Ditched Cheating Alpha, I Led My Daughter to Life's Peak novel Chapter 198

Everyone looks at me.

I grab Asher's arm and start dragging him up. "Let's see what your Dad's doing."

Ethel's face falls completely. "What?"

Everyone starts to follow me.

"No," Ethel says, staggering after us. "What if my mom finds out?"

"Shh," Axel warns us for the hundredth time. He really doesn't have to though. Ethel's about to have an accident on himself if he gets caught, Suzie's in the same boat because Coach Kenet is her aunt, and I know everyone would throw me under the bus because it was my idea, so I'm definitely tip-toeing.

We can sense the alpha's presence, but the closer we get to him, the scarier the forest gets.

"Okay, I know this was my idea," I finally whisper when a branch nearly takes us out. "But I'm ready to turn back."

The brothers and Ethel nod vigorously, but Suzie gives us all a dirty look. "Would you guys pull yourselves together?" She shakes her head, hands on her hips.

Axel looks at her incredulously, pointing at all the creepy shadows. Then he gestures towards the wasteland we're about to enter. "This is worse than the Elephant Graveyard in The Lion King," he whisper-screams.

Asher nods vigorously, backing up every word his brother says, even if he has no idea what he's talking about.

Suzie sighs. "Well then I guess it can't be helped." She holds her hand out towards Asher. "You can hold this if it makes you feel better," she says as though it were the absolute worst option, but out of the kindness of her heart, she was still willing.

Ethel looks at me and does the 'gag me' gesture. I do it at the same time and we laugh.

Asher shakes his head. "Nah, I think I'm good. I just wanna go home-"

CRACK

Suzie flies into the arms of her cousin, looking around crazily. Her arms threaten to choke Ethel to death. I'd judge her if I wasn't currently on top of Axel's head. "What was that?" I scream into his ear.

He holds onto me like he's prepared to throw me at anything that might pop out. Asher holds onto him too, clinging onto my back. "I should've ate the salty chicken," he sobs.

A branch pulls back, and we stare into the eyes of someone who's all too familiar.

The alpha.

"Dad!" Asher runs up to his father, throwing our incognito mission to the wayside. "I thought we were gonna die."

"Now you sound like, Aiden," he chuckles, ruffling his hair. Then he looks around. "Speaking of your brother, where is he? What are you kids doing here?"

"Aiden's at home with his Mommy," Asher says bitterly while Axel helps me to my feet.

Carson nods with every word until it registers in his head that his mother's coming. "Wait, what?" he asks.

His father gives him a look before pulling him into a headlock, messing with his hair. "Look at the mouth on this one. Just play nice with your brother, you hear?"

"But," Carson starts.

His dad cuts him off. "And eat your mother's cooking. I'd give anything to have my mom's food again, even if it did taste like horseradish."

Carson pouts but nods, never one to argue with his dad.

Then he moves on to his other kid. "You're not spending too much time in front of the TV, right?"

Axel shakes his head. "No, sir."

"Good," the alpha ruffles Axel's hair too. "Because we've got a marathon to watch later. I need your eyes in tip-top shade."

Axel beams like he's just been bestowed the greatest mission ever. It makes me wonder what it would be like to have that. A mom to hold onto. A dad to ruffle my hair and give me a mission.

Give me something to make him proud of.

He smiles at the rest of us, I know he tries his best to make us feel included, but it's not the same. And it's worse knowing Ethel and Suzie have homes of their own to get back to, families of their own to give them what they're lacking here from a stranger.