The Alpha's forbidden omega mate - Chapter 85: Chapter 85
You are reading The Alpha's forbidden omega mate, Chapter 85: Chapter 85. Read more chapters of The Alpha's forbidden omega mate.
Rowan's POV
The diner's bell jingled, announcing my arrival more than I could with my exhausted body.
I probably looked like hell - clothes caked in dirt, smelling like sweat and fear.
Days without sleep, fueled by nothing but the need to find my mate, will do that to you.
A few heads turned, eyes widening as they recognized me.
Two of my High School classmates, children of the diner's owners.
I knew them, vaguely, but comfort was a luxury I couldn't afford now.
“Rowan?” Trish, a girl I vaguely remembered as Brock’s friend, gasped.
“Is that really you?”
“I need your help,” I rasped, cutting straight to the point.
My throat felt like sandpaper, but that was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
"Catrina's been taken, and I have to find her."
The diner's chatter died down, replaced by whispers and worried glances. Right.
Kidnapping wasn't exactly your everyday small-town drama.
"Taken?" Zach, another face from that group, echoed, his forehead wrinkling with concern.
He was a good guy, Zach, always had been. "What happened?"
I sucked in a breath, trying to tame the wolf clawing at its leash inside me.
"It's a long story, but her ex, Brock, he—"
"Brock?" Zach interrupted, his brow furrowing.
"But he's been gone for weeks. Nobody's seen him since the semester ended."
Hope, fluttered in my chest. "Do you know where he went?"
The group exchanged uneasy looks.
They knew something, I could practically smell it – that mix of fear and reluctance that always seemed to surround Brock's name these days.
"The thing is…” Trish started, her voice hesitant.
"Brock's been...different. Kind of obsessed. We tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't listen."
Zach nodded, confirming her words with a grim look.
"Yeah, man. He was hung up on Catrina even after she broke up with him. We knew he was acting crazy, but we didn't think..."
He didn't have to finish the sentence. My gut already knew what he was going to say.
Brock, with his possessiveness, his jealousy… I should've seen this coming.
Should’ve smelled the danger on him like a bad cologne since we meet again in the college hallways.
"You have to tell me everything," I pleaded, my voice tight with urgency.
Every second wasted was another second Catrina spent in danger. "Catrina's life depends on it."
The weight of my words hung in the air, and thankfully, they understood.
They told me about Brock's descent into obsession, how he’d become withdrawn after seeing Catrina pregnant at the hotel, convinced she belonged with him, not some “city guy.”
“He kept going on about how she was meant to be with him,”
Zach explained, shaking his head. "Like some twisted fairy tale he'd made up in his head."
“Then, a few days after break, he just vanished,” Trish added, her voice barely a whisper.
"Nobody’s seen or heard from him since.”
My fists clenched, frustration warring with the primal fear that gnawed at my insides.
"Did he say where he was going? Anything at all?"
Silence met my question. Just when I thought they had nothing, a hesitant voice spoke up.
Collin, Zach’s little brother, a lanky kid with wide, earnest eyes.
“A couple weeks ago, I ran into Brock by the bookstore,” Collin piped up, his voice small.
“He was acting really strange… kept talking about this apartment he’d found. Said it was the perfect place to disappear to, to start over.”
My head snapped up. "Where? Where was this apartment?"
Collin's face scrunched up.
"I don’t remember exactly… I think he said it was on the outskirts of town? I didn’t really pay attention, I just wanted to get away from him, you know? He was giving off a creepy vibe.”
I didn't wait for him to finish. My wolf, sensing a lead, surged forward, urging me to action.
“An apartment… on the outskirts…” I muttered, more to myself than anyone else.
It wasn’t much, but it was a start. And if Brock was stupid enough to hole up somewhere so close…
“Thanks,” I managed, a gruff nod in their direction.
They probably meant well, trying to offer comfort, but I couldn’t stay.
Not when Catrina needed me.
