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Set me Free, Alpha Forty-One
VALERIAThe satisfaction I felt at yelling at Dimitri was extremely short lived, even though the look on his face when I had defied him was priceless. By the close of work that day, I thought I had made a mistake. The next morning at work, I was sure that I had made a mistake.Everyone seemed to be staring at me, from the doorman to the other staff that went ahead of me into the building. It was like I was a bug under a microscope. At the reception, Ellen was talking in hushed tones with a girl from the HR department. I wasn't sure, but I thought I had seen her on my floor when I was arguing with Dimitri yesterday. As I walked through the door, their eyes darted to mine. They exchanged a look and the girl hurried away."Hi Ellen," I greeted, like I always did.Her corresponding 'hello' was a little strained. I almost continued upstairs anyway, but my experience of office gossip was that it only got worse if it wasn't addressed. I changed direction and draped myself over her desk."Wh
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Two
DIMITRIMy eyes were fixed on a tall, balding man, just within touching distance. I could see his profile now and was sure of his identity. He was the owner of one of the biggest oil firms in the country. He was deep in conversation with two other business men I wanted to talk business with. I had just taken a step towards him when Summer stepped in front of me. One look at her and I knew that she was soused to the eyeballs. A glass of wine dangled from the tips of her fingers."Summer, what are you-"I couldn't get the next words out because Summer suddenly threw her arms around me and kissed me. After the initial surprise, I wanted to yell and ask what the hell was wrong with her, but then I remembered we had an audience. Wine trickled down my neck and back as Summer lost her grip on her glass. I clamped my lips shut and pried her off me. It took a lot of effort for me to keep my expression pleasant."What are you doing?" I said in a low whisper."Nothing." She tipped forward, wrapp
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Three
DIMITRII kept an eye on Fiona, the truck and her goons as they loaded up the truck. They worked fast and it took only a short period of time for them to finish. Fiona went on her way and the truck went it's way. It took a lot of self control for me not to hurry to my car and follow them myself. Silas was on it. He had others on the job as well. They would give me results.When I had given them a five minute headstart, I made my way to my car. I kept my ears and eyes open in case there were any more of Fiona's people in the vicinity. Then I got into my car and drove out of the area. I stopped the car in a restaurant's parking lot. Silas's response would determine where I went from here. I looked out of the window, staring at the people who went in an out of the eatery, but not really seeing them. I drummed my fingers impatiently on the steering wheel as I waited for news. Once, I dialed Silas' number, but he was on on another call, so I forced myself to wait a little longer. My phone
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Four
VALERIA"You're still in bed."With some effort, I raised myself in bed and saw Amelia poking her head around the door."Yes. Yes," I said again, hating how weak my voice sounded the first time, not that it was better the second time.The strength ran out of my arms and I fell back on the bed. I was so tired, bone achingly tried. As soon as I had woken up this morning, I had known that I just would not be able to go to work. I didn't even think I could get myself out of bed. The room spun for a second. I shut my eyes tightly until the feeling passed. I felt the mattress dip and Amelia's cool hand on my brow."I don't have a fever," I assured her, opening my eyes. Her worried expression did not relax."Then what's wrong?""I just feel tired and weak... and a bit dizzy if I move suddenly."Amelia clucked her tongue sympathetically, pulled up the covers around me. "I thought as much when you didn't come down for breakfast. Speaking of breakfast, you have to eat. What do you feel like ea
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Five
VALERIAI tugged harder and this time, my foot slid out of Dimitri's lap. I felt hurt, confused, angry, all at the same time. Summer was moving into this same house? What on earth was Dimitri playing at? If he knew that he had plans of moving in with her, why then had he insisted on me staying at his place? She knew how cruel Summer could be towards me. Didn't he know that the baby and I didn't need this sort of stress at this time?I bit my lips hard to keep from asking him all these questions. Right now, Summer's attention was mostly on Dimitri, but give her the opportunity and she would turn downright nasty, especially since I had just had my foot in her fiance's lap. I glanced impatiently at Dimitri, wanting him to say something. One word from him about having made this arrangement with Summer, and I'd be on my way to my own house, and to hell with him! Slowly, Dimitri got to his feet until he towered over her."What did you say?" he asked slowly.Summer, refusing to be intimidate
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Six
DIMITRII let out a stream of curses to relieve my pent up emotions and turned away from the window. I had been trying to clone Summer's laptop while keeping an eye out for her. Now I could see her re-entering the house. I quickly shut down the laptop, returned it to her room before reentering mine.Summer's presence was making my house a very uncomfortable place to be in. I laughed humourlessly when I remembered complaining to Silas a while ago about how clingy she was. That was nothing compared to moving into my house uninvited.My first impulse when she had arrived at my bedroom door with two enormous, overpriced suitcases, had been to throw her out of the house, but while arguing with her, I had realized the priceless opportunity her being in my house presented. With her that close, I would have the opportunity to get access to her phone and computer. The information I had been in search of all this time could just be lying around in there. The sooner I could get mu hands on the i
