother as Vance while I share the same father as him.

Did my mother know? Did anyone else know?

“I don’t understand it, either,” Zayn says softly, pulling me into his strong arms. “But we need to focus on how this changes things.”

Tears prick at my eyes as I bury my face in his chest. His strong heartbeat echoes in my ears - a steady rhythm amidst the chaos. “And how does it change things?” I whisper.

“A lot, because Vance has agreed to put this information out to take away the blackmail Dane has over your father, but that is not all.” he murmurs back.

“If Vance is your father’s son and your mother did indeed sign the pack over to your father, that means he, too, also has a claim to Shadowcrest Pack as well, and my brother was of age when your father made that deal with Dane. ”

“Therefore, as technically the oldest, and of age, your father had no right to make that decision on his own. If your father was in trouble, packs are supposed to be offered to the next in line to buy out before leaving familial hands. We could buy the pack back. It would give us something to fight Dane on, whether or not we win wouldn’t matter, it would give us time to find another avenue if needed.

” His voice is barely audible over my own ragged breathing.

I pull away from him, wiping my tears with shaking hands. Our eyes meet, a swirl of emotions reflected in both our gazes - confusion, fear, and determination. We would find a way out of this mess together.

“So we haven’t lost yet?” I ask and Zayn smiles.

“Exactly. Vance and I share the same mother. We both belong to my pack since my mother was Luna. Your father is the Alpha of Shadowcrest, which technically makes Vance a legitimate heir to both packs,” Zayn explains, a glimmer of hope creeping into his silver eyes.

I’m in shock. I’d never imagined that my family ties could be so complicated, or that they might be the key to saving our pack from Alpha Dane’s greedy clutches.

“What did Vance say? How did he take the news?” I ask.

“The same way as you, though he seemed hurt I didn’t tell him sooner,” Zayn murmurs, cradling my face in his hands and brushing away a stray tear with his thumb.

I nod, swallowing back my fears for the moment. My head is spinning with this new information, and yet there’s one thing I can’t shake off; the idea of Zayn putting his brother—our brother—in danger.

“Zayn,” I start, gazing up at him through teary eyes. “We can’t just use Vance like a pawn on a chessboard.”

He sighs deeply, pulling me in for a comforting hug. His strong arms wrap around me tightly, making me feel safe despite the chaos brewing around us.

“I know, Cleo,” he murmurs into my hair. “We may not have any other choice for now. Tomorrow I am going over to Alpha Greyson’s, he has a friend who can hack into almost anything. The footage that should exist of your mother signing is gone.”

“I know that already,” I remind him.

“Yes, but when I spoke to your father, the news of Vance was scandalous, however he seemed to be hiding something more. I have a strange feeling Alpha Dane has that footage and was the one to delete it, I just need to find it.”

“Why would he take that footage? You said it yourself; your father wouldn’t have signed as a witness unless she agreed.”

“I know, and I know you won’t like what I suggest next, but I need you to hear me out.” He grips my chin and forces me to meet his gaze.

“Alpha Greyson and your mother were going to merge packs. What your father says makes no sense. That your mother would allow him to remain Alpha of the pack. However I can think of one reason why she would allow it.”He pauses.

“Me. He threatened to take me,” I murmur. It explains why she would willingly hand the pack over. Knowing once I was of age my mother would have given me the pack, so he’d lose that leverage over her, anyway.

“I don’t think it was a rogue attack, Cleo. I think your father sent them to kill her. No one else in your pack died. I had Vance pull up the records; only the packhouse was hit, only your mother died.”