Page 60 of Alpha’s Possession

"I'll register you with our pack," he sighs before turning on his heel and heading for the stairs. "And I want the master key you had cut!" he says, leaving no room for argument; not that I have one. I won’t need the key when I go on the run.

I can’t let Thane register me, with his pack or otherwise. My DNA is already in the system, and one cross reference is all it will take for them to find out who I really am. I have time though. He will have to wait for my birth certificate before getting me registered. I can give him a fake name and buy myself a few days to escape the city. Either way, by the end of the week, he will have figured out who I am, and I don’t want to be around when he does.

I look up to see Leon practically bouncing on his heels. Raidon gives me a wink, a smirk on his lips.

"We get to keep her!" Leon nearly squeals with excitement.

"It appears so," Rhen says, smiling down at me. I gulp. They think Harlow destroyed them last time, and I’m about to do it all over again, as soon as they figure out that she and I are one and the same.

Chapter Fifty-One

~Harlow~

It feels awkward, cold, and lonely in the Den by myself. I’m pretty relieved when I wake to the sound of Rhen coming down the steps. I had stashed my diary in my pillowcase and tucked the photo inside my bra for safekeeping. It isn’t like it can get any more crumpled.

“Zara,” Rhen speaks softly. I blink up at the high ceiling before turning my head to see him place a mug of steaming coffee on the side of the small drop-off into the Den. He has clothes hanging over his arm, and he moves to drape them on the back of a chair.

“Get dressed. We’re leaving soon. Thane ironed your clothes, so you just need to put them on. We have an important meeting this morning and can’t be late,” Rhen says before slipping out of the basement. I walk to the side of the sunken Den and haul myself out.

I can hear their voices upstairs as I change into the black slacks and a matching long-sleeve blouse. I try to pull the neckline of the top closed, but the zipper stops too low, creating a deep V when I can’t pull it high enough.

I’m showing way too much cleavage in this top. It’s hardly respectable workplace attire. Yet Thane chose it, and I wonder if he realized that when he picked it. Groaning, I look at my other top, which is all wrinkled and creased, and it still smells heavily of my pheromones.

Clutching the neckline closed, I grab the coffee from where Rhen left it and almost groan at the taste. I swear I can feel it warm my bones and awaken my soul from its dormant, numb state. I’m about to walk up the steps when I remember my diary is still tucked inside the pillowcase.

Sighing, I rush back to retrieve it. I need to get rid of it, even if I dread doing so. I figure I can dispose of it at work. I’ll tear out the pages, shred them and dump them in the loading dock bins. It’s not worth the risk, and I recognize how foolish I was to keep it. Yet I like writing, and the small doodlings I have of people inside are the only way to remember their faces.

I despise time. It’s amazing how the memories of the people you love remain vivid, yet their faces eventually leave us. Just like their touch and smell, their faces slowly slip away. First, it’s small features that you can no longer picture, or if you can, there’s something else about them that’s missing. I draw them so I can keep their faces, so I never forget. But now I have to throw it away. This diary holds far too many secrets, far too many answers.

Tucking it under my arm, I climb the stairs with my coffee and wonder if Raidon has a hairbrush I can borrow. My hair looks like a bird’s nest. I doubt Thane, Leon, or Rhen would have one. They have no need to brush their hair since they keep it cropped short. Raidon has long, thick locks I’m envious of, plus his equally beautiful eyelashes.

The door opens before I get the chance to grip the handle. Thane nearly plows into me as he goes to storm down the steps. He’s in an obvious rush to leave. Clearly, I am taking more time than he believes necessary.

He stops and glances over me. He growls when his eyes go to my messy hair before moving to the top that I am practically spilling out of.

His eyes linger longer than necessary before he shakes his head. “You’re not wearing that,” he growls.

“Well, duh, but I’m not walking up there shirtless,” I tell him.

“I wouldn’t have minded,” Leon purrs. He waves at me from the island, where he is eating toast. I roll my eyes at him as Thane walks off down the hall, muttering about my attitude under his breath. I look for Raidon, but he is nowhere to be seen.

“Where is Raidon?” I ask.

“Getting dressed upstairs,” Rhen answers. I nod, and Rhen turns around, mug in hand. He sips his coffee, watching me over the mug’s rim. He takes a mouthful before speaking.

“Last door on the right, upstairs,” he says, pointing to the ceiling. I swallow nervously. Am I allowed up there?

“Hurry up. We can’t be late, so finish getting ready,” Rhen says. I nod, gulping the rest of my coffee and setting the mug in the sink before moving toward the stairs. I pass Thane rummaging in the linen cupboard.

“Where are you going?” Thane asks. I stop with one foot on the stairs.

“To see if Raidon has a hairbrush. The one in the bathroom downstairs is gone,” I tell him, and he nods, waving me off and returning to whatever he’s doing.

Walking upstairs, I find a hallway with doors lining both sides. Walking to the end, I find the door Rhen spoke of. It’s the last door before another hallway, which opens up to the landing that overlooks the living room. I knock on the door, not wanting to walk in while he’s getting dressed.

When I get no answer, I twist the handle and open the door to find Raidon sitting on the edge of a massive bed, pulling his black, leather shoes on. The enormous bed covers an entire wall, and I gape at it.

Do they all share a bed? I try picturing them all in it but can’t. I know they are mates, but Thane appears to be the sort of person that likes his privacy.