Chapter 71
Tessa’s POV
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The first day waking up at Alpha Kions pack had gone by full of more intense planning and with Kane being constantly on edge.
The room we were now in felt worlds away from the tense atmosphere of Kion’s office earlier surrounded by unknown faces, all except one that is…
One face I had grown to know all too well…
Now able to put a name to that dreadful face – Purcell – who I had even surprisingly stepped in to stop Kane from killing earlier with the slightest pang of guilt settling in to my chest despite what he had done to me, I knew that we needed him alive.
A fire crackled warmly in the hearth, casting flickering shadows along the walls. The heavy weight of earlier conversations still lingered in the back of my mind, but for now, I allowed myself to sink into the oversized chair beside Kane, wrapped up in a thick fluffy blanket.
His hand rested over on my thigh, his touch helping to ground me as we all sat in a loose circle together.
Erin was curled up on the loveseat across from us, her knees tucked under her chin as Seth sat beside her, his arms draped lazily over the back of the couch. Despite the cozy surroundings, the air between us was thick with unspoken thoughts with everyone mulling over what was yet to come during our time here in Russia.
But It was Erin who finally broke the silence…
“Do you think Sasha’s still alive Tessa?” she asked softly with a swallow, her voice trembling as she said the name we hadn’t spoken since we escaped Dimitri’s compound.
I stiffened, Kane’s hand flexing slightly against my leg as he looked at Erin with furrowed brows. “Sasha?” he echoed, his tone low but curious since we hadn’t yet spoke of her.
Erin glanced back at me, her expression uncertain, before she began to explain. “She… she was another girl stuck with us in the compound. When Tessa and I were first brought there, she was the only one who helped us figure out how to survive, I guess.”
Kane’s jaw tightened at the word survive, and I could see his teeth clench. “Oh really? Go on,” he said, his voice even but laced with tension.
–
I licked my lips, my throat dry as memories of Sasha surfaced. ‘She wasn’t like the others,” I began quietly. “Most of the girls there… they were too scared to even look at us, let alone talk to us, and as you can imagine there was obviously a pretty bad language barrier anyway. But Sasha she wasn’t afraid, and
she also knew English which helped. She took a lot of risks to help us.”
Seth leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “What kind of risks?” he asked, his tone curious but gentle.
Erin sighed, running a hand through her hair as she pushed it back out of her face. She taught us what the guards expected from us. How to act, when to stay quiet, how to do the jobs. She even showed us which guards were easier to deal with and which ones we should avoid at all costs.”
I nodded, my chest tightening as I remembered Sasha’s small but fierce frame standing between me and a guard on my second day in the compound. She saved us from punishments,” I added softly. “That was before she was caught helping us out, the Alpha wasn’t happy… I trail off, my heart hammering as I
remembered her terrified face.
Kane’s hand stilled, his entire body going rigid. What happened to her after that he asked, his voice low and dangerous.
he found out and made an example of her in the court yard, Erm said
Erin and Lexchanged a glance, the memory painful to relive. The Alpha, Dini quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. He didn’t like that she was belping us own through punishments, He called her to his quarters as a punishment and claimed that he planned on being rough with her.. be also hinted that he
aid it wasn’t het place to enterfere and that we should be learning on our
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Chapter 71
couldn’t wait to spend some time with us in the future…” She finished, sending a chill running ug my arms
I closed my eyes, the image of Sasha’s pale face as she was dragged away still barked into my memory. She knew what was coming” i sed, my move cracking. When he announced that he’d be… rough with her, to teach her a lesson about discedience, none of the other girls even seemed surprised as if
it was just a normal occurrence.”
The room fell silent, the crackling of the fire the only sound as the weight of our words hung heavy in the air. Kane’s hand tightened around my leg, hus
other hand forming a fist on the armrest. Seth muttered a curse under his breath his expression darkening
Did you see her again after that?‘ Kane asked, his voice barely controlled.
I shook my head sadly, my chest aching. ‘Nope, we didn’t get the chance.”
Erin wiped at her eyes, her voice trembling as she began to cry. “It’s our fault that she’s suffering right now as we speak! She only tried to help us when she
could,”
Kane’s jaw clenched, his entire body radiating with a burning fury. “It wasn’t your fault! You can’t blame yourself for that sick fucks demonic rules! I can’t fucking wait to meet this bastard!‘ Kane seethes, as Seth instantly agrees with a firm nod.
We’ll find her, help get her out of there! Seth states, his voice cutting through the air. “When we take that compound under our control, we’ll find her, and we will make sure she never has to see this Dimitri ever again.”
I looked across at him, my throat tightening at the determination in his eyes. “You mean it?” I asked softly.
“Of course we will, Tessa! If this Sasha was the one who helped you both, then we fucking owe her big time for it. She can come back with us, to my pack. She’ll be safe there. She can start over. Kane adds in, as my lips part in shock and admiration for what he was saying.
Does he mean it?
Erin sniffled, a small, hopeful smile tugging at her lips now too. “You’d do that? For us?”
Kane’s gaze flicked to her, then back to me. It’s the least we can do. She risked her life for you two. We will repay her for it.”
Seth nodded, his expression serious. “We’ll get her out. If she’s still there, then well find her.”
The room fell into a contemplative silence after that, each of us lost in our own thoughts.
If she’s still there the words felt slightly haunting since I didn’t want to think of the latter…
The warmth of the fire didn’t quite reach the chill in my heart as I thought about Sasha time that we spent there.
about everything she’d endured to keep us safe in only the short
I could only hope that we weren’t too late, that Dimitri hadn’t completely shattered the girl who had once been so brave and kind.
Kane’s hand slid from my thigh up to my hand, threading our fingers together as sensing the heaviness of my thoughts. I squeezed his hand, drawing comfort from his presence.
‘We’ll save her,” he said again, his voice steady. I promise you that.”
For the first time since Erin had spoken Sasha’s name, I allowed myself to believe it. If anyone could keep that promise, it was Kane.
He will put an end to all of the misery hidden bere in Russia… I believed in him
