Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! novel Chapter 78

Chapter 78: Chapter 78

Aria’s POV

It happened after work.

I was walking home from my shift. The streetlights were flickering, half of them dead. This neighborhood never got maintenance. Never got attention. The city pretended it didn’t exist.

Most nights, I walked fast. Kept my head down. Got inside as quickly as possible.

But tonight, I heard something.

Voices. Young. High-pitched.

And one of them was crying.

I stopped.

Down the alley to my right, I could see them. Three girls—teenagers, maybe fifteen or sixteen—surrounding a fourth. The fourth was smaller. Cornered against a dumpster. Her clothes were expensive. Designer. Completely out of place in this part of town.

"Please," she was saying. "I don’t have any more money. I already gave you everything."

"Then give us the phone." One of the attackers shoved her. "And that necklace. That looks real."

"My parents—"

"Shut up!" Another shove. Harder this time. The girl stumbled. Hit the wall.

Something inside me snapped.

"HEY!"

My voice echoed down the alley. All four heads turned.

I walked toward them. My heart was hammering. My legs were shaking. I had no weapon. No wolf. No way to defend myself if this went wrong.

But I kept walking.

"Leave her alone."

The leader of the group laughed. "Who the hell are you?"

"Someone who’s calling the cops in about thirty seconds if you don’t back off."

"With what phone?"

I held up my cheap prepaid cell. It was a bluff. The battery was almost dead. But they didn’t know that.

"This one."

The girls exchanged glances. Calculating. Deciding if I was worth the trouble.

"Whatever." The leader spat on the ground. "She’s not worth it anyway."

They scattered. Disappeared into the shadows like cockroaches when the light comes on.

I waited until I couldn’t hear their footsteps anymore. Then I rushed to the victim.

"Are you okay?"

She was crying. Really crying. Big, gulping sobs that shook her whole body.

"I was so scared." Her voice was tiny. "I didn’t know what to do. They just—they came out of nowhere—"

"It’s okay. You’re safe now." I helped her stand. "What’s your name?"

"Sophie." She wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"I’m Aria. What are you doing in this neighborhood, Sophie? No offense, but you don’t exactly blend in."

She let out a watery laugh. "My boyfriend. He was supposed to take me home, but we got in a fight and he just... left me here. I’ve been walking for an hour trying to find a bus stop or something."

"Your boyfriend left you alone in this part of town?" I felt my blood pressure spike. "What kind of asshole does that?"

"He’s not usually—I mean, we were fighting, and—" She stopped. Shook her head. "Okay, yeah. He’s an asshole. A complete and total asshole."

"Good. First step is admitting it."

She looked at me then. Really looked at me. Her eyes were red-rimmed but bright. Intelligent. And filled with something that looked almost like admiration. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

"You saved my life."

"I wouldn’t go that far—"

"You did!" She grabbed my hands. Squeezed. "You didn’t have to stop. You could have just kept walking like everyone else. But you didn’t. You saved me."

"I just couldn’t watch and do nothing."

"That’s exactly my point." Her grip tightened. "Let me pay you back. Please. Come to my house. My driver can take you home, and we can get you some food or something. It’s the least I can do."

I hesitated. "That’s really not necessary—"

"Please." Her eyes were huge. Pleading. "I really need the company right now. I’m still shaking."

She was. I could feel it through her hands.

And honestly? I could use some company too.

"Okay," I said. "Sure. Why not."

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