Page 77 of Alpha Brock
My jaw goes slack. I can’t believe he’d have the gall to try to deny his involvement after I just had a front row seat to his double-cross. “I had a vision, I justsawyou…”
As soon as the words leave me, Chris’ expression twists into a frown. He knows he’s caught. He sucks in a breath, his jaw ticking. “Okay, fine, you got me. Fuck. But… it’s not what you think.”
The sickness that I’m feeling at the discovery of his betrayal is quickly morphing into something else- scorching hot anger. “Are you serious? You ratted me out, Chris! You told them about my ability! You do realize that it’s not only me you betrayed, right? What about Cole, what about the pack? What about Heidi…”
Chris’ eyes narrow on me at the mention of his mate’s name. “Why do you think I did it?” he snaps. “They promised me that Heidi and our pup would be safe if I went along with them. We weren’t going to beat them, Astrid. I had to make sure they were safe…”
“You’re pathetic,” I hiss, turning away. I can’t even look at him. I let my throbbing head fall back against the wall behind me, drawing deep breaths in and out. Trying to process the bomb he just dropped.
How the hell did I miss this? How did my intuition not pick up on Chris being a double-crosser? How did I not have a vision of this before now? I don’t have full control over my abilities, but surely I would’ve been able to pick something up from him had I tried to. I suppose it just never occurred to me to reach out for anything from Chris since I never suspected him. Or I was too preoccupied with Brock to pick up on what was happening right under my nose.
“How long?” I croak.
“What?”
“How long. How long have they had you in their pocket, Chris?”
He heaves a sigh. “Last full moon, when we had that border breach, me and a few others tried to pursue the scouts they sent. I caught up with them but found myself outnumbered. They could’ve killed me, but we struck a deal instead.”
I chuckle wryly, shaking my head. “And how did I become part of this deal?”
“They already knew about your gift, Astrid. Heard a rumor that the alpha of the Denver pack had a sister who was a seer, that you came from a long line of seers. I told them your grandma was, but you weren’t. At least I didn’t think you were, but then I heard Cole and Sam talking about it one day…”
“Shit,” I whisper. After I had that first vision in the packhouse kitchen in Riverton, I was so damn excited to share it with someone that I told Cole and Sam over video chat the following day. They’ve known for weeks, so Chris could’ve overheard them at any point since then. I swallow hard, eyes still trained on the ceiling. “So you used it against me?”
“I did what I had to do.”
I get that sick feeling again, like I’m going to throw up. I trusted Chris. My brother trusted Chris. He fooled us all.
Except maybe Brock. Pretty sure he would’ve decked him if I hadn’t stepped between them right before the battle started. I guess I should’ve let him. If we get out of this, I’ll let my big bad wolf have at him.
“So that’s why you didn’t want me to switch squadrons,” I muse, shaking my head. “And here I thought you were just being a dick.”
“You almost fucked everything up by switching at the last minute,” Chris grumbles. “Took me a while to get to you, and then Devin wound up seeing me with you and tried to follow. They had to gut him before he could mind-link the pack and ruin the plan.”
The thought of harm coming to poor Devin makes my heart hurt, and the way that Chris says it so callously, so casually… I’m starting to wonder if I ever really knew him at all. “You’re a real piece of shit,” I mutter. “I can’t wait for Brock to get his hands on you after all this.”
“You don’t get it, do you?” Chris asks, his voice strained. “We’re not getting out of this. This was the inevitable outcome, Astrid. We weren’t going to beat them, so if we wanna stay safe, we have to join them.”
“Jesus, would you two quit fucking whining?” Kara shouts from across the room, rubbing her temple. “You’re giving me a migraine.”
“Why am I still tied up?” Chris demands, struggling to get to his feet. “I held up my end of things. I’m an ally, not a prisoner…” `
Jake chuckles, pushing up off of the tattered couch he’s been lounging on. “You want me to untie you?”
“Yeah,” Chris breathes. “Please. That’d be great.”
A devious smirk tugs at Jake’s lips as he makes his way over to Chris, who holds his bound wrists out in front of him. Jake doesn’t untie them, though. Instead, he slams his elbow into Chris’ stomach, making him gasp for air as he crumples to the floor.
“I don’t think so,” Jake laughs, standing over Chris- and as angry as I am at Chris right now, it actually pains me to see this. He may be a dirty fucking traitor, but he’s still pack.
“Why?” Chris sputters, curling up into a ball at Jake’s feet.
Jake chuckles cruelly. “We’ll let our alpha decide what he wants to do with you once he gets here. Until then, try not to piss me off. We have strict orders to keep his pretty new toy here alive, but he didn’t say nothin’ about you.”
Jake kicks him a couple of times in quick succession and Chris whimpers pitifully. I can’t bear to watch, so I turn away. I shouldn’t be worried about Chris, not after what he’s done. I need to focus, keep my wits about me. ‘Stay alert, stay alive’. Because Brock’s going to come for me. I just know it.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE