Contracted to Alpha Maximus - Chapter 2: Chapter 2

ZIA
For another three days, the pain continued to become worse. I would scream and lose consciousness after hours of enduring it.
Aiden was having sex with Emily every other hour of the day. It was like he was punishing me for bearing his mark.
Now, I stood in front of a mirror, staring at my reflection. I seemed like a ghost of what I used to be. My eyes were sunken, and my cheeks were hollow.
As if on cue, the pain started spreading in my stomach again.
Tears fell from my eyes. I doubled over and threw up everything I ate.
The pain was not all. Every time they did the deed, I would see visions of their intimacy and hear Aiden’s words of affection to Emily.
What broke me the most was the fact that those words were the same that Aiden said to me every night when we made love.
He was repeating our love story, our intimate moments with another woman.
For an hour more, I curled up on the bathroom floor and waited for the pain to pass. When it finally did, I got up on my wobbly legs and marched out.
I made up my mind.
I couldn’t sit here quietly and wait for Aiden to continue torturing me.
“ Tara. ” I breathed in relief as I found her sitting on my bed.
Her head was bowed. “ Luna. ”
“ What’s- - -what’s wrong? ” I couldn’t help but notice her low mood.
“ I don’t like what’s happening to you. ” She whispered and picked her head.
I was surprised to see tears in her eyes. She was the mate of Aiden’s Gamma and the only person who cared about me in this pack. That’s why seeing her cry hurt me.
“ You told me that he is momentarily infatuated with her because of their mate bond, right? I will be fine. ” I tried to cheer her up but my eyes were filling with tears like her.
By now, we both knew it was no momentary infatuation. Even if it was, there was no way Aiden and I could ever mend our relationship now.
“ Emily’s- - -family came here. ” She revealed, her hands fisting in her lap.
“ What? ”
“ Alpha found Emily’s family for her. ” Tara repeated.
“ Oh. ” I didn’t know how I felt about it. “ isn’t it good? Maybe, they will stop her from going after Aiden and make her understand that he is taken. ”
“ Alpha took them in the Pack. ” She sighed. “ They are staying in the old Alpha residence. ”
“ What? ” My brows furrowed.
That was my father’s house.
“ Alpha gave the house to them. From now on, Emily’s father will be serving as an advisor to him. ”
The news felt like a slap in my face. My lips quivered. I couldn’t take my eyes off Tara as I wondered if I was still in a nightmare.
“ He gave his mistress’ family- - -my house? ” My eyes burned.
“ I just got to know and- - - ”
I didn’t wait to hear what she had to say. There was no way they were staying in my house.
After three days, I stepped out of my room and the packhouse. Jack, my Dad’s former Beta, and now, Aiden’s Beta was surprised to see me.
“ Take me to the old Alpha Residence. ” I ordered, taking my spot in the back seat.
“ I am sorry, Luna but the Alpha ordered me to keep you inside the Packhouse. ” He opened the door and leaned in slightly.
“ Jack! ” I hissed. “ You are my Beta. I am your Alpha, not him. ”
Aiden reached a new low. With each passing moment, I lost my affection for him. With it, the respect was also disappearing, leaving behind a growing sense of heartache.
Jack stood there and contemplated for a while. I was shocked at the sudden change in his demeanor.
But to my relief, he nodded and took to the driver’s seat.
“ He didn’t take you to the Council Meeting with him? ” I inquired as he pulled the car out of the driveway.
“ Alpha- - -actually demoted me. ” Jack whispered.
“ He demoted you? ”
“ Yes, Luna. I am not the Beta anymore. I am a Gamma now. ” He added quietly.
I noticed his knuckles turning white and looked away. My mind was racing with thoughts.
“ Who is the Beta now? ” I wondered.
“ James Crusher. ” Jack glanced at me from the front mirror.
I was stunned into silence. The names couldn’t be a coincidence.
“ Is he- - - ”
“ Emily’s brother? Yes, Luna. ” Jack nodded.
Shock rendered me speechless. My wolf, Jessie growled inside my head, asking me to let her rip everyone apart. But I pushed her back.
I couldn’t afford to mess things up. I needed to regain control of my pack and find a way around the prophecy before attempting anything rash.
“ We are here, Luna. ” Jack announced.
I got out of the car on heavy feet and strolled to the main door. My father’s kind face flashed before my eyes, as he told me to be careful and not get hurt.
If he was here today, he would kill Aiden for hurting me like this.
I shook my head and rang the bell. It was awkward, waiting outside my own house.
The door was opened by a girl who seemed to be in her twenties. She wore a flashy pink short dress in the middle of the day and flipped her hair as I looked up.
“ What do you want? ” She snapped.
I blinked, surprised at her hostile tone. Maybe, she didn’t know.
“ I am- - - ”
“ The bitch in my sister’s way? ” She smirked, cutting me off.
My eyes flashed. “ Careful. ”
Instead of being scared, she snickered. “ Or what? Will you hit me? ”
I clenched my hands into fists.
“ But - - - if you hit me, won’t you get kicked out of the Pack? After all, I am the sister of Alpha’s fated mate. ” She took a threatening step towards me and jabbed my shoulder. “ So, I suggest getting lost, Bitch! Go crawl back in your hole and never show up here again. ”
I couldn’t help but let out a laugh of disbelief. “ I assumed Emily’s family would be innocent. ”
“ Of course, we are innocent. You are the third person in our daughter’s relationship with the Alpha! ” An older woman appeared behind the girl and snarled.
“ I am the Luna of this Pack! How dare you run your mouth while standing in my house? ” I hissed.
The insults were enough for my patience. All I wanted to do was to tear them apart, one by one, and show them who they were messing with.
“ Your house? ” The girl cackled. “ Oh, don’t joke, Bitch! The Alpha owns this house and this pack. You are just a nobody clinging to him. ”
“ Yes, so go back to where you came from and leave us alone. ” The other woman yelled and slammed the door shut on my face.
My ears were ringing. I stood there, staring at the closed door. My eyes continued to switch color from green to golden and back to green.
Huffing, I turned and came back to the car. I couldn’t sit quietly anymore. Aiden was taking full control of the Pack and making decisions without involving me. I needed to regain control and let Aiden know that he couldn’t do things this way.
Jack stood beside the car, with his head bowed and his ears turning red.
The sense of embarrassment grew, making it impossible for me to meet his eyes.
“ You made a mistake, Luna. ” Jack mumbled. “ You should have never trusted your husband and given him everything that belonged to you. Now, we are nobodies in this pack because you trusted him. ”
“ Put your trust in me one last time, Jack. I know what to do to get us out of this situation. ” I whispered, nodding to myself.
Jack sighed and opened the door for me. I slipped inside, instantly taking out my phone to call Aiden one last time.
As expected, he didn’t pick up like the multiple times I had called him before. I hung up and glanced at Jack.
“ Jack, it’s time for us to attend the Council Meeting as the Luna and Beta of the Silver Shield Pack. ”