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Chapter 20

"Are you sure you can handle this, right now?" Rowen asked Alana quietly. "I understand if this is asking too much of you."

I was already settled in the back seat and the others were piling in after throwing the last of their things in the trunk. We were just waiting on Alana now, but Rowen had stopped her, grabbing hold of her arm before she opened her car door.

While the others paid no mind, I leaned my ear closer to the window to pick up their faint voices through the glass, trying my best not to look too suspicious in the process. My guilty conscience nagged at me, but if I could get any information. Anything at all, it would help ease my worries.

"I'm fine." Alana ripped her arm away from him, staring hard at the ground as she turned her back to him and tugged on the door handle.

As if knowing what she was about to do, Rowen extended his arm and pressed hard on the top of the door, stopping it from moving.

"This isn't the time for your stupid games."

"Nor your dumb lectures." She retorted back with a snort.

"It is when you're acting like a child." He snapped. "I was trying to be nice and look out for you."

"Thanks, but no thanks. I can handle myself."

"You're not the only one who needs to be looked after."

"If you're so worried about your mate then let me leave." She turned towards him again with a pointed look. "Don't act so concerned about her when you didn't give two shits about who she was two fucking weeks ago. I'm not talking about her as your mate. I'm talking about her as she is."

"You're just as much at fault as everyone else." She continued, stepping towards him. "None of us would be here right now if you were man enough to stick up for your mate."

"It's not that fucking easy." He gritted through his teeth.

"Oh really? Or is it because you don't want to put in the effort to fight for her."

I jumped as a loud growl ripped from his throat and his fist slammed hard against the exterior of the car. The others snapped their attention in their direction, but no one moved to intervene. Rowen stepped back and breathed in deeply, his body shaking as he closed his eyes.

"You think I want this?" His voice was strained as he spoke.

"I think you need to make a decision before someone makes it for you?"

Rowen clamped his mouth shut and he stared back at Alana with an unreadable expression.

Alana sighed and her shoulders fell sleek," You need to trust me."

I couldn't see her expression very well, but the raw emotion in her voice caught me off guard. If I hadn't been listening in, I wouldn't have thought that was her.

"No one will get hurt ever again," she whispered. "I swear on my life."

I jumped back to reality when I heard a sharp bang to my left that was accompanied by an anguished yell and a flattened face against the thin glass that separated us. In the heat of the moment, I shifted towards the right, sending my shoulder clashing into Marcel's shoulder and it hurt. Badly.

"I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed quickly as I winced, grabbing my arm.

Before I could wait for his response, I fell back towards the window in an attempt to put space between us when all of a sudden the man pressed against the window let out a blood curdling scream as his arm was detached from his body. Specks of blood spotted the window and the man was roughly pulled back by the back of his neck, Alana's freshly manicured nails digging into his skin just inches from his throat.