Blood And Silver:Rise of the Alpha’s Rejected Mate
Chapter 32

Chapter 32 AURORA I blinked at Esther .

None of that is true .

She gave me a pitying look .

If you say so , dear .

I dont want you to traumatize yourself , digging too deeply in the past .

Speaking of which … She leaned over and dug in the crate , then handed me a folded up piece of paper .

We found this when we were scavenging the old house one night .

It looks like old house one night .

It looks that page from your mothers nonsense journal you liked to play with as a child .

Wonderingly , I took the paper from her hand and slowly unfolded it .

It was only one page , not all three , but as the symbols glimmered in front of my eyes , some of them shaping into the word ceremony , I realized it was exactly the page wed been looking for .

Thank you … mother , I said .

Esther Reed smiled .

Like I said , darling .

Youve always been one of us .

Theres no reason you cant be again .

***** A Chapter 32 2/5 The Reeds took me back to the mansion Id bought .

When I walked in the door , Trajan and Evander practically fainted with relief .

To my surprise , the Blue Ridge wolves , led by Piper , were still there .

Didnt Dane call you back to the pack house ? I asked her .

No , she said .

I frowned at the dark haired woman .

I was so tired , and all I wanted to do was collapse into my bed .

It took me long minutes to figure out why Dane wouldnt have called them away .

Then I realized : he was protecting his asset , of course .

He had literally said he never wanted to see me again .

That didnt mean he was willing to let our search for the relic go .

Did he tell you what happened ? I asked .

Piper hesitated , then shook her head .

Only that you betrayed him … again .

Esther Reed made a very convincing fake recording of me , I said .

I dont know how she managed .

I usually didnt speak this bluntly to people , but I was so tired , and so tired of Dane never taking my side .

All these years , I was what he desired most .

But what did that matter ? Desire wasnt love .

It wasnt trust .

It wasnt what I so badly wanted and had wanted for years : a real , true , lasting Chapter 32 3/5 relationship where he listened to me and respected me , the way I used to respect him .

Pipers brows drew together at my words .

Thats … interesting .

Yes , I said flippantly as I moved past her toward the stairs .

Thats what Dane thought .

When I made it up to my rooms , I was shocked to find Holden Coleridge waiting for me .

The Alpha of the Fall Line pack looked exhausted .

Holden ? What are you doing here ? Everyone has been searching for you , he said .

Until Dane finally decided to announce you were safe through his own .

wolves .

You searched for me ? I asked , smiling .

High and low .

Holden sat up and grinned .

But you look worse than I do .

We could both use a shower and a bed .

I hesitated , then tilted my head at him .

He didnt know about the journal , or my strange gift for reading it .

He didnt know about the relic that High Alpine and Blue Ridge both wanted so badly .

Holden had been my friend for long enough .

I should be able to trust him with this .

And I wanted to speak to someone about everything I was going through with Dane .

Mommy ! The twins burst from their room and ran to me , both of them wrapping their arms around my waist ..

Chapter 32 4/5 My babies ! I laughed and bent to kiss each one of them , and immediately put telling Holden out of my mind .

Yes , I wanted an ally .

A partner .

Someone I could trust .

Someone I could love .

Holden might be that person … one day .

He was charming , handsome , and kind .

But for today , when I was bone tired from no sleep and even more exhausted from dealing with Dane , all I needed were my children .

As I held them , I realized how badly Id let Ethers words turn my head .

Id found out so much in the last twelve hours .

My birth mother had sold me .

Dane … wanted me , if nothing else .

I used to keep a journal that made it sound like what I wanted as a young woman was every terrible thing the Reeds wanted , too .

But as long as I had these two , I had light .

They were good .

That meant there had to be good in me , too .

***** The next days were so full it made my time in the cave with Dane feel like a dream .

I couldnt spend too long with the page , because deciphering more than a few symbols at a time sent pain spiking through my head .

But the meanings were clear enough this was the ceremony .

The only problem was it required 100 wolves to perform it .

Many , many more than my little collection of five , especially Chapter 32 considering that two of those five were my children .

5/5 The petty part of me thought about cutting Dane out .

Holdens pack was as large as his -a few hundred wolves , at least .

Was But I couldnt .

The relic was on Danes land .

Blue Ridge High Alpines partner in this , and I wouldnt go back on my packs word .

I hadnt told Dane about the page , yet .

And I wasnt going to leave our business to Trajan or Evander , no matter what he said .

So on the third day after our night in the cave , I picked up the phone and called him .

Except he didnt answer .