The diner door slammed shut behind me, muffling their calls. Didn't matter.
I could smell her, faintly, like a whisper in the wind.
Fear, mixed with her unique scent. It was faint, almost gone, but it was there.
My wolf, sensing its mate in danger, thrummed with a power that bordered on pain. It wanted to run, to tear through everything that stood in our way until we reached her.
And maybe, a part of me did too. But another part, the part that was still Rowan Magnus and not just an alpha driven by instinct, knew I had to be smart about this.
The apartment complex wasn't hard to find.
A run-down, two-story building, the kind that attracted more whispers than tenants.
Even from a distance, I could feel a prickling sensation on my skin, a warning sign that screamed danger.
This was it. Brock was here, and if my wolf was right, so was Catrina.
The lobby was empty, dimly lit, smelling of stale cigarettes and fear. That same prickling sensation intensified, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
"Catrina!" I roared, my voice echoing through the empty hallway.
There was no answer, just the sound of my own heart pounding in my ears.
Movement flickered at the end of the hallway. I whipped around, every sense on high alert.
There he was. Brock. His face, usually so open and friendly, was twisted into a sneer, his eyes burning with a disturbing light.
"Well, well, if it isn't the big bad Alpha," he drawled, his voice dripping with a malice I’d never heard from him before.
“Come to play hero?”
I stalked towards him, every muscle in my body coiled tight.
"Where is she, Brock? Where's Catrina?"
He laughed, a chilling sound that scraped against my bones.
"Oh, she's safe, Rowan. Safer than she's ever been. With me.”
Rage, primal and hot, surged through me. My wolf snarled, eager to tear into the threat before us.
“Don’t play games, Brock. If you’ve hurt her, I swear to god–”
"Hurt her?" he scoffed, faking innocence.
"Why would I hurt her? Catrina is everything to me. I’m taking care of her. Always have.”
“You’re delusional,” I growled, taking another step closer.
“Catrina is my mate, not yours. Tell me where she is, or—”
“Your mate?” Brock spat, his whole body trembling with rage.
“She was never yours, Rowan! Catrina belongs with me! Always has, always will!”
He stepped forward, his fists clenched. It was almost comical, seeing this scrawny human trying to intimidate me. Almost.
But the look in his eyes, the conviction in his voice, sent a shiver down my spine.
"You think you can just waltz in here and take her? Catrina is mine, and I'm not letting anyone take her from me.”
My wolf roared, every fiber of my being focused on getting to Catrina. The need to protect her, to shield her from this madman, was overwhelming.
"Last chance, Brock,” I growled, my voice dangerously low.
"Tell me where she is."
"Or what?" he challenged, a cruel smirk twisting his lips.
"What are you going to do, Rowan? Attack me? Try to take her back?”
His laughter, harsh and grating, bounced off the walls.
"Go ahead. Try it. But I’m warning you – if you come any closer, I'll kill her. And the baby.”
The world stopped. My blood ran cold, the bloodlust draining out of me, replaced by a terror so profound it stole my breath away.
"You wouldn't," I choked out, the words barely audible.
But even as I said it, I knew he was serious.
The look in his eyes, the way he held the glinting knife he'd pulled from his pocket… It was all the confirmation I needed.
“Oh, I would, Rowan,”
Brock said, his voice devoid of any warmth, any humanity.
"In a heartbeat. Catrina is mine. And I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her.”
He took a step closer, the knife glinting under the fluorescent lights.
"So here’s the deal, Rowan. You walk away. Let us be. Or you try to stop me, and you watch them both die.”
The weight of his words, pressed down on me, suffocating.
Catrina. Our pup. Their lives in the hands of this… this monster.
"You're insane, Brock," I spat, my voice thick with disgust.
"Catrina would never choose you. Never. She’s my mate, my everything. And I'm not leaving without her."
His eyes narrowed, and in a flash, he lunged, the knife aimed directly at where I knew, with sickening certainty, Catrina's belly would be.
