CHAPTER 83

Asher stared listlessly as the men around him went on and on about the company's stock. The oblivious men assumed he was in one of his dark moods but the wolves among them knew better.
News had travelled even faster than he thought and everyone within his own pack and beyond already knew about Shana's treachery.
And how he hated the pitying looks some couldn't hide from him. He very much preferred the snide and satisfied looks than the pity and sympathy. It made him feel less and less of a man.
All of a sudden, he couldn't stand the presence of his employees. He wanted them all gone.
He didn't want anyone around him.
Standing up without so much as a by your leave, he left the men with irritated looks following after him as he stalked out of the conference room.
What was he even doing here?
He should be out enjoying the rest of his days. His mate had rejected him, she had severed their bond in a brutal way and it was a matter of time before her action killed him.
"Mr Anderson?" He heard Armando calling hesitantly from behind him but he didn't turn to acknowledge him. He had to get out of there.
The walls were closing in around him faster than he expected.
"I need to speak with you Sir," he heard Armando saying but he did not stop as he strode into the elevator. Armando rushed in after him.
"Alpha, I believe Elise is hiding something," he said as soon as he stepped in with Asher.
"I don't care, as long as she recovers from all these," he answered strongly, at the same time praying he also recovers.
"She never spoke about Mr Thomas and Miss Thomas, almost like she is hiding something about their involvement. And her story keeps changing. That doesn't sit well with me," he continued undeterred.
Asher gave a nasty chuckle before turning to his guard. He moved closer to him, smoothing down his already sharp lapels. The other wolf eyed him suspiciously but didn't move out of his reach like others would have done when they saw the red rage in his eyes.
"You want to know what doesn't sit well with me?," Asher asked calmly as he continued to straighten Armando's already perfect clothing. "It's your disobedience and daring behavior. Tell me, does the fact that a woman made a joke of out of me make me seem like one already? Or you simply never saw me more than one and now that you think I'm weak, you want to assert yourself and undermine me?"
"None of those Alpha," he answered with his head lowered.
"Good. Because I wouldn't want to prove to you that I'm not your former Alpha, no matter that we were both played by a Crier," he said and steeped away from him.
Armando sighed despondently. For a moment there, he had expected the Alpha to unleash all his pent up anger on him. He had wished for him to lost control for just a moment and he would have welcomed it. He would have gladly welcomed his rage, instead of the self mockery and empty theats.
It pained him to see the suffering he was going through and as much as he wanted to help, his hands were tied if Asher wanted nothing to do with what he thinks and what he has planned. Going behind his back would make him feel disloyal.
"I'm sorry," he mumbled with his head still bowed.
"Don't be. Just never bring up this issue again," he said just before the elevator dinged and he walked away.
Screw it. He was going ahead with his plan, with or without the Alpha. Loyalty be damned but he couldn't watch his pain anymore.
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"But why would she lie?," Mark asked for the umpteenth time and like times before, Armando answered, "That's what we are going to find out."
"Why are you coming to me with all this? For all you know, I could have known all about my father's involvement and I might have been the mastermind behind all these."
"I could be wrong in my judgement about you but right now, you are the only one I can turn to," Armando answered without giving away anything about his thoughts.
He could work with Cole. It was obvious the wolf has the same suspicions has he did but he didn't know him well enough to trust him. He might have a big score to settle with his brother but Armando knew that family would always come first for his race. He couldn't work with such sentiments when it involved Collins.
"How can I help?," Mark finally asked.
"You need to make Elise talk. She needs someone she thinks is on her side and you are that person."
"And it would be so easy for her to believe that, seeing as my family betrayed the pack," Mark finished. Armando did not refute his words and Mark couldn't help his shame.
He sighed and slumped further in his chair.
He missed his childhood, the days he never had to worry.
The days when had been friends with Asher and they had trusted each other.
The days when he didn't have to deal with contemptuous and suspicious glances from his own pack.
Those were days when he had lived ignorant of the power of greed and betrayal.
He would never have those days ever again but he could do something different today, and the days to come to atone for his father's sin in his own little way.
"I'll do whatever it takes but I hope it won't be too late."
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A week bled slowly into two, then three, and then four.
After that, Shana had lost count as every other day blurred into another but one moment in time would always stand out for as long as she lived.
She would never forget Collins' gloating face as he shattered her world.
He had produced his phone from his breast pocket with relish and proceeded to play a recording, of her husband's voice. It had been his voice no doubt, and there had been no olive branch to cling onto after hearing him say, "Tell the fucking Crier to avoid me and everything that has to do with me or else, she would never live to tell the story. Tell her that's a promise I'll keep with my dying breath."
Now, which other moment in her miserable life could ever beat that?
She had listened forlornly as Collins assured her of his support. But all the while, she had been numb inside and had remained that way ever since.
Nothing mattered anymore, and to an extent, not even the child she carried because she did not want a child born into her world of misery. It would be unfair. Such a child would curse and resent her for the rest of eternity.
Like she knew about her dark thoughts, her baby gave her a sharp kick.
"I'm sorry Little one," she mumbled as she rubbed the small bump.
Her instincts wanted her baby but the part that knew how hard it was to survive wished she could spare her unborn baby the pain.
If only she could get out.
In the last month, she had become friends with Ethan. Like he had promised the first time she saw him, he had been trying to find a way to get her out but he was yet to succeed so far. He had tried different excuses and lies but all had failed because of the heavy security around her.
Every move she made was being watched and it had taken a while before she realized Ethan was the one trying to hold Collins off from hurting her by using his fear for Asher. That part, Shana didn't understand and she never bothered dwelling on it.
Why would Collins be scared of mistreating her when he knew firsthand that Asher was never coming to get her? It all didn't make sense but she had thanked Ethan for thinking of a way to save her.
But that wasn't going to work for much longer. She could sense it.
Lately, Collins was becoming more and more agitated. He was like someone waiting for something to happen, but whatsoever it was keeps eluding him no matter how hard he tried. Everyone around him was feeling the heat already.
It was a matter of time before he turned on her, his reason for keeping her and her baby alive regardless.
She rose from the bed and made her way to the window. She did nothing much as she liked to keep to herself. Except Ethan, she knew no one and trusted no one.
There was Adele but she didn't trust her and she could count the number of times she had seen her since her father was murdered. The last time had been when Collins forced her down to have a meal with him, another avenue where he couldn't keep his gloating to himself.
Adele had looked wan, a shadow of who Shana knew. She couldn't believe she had ever thought the ghostlike figure before her to be beautiful.
All through the meal, she never looked up from her plate,not even once. She had not seen the lewd look Collins was giving her but Shana had witnessed so much of him pawing her that she had actually puked.
Of course, it had been attributed to her pregnancy.
She didn't know she could feel it, but she actually pitied Adele.
Another thing she couldn't wrap her head around was Elise's disappearance. And no one knew a thing about it, not even Ethan who was pretending to be the world most loyal Beta.
She had assumed Collins probably murdered her like he did Thomas over a disagreement but Ethan believed she was very much alive. He was certain Collins would have told him about it because he knew Ethan did not like his accomplice.
Ethan believed there was a lot more to her disappearance as Collins wouldn't even talk about her when he brought it up and had forbidden him to ever ask about her unless he wanted trouble.
But wherever Elise was, Shana wished she rot in hell.
From her view at her bedroom window, she looked down to see the array of guards parading the beautiful garden below.
For some reason, their perverted Alpha kept a well tended garden that boosted of exotic flowers, even she was tempted to take a look and wander around the garden. But she never allowed herself. She would never enjoy anything that belonged to Collins.
The garden was big enough to have many of the Omegas tending it. Some of them were probably there against their will, as no one in their sane mind wanted to be that close or have anything to do with the Alpha but Shana didn't care.
There was no way she was ever going to make it out of there, except by some miracle
Like he knew she was watching, Collins materialized from nowhere and looked up at her.
His signature smile was in place; it was not reaching his eyes, his lips were tuned up at the corners with just a hint of his white teeth showing and his face was as angelic as ever. But his eyes spoke of evil retributions, turning the beautiful effect to something dark and ugly.
She needed to get out. Fast.
But how?