Defying the Rogue Alpha
Chapter 114: Emotions

Chapter 114: Emotions

Zoe nodded, her eyes shimmering with a mix of emotions.

Dennis felt his own transformation ebb away as he stood before her, the weight of the moment pressing down on him. She was here, his mate. Emotions tangled within him. He reached out, his fingers brushing against her cheek, tracing the spot where Lucas had struck her. "Why didn’t you say anything?"

Zoe’s gaze dropped, uncertainty flickering across her features. "I... I wasn’t sure. I thought I might be mistaken, or that you were unaware. I didn’t want to impose."

Dennis’s heart ached at her words. He tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his eyes. "You could never be an imposition."

Unable to resist the pull any longer, he closed the remaining distance between them, capturing her lips in a kiss that spoke of longing and newfound connection. Zoe responded in kind, her arms winding around his neck, pressing herself against him as if to meld their very beings together.

The surrounding pack erupted into applause and jubilant howls, the sound washing over them. It was a moment of unity, of acceptance.

Lucas sauntered over, his expression one of smug satisfaction. "Well, my work here is done," he quipped.

Dennis, still holding Zoe close, turned to his brother, a playful glare in his eyes. Without warning, he delivered a swift punch to Lucas’s arm. "That’s for hitting her."

Lucas chuckled, rubbing the sore spot. "Fair enough. I had that coming."

"Thank you, Lucas."

"Dennis, Mother’s death was never your fault."

As the crowd began to disperse, laughter and chatter filling the air, Lucas’s eyes sought out a particular figure standing behind everyone. Her smile sent a warmth coursing through him.

*****

Lucas stood outside Ava’s small bedroom, his eyes narrowed at the sight of the barely-there mattress and bare window. The jaw-tightening frustration crept up on him again. She was Luna. His Luna. And this? This was what she was living like? What he had unknowingly subjected her to?

The guilt clung to him.

"Give them their freedom, Lucas," Ava’s voice came softly from behind him.

He followed as she stepped into the room, letting her voice anchor him. "Ava..."

"They’ve been through enough. Let them go."

Lucas moved closer, unable to stay away. If she asked for his blood, he would bleed for her. If she asked for the moon, he’d find a way to drag it down from the sky. "It’s not that simple," he said, brushing a thumb over her knuckles, his other hand finding hers. "They’re a band of rogues. Outcasts. The High Council will frown on it."

"They’ve already agreed to stand trial," she replied. "You can make this right."

He studied her face . "I’ll look into it," he said, finally. "I promise." Then, unable to resist, he brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them. "Now... come home, Luna."

Ava looked at him and he saw the conflict flicker behind her eyes.

"I can’t," she murmured. "Not until things are resolved here. I can’t leave them yet, Lucas."

He opened his mouth to protest, but she pulled her hand away gently only to reach for his shirt and begin undoing the buttons.

Lucas blinked. "I’m not fucking you in this... dump," he said, making a face as he glanced toward the bed. "The bed’s going to collapse under me."

"Oh, I thought you missed me," she said with a sly smile, working on the last button.

"I do," he said, "but look at that thing. If it so much as hears me breathe, it’ll fall apart."

Ava winked. "Sexy."

Lucas’s brows lifted. "What’s gotten into you?"

She stepped closer, her fingertips grazing his chest. "I missed you. I want you." her smile faded slightly. "Its quite funny isn’t it? Wanting a man who killed my father and doesn’t trust me."

His heart twisted. He pulled her flush against him, hands gripping her waist, eyes burning into hers. "I do trust you. I always have. Fuck, Ava... your father was an asshole. I didn’t know how to tell you without losing you."

"All I’m saying," she whispered, "is one step at a time."

He exhaled slowly, trying to let her go but his body had already memorized her. She pulled off his shirt, fingers trailing down the planes of his chest with deliberate slowness. His muscles tensed under her touch, his breath growing shallow.

"Babe..."

"If you don’t want to break the bed..." she said, "we used to do pretty well on our feet."

He laughed. "My little virgin," he murmured. "Look at how far you’ve come."

