The Alpha's Omega Mate-Chapter 146: Whispered Secrets.

~Dahlia’s POV~

I dragged a shaky breath in, my heart fluttering in my chest while I watched Alpha Zarek stare directly at me, and hell, I would’ve sworn that his eyes widened infinitesimally met mine. I would have sworn that I saw the slight twitch in his eyebrows signifying recognition as he tilted his head to the side.

But there was a slight problem... he wasn’t seeing me. He couldn’t see me.

He was seeing straight through me.

It worked!

Despite my pounding heart, and the longing ache in my chest, I couldn’t help but feel a bit glad, happy at least that I’d managed to escape him again.

I saw the light slowly fade from his face, and watched as he shook his head in disbelief. He turned to Beta Orion who stood behind him quietly and sighed; "I don’t think anyone’s here."

"But her smell..." Orion trailed off, his jaw set in defiance, "...it’s here. It’s so strong, and I would’ve sworn that I saw something move around there."

When Beta Orion said those words, my breath caught in my throat. A slight tremor ran through me and I shuttled back, almost surprised when I didn’t fall to the floor due to how wobbly my knees were, and how jittery I’d suddenly become.

"I did see something too, but there’s definitely nothing there. We’re just two insane men who should be back at the pack now, not scouring the entire forest like prude cavemen." Alpha Zarek hissed and I smiled when Orion responded by rolling his eyes at him.

My smile however soon slowly began to fade, and my hands grew clammy when Alpha Zarek suddenly started to make his way towards me, his nose twitching as he took in deep breaths— as if trying to sniff me out.

And yes, that was exactly what he was doing.

He drew in deep breaths, his eyes flashing as they darted around the surrounding shrubs in an almost maniacal fashion, and then he growled in a voice that sent shivers running down my spine. "She must’ve been here."

I froze.

"I can feel it." He drawled, "even my wolf too..." then as if a light bulb had been suddenly turned on in his head, he shook his head violently and rasped out; "Or it could’ve been Jennifer."

And as soon as the name slipped past his lips, whatever hold I had on myself slipped. Jealousy like no other gnawed at my chest, eating straight through my heart. A whimper escaped my lips as I weakly slipped to the floor, but now, I was more angry at myself than at him.

I was angry that I had the effrontery to be jealous. Angry that I’d given him the power to affect me so much. Even with just words.

Angry that even now, I wanted to jump straight into his arms.

I wanted to bury my face in the crook of his neck and cuddle him, our limbs intertwined until midnight.

Oh goddess, do not let my hold on this shield slip away!

I was soon snapped out of my reverie when I heard someone scoff, and when I turned in the direction of the sound, I saw Beta Orion rolling his eyes, his large arms folded across his chest as he regarded his companion with confusion.

He snorted; "And since when did you begin to mistake Jennifer’s smell with Dahlia’s?"

"That’s none of your business."

"Since when did you begin to have difficulty differentiating between both?"

Alpha Zarek’s eyes flashed with something I’ve never seen before, but before I could decipher what it was, he quickly fixed his expression, his eyes hardening before he turned away from me altogether.

"Dahlia isn’t here. Let’s go back."

"But you could smell her just now?" Orion argued defiantly, "hell, I did too. Why do you not want to check?!"

"Because I know it’s not her!" He snarled, turning to face Orion. "Because I am sure as hell that if there’s even a person there, it’ll be Jennifer! This is not the first time she would do something like—"

"Are you going crazy?" Orion barked, "this is Dahlia’s scent! What the fuck are you saying?"

And at this, Alpha Zarek sighed, gritting his teeth as he turned away. For a minute, he looked almost defeated... like the fight has been sucked out of him. He drawled; "I know what I’m saying, Orion. Jennifer’s tricked me with something like this before."

I froze. My ears perked upward at the sound of his words. Even my hardened heart, the one that had been aching so much I’d begun to not feel it anymore, fluttered.

And as if mirroring my thoughts, Orion slowly walked over to Alpha Zarek. He looked up at him, his expression soft, as he asked; "What do you mean?"

By the gods, I saw the conflict flash across those green orbs. Saw the way he took in a shaky breath. He glanced one more time in my direction and I held my breath immediately, even after knowing that he couldn’t see me.

He drawled; "One time, I don’t know how but she came to me smelling like Dahlia... fuck, she even looked like her for a minute too. I didn’t know how it happened, even until now, I still wonder. But at the time, I touched her, slept with her, and the next minute, I saw Dahlia standing by the door..." his voice trailed off as Orion gasped.

"...and that was when I knew that the woman with me wasn’t the woman I wanted. That was when I knew I had been tricked."

Alpha Zarek’s words were like bombshells in the still air. It pierced the tense atmosphere, shattering whatever semblance of peace I thought I had managed to pull together. It made my ears start to ring and made my already raging heart hammer even more.

But now, there was something else, something that tethered towards rage.

But it wasn’t directed at him. It was directed at her.

I balled my hands into fists by my sides.

"Did she tell you how she managed to pull that off?" Orion asked suddenly, breaking the deafening silence threatening to suffocate us.

Zarek shrugged now, and hades it hurt to see him like this, looking so defeated... looking so worn out. He wiped off something from his face, flicked his fingers to get it off then turned again to where I stood before shaking his head.

"She said she stole Dahlia’s scent. I don’t know how possible that is and I don’t fully believe her, but that’s the only thing she told me."

My blood ran cold.

However, Orion didn’t buy that. He shook his head defiantly, his eyes holding a look I couldn’t wrap my fingers around. "Magic..." he drawled, causing me to widen my eyes even more than it already was. "She’d used magic on you."

"I don’t know."

"And I think it’s black magic," He continued.

I gasped.

Zarek shook his head this time but said nothing, and I simply watched while he began to strut away from the clearing, not sparing another glance in my direction. And I watched as Orion followed shortly afterwards, his own eyes occasionally darting in this direction; But truth be told, I was no longer paying any attention to him.

I wasn’t even bothered about being caught anymore as my full attention now was on the things that Alpha Zarek had just said. The things I’d just heard.

Amidst the ringing in my ears and the sound of my blood rushing through my veins, I could only think about one thing.

That Lady Jennifer had stolen my scent.

She’d seduced Alpha Zarek with it.

I remembered that day like it was the back of my hand. Remembered it because I couldn’t bring myself to forgive him for the longest time.

And now, I almost hated myself for dragging it out for so long, but I know better.

Because now I know what had really transpired between them.

And now, I had this irresistible urge to kill someone. Someone that was no other but Jennifer, the woman that’s managed to make my life a living hell from the first time we met.

She was the reason all this mess came to be in the first place.

And I would fix that.