#Chapter 88. The Plea of an Alpha
#Chapter 88: The Plea of an Alpha
(Siena’s POV)
Raiden’s whispered plea haunts me, echoing relentlessly through the stillness of my room, refusing me even the small mercy of sleep.
“Don’t go.”
Those two simple words replay over and over, each repetition carving deeper into my carefully constructed walls.
I sit upright in bed, sheets tangled restlessly around my legs, staring blankly at the shadows cast by moonlight through my window. His voice had carried a raw vulnerability I’ve never heard from him before–soft, hesitant, almost desperate.
But is that enough?
My pulse quickens traitorously at the memory, chest tightening painfully. My wolf stirs restlessly beneath my skin, ears perked, hopeful despite logic’s warnings.
But is this sudden change genuine? Or merely Raiden’s reaction to seeing my independence, my strength, finally free from his control?
Can I trust this? Trust him?
I’ve worked so hard to find peace apart from him, to define my worth beyond his rejection.
Can I risk everything I’ve built for a chance at something that might only be temporary remorse?
Hours pass in quiet torment, dawn breaking gently over Windhowl territory before I finally rise, exhausted yet resolved.
I’ll delay my departure by one day.
Not because of Raiden, I firmly remind myself–but simply to finalize important pack matters, to leave nothing unresolved.
After breakfast, I sit quietly with Rairity in the study, my fingers trembling slightly as I turn each page. The morning light feels too harsh, too revealing, as if purposely illuminating the wreckage of my heart.
“Just a few more signatures,” Rairity murmurs gently, sliding another document forward.
I nod numbly, unable to trust my voice. How strange that the world still expects me to function–to read and sign and exist -when everything inside me feels fractured beyond repair.
My mind drifts treacherously back to last night’s whispered words, the finality in their tone. I blink hard, forcing my eyes to focus on the papers before me. Not now. Not here.
As I flip through financial records, numbers blurring beneath unshed tears, my eyes suddenly catch on an unfamiliar document. The letterhead is wrong. The format unfamiliar.
My heart doesn’t merely skip–it shatters anew, fragments of hope and dread colliding painfully in my chest. My breath catches, a small sound escaping that makes Rairity look up sharply.
The words swim before me, their meaning slowly taking horrifying shape, each letter another nail in a coffin I didn’t know was being built.
“Rairity, what is this?” I ask slowly, pointing to the detailed ledger, which clearly shows a substantial payment made directly to Lila years ago.
She hesitates uncomfortably, her expression shifting carefully. “That was… settlement money. Raiden paid her to leave Windhowl permanently.”
My heart stutters painfully, breath catching sharply in my throat. “he paid Lila to leave?” I whisper hoarsely, mind swirling chaotically. All these years, I believed Raiden had chosen Lila over me. Assumed their relationship continued after our divorce. But if that wasn’t true…
I’d never asked because it wasn’t my place–not anymore, not for a long time.
Rairity nods solemnly, eyes gentle with sympathy. “Raiden discovered Lila’s deception soon after you left. He publicly exposed her lies, stripped her of rank, and forced her departure.”
Emotions tangle thickly inside me.
Everything I believed about Raiden and Lila, everything that shaped my bitterness, my resentment–suddenly crumbles beneath this revelation. My mind races frantically, questioning assumptions I’ve clung to for years.
What else didn’t I know?
Needing escape, I mumble something incoherent and flee, unable to breathe within those suffocating walls.
The door closes behind me with terrible gentleness–I would have preferred it to slam, to scream, to acknowledge the devastation tearing through me.
The crisp morning air slaps against my face, indifferent to my pain.
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#Chapter 88: The Plea of an Alpha
Each inhale burns, as though my lungs have forgotten their purpose. My feet move of their own accord, not carrying me but dragging me away, anywhere but here.
I don’t choose the forest path. The forest chooses me, pulling me into its depths like a mourner into an embrace. Only when the trees have swallowed me whole do I realize where I’m going–where I’ve always been going.
The ancient oak appears before me, massive and eternal and cruelly unchanged. My steps falter, then fail entirely. I collapse against its rough bark, knees giving way beneath the weight of memory.
My trembling fingers find them without looking–our ceremonial symbols carved deeply into the tree’s ancient surface–the marks of binding, promise, and forever. I trace each curve and line, feeling the wood’s texture beneath my touch just as I once felt the hope in my heart.
“We were supposed to outlast you,” I whisper to the tree, my voice breaking on each syllable. “We carved ourselves into you because we believed we would endure.”
