Piss Off, Alpha! You Lost Me Forever-Chapter 165 An Unwanted Presence

SOPHIA’S POV

Zade looked at me with those intense eyes of his. His eyes were completely dark now, meaning his wolf had partly taken over.

My heart rate increased under his intense gaze. If I was being honest, I hated how much his presence affected me.

"He grabbed you." His voice was low as e spoke "I saw it through the window. He grabbed your injured arm and he held it."

His eyes dropped briefly to where I was still holding my right arm close to my body, then came back to my face. "He had no right to do that."

"Zade-"

How did he even see all this? What was he doing in Damien’s house?

"He had no right." He said through gritted teeth.

I looked at him directly. "It’s between me and Damien. It always has been." I kept my voice even. "It doesn’t involve you."

"You’re holding your arm like it’s-"

"Zade." I said his name with enough weight to stop him. "Step aside. Please."

Something moved through his expression. I could see the frustration inside his eyes, and also something that looked almost like helplessness. He looked at me for a long moment, like he was reading my face.

Then he stepped aside.

I could tell it took a lot of self restraint for him to leave me alone. Still, I was glad he did. I couldn’t deal with any more drama right now.

As soon as he moved, I walked past him to my car without looking back.

I pulled out of Stone Manor’s driveway and onto the road.

I didn’t have to check my mirror to know that he was behind me.

-

Sky Manor was quiet when I got home.

The downstairs lights were off, which meant Klara had finally gone to bed or tried to. I went upstairs, pushing her bedroom door open gently, expecting to find her asleep. She was, but barely. She was curled on her side with the lamp still on beside her.

She had waited up again. It was obvious. She always waited up, and exhaustion always won eventually. Then, she’d fall asleep with the light on.

The thought of it made me smile.

I moved into the room quietly, pulled the blanket up over her shoulder, and switched the lamp off. In the dark, her face was peaceful and young. I stood there for a moment just looking at her.

You are so good, I thought. I don’t tell you that enough.

I leaned down to press a kiss to her hair then I slipped back out.

In my own room, I washed up slowly and carefully, working around the bandage, keeping the wound dry the way I was supposed to.

My arm was tender and deep-sore from Damien’s grip. The muscles underneath it still ached. When I was done, I changed into something comfortable, turned off the main light, and laid down.

The ceiling was dark. The house was quiet.

For approximately forty seconds, I thought I might actually sleep.

Then my phone rang.

The sound cut through the silence, making it flinch. I reached for it immediately, thinking it was a late-night emergency call from the hospital.

But the number on the screen wasn’t the hospital.

It was Bianca.

I answered before the second ring finished. "Bianca-"

"He’s outside." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She sounded scared. Bianca never sounded scared. "Marcel. He’s outside my building right now. He has flowers. He’s been standing there for twenty minutes and he won’t leave, Sophia. He keeps calling my name. My neighbors can hear him."

I was already sitting up. "Are your doors locked?"

"Yes. Everything is locked."

"Windows?"

"All closed." She took in a deep breath. Her voice shook as she spoke. "But he’s not leaving. He keeps saying he just wants to talk. He sounds - he doesn’t sound right, Sophia. His voice is wrong."

The memory of Marcel’s hands around my throat in the car came back immediately. I remembered everything - the pressure, the desperation, the look in his eyes that had had insanity behind it.

"Don’t open the door," I said, already moving. I was off the bed, across the room, pulling clothes back on with one hand while holding the phone with the other. "For any reason. No matter what he says, don’t open it."

"I won’t-"

"I’m coming right now. I’ll be there in twenty minutes." I grabbed my keys from the nightstand. "Stay on the phone with me if you need to. Talk to me while I drive."

"Sophia" Her voice cracked slightly. "I’m sorry to call you so late. I just didn’t know who else-"

"Stop apologizing." I was already moving toward the stairs. "I’m coming. You did exactly the right thing. Stay inside and stay away from the windows."

I was through the front door and out into the night in under two minutes.

The air outside was cold. My wolf was alert and focused. I was exhausted but someone I loved was in danger. My wolf lent me enough adrenaline to keep me moving.

I was a few steps away from my car when I saw it. Zade’s car was still parked at the Manor gate.

He was leaning against the driver’s side door, arms crossed. As usual, he had a cigarette between his fingers. He looked casual and unbothered, as if he had simply decided that parking outside my home and waiting was a completely reasonable thing to do.

His eyes found me the moment I stepped outside. The sight of him didn’t even surprise me anymore.

He straightened. "What happened?"

"Nothing that concerns you." I reached my car door. "Go home, Zade."

"Sophia." His voice was deep and serious. "You just got home. You’re going back out at this hour with an injured arm and that expression on your face."

He pushed off the car. "What happened?"

I stopped with my hand on the door handle.

I thought about Bianca alone in her apartment with Marcel standing outside, not sounding right with those flowers in his hands. I thought about the last time he had gotten close to me, how quickly it had escalated, how completely, and how it had taken Zade appearing in a car door to stop it from becoming something much worse.

I thought about driving across the city alone at this hour with one functional arm.

I might actually need Zade’s help right now.

"My friend," I said looking at him. "Marcel is outside her building. He won’t leave. I’m going to her."

Something shifted in Zade’s expression. His eyes were filled with shock. He moved around to the driver’s side of his own car and opened the door.

"Get in," he said.

"I can drive myself-"

"Your arm is compromised and Marcel has already put his hands on you once." His voice left no space for argument "Get in the car, Sophia. We’re wasting time."

I looked at him across the roof of his car for one moment.

Then I walked around and got in.

He drove fast. I looked out the window as we moved.

My heart was racing with so much fear and worry. My mind was entirely focused on Bianca. I just hoped she would be okay. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Zade didn’t speak. He just drove, both hands on the wheel.

I stared out the window and thought about Bianca’s voice, the way she had said he doesn’t sound right. She sounded so scared.

Hold on, I thought at her. I’m coming.