Chapter 20: The Great Alpha King Dominic Fears Deception
Avery
“Of course,” she muttered, quickly escaping and leaving me alone with him.
He waited until she was out of earshot before turning to face me fully. His voice echoed in the kitchen, making me instinctively lower my gaze to the floor.
‘Where’s Trey?‘ he demanded.
“What?” I had no idea what he was talking about.
“Do I need to repeat myself?” I opened my mouth to tell him I didn’t understand, but the words died in my throat as his crimson eyes flashed dangerously.
Avery, there’s no one there. No one,” I felt Dominic’s glare burning into me, his voice tight with barely controlled anger.
I stared at him in confusion. What was he talking about? This made absolutely no sense. How could there be no one? Dominic had just publicly snapped at me, and the maids hadn’t even left. I could feel eyes on me, people waiting to see me humiliated.
I was already feeling miserable and hurt, and now Dominic comes charging in like a madman to yell at me? I hadn’t done anything wrong. This wasn’t my fault. Yet here he was, losing his mind at me for reasons I couldn’t comprehend.
“The house is empty. The Pack is empty. Where did they go, Avery?” His voice was low, dangerous.
I shook my head, completely bewildered. “I don’t understand.”
“You… you went to see my brother?” I whispered, refusing to meet his gaze. It was the only explanation I could think of. Maybe Trevor had said something to turn Dominic against me.
Is this all a lie?” he demanded, jabbing a finger toward me. His body was coiled with tension, like a predator ready to strike. “Did you and your brother set me up? What kind of game are you two playing?”
He leaned in close to my face, features contorted with rage. “Tell me what Trevor is planning.”
I closed my eyes in desperation, a familiar defense mechanism when facing anger. I’d learned long ago that not seeing the blow coming somehow made it
hurt less.
“Avery!”
I jumped when his hand suddenly gripped my chin, his touch firm but not painful. The unexpected contact made my heart race with fear.
“I told you that you never need to fear me. Open your eyes and look at me!” he commanded.
Tears leaked from beneath my tightly closed eyelids. Rachel had been right after all. He’d brought me here and lost interest in less than half a day! Maybe he never had any interest in me to begin with. Perhaps he just wanted to satisfy his twisted hero complex by rescuing me!
Gathering my courage, I opened my eyes to find his deep crimson eyes staring intently at me. The anger in them was still present, but something else flickered there too confusion?
His expression gradually softened. “You don’t know what I’m talking about, do you?”
I mumbled a quiet “No.”
He released my chin and stepped back. “The Pack is empty!”
Abandoned?” I whispered, trying to make sen
sense
of his words.
“No, nothing’s missing, everything’s still there, just… no people. Anywhere. It’s like they vanished into thin air. Trust me, we’ve searched.”
173
Chapter 20: The Great Alpha King Dominic Fears Deception
“I don’t know,” I swallowed nervously. I only left the Pack this morning. I…” My voice trailed off as a memory surfaced, and I instinctively looked away.
“Go on, Dominic prompted, his voice calmer now. “You remembered something?‘
I’ve never been farther than the gardens,‘ I frowned, trying to organize my thoughts. “But sometimes, the house would be empty. If it wasn’t locked up, ra steal some food.*
‘How often?‘ he asked, his intense gaze never leaving my face.
“Every few months, I think.” If the house hadn’t been empty sometimes, allowing me to steal food, I probably would have starved to death years ago.
‘Did no one ever talk about this?” Dominic pressed.
I shook my head.
Are you sure, Avery?”
“They might have,” I admitted. “Just not around me.”
Suddenly, he reached out a hand toward me. I flinched but didn’t retreat as he took my small hand in his much larger one, pulling me closer until my hand rested against his chest. I could feel his heartbeat, strong and steady.
His arm wrapped tightly around me, squeezing the air from my lungs. “You’d better not be lying to me, Avery. I can’t tolerate liars.”
“I promise,” I whispered, trying to ignore the pain from my wounds. Instead of pulling away, I found myself staring up at him. Even without my wolf, I could feel his power in this moment–intoxicating and suffocating all at once.
A question formed in my mind: Dominic seemed terrified of being deceived. Had someone betrayed him before?
“I swear I don’t know. If I did, I would tell you,” I said with all the sincerity I could muster. And I meant it. Despite everything, I had no reason to lie to him. What would I gain? I was entirely at his mercy, and we both knew it.
His eyes searched mine for what felt like an eternity before he finally nodded, seemingly satisfied with what he found there. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly, but his arm remained firmly around me, as though he feared I might disappear if he let go.
“This isn’t normal,” he muttered, more to himself than to me. “An entire Pack doesn’t just vanish without a trace.”
I remained silent, not knowing what to say. The Blood Moon Pack had always been full of secrets, and I had been kept in the dark about most things. Being the lowest of the low meant no one bothered to tell me anything important.
“Did you notice anything unusual before you left? Anything at all?” Dominic asked, his voice gentler now,
I thought hard, trying to remember if there had been anything out of the ordinary. “No, everything seemed normal. Trevor was his usual self…” I shuddered slightly at the memory of Kevin’s cruel smile. “Kevin and Eva were…” I trailed off, not wanting to revisit those memories.
Dominic’s jaw tightened at the mention of their names, but he didn’t press for details. Instead, he finally released me and took a step back, running a hand through his dark hair.
“We need to figure this out,” he said firmly. “If Trevor is planning something, I need to know what it is.”
I’ll help however I can, I offered quietly. “But I don’t know much about Pack politics or… anything important, really.”
Dominic’s eyes softened slightly as he looked at me. “You’ve been kept in the dark deliberately, Avery. That’s not your fault.” He paused, seeming to consider his next words carefully. “But you might know more than you realize. Sometimes the most important information is hidden in plain sight,”
I nodded, though I wasn’t convinced. What could I possibly know that would be of any use to him?
As Dominic turned to leave, presumably to continue his investigation, I gathered my courage to ask the question that had been nagging at me.
‘Dominic?” I called softly.
He paused, looking back at me with those intense eyes.