The oak offers no comfort or wisdom. It offers only silence and the mocking permanence of symbols that now mean nothing at all.
I brush my fingertips over the markings, memories flooding vividly through me.
That day, I felt cautious hope despite our union’s political nature.
I’d believed, or at least desperately hoped, that we might build something meaningful together. The ache of those lost dreams pierces me sharply now, poignant and bittersweet.
A faint rustle behind me abruptly pulls me from my memories. I turn quickly, heart pounding erratically, as Raiden himself steps carefully into view, clearly equally surprised to find me here.
“Siena,” he breathes softly, midnight eyes wide with quiet uncertainty. “I…didn’t expect anyone else here.”
“Neither did I,” I reply gently, heart fluttering traitorously in my chest. The quiet intimacy of this place strips away formal constraints, offering a rare opportunity for honesty.
Raiden approaches slowly, his gaze drifting thoughtfully toward the carved symbols. “I often come here to think,” he admits quietly, his voice strained with unspoken emotion. It reminds me of mistakes I wish I could undo.”
The vulnerable admission startles me, my heart stuttering painfully. “We both made mistakes,” I whisper carefully, eyes locked on the ancient carvings. There was much left unsaid between us–perhaps too much.”
He nods slowly, stepping closer, the space between us narrowing dangerously. “I never meant to hurt you, Siena. I was blinded by pride and fear of vulnerability. I realize that now, far too late.”
His sincere regret pierces deeply, and his eyes hold mine with quiet intensity. Our bond hums sharply with awareness, and our emotions swirl chaotically, tangled beyond clear understanding.
It’s not his first attempt at an apology. I remind myself that he’s done this before, but most importantly, I recall now how much more I have to lose.
Suddenly, cold droplets splash against my skin, startling us both. Rain falls swiftly, unexpectedly, pelting down in sheets. Raiden glances quickly toward the nearby hillside, instinctively grabbing my hand.
“Come on,” he calls urgently, pulling me swiftly along the path toward an old hunting cabin nestled among the trees.
We duck quickly inside, breathing heavily, soaked through by the sudden storm. The small cabin feels too intimate and too enclosed, forcing proximity for which neither of us seems prepared.
Raiden steps back carefully, giving me space, though his eyes linger softly upon mine.
The silence stretches awkwardly, both of us acutely aware of the closeness. He shifts uncomfortably, running fingers
through rain–damp hair, gaze fixed determinedly on the windows as rain pounds relentlessly outside.
My heart pounds furiously, emotions swirling chaotically. Finally, unable to bear the silence, I voice the question that has haunted me since Rairity’s revelation:
“Raiden…why did you never tell me about Lila’s expulsion?” My voice trembles softly, vulnerable in ways I rarely a
For a moment, he hesitates, uncertainty flickering across his features. When he finally answers, his voice is roughened, raw with honesty I never expected:
“I didn’t think you’d want to hear from me after everything I’d done.”
The quiet vulnerability in his admission strikes deeply, shattering remaining defenses inside my chest.
My wolf whines softly, ears flattening, sensitive to the sincerity in his words.
How much pain might have been avoided if only he’d spoken sooner?
If only we’d both been brave enough to bridge the silence?
“I wish you had,” I whisper gently, eyes locked softly upon his.
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#Chapter 88: The Plea of an Alpha
He nods slowly, stepping slightly closer, hesitant yet determined. “I’ve spent years regretting my silence, he murmurs softly. “Regretting every mistake that pushed you away.”
Is this truly sincere? Or merely desperate regret now that he’s lost me?
Yet standing here, inches away, watching the raw emotion flicker through his eyes, my heart whispers softly that perhaps Raiden truly has changed.
Slowly, carefully, his fingers reach gently toward mine, tentative, asking silent permission.
My pulse quickens sharply, and my breath catches softly as our hands entwine gently. Electricity sizzles sharply through our damaged bond, fierce yet comforting, familiar yet new.
Rain pounds relentlessly against the cabin’s roof, enclosing us in a silent cocoon of intimacy.
For a moment, neither speaks, simply standing quietly, fingers gently entwined. “I don’t deserve another chance, Siena. But if you ever considered giving one–I promise to spend every day proving I’ve changed.”
His words pierce deeply, and emotions swirl chaotically inside me.
My wolf leans instinctively toward him, ears perked hopefully, heart yearning softly despite past wounds.
Yet caution holds me still, and I am hesitant to trust fully again after years of pain. “I don’t