Before she could respond, he scooped her into his arms, crossing the room in two strides and pressing her back against the nearest wall. The world narrowed to just her.

He kissed her with everything he had. Each inch of her skin he touched seemed to brand him. Her top was gone in a blink, and he worshipped every inch he uncovered with lips, hands, and desperate need. Her moans curled around him.

She was his. She had always been his.

He set her down, but only to rid her of the last remaining barriers between them. Her shorts hit the floor, and he turned her to face the wall, one hand at her waist, the other undoing his belt. The air between them was thick with anticipation, breath mingling, hands exploring.

He slid into her slowly, the world halting in its orbit. Every nerve ending lit up. He wrapped his arms around her as if anchoring himself.

"I fucking missed you," he growled against her shoulder.

Ava arched into him, her hands bracing on the wall. Every thrust pushed the past further away.

"I can’t do without this," Lucas gasped. "I don’t know how I survived without you."

They moved together, every sound, every moan, a testament to the fire that still burned between them. The slap of skin against skin echoed in the cramped room, each impact a heartbeat, a promise, a reunion.

They unraveled together, voices tangled, bodies shaking.

*****

Sarah’s breaths came in ragged gasps, each one a laborious effort that seemed to drain the very essence of her being. Her body hung limply, suspended by the unforgiving silver chains. The once smooth skin of her wrists was now marred with raw burns. Her back throbbed with a persistent ache.

Her head lolled forward, strands of matted hair clinging to her sweat-drenched face. With a Herculean effort, she lifted her heavy eyelids, revealing eyes that, despite the torment, still burned with defiance. Her gaze locked onto Nolan, the man who had made it his daily ritual to break her spirit. He stood there, eyes gleaming with a sadistic pleasure that made her stomach churn.

"Even if you keep this up for centuries," she rasped, "I have nothing to tell you. Just kill me."

Nolan chuckled. "In due time," he replied smoothly.

Sarah’s vision blurred, the edges darkening as the weight of her suffering pulled her under. The last thing she saw was Nolan’s smug face before the darkness claimed her.

*****

Nolan’s arrival at Dennis’s territory was met with an unexpected efficiency that left him momentarily unsettled. The gates were opened for him without question. He had assumed the Rogue pack would be even more hostile now that the Silver pack was guarding their borders. The man on gate watch offered a curt nod of acknowledgment before going to fetch the alpha. This abrupt shift in reception gnawed at Nolan’s instincts.

Lucas’s approach was unhurried, each step exuding a newfound ease that Nolan hadn’t seen since Ava left the Silver Pack. There was a lightness to his demeanor. Nolan couldn’t help but notice the relaxed set of Lucas’s shoulders. It was as if the Alpha had shed a heavy burden.

"Alpha Lucas," Nolan began.

"Nolan," Lucas acknowledged. "What is so urgent that you couldn’t wait until I returned?"

Nolan took a measured breath. "Alpha, it’s about Sarah. She’s... she’s pregnant. She fainted and Doctor Mary checked in on her. She is almost a month pregnant. We have ceased the interrogation and given her food and water. But she is still in the dungeon."

Lucas gave no reaction. The news about Sarah’s pregnancy seemed to go over his head.

"I didn’t ask you to stop, did I?" Lucas stated.

Nolan felt a flicker of unease. "Alpha, with all due respect, my oath compels me to protect current and future alphas. Continuing the torture violates that oath."

A shadow crossed Lucas’s features. "Future?.... What the... The bitch isn’t carrying my child. I haven’t been with her in ages."

The implication hung heavily in the air. Nolan’s mind raced, connecting dots that painted an unsettling picture. "Then... who? Who would dare Alpha?"

Lucas’s eyes narrowed slightly. "I can think of one person."

"Dorian," Nolan muttered.

Lucas dismissed the notion with a wave of his hand. "Irrelevant. If she refuses to still give any information, threaten the child. I doubt she has any maternal instincts but we can try that angle since nothing else is working."

"Yes, Alpha," Nolan said. He turned on his heel, and left the encampment.

Lucas looked back at his surroundings, there was one more thing he had to do before he left.

@kashvi14: Welcome on board.

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