"Then you leave me no choice!"
The diner's bell jingled, announcing my arrival more than I could with my exhausted body.
I probably looked like hell - clothes caked in dirt, smelling like sweat and fear.
Days without sleep, fueled by nothing but the need to find my mate, will do that to you.
A few heads turned, eyes widening as they recognized me.
Two of my High School classmates, children of the diner's owners.
I knew them, vaguely, but comfort was a luxury I couldn't afford now.
“Rowan?” Trish, a girl I vaguely remembered as Brock’s friend, gasped.
“Is that really you?”
“I need your help,” I rasped, cutting straight to the point.
My throat felt like sandpaper, but that was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
"Catrina's been taken, and I have to find her."
The diner's chatter died down, replaced by whispers and worried glances. Right.
Kidnapping wasn't exactly your everyday small-town drama.
"Taken?" Zach, another face from that group, echoed, his forehead wrinkling with concern.
He was a good guy, Zach, always had been. "What happened?"
I sucked in a breath, trying to tame the wolf clawing at its leash inside me.
"It's a long story, but her ex, Brock, he—"
"Brock?" Zach interrupted, his brow furrowing.
"But he's been gone for weeks. Nobody's seen him since the semester ended."
Hope, fluttered in my chest. "Do you know where he went?"
The group exchanged uneasy looks.
They knew something, I could practically smell it – that mix of fear and reluctance that always seemed to surround Brock's name these days.
"The thing is…” Trish started, her voice hesitant.
"Brock's been...different. Kind of obsessed. We tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't listen."
Zach nodded, confirming her words with a grim look.
"Yeah, man. He was hung up on Catrina even after she broke up with him. We knew he was acting crazy, but we didn't think..."
He didn't have to finish the sentence. My gut already knew what he was going to say.
Brock, with his possessiveness, his jealousy… I should've seen this coming.
Should’ve smelled the danger on him like a bad cologne since we meet again in the college hallways.
"You have to tell me everything," I pleaded, my voice tight with urgency.
Every second wasted was another second Catrina spent in danger. "Catrina's life depends on it."
The weight of my words hung in the air, and thankfully, they understood.
They told me about Brock's descent into obsession, how he’d become withdrawn after seeing Catrina pregnant at the hotel, convinced she belonged with him, not some “city guy.”
“He kept going on about how she was meant to be with him,”
Zach explained, shaking his head. "Like some twisted fairy tale he'd made up in his head."
“Then, a few days after break, he just vanished,” Trish added, her voice barely a whisper.
"Nobody’s seen or heard from him since.”
My fists clenched, frustration warring with the primal fear that gnawed at my insides.
"Did he say where he was going? Anything at all?"
Silence met my question. Just when I thought they had nothing, a hesitant voice spoke up.
Collin, Zach’s little brother, a lanky kid with wide, earnest eyes.
“A couple weeks ago, I ran into Brock by the bookstore,” Collin piped up, his voice small.
“He was acting really strange… kept talking about this apartment he’d found. Said it was the perfect place to disappear to, to start over.”
My head snapped up. "Where? Where was this apartment?"
Collin's face scrunched up.
"I don’t remember exactly… I think he said it was on the outskirts of town? I didn’t really pay attention, I just wanted to get away from him, you know? He was giving off a creepy vibe.”
I didn't wait for him to finish. My wolf, sensing a lead, surged forward, urging me to action.
“An apartment… on the outskirts…” I muttered, more to myself than anyone else.
It wasn’t much, but it was a start. And if Brock was stupid enough to hole up somewhere so close…
“Thanks,” I managed, a gruff nod in their direction.
They probably meant well, trying to offer comfort, but I couldn’t stay.
Not when Catrina needed me.
The diner door slammed shut behind me, muffling their calls. Didn't matter.
I could smell her, faintly, like a whisper in the wind.
Fear, mixed with her unique scent. It was faint, almost gone, but it was there.
