The Cruel Alpha's Daughter's Mate

Chapter 5

Lara

“We should just pack our stuff and move into that cute little cave on top of the mountain.”

Phoenix’s voice echoed through my mind as we descended the stairs.

“It would be less stressful, less dangerous, and significantly easier on our nerves.”

I couldn’t help but sigh.

“I know. Seeing him sitting in Heidi’s bedroom like that was unnerving.”

“Unnerving?” Phoenix scoffed. “Lara, that man looked like he was waiting to interrogate you about a murder he already decided you committed.”

“That might be a slight exaggeration.”

“I don’t think so.”

“He didn’t do anything.”

“Yet.”

That one word wiped the humour from my face.

Phoenix was right.

My father hadn’t needed to threaten me.

His stare had been enough.

“Which is exactly why we should move to the mountain,” she continued. “Nobody can find us up there.”

“We’ve already discussed this.”

“And I’ve decided my original position was correct.”

“You mean your position that we should abandon everything and become cave-dwelling wolves?”

“Exactly.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“I’m resourceful.”

We reached the bottom of the stairs, and I headed into the kitchen.

Then stopped.

I stared.

Phoenix stared.

Or, at least, I imagined she was staring.

The house looked as though someone had invited half the pack over for a party and then abandoned the place before the cleanup crew arrived.

Empty alcohol bottles littered the floor and covered almost every available surface. Clothing and towels were scattered everywhere. Dirty plates sat on benches and tables, while scraps of food had been left behind like breadcrumbs.

I slowly turned in a circle.

“What the hell happened here?”

“Oh, wow.”

Phoenix sounded genuinely impressed.

“Your father threw a party and apparently declared war on housekeeping.”

I shook my head.

“For someone who lives his life according to discipline and structure, he’s remarkably incapable of cleaning up after himself.”

“That’s because discipline apparently ends at picking up his own underwear.”

I bit my lip to stop myself laughing.

Phoenix wasn’t finished.

“We need to get out of here, Lara.”

“I know.”

“No, I mean really get out. I’m talking escape plan. Fake identities. Dramatic mountain disappearance. Maybe we can grow long beards and pretend to be mysterious hermits.”

“We’re women.”

“Details.”

I laughed.

Then Phoenix’s voice became more serious.

“I’m tired of this. We spend our lives cleaning up after him, doing whatever he demands, and now we’re supposed to live in fear every day because he might decide we’re disposable.”

She was right.

I looked around the house.

“I know.”

“We deserve better.”

That hit me harder than I expected.

“Okay, Phoenix.”

“Okay?”

“We’ll start planning to leave tomorrow.”

Phoenix practically screamed inside my head.

“YES!”

I winced.

“Quiet.”

“Sorry. Very exciting moment.”

“I said we’d plan to leave. I didn’t say we’re moving to the mountain.”

Silence.

A very suspicious silence.

Then—

“You wound me.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Phoenix.”

“I thought we had something special.”

“We do.”

“Clearly not.”

I grabbed a rubbish bag.

“If we went to the mountain, we’d freeze to death in winter.”

Phoenix was quiet.

For once.

Then she asked softly,

“So you’re not even going to consider it?”

I sighed.

“Phoenix, I understand why you want to get away. I do too. But we have to be practical.”

“Practical is boring.”

“Practical keeps us alive.”

That shut her up.

I continued.

“If we leave, we’re leaving everything we’ve ever known. We’d be giving up our place in the pack.”

“Good.”

“We’re the future leaders of this pack.”

Phoenix didn’t answer.

“Can you really walk away and leave everyone behind? What happens to them?”

She hesitated.

“Well…”

I waited.

“When you put it like that…”

She trailed off.

I smiled.

“Exactly.”

“I don’t like it when you use logic against me.”

“You’ll survive.”

“Debatable.”

I shook my head and started collecting the bottles.

As I placed them on the kitchen bench, Phoenix suddenly spoke.

“He had an orgy.”

I nearly dropped the bottle in my hand.

“What?”

“An orgy.”

“Where did that come from?”

“Look around.”

I glanced at the mess.

“That’s not exactly evidence.”

“Oh, please.”

Her amusement grew.

“Look at those bras.”

I looked down.

There were two bras lying amongst the clothing.

They were very obviously different sizes.

I raised an eyebrow.

“Okay.”

“Exactly.”

“Fine. Your father had at least two women here.”

“At least.”

“How do you know that?”

“Look under the sofa.”

I crouched down.

My jaw dropped.

There was another bra.

I looked toward the coffee table.

Another piece of women’s clothing was lying underneath it.

Then I spotted another bra near the television.

I groaned.

“How many women were here?”

Phoenix practically purred with satisfaction.

“I told you.”

“That’s disgusting.”

“Oh, we’re not done.”

I narrowed my eyes.

“What now?”

“Look at the curtain.”

I looked.

There was a pair of panties hanging from one of the curtain rods.

I stared at them.

