Mated To The Crippled Alpha-Chapter 340: Welcome Back to My World

Hearing Yael’s words sent a cold wave through me.

It wasn’t the normal kind of fear. It was the kind that crawled under your skin and turns your blood to ice. Like I’d been dropped into the deepest, darkest water and couldn’t find the surface.

I clutched my phone so tight my fingers hurt. In my head, I pretended it was his heart in my hand. I wanted to squeeze until he finally felt what he kept doing to people. Until his smile broke.

That was when I understood something ugly.

Hatred can make you lose yourself.

And in that moment, I wasn’t rational either.

One thought swallowed everything.

End him. End his brother. End that whole rotten line.

Yael’s voice softened, almost sweet. "Elena, weren’t we happy together? Come back, won’t you? I miss you."

He sounded like an innocent boy. Like he had no idea what pain was.

But I knew the face beneath that voice. I knew the sickness behind that charm. I knew how he smiled when he was holding a leash.

Oh, I missed him too.

I missed him enough to want to snap his neck.

Lewis stayed quiet beside me, his jaw tight. He wasn’t frozen like me. He was thinking. Measuring. Planning. I could feel it in the way the air around him got heavier, like his control was working overtime.

Yael kept talking. "Elena, Whitney is getting married soon. She’s been busy. Don’t you want to be there for your only sister’s wedding?"

He was a devil.

He didn’t just threaten you. He searched for the softest part of you and pressed his thumb into it.

Then he said it, like it was casual.

"Elena, I really hate Janice. If you don’t come back, I’ll kill her. You’re so kind. You wouldn’t want me to hurt an innocent person, right?"

My stomach turned.

Before I could react, the call switched to video, and my screen lit up.

I had no choice but to accept.

The camera moved, and two familiar faces filled the screen.

Whitney and Vito.

They were in a flower field, surrounded by bright blooms, posing for wedding pictures like the world was safe. Like danger couldn’t reach them. In the distance, I saw a cliff line cutting through the horizon.

Yael’s voice came from off-screen, calm and playful. "Elena, what do you think? If I pushed her off that cliff, you’d never have to see her again. Or maybe later, when they do the horseback scene, I could tamper with it and let it drag her to death. Wouldn’t that be fun?"

My whole body went hot.

I shook my phone desperately, trying to tell him no, trying to scream through the screen with nothing but shaking hands.

He chuckled. "Elena, killing someone without leaving a trace is easy. If she dies in an accident, even the Pearsons can’t blame us, can they? After all, she followed us here willingly. We didn’t beg her to come."

My throat burned with rage.

Bastard.

He kept going, like he was enjoying the way my silence forced me to listen.

"I may not harm Whitney," he said, "but who’s to stop me from hurting someone else?"

Then his voice dropped. "Bloom Valley. One hour. Tell Harlan to collect her body."

The call cut off.

For a second, the room was so quiet it felt like my ears were ringing.

Lewis immediately called Riley.

No answer.

Again.

Nothing.

My chest tightened. Yael must’ve done something. Cut off her phone. Cut off our contact. Cut off our chances.

I turned to Lewis with wet, burning eyes. I didn’t have my voice, but my face said it for me.

I have to go back.

Lewis grabbed my hand. The resistance in his eyes was obvious, like he wanted to lock every door and hide me inside his ribs.

But we didn’t have time to fight.

Yael gave us one hour.

Bloom Valley was two hours away by car.

The only option was air.

A private helicopter.

Lewis had gone through hell to pull me out of Yael’s reach. How could he watch me walk back into it?

I took his phone and typed fast, my hands shaking.

Carl, Yael didn’t touch me during the days we were together. To him, I’m more like an elder than anything else. He won’t hurt me. His issues come from his family and his mind being broken. If I go along with him, nothing will happen. Trust me. If he tries to cross the line... I’d rather die.

I swallowed hard.

I’m sorry, Carl. I lied.

I couldn’t tell him everything. I couldn’t type the parts that still made my skin crawl. I couldn’t tell him about the island. Or the way I was forced to kneel until my knees felt like they belonged to someone else.

Before I could finish, Lewis caught my wrist.

"Don’t say that word," he said hoarsely. "Elena... are you really going to leave me?"

My chest cracked open.

I shook my head quickly, then typed again.