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Seven
VALERIAI drummed impatiently on my desk. The thought of going home filled me with trepidation as I glanced at the clock. It was a few minutes to closing time. I wondered what other nasty surprises Summer had in store today when I got to Dimitri's house. My trepidation finally gave way to a sudden burst of anger. Wasn't the whole point of moving in with Dimitri to reduce my stress levels? And wasn't the whole purpose sort of defeated if I faced more stress at home than I did at work?I heaved a sigh. I had almost reached my elastic limit when it came to Summer. At the house, she never allowed me a breathing space. She constantly drove me nuts no matter how much I tried to ignore her. To make all this worse, Dimitri wasn't as firm with her as I had expected him to be. All things considered, I toyed with the idea of going to my own house after work. I didn't really have to put up with Summer's attitude after all, but then maybe I could manage to avoid her today.When I got to Dimitri's,
Set me Free, Alpha Forty-Eight
VALERIA"What are you doing?" I asked loudly.Though I was sure that she had heard me, Summer continued typing away on my computer."Don't touch that," I hissed and pulled my laptop out of her reach.She raised a brow, but did not make any move to take the computer from me."What were you doing with my computer?" I asked again."Your computer?""Yes."She shrugged and flicked her fingers impatiently."Not that I owe you any explanation, but how was I to know that it was yours and not Dimitri's? Everything in this house belongs to him, doesn't it? If you're desperate to keep that to yourself, you shouldn't leave it lying on the kitchen counter."Humming a tune, she left the kitchen. I stared after her suspiciously. She seemed to be in a better mood than usual, considering the fact that we had just been in the same space without Dimitri to stand as a mediator between us. I shook my head, dismissing those thoughts. I tapped on the keyboard to take me to the presentation slide I had bee
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Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-Six
VALERIAWith my hands on my hips, I took a step back to look at the decorations. After a few seconds or so, I had to admit that the decorators had done a pretty good job. I had as well. Jayden had his superhero theme decorations all in blue, his favourite colour. Jane had her favourite Princess whatsername theme also in bright yellow.I grinned, reflecting on how very different children's birthday parties were from those of adults. The entire living room area was a clash of yellow and blue, and then there were the balloons also, covering large sections of the floor."And what are you grinning about?"I felt myself relaxing at the sound of Dimitri's voice, leaning back against him until his arms went around me. He repeated his question."I was just thinking that the whole place looks like a rainbow exploded in it," I murmured."Mmm. I think I rather like the look of the place. It's an improvement if you ask me."I snorted. "Having kids have made you soft. There was a time when you woul
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-Five
VALERIAIt was bone-chilling to see Amelia's expression when she realized the game was over. It was like she had been wearing a mask which had suddenly come off. Now I could clearly see what lay beneath the facade she presented to the world. The sight made me shiver and I unconsciously shifted close to Dimitri who gave my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. Amelia, teeth bared, kept looking around like a trapped animal searching for a means of escape."There's no way out now," Dimitri said, leaving the sofa to stand in front of her. "You can't escape so bury that thought.""Why?" I said, the question drawn from my lips before I even thought of it. Everyone turned to look at me but I had eyes only for Amelia, the woman who was my mother but had done things to hurt me more than anyone in this world. "Why do you hate me so much? Why... all this? How could you-""You know nothing!" she declared vehemently. "So don't you think you can sit there and judge me when you don't know half of what happ
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-Four
DIMITRII let my suggestions about Amelia's and Alexis' eventual capture sink in. When I was sure it did, and that Valeria was in agreement with all I had said, I stood up to leave. Valeria's hand on my arm prevented me from doing so."Wait," she said. "There is something more."I slowly sat back down. "Tell me.""I want to be part of the capture."My response was instant. "Oh no. You can't.""Why not?"Funny she would ask. Even the thought of putting Valeria, especially in her condition, through any form of danger was so abhorrent to me it made me shudder inwardly."Valeria," I said in the most reasonable tone of voice I could muster. "There may be danger when they are caught. I have no way of knowing, true. But I can't take the risk of you getting hurt. Silas, Vance and I with all the others I will bring in to help can handle them. Trust me. It will be best if you stay completely out of it."Then I groaned inwardly when I still saw that stubborn look on her face, the look I knew so
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-Three
