Free Web NovelChapter 276: Chapter 276
Nathan’s POV
Collins stammered his agreement.
When the call ended, I moved, driven purely by instinct. My wolf prowled beneath my skin, fur bristling, demanding justice, demanding blood.
If I had known her truth sooner...
If I hadn’t been so consumed by the fear of being loved...
Maybe we would have been different.
Maybe Lana would have been born under different circumstances, celebrated, not hidden.
Maybe Aria wouldn’t hate me so much.
Hours later, in my office, the screens glowed like ghosts in the dark. Collins handed me a tablet, the weight of it heavier than steel.
It was the surveillance footage I had requested for.
I saw Aria, her small frame in a prison uniform.
Her dark hair yanked back, her cheek swollen, her belly already showing.
My mate...My Luna was being treated like prey.
My wolf roared, shattering my composure, claws ripping through my fingers as my control slipped. The screen shook in my trembling hands.
They called her names, accused her of seduction dragged her across the floor like she was nothing.
Tears streaked her cheeks as a woman lifted a sharpened nail clipper and carved a line across her face.
The look of fear on Aria’s face hit me so hard I dropped to my knees.
My vision narrowed. Rage boiled up, feral and uncontained, until all I could see was red and the need to hunt.
To kill.
“Find them,” I growled, my voice distorted by my wolf rising in my throat. “Find every last one of them.”
Collins swallowed hard. “Y-yes, Alpha.”
Then...
Knock. Knock.
A trembling voice outside my door.
“Alpha Nathan... are you there?”
A voice, sharp as claws against stone, splintered the dead silence.
My eyes flicked to the door. I swallowed hard, choking down the metallic taste of blood in my mouth.
Knuckles rattled against the office door again.
Relentless and a bit impatient, like fate demanding entry.
“Collins,” I rasped, rubbing my temples where a migraine pounded like rogue thunder, “open it.”
As Collins turned, I reached for the gold-rimmed glasses on my desk. The metal was cool, grounding. I slipped them on, masking my wolf just enough. The glasses softened my edges, made me look like the controlled alpha everyone assumed I was. But inside, the beast was pacing.
The door opened, and a woman stepped inside.
She froze.
My office was dim, only a single light was on.
Her heartbeat quickened. I heard every uneven thud.
“Alpha Nathan... you had your beta, Collins summon me. Is there something you need?”
Her voice shook like a leaf in winter wind.
I lifted my gaze to her.
Even that small movement sent her flinching.
I recognized her, she was the same waitress from that night.
“You withheld information from me at the club the other night,” I said, my voice low, the alpha edge creeping in.
Her scent spiked with a mix of panic, guilt and despair.
She clasped her hands, her knuckles whitening.
My claws pressed against my skin from the inside. If she lied, I’d smell it.
“No matter what threats you’ve received,” I said, drumming my fingers against the desk, the sound echoing like ritual drums, “or deals you made... speak. If it’s threats, I will protect you. If it’s a deal... I will offer better.”
Outside, rain began to fall, tapping like claws against the windows.
She trembled. My wolf leaned forward inside me, listening.
I let out a slow breath, trying to steady the storm rising under my skin.
“You know the consequences of crossing me in Asterfell, my dear.”
My voice dropped, it became too calm, the kind of calm that comes before slaughter.
Her knees buckled. She fell to the floor with a thud, shock tearing through her scent.
Collins inhaled sharply.
I didn’t move.
Aria’s face flashed through my mind, her tears, her voice breaking, her wolf trapped and trembling in a place she should have never been.
I pushed the memory down before it shattered me again.
The waitress sobbed. “I-I didn’t want to! I had no choice!”
Collins stepped forward. “Ms. Shepard... Alpha Nathan keeps his word. Who would dare touch you if he offers protection? And didn’t Luna Aria help you when you first joined Hemsworth Group? If he wants to clear her name, how can you stay silent?”
I shut my eyes. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Clear her name.
The phrase felt like both a vow and a punishment because I should have been the one protecting her from the start.
The waitress’s breathing hitched. She looked between us, drowning in fear and conflict.
Doubt clung to her like chains.
“Leave Asterfell tomorrow,” I growled lowly, rising to my feet. I didn’t need to shout.
She gasped. “No... please, no...!”
She scrambled forward, crawling, desperate.
Her fear stung the air.
She dared to look up and our eyes met.
Mine were dark as the void. My wolf staring her down through my gaze, hunger for truth rolling off me like heat.
Her voice cracked.
“I’ll talk. I’ll tell you everything. Please... don’t force me to leave.”
