UNKNOWINGLY MARKED THE ALPHA

CHAPTER ELEVEN

MEADOW’S POV.

“You did what?!”

Dorothy’s whisper-yell nearly gave me a heart attack.

I lunged forward immediately and clamped my hand over her mouth.

“Shhh!” I hissed in panic. “Keep your voice down!”

Her eyes widened furiously above my hand.

“He’s sitting right outside, Dot,” I whispered harshly. “Do you want him hearing everything?”

Dorothy slowly pulled my hand away from her mouth and stared at me like she genuinely could not believe I existed.

For several long seconds, she said absolutely nothing.

Then she lowered her voice dangerously.

“You brought Alpha Killian into this house?”

I winced.

“When you say it like that, it sounds worse.”

“It is worse.”

I sighed heavily and paced across my small bedroom for what felt like the hundredth time.

The entire room suddenly felt too small and suffocating.

Meanwhile, Alpha Killian was sitting calmly in the living room outside like he belonged there.

Which was insane.

Absolutely insane.

Dorothy crossed her arms tightly over her chest.

“Meadow,” she whispered sharply, “how exactly did you manage to get caught alone in the woods at night with the Alpha of Crescent Dawn?!”

I shook my head. “It wasn’t like that.”

“Oh really?” she asked dryly. “Because Clarissa apparently saw him shirtless while you were wearing his clothes, pinned against a tree.”

Heat exploded across my face.

Goddess.

When she said it out loud, it sounded horrifying.

“I hate this pack,” I muttered.

Dorothy ignored me.

“You were careless.”

“I know.”

“And now Clarissa is involved.”

I groaned and dropped onto the edge of my bed.

“That part especially ruined my life.”

Dorothy’s expression remained serious.

“You know she’s going to twist this into something worse.”

I rubbed both hands over my face tiredly.

“I know.”

“If the Alpha hears the wrong version first—”

“I don’t care what Lucian thinks anymore,” I snapped suddenly.

The words came out harder than I intended.

The room fell quiet immediately.

Dorothy blinked at me slightly in surprise.

My chest rose and fell heavily.

Honestly, I was just exhausted.

Exhausted of being afraid.

Exhausted of trying not to make mistakes.

Exhausted of living like one wrong breath would destroy what little was left of my life.

I dragged both hands through my hair roughly.

“Please,” I whispered finally.

Dorothy’s expression softened slightly.

I grabbed her wrist quickly.

“Please help me get rid of this mark.”

My voice cracked slightly from desperation.

“So he can leave me alone, Dot.”

Dorothy looked down at my hand around her wrist before lifting her eyes back toward mine.

She didn’t answer.

That terrified me more than yelling would have.

“Dot,” I whispered desperately. “Please.”

Still nothing.

So I kept talking.

Because silence felt dangerous.

“He wants to take me with him.”

That finally got a reaction.

Dorothy’s brows pulled together immediately.

“What?”

I nodded quickly.

“He said he’d take me back to his pack and find someone else to remove the mark if you couldn’t.”

The room fell silent again.

Then Dorothy asked carefully,

“He said that?”

I nodded again.

“And if you don’t help me,” I whispered, “he might actually do it.”

Something changed in Dorothy’s expression after that.

Not fear.

Not surprise.

Something else.

Something thoughtful.

She slowly looked away from me for a moment, like she was considering something carefully in her head.

Then finally, she nodded.

“…Fine.”

Relief hit me so hard I nearly cried.

“Oh thank Goddess.”

I grabbed her hands immediately.

“I knew you could help.”

Dorothy only looked at me quietly.

For some reason, that look made nervousness crawl up my spine again.

But before I could question it, she turned toward the bedroom door.

“Let’s not keep an Alpha waiting.”

My stomach twisted instantly.

Right.

Alpha Killian.

Still here.

Still sitting in my living room.

I stood quickly and followed Dorothy out of the bedroom.

The small living room was quiet when we entered.

Alpha Killian sat calmly in one of the wooden chairs near the fire, annoyingly relaxed.

The flames painted soft gold across his face, sharpening every hard line of his expression.

His eyes lifted toward us the moment we stepped inside.

My pulse still reacted stupidly every time he looked directly at me.

I hated it.

Dorothy bowed respectfully.

“Alpha Killian,” she greeted calmly. “My name is Dorothy. I serve as Hollow Mountain’s witch and Meadow’s guardian.”

Alpha Killian gave a small nod.

“That much was obvious.”

His deep voice filled the room effortlessly.

I stayed near the doorway awkwardly, arms crossed tightly over myself, still wearing his shirt.

Unfortunately.

“I understand Meadow explained the situation,” he said.

Dorothy straightened slowly.

“She explained enough.”

Silence followed.

I waited anxiously for Dorothy to begin helping.

Instead, she calmly said,

“I cannot remove the mark.”

My entire body froze.

I stared at her.

What?

My mouth opened slightly.

But Dorothy continued speaking before I could interrupt.

“The bond created between the two of you is not simple magic,” she explained calmly. “Removing it would require someone far more experienced than I am.”

My panic rose instantly.

“Dot—”

She ignored me completely.

“If you truly wish to remove the mark,” Dorothy continued evenly, “then Meadow will need to leave this territory so another solution can be found elsewhere.”

I stared at her in complete disbelief.

What was she doing?

That was the exact opposite of helping.

Alpha Killian remained silent.

Completely silent.

Which somehow made everything worse.

My eyes darted toward him quickly.

He was watching Dorothy carefully now.

Studying her.

“There is only one complication,” Dorothy added calmly.

My stomach dropped immediately.

No.

No no no.

“Dot,” I warned nervously.

She did not even look at me.

“Meadow is bound by an Alpha command.”

The room went completely still.

Even the fire suddenly sounded too loud.

My heart stopped beating.

Slowly, Alpha Killian’s eyes shifted toward me.

I felt trapped under that gaze instantly.

“Dorothy,” I whispered in horror.

Still, she continued.

“The command prevents her from leaving Hollow Mountain territory.”

Every drop of blood drained from my face.

“If she attempts to force herself beyond the border,” Dorothy said carefully, “the backlash could kill her.”

My mouth fell open.

Alpha Killian said nothing.

Not one word.

I turned toward Dorothy in complete shock.

My mouth literally hung open.

She had promised to help me.

Instead, she was exposing the single biggest secret I had desperately tried to hide.

“Dot,” I hissed quietly.

She finally looked at me then, but her expression remained calm.

Steady.

Almost apologetic.

And that terrified me even more.

Then she turned back toward Alpha Killian.

“So if you truly intend to take her with you, Alpha Killian…” she said quietly, “you will need to break the command first.”

Silence.

Nobody moved.

Nobody breathed.

“One Alpha against another,” Dorothy continued calmly. “Override the command binding her… and she will be free to leave with you.”

I stared at her like I had never seen her before in my life.

My eyes felt so wide they genuinely hurt.

My brain could barely process what was happening.

Because Dorothy had not only exposed the command—

She had practically asked him to break it.

The fire crackled softly between us.

Alpha Killian remained seated for another long moment.

Unreadable.

Then finally, slowly, he leaned back slightly in his chair.

His eyes never left mine.

“Interesting,” he said quietly.

That single word nearly destroyed the little sanity I had left.

Because somehow, impossibly—

He did not even look surprised.

He looked intrigued, and something told me that wasn’t a good thing coming from a man like him.