77

I woke up in a sweat in a small room that didn't have much to offer except for a bed and a small bedside table. The sun was beating against the window that was on the slope above me, making me unbearably hot. Then, as I pushed the covers off my body, the memory of last night flooded my mind and with it the panic of what was actually going on.

Wanting to flee before Noah could hand me over to Caleb, I ignored the incline above me and slammed my head against it so hard that I immediately fell back and grabbed the spot of pain, cursing. It hurt like hell and I had to pull myself together in anger at my stupidity not to scream.

You Idiot...

A soft tapping distracted me from the pain and I felt my heart racing before I could even think about who would be at the door. I tried to detect any smell, but the acrid smell of roses hit my nostrils and made me sneeze several times.

The door slowly opened and Noah walked in, smiling, holding a glass of water, which he carefully handed to me after taking a few steps towards me. I sat on the edge of the bed, more deliberately this time, and raised an eyebrow at him as I hesitantly accepted the glass.

"I don't want to sound disrespectful, but how do I know I won't pass out after the glass?"

"I'm sorry Alicia. I just wanted you to get some rest and get your strength back. You must still be exhausted though and have a lot of questions. Come down when you're ready. I made us some breakfast ", he said softly and sensitively, not taking his eyes off me. I took a sip from the glass and he then left the room. As I set the glass down on the dusty bedside table, I reflected that Noah must be one of the good guys. Had he had anything to do with Caleb, I certainly wouldn't have been sitting here holding my still aching head.

Curious and hungry, I quickly found my way to the door and carefully walked down the narrow stairs to wait for him in the living room. But he wasn't there, but then when I saw the open door that led to the garden, I walked through and was immediately blinded by the glare of the sun.

It wasn't until I put my hands over my eyes to protect myself that I recognized Noah sitting at a small, laid table surrounded by roses.

Hence the smell .

I sat down opposite him and got a picture of the delicious food and drinks. There was coffee, tea, rolls and all sorts of things to fill. My eyes fell on Noah again, who was holding up the pot of coffee and thanking him I handed him my cup and then smeared a roll with jam. Then, as we chewed in silence, I couldn't help but break the silence, even though it was a pleasantly soothing silence.

"How do you know I'm a crossbreed?" I asked him, putting my bun aside for now.

He took a sip of coffee and only glanced at me briefly, then looked blank again.

"I know your smell, or at least a very similar one. I've had the pleasure of being exposed to it many times. The woman I told you about smelled just like you," he explained and took another one large gulp of his hot drink.

That explained some things, but not everything. I never realized that we all had a similar smell. All I ever knew was that we could recognize each other. This was all new to me and somehow I found it creepy to know that Caleb had apparently met other half-breeds before. Who knew what he had done to them. Before I could ask him any more questions, I had to take a deep breath at that thought and shake it off.

"Why are you helping me, Noah? You apparently know that Caleb is after me and yet you bring me into your house. You put yourself in danger for me," I tried to look into his eyes, but he saw only into the empty cup he was toying with between his hands.

"I can't let him execute a woman because of her genes again." He suddenly became serious and looked up at me. I saw anger and sadness in his eyes, but that didn't stop me from asking further.

"What do you mean again?"

"He took the love of my life from me and that's only because she was different," he whispered, immediately avoiding my gaze. I was beginning to understand why everyone spoke so badly of Caleb. My pulse quickened at the thought that I would be next and I frantically took Noah's hand. I really wanted to hear from him what had happened, the whole story.

"Tell me everything, Noah. I need to know what happened."

Tears welled in his grief-stricken eyes as he let go of my hand to fold his hands in his lap.

"I fell in love with a beautiful woman back then and to my amazement, she loved me too. We had some beautiful years and it was perfect. We didn't care about wealth or power. We just wanted to be happy. One day Caleb came came here to settle down here as an upper alpha. Before that he lived in another town down here. The day came my Linda met him and he recognized her as a mate. She resisted the connection because she wanted her life with me But he threatened to kill me if she refused. So they got together and a few years later she was pregnant. Killian was born. They seemed really happy for a while. Her son had given her back her glow. She was such a great mom."

He paused to wipe away a few tears.

For days I ran through the forest hoping to smell her, but it was hopeless. When I came back into town from the forest, many people stood excitedly in front of the pack house. Holding Killian's hand, Caleb explained that Linda was caught and killed by a wolf in the woods. I wanted to accuse him of murder, but nobody would have believed me, on the contrary. He turned everyone on me and since I had been missing for days, most of them actually believed it and still avoid me today. " I wanted to accuse him of murder, but nobody would have believed me, on the contrary. He turned everyone on me and since I had been missing for days, most of them actually believed it and still avoid me today. " I wanted to accuse him of murder, but nobody would have believed me, on the contrary. He turned everyone on me and since I had been missing for days, most of them actually believed it and still avoid me today. "

I stared at him in shock while he blew his nose and fought back tears. That's why Killian warned me about him. He thought Noah had killed his mother. I got up and hugged Noah tightly. His story was just as bad as my father's, if not worse. As I stood with him in that beautiful garden and hugged him lovingly, I reflected on the fact that bad things always happen to good people. Life was so unfair and I exhaled in anger after we broke apart.

