Chapter 184

HANNAH

Suddenly remembering what had been niggling at the edges of my consciousness, I asked the guard with the split lip. "Where is Asher? Is he here?"

"You heard her!" Alpha Wallace's guard barked. "Answer!"

The guards on their knees exchanged looks.

"He's in one of the cells," one of them said grudgingly. "The Alpha had him locked up some days ago."

"Dawson's not Alpha anymore," Alpha Wallace's guard pointed out but I was barely listening.

Why on earth would Dawson lock Asher up? What had happened between them? Had they quarrelled? Disagreed?

No wonder he hadn't been at the trial and at the arena.

"Take me to Asher's cell. Now," I ordered one of the guards.

No one else would give me answers better than Asher could. If he didn't want to talk... Well, Jace would be more than happy to force the answers out of him.

"Where's he taking you?" Chase asked.

He was walking up to us with the others. I told him about Asher.

Jace nodded at the guard.

"Lead the way," he said.

The cell house was in an outbuilding near the mansion. It had an empty disused feel probably because there were no other prisoners occupying it. We got to Asher's cell, the last one in the row.

"Where the hell is he?" Chase muttered.

The door of the cell was open. The key was in the lock, swaying slightly as though the prisoner had fled just at that moment. A quick look inside the dim space told us there was no one there anymore.

Chase rounded on the guard, repeating his question. "Where did he go?"

Dawson's guard stared at the open door like he hadn't seen it before. His expression of surprise looked genuine.

"I- I don't know," he stammered, blinking and peering in. 

Jace, with a snarl of disgust, gave orders that every inch of the house and grounds be searched. I had a feeling though, growing into a certainty, that Asher was already long gone.

Cade said thoughtfully. "It's either he escaped or someone freed him." He tapped the key ring. "I strongly suspect the latter. Maybe one of Dawson's allies or one of the guards. I'll have the truth out of them if it's the last thing I do."

I couldn't hold back a sigh as another thought dropped into my mind.

Dawson imprisoning Asher could mean they weren't working together anymore. Maybe Asher had gotten tired of his father's thirst for revenge. Maybe Dawson had been the one forcing his son to do all those horrible things to me.

"Don't even go there," Chase said quietly.

I turned to him. "Huh?"

"I know what you're thinking. It's written all over your face. You're thinking Asher could be the victim here and Dawson the villain, aren't you?" I didn't say yes but I didn't say no either. "That's not true. Asher was responsible for all the shit that has happened. In fact, he's the one that started it all, remember? His father just joined in and took it to a whole new level."

"I guess you're right," I said hesitantly.

"Of course I'm right! Asher had a lot of chances to change, to stop, but he never did, and I think you know why," he said. "His ego got the better of him."

I thought about it. Jace was right. Asher had been so desperate to please his father that he would have done anything.

While Dawson probably used him to get his revenge, Asher had loved every minute of it. His heart was as dark, maybe even darker, than his father's.

***********

"I think it's time to take our relationship to the next level."

My fingers, tracing patterns on Cade's bare chest, stilled. I shifted in bed so I could look up into his face. A smile played across my lips.

"What's that now?" I said. "What level? Aren't we going great as we are?"

"Yes. It's been amazing being with you but all this Dawson, Asher crap has kind of gotten in the way of our relationship, hasn't it?"

"I guess so," I said slowly, a little confused and wondering where he was going with this.

Where they were all going with this because my mates seemed to all be in agreement with whatever Cade was trying to say.

Cade went on. "With Dawson gone- thank the goddess for that!- we can finally focus on ourselves."

Jace sat beside Cade, playfully shoved his head down and took my hand. "What my brother is trying to say... trying and failing to say, is that we want to spend the rest of our lives with you."

"That's all I ever wanted. What do you say?" Chase said softly.

I blinked back happy tears, and gently squeezed Jace's hand.

"I want that too," I said.
Bound to Three: The Omega’s Redemption
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