I Ran From My Psycho Step-brother Straight Into The Alpha's Lap novel Chapter 180

**When Night Grows Softer Hope Returns To Lead Us by Asa Rowan Finn**
**Chapter 180**

“I understand, child,” the wolf spoke, his voice heavy with weariness.

“What am I meant to do?” Talya’s voice trembled with urgency, her heart racing as she spoke. “The vampire creator has taken me, along with Sage and Emma. I have no idea what their intentions are. Sage isn’t responding, and Liam and Garrett are completely unreachable… everything feels hopeless right now. What should I do?” Her desperation hung in the air, thick and suffocating.

“Right now, you need to take action,” the wolf replied, his tone steady and resolute.

Talya blinked at him, feeling as though she had been struck. “What? I don’t think you grasp the gravity of the situation.”

“I understand perfectly,” he assured her, his gaze unwavering. “The vampire creator is preoccupied with safeguarding his own interests at the moment. This means he is likely neglecting his dream realm. It is the ideal opportunity for you to search for the cities,” the wolf explained with an air of calmness. “You possess a strength that neither of us fully comprehended. The vampire took you to prevent you from accessing this realm, yet here you are. Somehow, your power has managed to break through his barriers. You still have a purpose, Talya. You must locate those six cities so we can dismantle the vampire’s operations, or all of this will be for naught. Seize this moment, Talya. They abducted you, believing they could thwart your efforts to stop them. Turn the tide. Find the cities, Talya; we must bring this to an end once and for all.”

Talya opened her mouth but then closed it again, struck by the truth of his words. He was right; she was stuck here for the foreseeable future. And if the vampire was indeed distracted, this could be the perfect chance to uncover the answers they desperately needed. “Okay,” she finally said, determination flooding her senses. Pushing aside her fear and the looming uncertainty, she took a deep breath, focusing her mind on the melding within the vampire realm. As she envisioned it, she stepped forward, entering the daunting task of uncovering the locations of the vampire’s strongholds.

Time flowed differently in her dream world, and Talya could never quite gauge how long she spent there. It felt like ages had passed before she was suddenly jolted back into her physical body.

Her eyes sprang open, and she shot upright, disoriented. “Talya! Thank God! I couldn’t wake you!” Emma’s anxious voice cut through the fog of her confusion.

“I’m sorry I worried you. I was in my dream world,” Talya replied, her heart still racing from the transition.

“Are you okay?” Emma asked, concern etched on her features.

“I’m fine. Did I miss anything important?” Talya inquired, her mind racing.

“No, I managed to catch a bit of sleep. Sage still hasn’t woken up, as far as I can tell. I haven’t heard a peep from her,” Emma said, her voice laced with worry.

Talya turned her attention to Sage’s cell, calling out, “Sage, Sage, wake up! Can you hear me?” The silence that followed sent a chill down her spine. “I’m really worried about her.”

“I know,” Emma replied softly. “So am I. But she’s strong, Talya. She’ll pull through.”

She has to be, Talya thought, clenching her fists in anxious resolve. Before she could voice her fears, a loud clang echoed through the space, followed by the unmistakable sound of a door creaking open. Talya sprang to her feet, squinting as a shaft of light spilled into her cell. She watched with apprehension as three men entered the holding area. The man leading the group halted in front of Emma’s cell, and Talya caught the sharp intake of breath from her friend. She gripped the bars of her own cell, straining to see what was unfolding.

“Did you miss me?” the man asked, a teasing lilt in his voice.

“She’s not family,” he spat, venom dripping from his words.

Talya crossed her arms defiantly. “Why? Because she’s not blood?”

“No, because she’s an abomination, just like you!” Alec yelled, his voice laced with hatred.

“None of you should be allowed to exist.” The words hung in the air, heavy with contempt. Talya shook her head, realizing that reasoning with him was futile. “You were born of wolf power but lack a wolf inside you. It’s akin to being human without a soul.” He turned away, positioning himself in front of Emma’s cell.

“I was going to kill you that day, the day you fled,” he confessed in a low voice, a chilling calmness enveloping his words. “I waited until you turned eighteen to be certain. When I discovered you had no wolf within you, I knew what had to be done. Nothing like that should exist. But you managed to escape. Fortunately for me, during my search for you, I heard about some vampires who were eager to find a wolf girl without a wolf soul and were willing to pay top dollar for the privilege.”

He paused, relishing the moment.

“Imagine my surprise when I uncovered that there were more of you. Since I was already familiar with you, they dispatched me to track down the others. So far, I’ve done rather well,” he boasted, pride swelling in his chest. “Just one more of you abominations remains out there.” The disdain in his voice was palpable.

Talya felt a surge of anger bubbling within her, desperate to understand why Sage was entangled in this mess, but she refrained from drawing Alec’s ire toward her. “What do the vampires want with us?” Emma asked, her voice steady despite the chaos surrounding them.