Escaping the Alpha, Claimed in the End novel Chapter 34

Chapter 34

Chapter 34

Amelia’s POV

Training with Sloane wasn’t like pack drills. There was no shouting, no laps, no bruises for the sake of it. She had me stand inside a salt circle and breathe until the noise in my head went quiet.

She made me hold a bowl of water still without touching it. If the surface rippled, we started over. Some days she blindfolded me and walked me through the trees, asking what I smelled, what I heard, what felt wrong. It wasn’t easy, bura didn’t break me either.

Dane was there most days. He waited at the edge of the circle with a towel and a bottle of water, tossing dumb jokes when my hands shook, cutting them off when I needed silence. If I stumbled, he steadied me and looked away fast like he didn’t want me to feel embarrassed.

The space

between us got… different. Not loud. Not messy. Just a quiet pull that made my breath catch sometimes when he stood too close.

I tried not to think about Ryder when that happened. It didn’t work.

Sloane nodded at the bowl in my hands. “See? You’re getting the hang of it. Not fighting yourself this time.”

“I’m trying,” I said, biting my lip.

“Good. Keep at it.” She glanced at Dane, who quickly looked away like he hadn’t been staring. Her mouth curved knowingly. “And don’t go running yourself into the ground, or I’ll tie you to a chair.”

Time in the coven never behaved. Some sessions felt like an hour until I stepped back outside and found dusk already there. Other days dragged, then I learned only half a day had passed. Sloane warned me not to plan around it. “You’re here for what you need,” she said. “Not what a clock says.”

By the end of that second week, I could hold the water still for minutes. I could sense when an energy line crossed the trees. I could breathe through a rising surge without tipping into panic. I hadn’t shifted yet, but Lyra’s presence was starting to feel less fleeting and more real.”

After we wrapped up Wednesday, Dane fell into step with me until we reached the porch. He glanced at me, then rubbed bas neck like he wasn’t sure how to say it. “So, there’s this little café in town. Coffee, pie… I swear it’s better than it sounds. Friday?”

I hesitated a second too long and saw the flicker in his eyes. I pushed a smile, “Sure. Friday.”

That lopsided smile of his slipped back into place. “It’s a date-uh, not a date, unless- I mean-

“Coffee,” I said, saving him. “Just coffee.”

“Just coffee,” he echoed, like it was a proinise.

Thursday night, the ache for Ryder crawled back up my spine and sat there. I lay awake staring at the roof replaying the way he said baby when he wanted me to breathe. I told myself this was the right path, the safe one. It didn’t make the pillow fee any less empty.

Friday was bright and mild. Sloane waved me off with a ghost of a smile and a “try not to overthink.” Dane and I walked into town along the path that opened to a small street with a few shops and a cafe with a green awning. It smelled like cinnamon and fresh bread. People chatted at little tables. For a second I almost felt normal.

We grabbed a table outside. “I’ll get drinks,” Dane said. “What do you want?”

1/3

末

BAWAN’T ALAGANE YA SAA YAY The heathy Figs Toner we wy

http

okemone Wade fast. Saharw whiley Best one theow Imbhere” His Angers tapped hue Table.

Maubad he way Yi Wan Shin grin underved way Yeonid wate gras shake gas. Wourse thos

新地理ewear bed, int he was later his fingers swapped armand wry (W)

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify