*picture of Gabriel

Tears trailed down my cheek as I took in my surroundings.

It was none other than the place where I had spent time and time pondering on my future, the only place that I had used as an escape. I was back there again, in my bedroom at the pack house, in Pale Moon.

An aching pain in my chest made me clutch my hand on it tightly. Out of all the possibilities, my plan to save Jaxon had not been one. If I had felt out of place in Pale Moon before, now without my best friends, I felt completely lost.

The sound of the door bursting open had me snatch my attention toward the intruder. All the emotions that I felt suddenly vanished, and anger cursed through me at the sight of her.

"You bitch!" she screeched, entering my room. "I couldn't believe it and had to come see it for myself!"

I ignored her.

A week away from this hell was all it took for me to regain my confidence. If Alana thought she could treat me the way I had allowed her once, then she was in for a real shock.

"Why the fuck are you back?" Alana's annoying voice brought my attention back on her.

"Watch how you talk to me," I snapped back, wiping at the wetness on my face.

"Oh, boohoo," Alana mocked. "Cry me a fucking river. What have you got to be upset about?"

"Alana," I warned her. "Shut. Up."

"Or what? You're going to have me punished too?"

I arched a brow. "What are you talking about?"

"Please. I know it was you who had Jasmine tortured," she scoffed, anger evident in her voice. "She hasn't been out of her room in a week all because of you!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I replied, not interested in whatever she was saying. "If you have nothing else to say, leave."

The blonde girl gasped dramatically. "I don't know where you have been or who you've been screwing, but you will no-"

Before she could even finish her sentence, I walked up to her and slapped her, hard. If Alana thought for one second that she could disrespect me, she had something else coming for her.

Seven hundred and thirty days. For two whole years, I had accepted every torture that she had made me experience. I wasn't sure where all my confidence suddenly came from, but I wasn't complaining.

Ever since I had received my Wolf and met Alexander, I felt confidence radiate through me.

"What did you just do?" Alana shrieked, eyes wide. "You did not just slap me!"

"That's exactly what I did. And I will gladly do it again if you don't leave, right now."

Alana challenged me for a mere second before the single functioning brain cell inside of her head convinced her that I was not playing around.

Before I could even blink twice, she had disappeared out of my room. She was smart, sometimes.

Sighing, I wandered toward the window. I wanted to escape Gabriel, but for some reason, I seemed to lack confidence around him. It was as if he had a push button on me that only worked at his convenience.

My brain failed me completely. I didn't know what to do or what to think.

It seemed like I was fated to Gabriel, despite not being his mate. I had met my mate and yet, left him. Only to come back to Gabriel, the one I never wanted to be with. As if on cue, the devil appeared.

Gabriel was wearing a new set of clothes to the ones he had wore when I first saw him. He was wearing a navy shirt, with black jeans.

"Is everything alright?" he asked and came to stand by my side.

I had been at the pack house for over an hour, and yet I hadn't spoken a word to Gabriel. I couldn't find my voice.

"What's wrong?"

"Jaxon," I quickly responded, forcing the words out. "You need to get him out."

Contrary to my thoughts, Gabriel didn't appear phased by the imprisonment of his brother. Instead, he burst out laughing.

"Let's not concern ourselves with the minor inconveniences. That boy will be fine," he quickly dismissed. "Now, tell me what you have been doing."

I was stunned. Completely and utterly shocked. The Alpha that I had feared and thought was kind, suddenly left a bad taste in my mouth.

Gabriel was talking as if I hadn't been kidnapped, as if I had been on a holiday or getaway of some sort. He was speaking casually.

It annoyed me to the core. Not to mention his dismissal toward his brother. The enemy had his brother and he was unbothered. The reality of what kind of a man Gabriel was, caused a shudder to curse through me.

"Lyra?"

"Huh?"

Gabriel grinned. "I was saying, we should celebrate your return by introducing you to the pack tomorrow."

"I have just returned, you need to give me more time."

"You had two years," Gabriel growled lowly. "Count the past week as a holiday before I introduce you to the pack."

I chuckled humourlessly. "A holiday? You can't be serious!"

My words made the Alpha before me narrow his eyes at me. "You didn't enjoy yourself out there?"

His words made me frown. I couldn't decide if he was taunting me or being serious, but the lack of playfulness on his face answered my confusion.

"You think I enjoyed being kidnapped?" I asked, in shock.

"By the looks of it, yes. It appears as though you had quite the fun. Not to mention how different you seem."

"Have you heard yourself?" I asked him, rudely, completely shocked by the words coming out his mouth.

"My dear Lyra," Gabriel chuckled softly. "You will not fool me."

Before I could utter another word, Gabriel pushed me up against the wall. His grey eyes were dark, and his canines appeared. He was furious, but I couldn't understand why.

"Who did this to you?" Gabriel snarled, his face very close to mine.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I responded, my voice barely above a whisper.

I was intimidated. Gabriel scared me.

"I will ask you again," he barked. "Who gave you that mark?"

Gulping loudly, I didn't know what to tell him. I was scared of him, but I also didn't want him to know that Alexander was my mate. What exactly was I going to tell him? Oh, I found my mate and he forcefully marked me without my permission?

"Which bastard forced himself on you?" Gabriel growled, his nails digging in to my waist.

"Gabriel," I winced as his hand on mine tightened.

"You let another Wolf mark you?"

"No, it's not th-"

"Then why have you got a mark?" Gabriel cut me off.

"I don't kn-"

"You don't know?" He laughed. "I waited two fucking years without claiming you, and you let another bastard do it within a week?"

My heart dropped at his words. Alexander had marked me by force and the thought pained me, but to hear it from Gabriel, that made me feel disgusted.

The pain started to get worse, and I wanted to tell him but he appeared blinded by hatred. I silently cursed at Alexander for making my life difficult, but my Wolf growled at me in response.

Meanwhile, I was annoyed that he had marked me without so much as permission, my Wolf was happy because it brought us closer to Alexander.

"If you're not going to tell me. Then I will just have to find out," Gabriel spat, releasing me with enough force to cause me to fall back in to the wall.

He was furious, to say the least. This had been the first time that he had been physically aggressive with me. His hand on my wrist had caused a red imprint, and I could smell the little blood dripping down from my waist where his nails had been.

The Alpha didn't spare me another glance, before he disappeared out of my bedroom.

If I thought returning to him was bad, now with him being aware of my mark, everything was going to be a lot worse.