Page 55 of The Alpha’s Heir

I growled as I burst into the kitchen, sending Stephen a scalding look as he moved to block Katrina from me, but not before I saw the bruising on her face and busted lip.

“Can I help you, Miss Meg?” Stephen asked, holding a bag of ice.

“What did you—”

“It’s not his fault,” Katrina cut me off, smiling through her split bottom lip. “Is there something we can get for you?”

“You can tell me who did this.” I couldn’t stop growling as I looked her over. I’d yet to see her with a hair out of place, and here she was, frazzled, with red marks on her arms and cuts that would take forever to heal with her slow human system.

I’d kill whoever hurt my bookish friend.

“It’s nothing.” She smiled bigger.

I growled louder.

Stephen took a cautious step back.

“What I mean to say, is that it’s nothing for you to worry about.” She took the ice from Stephen and held it gingerly against her face. “There was an incident at the market, but I always hated going there anyway. I’ll order grocery delivery from now on.”

“This happened at the store?” I asked.

Ask her what store. And where. My beast was fired up, ready to hurt someone. Those weren’t accidental marks. We’d been in enough fights to know when someone was directly attacked.

The color drained from Katrina’s face, but it wasn’t me who caused it. Boots stomping and men shouting orders came from the front hall.

“Justus, get home now!” Helen screeched into her phone. “They’re putting us under protective orders.”

I whirled around just as Roman burst into the kitchen. His heart beat fast, but it slowed a fraction as he saw me standing there. The relief was short-lived.

His jaw hardened again when he spotted Katrina. “I’ll be right back. They’re coming to ask you questions now.”

“What’s going on?” I asked, wishing I could cross the distance between us and force him to look at me like he’d done the other day outside my room.

That moment when I saw how much our bond meant to him. When he’d dropped all pretense and finally kissed me, right before he’d ripped my heart out.

My mate’s face was stone as he stared straight through me. “Come with me, Miss Meg. I’m to escort you to the sitting room.”

19

Roman

Outside the house, and inside the hall, chaos had descended. I’d been called from off-duty this evening and forced to make the drive straight over, contacting Staff Sgt. Marcus in route to see if he’d get a quick team together. The colonel was breathing fire, and I had no clue when the smoke would clear.

Things had officially gone from bad to worse.

I’d been so preoccupied with my assignment—with Meg—that I hadn’t paid attention to the stirrings of rumors saying that an underground movement was starting. Not that I could’ve done anything about it while I was stuck on personal guard duty for the councilwoman, like some sort of pompous show dog.

I didn’t belong here. I belonged out there with my men, keeping peace in the city streets.

Still, when I’d heard there was an attack against the Troy house and an unnamed female had been harmed, I hadn’t been able to get here fast enough.

My fingers twitched at my side as Meg and I walked less than a hand’s width apart, and I resisted the urge to reach out and touch her, to reassure myself she was okay.

This was why she hadn’t been allowed outside without an escort, but I’d never thought the purists would attack a working member of the Troy House instead.

“She’s in the kitchen,” I told the medic team that raced past us, pausing when I saw the look of worry on Meg’s face. “They’ll take care of Katrina.”

I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to reassure her. None of the council would care that it was just a maid who’d gotten hurt. I’m not sure they would’ve cared if it were Meg either, but it wasn’t my job to speculate.