He gave me a short nod and then sat back down at the table while I stopped to walk towards one of the many rose bushes. I smelled it carefully and closed my eyes for a moment. The only consolation I had was that these red beauties would save me from anyone finding me here.

Four days had passed since Noah had told me the story of his great love. Four days of lying in this room and staring at the white wall. I only got up to go to the bathroom or to get something new to drink. I also called my father several times to tell him that everything was fine. The thought of him worrying made me uncomfortable, so lying was the easier route.

As I lay there, I reflected on the past few days, which had plunged me through utter chaos. If I started out as just a western girl, last week an alpha mate, I was just an empty shell that day. A shadow of myself.

I tried not to think too much about myself because I've always been a person who cared more about others than about myself. My dad should be able to live peacefully without worries, knowing that I have found love and that I am happy. I didn't want Killian to have to worry about me while he was gone. And Noah, who just knocked and snapped me out of my thoughts, shouldn't get in trouble because of me.

"Can I get you something?" he asked me again, which he did every half hour. His look showed me his concern, but I just wanted to be alone, even if he couldn't understand it. Maybe he understood it too, just didn't know how to deal with it. He tried his best to make delicious soups every day, but I usually only agreed to eat them because I didn't want to be unkind to him and to at least calm him down a bit.

"No, I have everything. And no, I don't want any more soup today, but thanks," I avoided his gaze, turned the other way and just waited for the door to close because I was ready, to look at the wall again for hours.

I had no other choice. Without the protection of the roses, Caleb would find me in a heartbeat, so I guess I'd have to lie there until old and gray gave up the ghost. Maybe he also thought I had followed his instructions and left without looking back, but what would all this trigger in Killian when he came home in a few days and there would be no trace of his mate. It broke my heart to think about it. The longing for him was stronger than ever because of the mark and not knowing where he was or what he was doing hurt every fiber of my body.

Or maybe he was back already, searching the woods for me, despairing at my lack of scent. I had to shake off the thought or it would break me. I wanted to think of something to stop Caleb. But what should I have done, it was all too risky. Whether I would have told Killian or not, someone should have died. Losing his mate would have killed him and me along with it.

I rolled onto my stomach and screamed into the pillow in pain. This unbridled anger towards Caleb was destroying my mind, destroying everything inside me. But I needed to pull myself together and keep my head clear, so I turned my face sideways again.

Hello wall ....

KILLIAN

On the way home I was just glad to be able to hug Alicia again. Nobody knew anything about the white wolf, so this trip was completely pointless anyway. I missed her so incredibly. Her smell, her eyes and her smile. All of this made my heart beat faster and dance like crazy. I hoped she wouldn't be mad that I had to leave, but she let me tag her, so I'm sure she'd be as happy as I was.

The fact that no one answered the phone in the last few days didn't bother me. It was upstairs in the office and Alicia would have been far too shy to just answer someone else's phone. I smiled and said her name over and over in my head. It was driving me insane, and the closer I got to home, the more impatient I shifted in the leather seat.

Damiano was driving just as fast as ever and for the first time I was fine with that. The faster the better. I wasn't surprised that Resul could sleep so peacefully at this pace. He was used to it from an early age and trusted his brother.

When I finally saw our pack house in the distance, my heart beat twice as fast as usual. My hands grew warm and a pleasant tingling spread through my body as my breathing quickened. In a moment I would finally be close to her again, put her gently on my arm and just fall asleep with her. That's what I missed the most, and I didn't know then that my return would be anything but nice.

I jumped out of the car before it stopped and ran through the door like a maniac. I didn't catch her smell, which made me pretty nervous, and ran up the stairs to our room. But there was nothing here either. Not even the tiniest pinch of the mixture of our smells flew towards me and slowly I panicked and nervously ran my fingers through my hair.

I glanced in the mirror, noticed my confused face, and then left the room to search every corner of the house. I growled at the thought that she was with someone else. But she wouldn't do something like that because she wasn't that kind of person and she would never hurt me like that.

Suddenly I heard the front door and ran down the stairs. I nearly rolled over, but my joy evaporated when only Caleb stood there, eyeing me with irritation.

"You're looking for Alicia, right?" he asked with a grin on his face, closing the front door behind him.

How could he ask me such a stupid question and then smile so cheekily?

"Where is she?!" I asked him through gritted teeth and took a few steps towards him.

"She's gone."

"To the city?"

"No, son. She's gone."

"Gone? What do you mean by gone? Speak plainly!" I raised my voice and clenched my fists in anger.

"I mean it like I say it and I'm very sorry for you. She's not coming back. She's been gone for days. She left no trace. She tricked me and left while I was sleeping. I had no chance of chasing her." He walked up to me and put his hand on my shoulder to calm me.

His words tore me from the inside out and left me suffocating inside. Like a candle deprived of oxygen. My father hugged me and I couldn't help but let my feelings run free. My tears fell on his shoulder as my heart threatened to die and everything around me became a blur. I dropped to my knees, ready to put a bullet in myself. It was not possible for me to realize all of this. I just wanted to get out of here and look for her. There had to be an explanation for everything. Maybe we would still find her, and determined to bring her back to me, I found my way back onto my shaky legs.

I gave my father a firm nod and then immediately made my way to Damiano. He would keep his head and stand by my side and maybe Alicia and I would be reunited soon. That's what I was thinking as I ran down the hill while wiping away the tears that were still streaming.