*Xander*
4
I love Jane… I do. I just didn’t appreciate the way she always
tried to make me do what she wanted. I’d still believed we could
make things work. But now, staring down at divorce papers.
filed by my wife, it made things very clear.
I read the divorce summon again: Petition for Dissolution of
Marriage – Grounds: Adultery. The Supreme Wolf Court
required me to appear within 20 days.
I read it again, this time even more slowly. Every word trembled
in my mind and I held the paper tightly. A faint humming sound
came from the background.
I felt Mia slide her hand up my arm.
“How did she do that?”
I didn’t look at her. Instead, I folded the papers and slid them
back into the envelope. My wolf curled into himself. His pain
was my pain, and we were both hurting at the prospect of losing
our mate. I tried to remain calm, especially in front of Mia.
The delivery man who was still waiting, cleared his throat. “I,
uh… need a signature, Alpha.”
I was struggling to breathe, mentally pacing myself as I tried to
come to terms with the news. I mechanically took the pen he
offered and scrawled my name across the line.
“There,” I said, trying to stop my voice from breaking. “You’ve
done your part.”
He scurried away after that and I closed the door behind him. It
was all too surreal. Jane, my Jane wanted to permanently end
our union. Was this because I froze the account? I was just
trying to remind her of my importance in her life. Was that so
bad? Did that make me deserve a fucking divorce?
Mia followed me into the living room. “How the hell did Jane
pull this off? She left less than a day ago.”
I didn’t answer. I wasn’t in the mood for any of this. My mate
was about to leave me, and all Mia wanted to do was gossip.
I felt her fingers brush against my back. “Are you okay?”
No, I wasn’t. It felt like a truck had slammed right into me. “I
need to be alone,” I said.
Mia hesitated for a moment, a trace of confusion flashing across
her face, but in the end she nodded and took a step back.
Chapter 29:1 love you that way.
When she was no longer within sight, I yanked my phone out of
my pocket and dialed Jane. No answer. Damn it. I called again.
Straight to voicemail.
I kept trying, and by the fifth try, I couldn’t breathe. She was
doing this to punish me. She wanted control. But that was my
game. Nobody controlled the Alpha.
With as much anger as I could muster, I hurled the phone across
the room, watching as it hit the wall and dropped to the floor in
pieces.
This isn’t happening. I won’t let it.
I grabbed my coat off the back of the chair and headed to the
kitchen. I found Mia sipping a cup of coffee, phone in hand.
“Find Jane’s mother Helena Ashford,” I barked. “I want to know
exactly where Jane’s mother is being held.”
Mia blinked. “But…”
“Now, Mia.”
She nodded fast. “I’ll call Marcus. He owes us.” She moved away,
speaking in hushed tones into the phone. I waited impatiently,
until she turned back to me.
“She’s at Silvergate. The Isolation wing.”
Of course she was. Helena wasn’t exactly subtle. “Good. Also, I
need you to get a new phone.” And then I left.
I rushed over to Silvergate, knowing that Helena was probably
more manipulative than me. If there was anyone who could
help me get Jane back, it was her.
No one asked for my ID as I walked into the detention center.
One officer took my coat, while another even offered me coffee.
But I ignored them.
Helena looked worse than I expected. She always looked so put
together, and now… let’s just say orange definitely wasn’t her
color.
“Took you long enough,” she snapped before I even sat down. “I
should’ve known you’d hang me out to dry. Not even a damn
lawyer, Xander? Do you want me in here?”
“You’re really lucky I came at all,” I hissed. “You’re the one who
turned a simple favor into a full blown crime scene. You couldn‘
t control yourself?”
She scoffed, cuffs clinking as she shifted. “She’s my daughter. I
know how to handle her.”
“I asked you to talk to her. Talk. Not toss her over a bridge.”
just… I wanted her to wake up.”
This woman was truly delusional. But I needed her, so I kept my
mouth shut. Besides I didn’t want to get on her bad side and
have her running her mouth to Jane.
Helena suddenly blinked, looking behind me. “I don’t see a
lawyer, Xander.”
I gritted my teeth. “Jane wouldn’t want me to get involved.”
“You sent me!” she yelled. Her expression twisted into
something very ugly. “Don’t act like this was all my idea.”
Shit. “Keep your voice down.”
She clenched her jaw, but the fire in her eyes didn’t disappear. I
leaned on the table between us. “Jane left. She filed for divorce.
And you know why? Because you put your hands on her.”
“That has nothing to do with me. Get me out of here, Xander.
I fought to restrain my anger. I didn’t want to cause a scene. “All of this is your fault. I didn’t want a divorce. I never did. Jane
wouldn’t have left me if you hadn’t lost control.”
I took a deep breath before I continued. “I need you to help me
fix this. I don’t want to lose Jane. she just needs a nudge in the
right direction. Think about the scandal. Do you really want the
Ashford name in that type of bad press?”
Helena considered my words for a moment. “Well, you have a
point.” She sucked her teeth. “Get me out after the pretrial today
and I’ll help you.”
“Excuse me?” There was no way I was getting involved in that.
This wasn’t child’s play. Helena was facing serious charges,
possibly attempted murder. Did she actually think I had enough
influence to hold her hand and just walk out of here?
“You heard me.” She folded her hands.
I couldn’t even speak. It was impossible, even for me. The
Supreme Court is the highest court, no Alpha can defy it. My
hands were tied. But, I wanted my wife back. Damn it. Helena
was playing hard ball.
I shook my head. “You’re asking for something impossible.”
But she didn’t care. She leaned back into the chair. “So? Do you
want your wife back or not?”
