Claimed by the Vengeful Alpha

Chapter 66: The Distance

"Did she speak about Penn at all?" His voice was cold and heavy as he fixated on Theo.

"No," Theo replied, his eyes darting toward his brother who was sitting by the Alpha’s desk.

Keenan let his shoulders relax and turned his attention back to the table. He didn’t care what Alaina told Claude about the orphanage or Maya.

These were not unknowns; if Claude were to interact with anyone in town, he would likely get similar information. The only difference was that it would be less detailed.

"Did you hear anything you think we should be concerned about?" Asher asked when Keenan didn’t ask any more questions.

"Not really," Theo mumbled as he looked into the distance, thinking deeply. "He seemed to care about the town and offered to help with the orphanage."

Keenan didn’t respond to this as there was no need. He knew enough about Claude to know this could be true, but at the same time, it was just the Alpha doing whatever he wanted.

"Yes," Asher agreed with his brother.

"Tch!" It would be much easier if he could figure out Claude’s goal.

"Do you not agree, Alpha?" Theo softly asked.

"That’s not it. You did all right, Theo. Let me know if you remember anything else." He spoke without lifting his head from the desk.

Theo hesitated a little before he bowed and exited the room. Asher glanced at Keenan as the door shut.

"Do you really not care about what Alaina told him?" Asher asked, studying Keenan.

"No," Keenan said immediately.

His scar was not something that was hidden, nor were the crimes that the Vilhelm Olsten family had committed against him. If Alaina had held back this information, Claude was likely to treat it as something important and fixate on it until he got the answers he wanted.

"I see," Asher replied, but there was uncertainty in his voice.

Keenan worked in silence as he pushed thoughts of Claude and Maya away from his mind. He told himself he didn’t care about either of them, and he wasn’t bothered by what Claude could possibly have planned with Maya.

Regardless of the plan, Claude couldn’t take her from him even if he tried. He could gather all the information he wanted. It wouldn’t make any difference.

A knock resounded in the room, and Keenan didn’t glance toward it. With Asher in the room, he didn’t have to worry about mundane things.

A young maid appeared when the door opened, and with a bow of her head, she informed them that dinner was ready.

Keenan’s grip on his pen tightened. He didn’t like that his first thought was Maya again. However, he told himself it was simply because he would have to decide where she would spend the night.

He hadn’t slept the night before, and falling asleep during the day wasn’t easy. He barely got any sleep at night usually. He didn’t want her in his room for another night. He still hadn’t gotten rid of her scent and had avoided his room for most of the day.

"Alpha, shall we?" Asher asked when Keenan didn’t stir even after the maid left.

Keenan slowly turned his attention to Asher. "Will you leave after dinner is over?" He asked.

"I have to," Asher mumbled, his eyes looking away from Keenan briefly. "I still have to patrol tonight."

"Have you seen anything suspicious?" Keenan asked as he stood to his feet.

"Not quite, at least nothing concrete."

Keenan understood what that meant. There was a high chance Vilhelm was keeping an eye on them, but there wasn’t any evidence so far.

"Don’t trouble yourself too much," Keenan replied. "We can handle anything he throws at us. You don’t have to worry about us catching it on time."

Asher nodded. He understood what his Alpha meant, but at the same time, he couldn’t help his worries. They didn’t have a lot of support on their end, and if Vilhelm were to attack without holding back, Asher wasn’t sure there would be much left of Verlassen.

However, he couldn’t dare complain, he wouldn’t even think about doing that. He was grateful for what Keenan had done for the town. So, it didn’t matter that his revenge was a danger to them. He would stand behind Keenan no matter what.

He would keep a watchful eye out while his Alpha soared without anything to worry about. It was the least he could do.

"We should go," Asher said and walked toward the door. "I haven’t eaten Agnes’s cooking in a while."

Keenan grunted his reply as they made their way down the corridor. They didn’t speak much as they walked. Soon enough, they came upon the dining room just as Claude arrived at the doors.

"Alpha Claude," Keenan said coldly without looking in his direction.

His Beta was quick to bow while Hilbert sized up the two men as though he wouldn’t hesitate to attack.

"Alpha Keenan," Claude called in a brighter voice than he needed. "Verlassen really is wonderful. With the beach here, I don’t understand how you don’t have more visitors. What a lovely town."

Keenan narrowed his eyes. Something about Claude’s tone bothered him. "We don’t like visitors," he replied, looking Claude up and down.

"Well, things can change," the Alpha said with a smile and breezed past Keenan.

Hilbert walked right after his Alpha, brushing shoulders with Keenan. Keenan wiped off the touch and walked in. He told himself to hold back his anger, he would only have to bear their presence for a few more days.

"Alpha Claude," Alaina squealed as he walked in. She was smiling excessively. Whatever interaction they had, Alaina seemed to think it meant something.

He didn’t respond; rather, his gaze drifted towards Maya’s and he only turned away as he took his seat. Keenan pretended to not notice as he walked towards his seat.

Alaina was a little taken aback by Claude’s reaction, but there was little time to dwell on it as her Alpha was walking right behind.

"Alpha Keenan," she said, with Theo and Winnie joining in to welcome him.

"Beta Asher, I am so glad you could join us," Alaina said for the umpteenth time.

Asher didn’t reply. He couldn’t. He didn’t even register her words; all he could see was his mate sitting at the table. He had to select a suitable seat that would put some distance between them, but he couldn’t handle sitting opposite her—staring at her face would be too much. freēwebnovel.com

However, her face or her scent—he didn’t think either was easier to handle. They both triggered memories that were better buried for his sanity.

Keenan took his seat, and Asher slowed. He watched Winnie stiffly return to sitting. She was aware of his presence, but she didn’t turn around to look at him or acknowledge his presence.

He made a choice, sitting between Maya and Claude. It was the only seat that put some distance between him and Winnie. If he were to sit next to Keenan, he would be right next to her. He wouldn’t survive the whole of dinner.

"Beta Asher," Claude called with a pleasantly surprised tone. He glanced toward Keenan, then returned his gaze to Asher.

Asher could imagine how it looked. By all reasoning, he shouldn’t be sitting at the lower end of the table, but there was no time for rationalism. The only thing that mattered was that in this position, he could barely see Winnie.

Maya’s hand gripped her dress as he sat next to her. He thought she looked a little different from the last time he saw her, but there was no mistaking who she was.

She didn’t glance in his direction as he sat down, and she seemed to keep away from him as best she could. Asher didn’t care for her, so he barely paid any mind.

"When was the last time you joined us to eat?" Alaina was saying. "I almost thought this would never happen."

Asher ground his teeth. He hated the sound of her voice. He also couldn’t help but blame her for how things had turned out. However, she was his brother’s mate, and he couldn’t react from personal reasons. ƒreewebɳovel.com

"Yes, brother," Theo joined in. "It has been a while."

Asher smiled despite the twisting in his gut and the fact that he would rather be anywhere else than in this room with her.

The distance didn’t matter. There was someone between them, and he could feel her presence as though she was in his lap. This was a bad idea.

"Beta Asher," Claude called again.

Asher welcomed the interruption—anything to take his thoughts away from her. "Yes, Alpha Claude."

"The main house isn’t so far away from the orphanage. Surely, you could come around for breakfast or dinner easily. Why won’t you?"

He didn’t even realize he did. Perhaps because the question caught him off guard, or because she was paying attention to him as Claude spoke, his eyes briefly glanced in her direction.