Chapter Forty-Three
Graham strode down the stairs leading beneath the packhouse. He ignored the guards at the first checkpoint. He had to glare at the second guards stationed at the dungeon entrance before they stepped aside. As he walked down the dank hallway his hands turned to fists.
“Where is she?” he bellowed.
The guards stationed along the walls jumped. “W-who, Sir?”
Graham squared up to the one who’d spoken. “My mate.”
“Your mate?” he asked, glancing at the guard a few feet away.
Graham grabbed the guard’s chin, nearly cracking it. “Arabella.”
Though the guard’s eyes swam with confusion he pointed to a cell near the end of the hallway. Graham noticed two dainty hands clinging to the bars. The hands disappeared as he grew closer. He stood in front of the cell and gazed in at Arabella. Her arms were crossed and she watched him warily.
They’d caught her trying to flee the packlands. Because she was shifted into her lycan form, they had to give her clothes. If you could call them that. It was essentially a potato sack with arm holes. Her long blonde hair was knotted and her blue eyes were filled with defiance.
“Open the fucking door,” Graham ordered, keeping his eyes pinned to Arabella.
The guards rushed to follow his order. As soon as it was open he rushed inside and took her in his arms. Arabella was stiff, unsure what he was doing. He stepped back and gripped her face in his hands.
“Did they hurt you?” he asked, softly.
Her small brows drew even further together. “Grey… what are you…”
“You did it. She’s gone,” he said with a smile as he traced his thumb across her cheek. “We handed her over. It’s all done.”
A tentative smile graced her face before she smothered it with a frown. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
“My sorry excuse for a fated mate,” Graham said. “Catherine. You did it. Now we can be together.”
A tear slid down Arabella’s cheek. “Do you mean it? I thought…”
“You were right. She was pathetic. I had to keep two guards on her while I was away and even then she couldn’t keep from getting in trouble. I don’t need a weakness like that. Not when I am going to accept the role as Beta and become Alpha soon. I need someone strong. Someone I can depend on… You, Arabella. I want you to be my chosen mate. My luna.”
Tears flowed down Arabella’s face. She wiped them quickly and nodded. She jumped into him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a near chokehold. “I am so glad! I knew you would see reason! I knew it!”
Graham pulled away. “Come, let’s get you out of here.”
Arabella took Graham’s extended hand and followed him out of the dungeon, glaring at each guard as she passed. When they reached the first floor of the packhouse, she wrapped herself more firmly around him. He knew it was in case anyone were to see them. The packhouse was empty though. He made his way to the mustang and held the door open for her.
“So sweet,” she purred, winking at him as she climbed in. As he slid into the driver seat, he noticed her face pinched in disgust. “That smell… did you have that witch with you?”
Graham smirked. “No need to be jealous, Bella. I just used her as a bargaining chip. A way to sweeten the pot for Dominic.”
She leaned over the center console and started rubbing his arm. “You’re going to make such a good Alpha. I was a bit worried when you didn’t come home and heard you were chasing the rogue. The witch is pretty important for all this to work.”
“He never mentioned what he needed her for. I didn’t care,” he shrugged and grabbed her hand to plant a kiss on the back of it while he kept his eyes
Chapter Forty-Three
focused on the road ahead.
Arabella giggled, loving the attention he paid to the back of her hand. “I have to admit, Dominic is quite a strategist. Second only to you, of course. When will you mark me?”
Graham glanced over at her and gave her his best smile. He rubbed his thumb over her fingers. “Tonight.”
Arabella yanked her hand away to clap them. “I cannot believe this! When Curtis called me I told him to shove it. Especially after that bitch of a mate of yours came into the picture and you kicked me out of bed…” She glared at him.
“All in the past, Bella. I promise to spend the night on my knees begging for your forgiveness,” he whispered.
“Mmm, good. I love you on your knees.”
“How long has this plan of yours been in motion, you little minx?” he asked as they pulled up to his house.
Arabella hopped out and skipped around the car to wrap herself around him again. He lead them toward the door. “Well after that night you brought her home I called him back and said he’d need to be a bit smarter if he wanted to get Chloe and Catherine. His magic is dwindling, you know? He needs more which is why he needed Chloe. He told me he had a plan for her but needed my help to get Catherine away from you, which, wasn’t hard.”
