Alpha Female | COMPLETED

29| Explanations

"He tried asking for you peacefully again. He wanted you even though he'd gotten the wind of the fact that you had found your mate. He was delighted to hear that your mate was the future Alpha of your rival pack. He thought it would make things easier. The plan was simple, get the packs to fight and then amidst the bedlam and mayhem of the war, capture you once and for all. Who would know, right? 

"That's when he started sending the notes. To get the pack to fight, to fuel the rivalry. Stoke the kindle and get a big flame. That plan failed, too. The Alphas unexpectedly talked things out before attacking, unlike their ancestors.

"Vincent was pissed. Tired of being passive-aggressive, he turned to drastic measures. He decided to get his object of fascination by force. Unfortunately for him, his men were not exactly sure of what you looked like. They just knew your general attributes. Sun-kissed skin with a slight golden tan, short brown hair, and green eyes. As soon as they caught hold of someone who looked like that, they kidnapped her . . . only to find out that they got the wrong girl.

"Frustrated, he made a new plan. He planned to poison you. If you would be weakened with Wolfsbane, you'd make an easy target. If you couldn't be captured for some reason, Ashton's wolf would expose your mate bond and a war would ensue. A double-edged sword, or so he thought. But that failed when your parents accepted you eventually. Then he resorted to sending threat notes and emails, warning us of his advance. 

"Finally, that brings us to today. He showed up at the commonplace where the Crescent Moon and Silver Moon borders conjoin near the neutral lands. And you almost walked into his arms, Lia. You're an idiot."

I gaped at his speech. Ashton pulled me close to him, resting his chin on my shoulder. He squeezed my middle comfortingly and I melted into him.

Julian basically just summarized what had happened since I'd come back. And what happened to make my parents force me into moving in with grandma for six years. Only now I had more insight and I could explain so much more. Reasons. Explanations I needed. I tried not to think about my family and them sending me to Evergreen. It was still a sore topic for me, despite everything.

I decided to voice the one question that was still probing at me to stop thinking about mom, dad, and Aaron.

"Why me?" I asked cautiously.

"Let's continue this discussion in your room," he suggested, eyeing the room. The Weres left were not talking amongst themselves. I hadn't even noticed the silence the room was drowning in till then. I swallowed and nodded. I stood up, leaving Ashton's embrace reluctantly. He turned me around and pecked my lips reassuringly. I smiled.

I frowned at him when I saw that the ice pack he was using was all melted yet the bruises on his face were still raging.

"You didn't ice them," I accused.

"I did," he lied smoothly. I rolled my eyes as I rinsed that pack under the tap and put it back in the freezer. I wiped away the condensation with a kitchen towel before disposing it off. I grabbed another ice pack and thrust it towards him. 

"Do it," I dictated. He sighed as he obediently pressed the pack to his face to placate me. We walked to my room and I opened it with my key, ushering them in. I collapsed on my bed face first, making them chuckle. The bed dipped beside me and I turned my face sideways to find Ash sitting beside me. He stroked my hair and I sighed in content, my eyes fluttering shut. I counted to ten before I opened my eyes. 

There were things I needed to know.

"Why me?" I asked again, sitting beside Ashton against my headboard. He opened his arms for me to cuddle and I gave in to my temptation, curling up beside him. He kissed the top of my head and Sera purred in my head. I blocked out the horny wolf out of my mind to focus on Julian. He was sitting on my study table chair, watching us with an amused and knowing look.