Chapter 42 Chapter 42
Casper's car finally stopped in front of the pack house and my heart felt like it weighed heavier than normal. My breath was unsteady, I didn't want Casper to notice that.
"Go on in, it'll be fine." He said with a warm smile.
I returned his smile, trying to hide my fear. The uncertainty of what Alpha Keegan could do scared me. The worst that could happen was that he was going to kill me; I didn't think I had done anything that worse that could lead to my death. I didn't want to be scared, but I had no control over my emotions at this point.
"Goodnight," I said and got out of his car.
"Do you need me to go in with you?" he offered.
I shook my head. "I'll be fine. I'll just sneak back in. See you later." I waved at him and shut the car door.
He hesitated before zooming off. A heavy breath left my chest as I turned and headed in through the back door again, wondering why no one was guarding here.
The moment I opened the door, it was very dark inside, but the lights suddenly turned on.
"Wow," Mrs. Bea said with a clap. My heart felt like it left me as she approached me with her dramatic claps. "So you gave the guts to sneak out of the house? Wow, just wow."
"I can explain," I started, trying my best not to tremble.
"I knew something was off. Do you know how long I had been searching around for you? You seem to be forgetting your role here!" she was on the verge of raising her voice. "How dare you sneak out of the pack house? Don't you know it's against the omega rule for you to do that?!"
I cringed back with my head hung low, my hands were lifted to guide my face because I feared she was going to hit me. "I-I didn't-"
"She was with me, she didn't sneak out." Alpha Keegan's voice made me raise my head to him as he shut the back door and grabbed my wrist. "Head to your room, Mrs. Bea, Goodnight." His voice was as frigid as usual but his face had an extra sternness to it.
No words could come out of my mouth as he gently pulled me with him all the way to his bedroom and locked the door before letting go of my wrist.
I expected him to say something, at least a word or to glare at me, but he did nothing. He only left for the bathroom and after a while, I could hear the sound of water from his shower.
"What's going on in his head?" I wondered aloud and headed to the couch. The clothes I had placed underneath the blanket were still on his bed while the blanket was on the floor.
A few breathing exercises did the trick to calm me down before I laid on the couch, not bothering to have a bath. The best thing was to sleep, the only time I had the chance to forget everything going on around me.
I had woken up earlier than normal, which was great for me, because I had enough time to clean the entire house up and when it approached the normal time for cooking, I was able to be in the kitchen on time.
After calculating the number of pack members available in the pack house this morning, I made their meal accordingly with a request for an extra meal to be made for Crystal, for some reasons.
"What got into you this morning?" Mrs. Bea said as she walked into the kitchen with two ladies tailing behind her. "I didn't have to yell at you to start the day's work and everywhere is looking so great." She said, staring at the food I had served on the counter with a smile on her face for the first time in maybe a million years.
"I woke up earlier than normal," I replied, returning her smile.
"Yeah, whatever. You're just in time and it fits perfectly with the Alpha and Beta's schedule. Serve their meal and take Alpha Keegan's breakfast to him."
"Okay ma'am." I nodded and served their meal. After one of the ladies took Scarlett's meal, I carried the tray of Alpha Keegan's meal to his bedroom and swallowed hard before going in.
He had just put on a shirt and fastened the last button when his gaze met mine.
"Good morning Alpha," I greeted him because I was obliged to and dropped the tray on his table. Of course, I knew he wasn't going to respond to me.
He headed to his shoe rack and grabbed his black leather shoes to wear while I stood there, having a mental argument with myself on what to do next. There was nothing to do and I had had my bath. If Mrs. Bea needed me to do something else, she'd have said it.
He finally walked over to me and had his seat. "We have to leave now so we'll arrive at Scarlett's parents' house on time. Wear something good and pack your sensible clothes in something that's not a plastic bag."
I nodded and walked over to my clothes. "Where on earth does he expect me to find something sensible to wear?" I muttered, not loud enough for him to hear. My eyes traveled to my plastic bag that now had a hole. "If not this plastic bag, am I supposed to place them on my head?" I rolled my eyes and flinched when I noticed he was staring at me with a 'are you kidding me' look. There was no way he could've heard me.
I forced a smile and packed the clothes before heading downstairs to change into a red sweater and a pair of jeans, the only thing I considered sensible enough. I tied my hair up into a neat ponytail and glanced at my reflection. My face didn't look as terrible as I expected it to but it was certainly going to have been amazing if I could add makeup to my face.