My wolf, sensing its mate in danger, thrummed with a power that bordered on pain. It wanted to run, to tear through everything that stood in our way until we reached her.
And maybe, a part of me did too. But another part, the part that was still Rowan Magnus and not just an alpha driven by instinct, knew I had to be smart about this.
The apartment complex wasn't hard to find.
A run-down, two-story building, the kind that attracted more whispers than tenants.
Even from a distance, I could feel a prickling sensation on my skin, a warning sign that screamed danger.
This was it. Brock was here, and if my wolf was right, so was Catrina.
The lobby was empty, dimly lit, smelling of stale cigarettes and fear. That same prickling sensation intensified, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.
"Catrina!" I roared, my voice echoing through the empty hallway.
There was no answer, just the sound of my own heart pounding in my ears.
Movement flickered at the end of the hallway. I whipped around, every sense on high alert.
There he was. Brock. His face, usually so open and friendly, was twisted into a sneer, his eyes burning with a disturbing light.
"Well, well, if it isn't the big bad Alpha," he drawled, his voice dripping with a malice I’d never heard from him before.
“Come to play hero?”
I stalked towards him, every muscle in my body coiled tight.
"Where is she, Brock? Where's Catrina?"
He laughed, a chilling sound that scraped against my bones.
"Oh, she's safe, Rowan. Safer than she's ever been. With me.”
Rage, primal and hot, surged through me. My wolf snarled, eager to tear into the threat before us.
“Don’t play games, Brock. If you’ve hurt her, I swear to god–”
"Hurt her?" he scoffed, faking innocence.
"Why would I hurt her? Catrina is everything to me. I’m taking care of her. Always have.”
“You’re delusional,” I growled, taking another step closer.
“Catrina is my mate, not yours. Tell me where she is, or—”
“Your mate?” Brock spat, his whole body trembling with rage.
“She was never yours, Rowan! Catrina belongs with me! Always has, always will!”
He stepped forward, his fists clenched. It was almost comical, seeing this scrawny human trying to intimidate me. Almost.
But the look in his eyes, the conviction in his voice, sent a shiver down my spine.
"You think you can just waltz in here and take her? Catrina is mine, and I'm not letting anyone take her from me.”
My wolf roared, every fiber of my being focused on getting to Catrina. The need to protect her, to shield her from this madman, was overwhelming.
"Last chance, Brock,” I growled, my voice dangerously low.
"Tell me where she is."
"Or what?" he challenged, a cruel smirk twisting his lips.
"What are you going to do, Rowan? Attack me? Try to take her back?”
His laughter, harsh and grating, bounced off the walls.
"Go ahead. Try it. But I’m warning you – if you come any closer, I'll kill her. And the baby.”
The world stopped. My blood ran cold, the bloodlust draining out of me, replaced by a terror so profound it stole my breath away.
"You wouldn't," I choked out, the words barely audible.
But even as I said it, I knew he was serious.
The look in his eyes, the way he held the glinting knife he'd pulled from his pocket… It was all the confirmation I needed.
“Oh, I would, Rowan,”
Brock said, his voice devoid of any warmth, any humanity.
"In a heartbeat. Catrina is mine. And I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her.”
He took a step closer, the knife glinting under the fluorescent lights.
"So here’s the deal, Rowan. You walk away. Let us be. Or you try to stop me, and you watch them both die.”
The weight of his words, pressed down on me, suffocating.
Catrina. Our pup. Their lives in the hands of this… this monster.
"You're insane, Brock," I spat, my voice thick with disgust.
"Catrina would never choose you. Never. She’s my mate, my everything. And I'm not leaving without her."
His eyes narrowed, and in a flash, he lunged, the knife aimed directly at where I knew, with sickening certainty, Catrina's belly would be.
"Then you leave me no choice!"
End of The Alpha's forbidden omega mate Chapter 85. Continue reading Chapter 86 or return to The Alpha's forbidden omega mate book page.