VALERIAOne of Ivy's nurse friends from the hospital clapped her hand over her lips to keep in a giggle."Ssh!" said a friend of Vance who just had to be a bodyguard. His tall, muscled figure could be made for nothing else.The man was smiling himself."Sorry," the giggler apologized as she smiled up at him.I felt much like giggling myself, especially at the look I was already picturing on Ivy's face when she eventually realized Vance had brought a lot of his friends and her friends on their date."They are here," Dimitri whispered in my ear.Dimitri's words were whispered back and forth between everyone."Remember everyone. Don't make a sound when they come in," someone said.I looked straight ahead and saw Vance, lead Ivy by the hand into the private booth of the restaurant where we were all hiding."It's beautiful in here," Ivy said, looking around. "But it's rather dark, don't you think? Maybe a little more light will-"She made a move to touch the light switch. I stiffened, drew
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-Two
DIMITRISilas, who was to all appearances lounging on the verandah outside while making some calls, met my eyes. For the last few days, I had kept him in and around the house, ostensibly running a few errands for me, being extra security for Valeria, but really he was around to keep an eye on Amelia.We had all come to the conclusion that since she felt herself entirely free of suspicion, she would make a move to contact Alexis or to put her plans into action soon. I felt that she was about to do either or both of these things now.Just this morning, Amelia had been acting strangely. Although she had tried to hide it, Silas and I had noticed her acting ill at ease, although Valeria had of course remained oblivious. Amelia had started acting this way after Silas, as he told me, had overheard her yelling at someone over the phone.A few minutes later, with her handbag slung over her shoulder, she had said very casually, "I'm making a quick trip to the store to pick up some things we nee
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty-One
VALERIAAlthough it had seemed impossible at first, the endless hours after Grandma Reese passed became days. Days became weeks. The weeks eventually added up to a month, and then several months. Though I missed her terribly with each passing day, life went on. My pregnancy became advanced. The doctors told Dimitri and I to expect our child soon.That was the only happy thought that kept me going all through those months. That, and the fact that I had Dimitri at my side.The rest of the time, I was consumed by fear, fear that at least one archenemy was still out there. Dimitri had gently broken the news of Grace's death to me, but had confessed that he still had not found a trace of Alexis. I was terrified that he would one day make an appearance and attempt to harm my child and I. Whenever I voiced out my concerns, Dimitri was quick to assure me that he was still on the lookout for Alexis.And though I took a little comfort in his assurances, I never once forgot that Dimitri was not
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Forty
AMELIAThey were fools. The lot of them. Stupid, trusting fools, but their stupidity suited me just fine. It was how I had stayed hidden all this time, after all.It was a shame about Grace, but it had to be done. She had been becoming a wild card, a disappointment to me. This early in the plot, she had shown that her emotions overruled her thoughts, and anyone who thought with the heart rather than the head was a liability, was expendable. This was why I had taken Dimitri and Silas to the spot where she was to meet with me. Grace was dead now and a lot of the future complications I knew she would bring had died with her.I glanced at the locked door of my room and continued pacing.I had to get word across to Alexis. Just calling him on the phone wouldn't do. I had to see him face to face in order to assure him that our plan was still on, and that Grace's death changed nothing.The only problem now was Dimitri wouldn't want to let me, a supposedly grieving mother, out of his sight. T
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Thirty-Nine
DIMITRIThe place where Grace had chosen to meet with Amelia was very like the place where she had kept Valeria captive. It was on the grounds of a building, a deserted one by the looks of it. The building was in a scarcely frequented part of the city.Silas, Amelia and I got there a full hour before Amelia's appointment with Grace. We chose good hiding spots where we could see and not be seen. Then we settled down to wait for Grace to show up.Thirty minutes before the time of the appointment, we all clearly heard approaching footsteps. A woman came into view. She was wearing a scarf that obscured most of her face and huge sunglasses, but I knew it was Grace. My hands ached with the effort of keeping them still and not going for her right there and then. Grace gave a sweeping look around the area."Get down," I whispered to the persons with me.Though I was sure we couldn't be seen by her, we all went down and peered at her from between the thick foliage of overgrown shrubs we were h
Set me Free, Alpha Hundred and Thirty-Eight
DIMITRI"I can't remember."Amelia had said this more times than I could count in so many different ways, but it still boiled down to the same thing. She still clearly could not remember anything about what Valeria's grandmother had said about her and her past."Why can't I remember?" she said again, with tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes.She glanced over at Valeria. Whenever Amelia had declared that she didn't remember, Valeria, with her head resting on the sofa, nodded mechanically and simply kept staring at the blank wall before her.Seeing that Valeria was more or less unresponsive, Amelia turned to me. "What is wrong with me? Why can't I remember any of what happened?"I gave her what I hoped was a reassuring look, patted her hand. "It's okay. Don't worry. I promise you that I will do everything to find out how your memory was tampered with and if possible, you will get your memories back."Amelia nodded and then just sat there, crying and wringing her hands. I sat by
