The lost mate

Chapter 142: A Dangerous deception

Damien was moving swiftly through the crowd. He was heading towards the guest rooms. He’d sensed something off, yet he hadn’t stopped to question it.

As he approached the staircase, he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"Damien?"

He turned, and his eyes widened in surprise as he saw Anne standing there, her expression puzzled. She was alone, her golden gown shimmering in the dim hallway light.

"Anne?" he said, momentarily thrown off balance. "What are you doing here?"

Anne’s brows furrowed, mirroring his confusion. "I went to look for Jessica in her cabin but couldn’t find her. I thought she might’ve joined the celebration." She took a step towards him, studying his face. "Where are you headed?"

Damien blinked, trying to piece together the strange encounter. "I got a call from you," he said slowly, as if working through the details aloud. "You told me to meet you in the guest room. You said you’d found Jessica and needed my help."

A crease formed on Anne’s forehead, her surprise giving way to a look of deep concern. "I didn’t call you, Damien," she said, her voice steady but carrying a note of worry. "Why would I? I was coming here myself to look for her."

The two stood in silence, the realisation slowly dawning on both of them.

Damien’s gaze sharpened as he took a step closer. "Then, who called me?"

Anne’s hand instinctively moved to her purse, searching for her phone. She rummaged through its contents, her fingers becoming more frantic as her expression shifted from confusion to alarm. "I can’t find it," she admitted, glancing up at Damien. "I must have misplaced it somewhere."

A cold understanding settled between them, an invisible chill snaking its way into their hearts.

"Anne..." Damien’s voice was a low murmur, as though he were processing the implications in real-time. "Whoever called me did it to lead me to the guest room. To Jessica."

Anne’s heart skipped a beat, her pulse quickening. A sense of Deja vu washed over her.

"Damien, it was a plan. As soon as I left, someone called you to lure you away. They wanted you to be with Jessica alone !"

Damien cursed under his breath.

"Jessica will never learn; how many times is she going to do the same old trick again and again? I am sure this was her plan to trick me again into sleeping with her."

He caught Anne’s arm and guided her away towards the party.

"To hell with her, I am not falling for her games anymore. Let’s enjoy the rest of the evening and forget about her."

They were walking away when Jessica’s screaming pierced through the air, causing Damien to pause.

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"MALCOM, GET OFF HER !" Damien shouted and tried to pry away Malcom away from Jessica. But he was like a beast in heat and continued thrusting into the helpless girl.

Anne covered her mouth and looked on in horror.

Damien commanded Chris and his warriors to arrive through the mental link while Anne called for the omegas.

Jessica couldn’t see through the haze, but the weight was lifted off of her. She heard growling and scooted back on the floor, moving herself into a corner. She watched as Damien had her assailant on the ground. He was fighting back, and it didn’t look like Damien would be able to hold him for long.

Two more men came rushing into her room and descended on the man. The three of them secured Jessica’s attacker and lifted him off the floor. He continued to fight as they carried him out. The adrenaline did not fade. Jessica held up her shaking hand.

She grabbed the sheet from the bed and wrapped it around herself.

"Jessica, are you okay? What happened?" Anne stepped in front of her.

Jessica’s eyes were wide, her whole body trembling as she clutched the sheet tightly around herself, drawing her knees to her chest. Her voice was barely a whisper, still raw from screaming, as she looked up at Anne with a mixture of fear and confusion.

"I... I don’t know. "I was... here when suddenly he attacked me."

Jessica’s body was still hot; whoever was her wolf wanted him. She acted innocent though.

"Jessica," Anne said in a calm but firm tone, "why are you in this guest room alone ?"

Jessica blinked, pulling the sheet tighter around her as she averted her gaze. "I didn’t expect this to happen... I was just tired." Her voice held the hint of a plea, and she glanced up at her with a wide-eyed innocence.

"Who told you to wait here?" she asked. "This was a guest room, far from the rest of the party, Jessica. Why here?"

Jessica hesitated, her gaze flickering. She swallowed.

"Elara... She asked you to wait here for Damien, right ?" Anne asked a little sternly.

Jessica’s face paled, her hands fidgeting with the sheet as she searched for an answer.

"Yes," she finally whispered, her voice barely audible. "Elara... said Damien would be here and that he’d want to see me. That if we were alone, things could... change." She swallowed as if realising too late how desperate she sounded.

Anne’s brows knitted together in a mix of disappointment and frustration. "Jessica, do you understand what you’re doing by listening to Elara? She’s not looking out for you or anyone’s best interests. She’s manipulating you. "

"I know ! Jessica snapped ! But I don’t have a choice ! My dad wanted me to become the Luna queen. That was my only purpose in life. But you came between us, and I...," tears stung her eyes.

"Maybe it’s time you found out who you are, Jessica. Not for Jackson, not for your family, and not even for Damien. Just for yourself."

Jessica’s gaze shifted to Anne, a mixture of vulnerability and resignation in her eyes. For the first time, she nodded slowly.

"What was Elara’s plan ?" Anne asked.

"She gave me a potion to kick off my heat. She asked me to wait here while she would trick Damien to come to me. No male wolf can resist a female in heat." Jessica’s voice wavered as she continued, "I didn’t want to do it, but I was so desperate."

Anne placed a comforting hand on Jessica’s shoulder, understanding the turmoil she was facing.

"Summer, please get some clothes for Jessica."

The girl went to a dresser and brought back some items.

"Now Summer and I are going to step in the hall. Get dressed, drink some water, and then we will talk about this incident."