Arabella laughed as they entered the house. “Ugh, we have to get a maid in here. It reeks of her. Maybe painting the walls would help. There definitely needs to be renovations done but then again we’ll be moving into the packhouse soon, right?” Arabella leaned against the kitchen counter and spread her arms wide as she fluttered her lashes at him.
Graham watched her from the table. “As soon as Dominic gets his prize and pays for it with Jensen’s life.”
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Arabella’s mouth dropped in humorous disbelief. “That’s how you’re going to do it? Why don’t you just challenge him?”
Graham shrugged. “Jensen is loved by everyone. If I were to take the position by force, it would look bad. I’ll accept his offer for Beta and then two weeks later, Dominic will take care of him for me.” Graham walked up to her and her eyes drooped in desire. He ran his hands up her arms and leaned toward her ear. “What is he giving you, Bella?”
Arabella’s hands ran down his chest. “All I wanted was you… and to be luna.”
Graham stepped back. “I’m proud of you. Staging the night drill, sending a man in with wolfsbane to take everyone out and slip away into the night, none the wiser. You’ll make quite the luna. I just wish I knew what Dominic wants her for.”
“You don’t need to worry about that anymore,” Arabella purred, lacing her arms around his neck. “Curtis gets Chloe and her magic, Dominic gets the weak slut to do with what he will and you… you get me…” Arabella ran her tongue down the side of his neck. “She’s not marked but…” She shrugged. “With you rejecting her, I’m sure any lycan will do. That can’t be helped.”
Graham took her hands away from his shoulders so he could look down at her. “He needed me to mark her? Why didn’t you say so? I would have done it and maybe we could have gotten even more.”
“I’m surprised he didn’t tell you himself since you spoke with him,” her eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion.
“I’m sure he thought it was already done,” he deflected. “He seemed more interested in my deal with Chloe. Probably because he knew you’d gotten that other woman handled already.”
“That’s true,” she said, trying to wrap herself more tightly about his body.
He leaned down and ran his nose over her shoulder. “One more thing before I take you to the bedroom and begin to do unspeakable things to you.”
“Whatever you want to know, Grey,” Arabella moaned, pushing her breasts against him.
“How did you disguise your scent at the fenceline when the rogues tried to enter?”
Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean? I wasn’t there. I was in Sterling gathering supplies for taking care of the girl.”
“You weren’t there, Bella? It was someone else?”
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Chapter Forty-Three
She shrugged and laced her arms around him again. “I guess so. He didn’t mention anyone else but it wasn’t me so…” She ran her finger along his chest. Then the finger paused. “Why do you keep calling me that? You’ve never called me that before?”
“I suppose I didn’t know what nicknames he called you. I took a shot.”
Arabella drew back, her eyes narrowed. “What?”
“I think I got everything we needed. Thank you,” Graham said with a sinister smile.
Arabella glanced around as the room they stood in began to fade. The light in the room drained, leaving behind stone walls covered in mold, water and marks from past prisoners. Arabella stumbled back and landed on the cot she’d been using since the night before.
Graham pushed himself off the outside wall. With his arms crossed he walked up to the bars and glared inward at the woman who dared touch his mate, who dared to try to take her away from him and give her to a monster. Arabella’s chest rose and fell harshly. Her wide eyes looked frantically around, trying to figure out what happened.
“Get everything we needed?” Graham asked, opening the door to let Chloe out.
Chloe stepped up beside him. “Piece of cake. You were right, her mind was like putty. It was almost boring it was so easy.”
“You’ve gotten stronger,” Graham noted.
Chloe shrugged. “Or she’s gotten weaker.”
“What the FUCK is going on?” Arabella shrieked, pulling at her hair.
Graham chuckled as she fell apart. “We needed answers from someone we knew could resist torture. We were creative and outsmarted you, bitch. Now you’ll sit here and rot until Theo has time to take his pound of flesh for you making his mate bleed. Did you get the other thing I asked you for?” Graham asked Chloe.
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Chloe smirked. “Oh yeah, it’s so simple, it’s pathetic. Banishment and a traitor mark.”
Arabella’s face fell. “Wh…What?”
Graham stepped closer to the bars and gripped them in a tight fist. “You’re greatest fear, Arabella. It is pathetic, indeed. But I’m not sure I’ll let you leave this cell alive. You touched my Catherine. You tried to steal her from me. I’ll end your life myself.”
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Surrendering to Destiny