Riley already gave me a second chance at life. I can’t let her sacrifice herself for me again. I’ll find the antidote. And I’ll keep myself alive too.

Lewis pulled me into a tight embrace. His arms were iron around me, but his voice sounded ruined.

"Elena... don’t be so kind."

But when I pictured Riley’s bright face, her loud laugh, the way she always acted fearless even when she wasn’t... how could I be heartless?

And I needed the antidote.

No matter how dangerous it was, I had to go.

I typed again, forcing myself to breathe.

I’ll survive. I want to grow old with you, Carl. We don’t have children yet. I’ve decided I’ll give you a boy and a girl, okay?

His eyes turned red. His throat worked like he was swallowing pain.

"No," he said, voice breaking. "I don’t want you risking your life."

I gripped his shirt, eyes stinging harder.

I typed the truth that haunted me the most.

Carl, I’m begging you. I already caused Esmee’s death. I can’t let Riley die because of me too.

Every time I closed my eyes, I still saw it. Esmee’s body lifted, thrown, landing lifeless in front of me like the world was mocking me.

Back then, I was nothing but a soul. I couldn’t stop it.

But this time, I could save Riley.

I held up the phone so he could read the last line.

Carl, please.

Lewis stared at me for a long moment, like he was memorizing my face. Like he wanted to burn me into his mind in case this was the last time.

Then he turned sharply and gave instructions to prepare the helicopter.

Ten minutes by air.

We still had time—barely.

He led me into the bedroom and removed the Stone of Duality from my neck. His hands were careful, but I could feel how they trembled with restraint. He replaced it with another necklace.

"This has a tracker inside," he said. "Whatever happens, don’t take it off."

I nodded.

"Elena," he added, voice low, heavy with command and fear, "stay safe. Don’t let yourself get hurt. Give me time to prepare, and I’ll come for you."

I nodded again, because if I tried to do anything else, I would fall apart.

He looked at me. "What about the dagger?"

I showed him the one he’d given me at the night market.

His gaze sharpened. "Keep it safe. It’s sharp enough to cut through metal. There’s a micro-explosive chip in the hilt. I’ll show you how to use it, in case you need it."

I wasn’t surprised. Nothing about Lewis was simple. Even his gifts had teeth.

I nodded.

He hesitated, then added in a softer voice, like he was trying to pretend this was normal. "Your skin is sensitive. Don’t wear makeup for too long."

After a night’s rest, my face had finally stopped swelling. I felt almost normal, which made this whole thing feel even more unreal.

I typed one more message and showed it to him.

Take care of yourself, Carl. Eat well. Rest well. If you collapse, I’ll have no hope left. Do it for me. Stay strong.

He cupped my face like I was fragile.

"I will," he promised.

In the end, he walked me to the helicopter.

We couldn’t gamble with Riley’s life.

During the flight, I pressed myself into Lewis’s arms, clinging like a desperate thing. I didn’t want to let go. Not even for one breath.

I wished I could stay beside him forever. Grow old. Argue over silly things. Fall asleep with his hand on my waist. Wake up with his scent in my hair.

But fate never cared what I wanted.

The closer we got, the tighter my chest felt. I feared what this separation would do to him. I feared he would spiral. Push his body too hard. Forget to eat. Forget to breathe.

Just before the helicopter landed, I grabbed his face and kissed him.

Hard.

Like I could pour every promise into his mouth.

Lewis held me like he was trying to keep me from disappearing. His voice broke against my lips.

"Elena... Elena..."

When the helicopter landed, I stepped out quickly.

I didn’t want him to walk me off. I couldn’t bear to see him lose control. I couldn’t bear to see him beg.

So I didn’t look back.

I took one step, then another, until I was off the helicopter.

In the distance, a young man in a white T-shirt walked toward me. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

His smile was bright under the sunlight, almost angelic. For a second, it made me think of a boy hiding under a tree on a stormy night. A boy who learned early how to look harmless.

Behind me, the helicopter lifted again.

The wind from the blades whipped my hair across my face. I tilted my head back and watched it disappear into the sky.

That was when the tears finally fell.

One after another.

Carl, I’m sorry.

The young man opened his arms and pulled me into a warm embrace like we were lovers reunited.

He leaned in and laughed softly against my ear.

"Elena," he whispered, "welcome back to my world."