Chapter 81

I tried to get a feel for where I was before the blurriness fully left my eyes. The room was dark but I felt a soft, plush mattress beneath me. I struggled to gain my bearings and pull myself upright.

I fought back the wave of nausea as soon as I sat up. Looking around through squinting eyes, I found myself in a luxurious bedroom I didn’t recognize. What the hell was going on?

My head was slightly aching. I pressed a hand to the side of my temple. I could just barely recall the events prior to my waking up. I’d gone out to meet with Ben...The two of us caught up for a few hours...I left the cafe and then...The dark van—two men jumped out and ran after me...And then everything went dark.

My eyes widened as a rush of panic raced through me. I had to find out where the hell I was. I frantically, and as cautiously as I could got up from the bed and made my way toward the door. I was, somewhat, surprised to see that it was unlocked and I was free to move around.

I slowly poked my head out the door and glanced to my right and my left. Not a single person was around to be seen.

As quietly as possible, I snuck out of the room and rushed down the hallway. Just as I reached the end of a hallway, I was swiftly met with another one where I was forced to choose either left or right.

‘My God, this place is like a labyrinth!’ I thought madly to myself.

I felt like I was getting nowhere. At some point, I came upon a particular hallway that had large windows masked with thick drapes. Feeling wary, I stepped up to peer out the thick-plated glass and spotted several large men, all dressed in black, carrying large weapons in their hands.

All the air became stuck in my lungs and any shred of hope I possessed of finding a way out quickly vanished. I stumbled back from the windows and dashed away before any of the men could catch a glimpse of me. When I made it to the end of that particular hallway, I heard a strange, yet familiar voice. Following the sound, I came face-to-face with a large wooden door that was slightly cracked open.

I pushed open the door and felt my jaw go slack. There, standing near a large fireplace was my Uncle David.

My brows drew together in disbelief. “David?”

“Ah, Mia. Good to see you’re finally awake.”

To say I was baffled was a complete understatement. Why would David essentially kidnap me? What was his point?

“I don’t understand. What’s going on? Why am I here?”

“I failed your mother once, and I made a promise to myself that I would never make that same mistake twice,” he said. “You should know that I’ve been keeping a close eye on you ever since this whole marriage mess with that Derek boy hit the papers. I figured it was finally time for me to step in and do something about it.”

Jesus Christ. I found the nearest available chair to let my body sink into the cushions. There was so much to mentally unpack from that whole statement, that I had no idea where to begin.

“But, how is my marriage to James anyone’s business?” I asked tightly.

“The Dereks are not a good family.”

Alright, in all fairness, my encounters with James and his relatives had been a bit spotty in the past. I’ve adored his sisters, Lana and Kristen, from the moment we all first met. Now, Diana on the other hand...Things were notably tense at times but the two of us worked out our issues in the end. But, hell, was that enough to say that they weren’t a good family?

“The Dereks are not horrible people—”

“Oh, my poor girl, it appears that he’s managed to sink his claws into you and dilute your mind even further.”

I let out a frustrated groan. “For Christ’s sake, my mind isn’t diluted. What the hell is your problem with James and his family, anyway? Ever since the Alpha Gathering, you’ve done nothing but show your ongoing disdain for them.”

David scoffed, “My hatred for that ungodly family has gone on for a lot longer than that. Have you ever wondered about the strange nature of your parent’s death?”

My heart instantly filled with pain over the thought of my parents. I missed them every day, what point did he have to bring up such a painful part of my past?

“What do you mean? They died in a car accident.”

David merely shook his head. “I wish it was that simple. But no. The death of your parents was far from accidental. They were murdered.” That last word struck me like a punch to the gut. “When they were still around, your parents worked very closely with the Dereks, your father was the Beta to the previous Alpha of Crescent Moon. He was loyal and always held the pack’s best interests in mind.”

“Why would anyone want to kill him then?” I questioned harshly.

“I’ve always suspected Edward Derek had played a hand in the demise of your parents. Everyone knows how unstable the psychopath is—well, he was no different back then either. He was too unpredictable and always made rash, hasty decisions that would never guarantee a positive outcome.”

Well, that certainly backed Lana and Kristen’s previous explanation about Edward being a tyrant against his own family.

“So, what are you saying? You believe that Edward had a hand in the murder of my parents?”

He crossed his arms over his chest and glared at me. “I know he did. Your father suspected Edward was planning on trying to overthrow the board’s decision to pass the title down to James instead of him. Next thing anyone knew, your father was found dead in one of the underground parking garages of the company.”

Angry tears filled my eyes. “A-And my mother?”

David sighed. “Sadly, I don’t know much regarding the reasoning behind her death. All I knew was that she was poisoned, the effects took their sweet time with her, no doubt Edward played a part in that as well.”

I was speechless. I honestly didn’t know what to believe. These were strong allegations that David was throwing at me. “But if Edward is the main cause for everything, why hate the rest of the Derek family?”

“Because, even though Edward could have very well been the catalyst for everything, not a single person in the Derek Family ever stepped forward to admit anything to the press. They merely swept everything under the rug to avoid a scandal.”

Goddamnit. That actually did sound like something James’ family would do. But, a small part of me didn’t want to believe it.

“But it still doesn’t explain why I’m here.”

“I don’t want history to repeat itself. By letting you remain married to James Derek, I am exposing you to a world of danger and inevitable pain,” he explained. “Plus, I loosely heard through Michael that things haven’t been going well for you and James and I’m willing to help you get out of the marriage contract.”

“Help me how? Contracts like that are usually binding,” I said.

“I will get James to either destroy that contract or he can take the risk for of forfeiting his own life for the sake of your relationship. Let us see if his love for you is real, shall we?”

“You’re crazy. What are you, some sort of Mafia boss?” David smirked. “Funny you should mention that. You know that every family has a black sheep. Well, consider me a wolf dressed in sheep’s wool.”

My mouth fell open. Holy shit...He was being serious, wasn’t he? It certainly explained why there were a bunch of terrifying men outside, patrolling the grounds with guns.

The realization dawned on me. Now I knew why my parents saw the need to keep David away from the family. I watched him reach for his phone.

“How about we give young Derek a call?” he asked with a devilish grin.