Alpha Alec's Redemption by Kathy M

I'm left standing there, still in shock. A part of me—the bitter part-wants to scream how dare she? But another part, the one I buried three years ago, aches with something else entirely. It missed her.

I'll never admit it out loud, but the truth is, when I wasn't angry or bitter, I missed her. I missed the girl who used to protect me from bullies. The one who stood up for me. The one who was there through every laugh and every tear. I missed the girl who made me laugh. Who I loved with every cell in my body.

I missed the girl who had been part of my life for as long as I could remember. Every memory I had from before that dreadful night has Piper in it. I can't think of a day when we weren't together, when we weren't connected at the hip.

Her betrayal broke me. It didn't just break my trust-it shattered everything beautiful we had built. It tainted our bond. It stained the memories I once held dear.

I thought we were it. That we would be best friends forever. That we'd grow old together, sipping tea on the porch as we watched the sunset, reminiscing about the chaos of our youth. If there was one person I believed would be in my life no matter what, it was Piper. And her betrayal shattered that illusion.

The hardest part of being in that cell three years ago wasn't even the torture. It was putting to death all the hopes and dreams I had when it came to the siblings. It was letting go of the fantasies I had built around them. It was facing the truth. That forever doesn't always last.

Piper's betrayal cut deep. It hurt more than anything Alec did to me in that cell. I thought she'd always be there. I needed her to be there... and each time I woke up in that cell alone, every time I realized that she hadn't stuck by me? it destroyed me in ways Alec's cruelty never could.

So yes, maybe I'm no longer bitter-but forgiveness is still a long way off.

I close my eyes for a moment and take a deep breath. When I feel a bit more

grounded, I exhale and open my eyes. I move on autopilot, a fog pressing against my mind.

I head outside, hoping the fresh air will help clear my head and untangle my feelings. Both new and old.

I sit on a bench when I get outside. I watch Aspen play nearby with a boy and a girl around her age, while Martha sits on another bench, reading, though she glances up occasionally to check on the children.

"Nyx," I call, and to my surprise, she answers immediately.

"Yes?"

"Do you think Raven's plan will work?" My voice is soft, laced with doubt and fear.

a while, and

on her paws. "It's a solid plan. It could

a heavy weight

foreboding feeling? That something is

"Yes. I do."

That it was just me being overly

me about Kaden? Anything that might

how much she knows him, fact is she knows him... And besides, there is no way she doesn't know something useful about the man who is technically her

long and heavy, like she doesn't want to talk

I'll tell you this-Kaden is evil. Pure, ancient evil. And powerful. He's

saying

one is unbeatable. Everyone has a weakness.

land like a punch,

much hope, now does it? And the way she put

at his weakest, how am I supposed to kill

prepare. We have to be careful. You need to

only one we

dreading the challenge.

every advantage we

will unleash her fury. And trust me, her fury alone could lay

a little bit

time you lost control. Now imagine someone like Xena losing the love of

"Shit."

"Exactly."

กวนๆ

to madness, If I do manage to kill Kaden, which I doubt-Xena will have to be dealt with

we do about her?"