Alpha Alec's Redemption

She takes a deep breath, before her glaring eyes refocus on me. "If it were any other crime, they would have been imprisoned in a normal dungeon or hell, in the council's stronghold. Instead, they were imprisoned somewhere where no one knew their location and then their prison was sealed off with magic. That should tell everything you need to know."

"Raven is right,” Sadie sighs tiredly. "Whoever imprisoned this person went to great lengths to make sure they never escaped. If Raven hadn't figured it out, then we would have continued to run in circles, meaning the spell would remain intact, ensuring no escape."

I push myself up and walk to my window. "Meanwhile my pack continues to suffer."

I didn't like this. I didn't fucking like this at all. I thought that we were finally making headway. That we were finally getting somewhere. Now, it seems like we are back to square one with no solution in sight.

How long were my people supposed to suffer because of this bullshit?

"Sadie is here, and her presence is making things so much better." Micah tries to reason, tries to make things better. "The text did say that Sadie is the key. We just have to figure out what that means."

Raven then adds, "Sadie's presence will have to be enough for now. Like Micah said, She's the key, which means there is a way to undo this spell without releasing whoever this person is. We just have to figure out which way that is."

I release a breath, sighing tiredly as I try to figure things out in my head. Everything is such a mess. It's starting to drive me insane. "Does any of you have the slightest idea of who this prisoner is?" Sadie asks the elders.

They all shake their heads. Of course, they wouldn't know who the person is. They, just like the rest of us, believed it was a curse. One put on us because we offended a witch. How were they to know that it wasn't an actual curse?

"I don't know where to begin," Martin states, "But we can start researching in the pack's library. We can check the records of crimes committed and who committed them. Maybe we can find something there. Maybe a pack member who committed a crime so bad that it would warrant that kind of imprisonment."

But if that's the case, wouldn't we know about it? Especially if it's a terrible crime. Unless someone didn't want the pack knowing about it. Unless something like that did happen, and it was hushed.

Sadie nods. "If that's all, then we'll leave."

She doesn't wait for anyone to speak. She just takes Raven's hand and pulls her away. They leave, shutting the door behind them. The elders don't wait long too; after bowing, they follow suit and leave.

I walk back and collapse on my seat. I run my hands down my face before heaving a tired sigh. My head was pounding right now as everything just crashed into me.

Feeling Micah's burning gaze on me, I lift my head. "What?"

"What was that earlier?" his eyes narrow.

"What was what?"

"Lola!” he snaps, making me growl in warning. The sound reverberating in the room. "Why the hell did you defend her when it was clear she was a person of interest?"

"I don't have time for this shit."

"No! Don't tell me you are still in love with her" his voice hardens at the last sentence.

It's only because we've been friends since we were pups that I didn't have him in a pulp for the disrespect.

“Lola is none of your business," I snarl, already feeling a crack in my tightly held self-control.

"Fine, have it your way, but just know that you are already on thin Ice with Sadie. Protecting the so-called love of your life isn't going to win you any favors with Sadie. If you want a life with your mate, who is Sadie by the way, then you need to get your shit figured out or else you are going to lose her for good... But if you still want that bitch Lola, then go ahead and trample over the mate bond the goddess has given you, but don't start bitching when she turns out to be a fucking snake."

With those parting words, he leaves, and I am left staring at his retreating back.

Before I found out Sadie was alive,

was damn sure that I was still in love with Lola. Now with the mate bond between Sadie and I wreaking havoc inside me, I wasn't so sure.