Mrs. Bea called for me to attend to different errands till someone mentioned to me that the car was ready.
After placing my clothes in a fancier plastic bag I found in the kitchen, I headed outside. Scarlett was shoving so many things into Alpha Keegan's car trunk, not bothering to hide her excitement a bit.
"Jane?" She called with a questioning raise of her eyebrow as she stared at my plastic bag. "What are you here?"
"Why am I here?" I wondered with a confused smile.
"Yes. Why do you have your belongings with you?"
"Didn't I... tell you?"
"Tell me what?"
"You're going over to your parents', right?"
"Yes. Do you have something to give to me?" She reached for my plastic bag. I took a step backwards to prevent her from grasping it.
"Didn't I let you know that I'll be coming with?"
"With me and Alpha Keegan? No way! Why would you?" Her brows puckered.
"That was the condition... how could I have forgotten to let you know?"
"Keegan," She called to Alpha who just walked out with Mason behind him holding two fancy bags in his hands. "Why is she coming with?" What was wrong with Scarlett? Couldn't she at least hide her disapproval of me following them?
Alpha Keegan glanced at me then back at her. "That was the condition, didn't she let you know? I don't care what's going on. Let's get going, we shouldn't be late." He got into the car and Scarlett got in as well, still saying something to Alpha Keegan but I couldn't hear her.
"Jane," Mason called, stretching one of the bags to me while the other was stretched in the direction of a guard who collected it and kept it in the trunk. "Have it. There are a few clothes in it you can wear for the weekend and you can also keep your current clothes in it if you still want to wear them."
I collected the bag from him, expecting the clothes to be Crystal's used clothes or someone else's, but the smell of the fabric was divine and the fresh smell confirmed that it was definitely new, a red velvet material shone its brightness from inside the bag. "For me? Why... how... it's new?" This made no sense.
"Yes, it's new, it's Alpha Keegan's order. I'll leave now." He turned around and left.
The driver honked and rolled the glass down to yell that I was wasting his time.
"I'm sorry." I quickly apologized and got into the car, shoving my plastic bag into the fancy bag.
The driver started the car and whined the glass back up. Alpha Keegan was by the other end of the seat with his full attention on his phone while Scarlett who sat in between us had her arms folded across her chest with a lost expression like she was having a mental argument with herself.
I rested on the window of the car and didn't know when sleep called upon me.
"... How long do you intend to ignore me for? You've been on your phone for hours now." Scarlett's voice snapped me out of my sleep. It felt like I was still
stuck between being asleep and being awake." Keegan!" she snapped.
"Can you stop pestering me, Beta? I'm trying to focus." He snapped back. My eyes were still closed but the vibration underneath my head made me realize that I was in a moving vehicle.
"Fine, I'll no longer ask you about her." She cleared her throat.
The vibration stopped, indicating that the car had stopped.
"I'll be back soon." The driver said and I heard the sound of the door open and close.
"Okay! Any news about the Ardolfs? Your silence on the topic is making us even more worried." "Scarlett-"
"It's not a personal question." She cut him off. "As the Beta, I have every right to be bothered about the pack and also have a role in ensuring that everything goes well."
"Everything's fine."
"Fine? I know that everything is fine, at least for now, but what's the plan concerning the Ardolfs?" She asked, her voice cracked a bit like she was worried. "They shouldn't be an issue of concern." "Why not?!" She exclaimed. "I'm more scared than I've ever been. It's the Ardolfs we're talking about. How can you be so nonchalant about them?"
"I said it's fine."
"I know Alpha, but we need to-" "Stop it, just stop it." He warned, it was evident that he was pissed off, but his voice also possessed a hint of worry. What could Alpha Keegan be worried about?
"Do you suspect they had something to do with Jane's incident? Your worry for her was very suspicious. If it isn't that, then please tell me what it is?" "Scarlett, enough!" his holler made me flinch and I suspected that Scarlett flinched too. "You're the beta, stop acting so unprofessional. Keep quiet when the Alpha asks you to. If anyone finds out about the
Ardolfs because of you, you'll be in trouble." He gruffed. There was brief silence till she muttered, "I'm sorry, I'm just very worried."
What did she mean? Who were the Ardolfs and why didn't they want anyone to know? Did they know anything about the weird occurrence happening to me?