Then Phoenix whispered,

“Ooh.”

“What?”

“Raspberry.”

I frowned.

“What are you talking about?”

“Edible panties.”

I recoiled.

“Ew!”

I grabbed them with two fingers and tossed them onto the pile of clothing.

Phoenix was silent for a second.

Then—

“I wonder why he didn’t eat them.”

“Phoenix.”

“They’re perfectly intact.”

“Please stop.”

“Maybe your father doesn’t like raspberry.”

“Phoenix.”

“Who doesn’t like raspberry? Raspberry is delicious.”

I stared at the ceiling.

“Why am I having this conversation?”

“Because I’m curious.”

“You’re impossible.”

“And yet, you love me.”

I couldn’t argue with that.

I gathered the pile of clothing and carried it to the laundry room.

When I returned, I started clearing the food and dishes from the kitchen.

Phoenix made a gagging noise.

“I am never looking at your father the same way again.”

“I wasn’t planning on doing that either.”

“Seriously. How does a grown man leave his house like this?”

“I have no idea.”

I picked up another plate.

Phoenix sniffed dramatically.

“Do you think there are vermin?”

I laughed.

“We’ve never had vermin in this house.”

“Maybe they’re hiding.”

“From what?”

“Us.”

“Phoenix, you’re not scared of mice, are you?”

There was a long pause.

“Mice? No.”

I smiled.

“Good.”

“But what if they’re not mice?”

I stopped.

“What?”

“What if they’re giant rats?”

“Giant rats?”

“Yes.”

“How giant?”

Phoenix’s voice dropped ominously.

“Bobcat-sized.”

I burst out laughing.

“Bobcat-sized rats don’t exist.”

“That’s exactly what a bobcat-sized rat would want you to think.”

I shook my head.

“You’ve been spending too much time in my head.”

“That’s literally where I live.”

Fair point.

I finished clearing the kitchen before grabbing the vacuum cleaner.

The carpet was disgusting.

Food had been ground into the fibres, and every step across the room seemed to reveal another piece of the previous night’s chaos.

I turned on the vacuum.

“If this were my house, I’d replace the carpet.”

“If this were our house, it wouldn’t look like this.”

“Touché.”

I continued vacuuming.

After a moment, Phoenix sighed.

“You know what really scares me?”

“What?”

“Thinking about what our house would look like if we ever had children.”

I smiled.

“Why?”

“Because knowing your father, we’d find him sitting in the middle of a toy explosion wondering why nobody had cleaned it up.”

I laughed.

“That would never happen.”

“Exactly. Because I’d make him clean it.”

“You’d make Alpha Grayson clean?”

“I’d make anyone clean.”

“You’re very brave in my head.”

“It’s where I’m strongest.”

I finished vacuuming and put it away before returning to the kitchen.

The dishwasher saved me from having to scrub every plate by hand, for which I was incredibly grateful.

Once the dishes were loaded, I gathered the empty alcohol bottles into a cardboard box and carried them into the cleaning room.

Then I grabbed the Dettol wipes and started wiping down every surface.

By the time I finished the kitchen and living room, my back was aching.

But there was still the upstairs.

Phoenix groaned the moment we reached the top of the stairs.

“Please tell me we’re done.”

“We’re not.”

“I hate this house.”

“So do I.”

We walked into my father’s bedroom.

I stopped dead.

Phoenix went silent.

The room was somehow worse than downstairs.

The bed had been stripped to the bottom sheet. Blankets were tangled across the floor. Pillows had been thrown everywhere. Empty bottles were scattered across the carpet, and clothing covered the floor and furniture.

I stared at the disaster.

“This place looks like a warzone.”

Phoenix finally spoke.

“No.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“No?”

“A warzone has rules.”

I snorted.

“This dude is out of control.”

“This dude needs an intervention.”

I walked toward the ensuite bathroom.

Then stopped again.

The bathroom was a disaster.

The floor was wet, towels were scattered everywhere, and candles had burned down, leaving thick trails of wax across the various surfaces.

I stared in disbelief.

Phoenix groaned.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

I sighed.

“This is going to take forever.”

Phoenix’s imaginary paws stamped in protest.

“I formally object.”

“Objection noted.”

“I would like to go back to the mountain.”

“We’re not moving to the mountain today.”

“I didn’t say today.”

I grabbed a towel.

“Come on.”

Phoenix sighed dramatically.

“Fine. But when we’re rich and living in our beautiful mountain cave, I’m hiring someone to clean.”

“You’re going to be a wolf.”

“I’ll pay them in friendship.”

“I’m sure that’ll work.”

“See? Problem solved.”

I shook my head, trying not to smile as I began cleaning the bathroom.

But beneath the humour, one thought refused to leave me.

My father had spent the night with several women.

He had lied to everyone.

He was capable of murder.

And now he was becoming suspicious of me.

The mountain suddenly didn’t seem quite as ridiculous as it had an hour ago.