Claimed by the Vengeful Alpha

Chapter 104: Questionable

"What are you doing, Alaina?"

"Me? You’re asking me that!" She yelled as she glared at her sister. "You’re helping a traitor and you have the gall to ask me that! Choosing a stranger over your own family, your own Alpha. Of course, I should expect nothing less from you. Aren’t you exactly like that?"

Winnie looked hurt, but she didn’t say anything back to her sister. She just tightly held onto the bowl of chicken soup, protecting it from her sister’s reach.

"And you!" She yelled, turning to Maya. "Aren’t you tired of your underhanded tactics? Alpha Keenan wants nothing to do with you. Just how far would you go? Have you no shame? Of course not. Now you’ve dragged Winnie into this. My own sister."

Alaina stepped closer, and Maya reflexively flinched. No matter how undeterred she could try to be against her words, there was no stopping Alaina if it turned physical.

The memory of her crouching in the abandoned building while Alaina attacked her was not one she could get rid of, and years later, not much had changed.

"Alaina," Winnie spoke. "S-she is injured. Who wants to be injured?"

Maya blinked as she stared at Winnie. She could hardly speak to Alaina when she spoke about her. Yet, here she was speaking up for her. As much as she was pleased, she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Helping her brought Winnie pain.

She laughed. "You’d be surprised. Didn’t you used to do this all the time, Piggy? Whining every chance you got just so he would come running. If you had even the slightest iota of guilt for what you did to our Alpha, you wouldn’t be here. But of course, you want nothing more than to get away from your crimes. I won’t let that happen."

She reached the bed and stretched out her hand to touch Maya. Winnie reached out to stop her sister while struggling with the bowl of soup.

Maya let out a shriek as she pulled away. She didn’t want any more pain, and she knew Alaina was going to reach for her hurt hand.

"What do you think you’re doing, Alaina?" Keenan yelled from the open door.

"Alpha," they simultaneously called.

Alaina spun around quickly, her expression devoid of her planned attack. Her palms grew sweaty as she wondered how long he had observed them before speaking. She couldn’t believe she had forgotten to close the door.

"It’s most unfortunate what happened," she immediately started to speak, stepping closer to Keenan. "If you had done the whole journey as a wolf, none of this would have happened. You wouldn’t have been caught in the rain. She won’t stop being a bothe—"

"I don’t recall asking you to come here, Alaina," he cut in, narrowing his eyes at her. "Leave."

Alaina visibly deflated, and her palms turned to fists as she tightly gripped the side of her dress. It was just one word, but his dismissal felt brutal.

His expression revealed nothing as he looked past her to the tray on the ground and Maya’s look of relief as she saw him.

"Alpha, I was just..." She started to say but stopped herself.

Despite what she might say, she knew Winnie wouldn’t support her, and even if it was easy to make Keenan disbelieve everything about Maya, it would be much harder if someone else supported her.

Even as his tormentor, he would still choose Maya over her. But although her actions might be questionable, didn’t Maya deserve it?! Didn’t she deserve so much worse than this?!

Useless.

Winnie was always useless. No matter what she did, the brat never acknowledged it or took her side. Years of playing sisters and she would easily choose someone she couldn’t even remember over her.

"I’ll leave, Alpha Keenan," she said stiffly and walked toward the door.

This wasn’t good. She could tell Maya had already won over Agnes and the maids in the kitchen. Now Winnie, enough that she would risk outing her secret for her.

Vile, manipulative.

Alaina always hated it. The way she played the victim, crying whenever she could. She had powers but would always act helpless so Marcus would come to her rescue. Years later and even after revealing who she really is, Keenan still fell for it.

She couldn’t let this fester. In only two weeks, she had convinced everyone she wasn’t the conniving person they all knew. Alaina was scared to see what would happen in the long run.

Alpha Keenan was already showing cracks. She didn’t like the feeling in the air. If she did nothing, her worst fear would be realized.

Maya couldn’t hide her relief as the doors shut, but that was quickly forgotten at the fact that Keenan was in the room with her.

She was glad she hadn’t jumped out of the carriage and caused her injuries through carelessness but it didn’t change the fact that she had caused trouble for him.

"Are you hurt?" Winnie was asking.

Maya shook her head. "No," she mumbled.

She didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t know how Keenan interpreted the situation. She was glad he stopped Alaina, but what did that mean?

"Can you continue eating?" She asked.

Maya nodded. Winnie didn’t seem bothered that Keenan was in the room, and it didn’t look like she would stop helping her eat. Considering he had just thrown Alaina out, she was slightly worried.

"I think I can take it from here," she said with a stiff smile.

"We are almost done," Winnie replied, ignoring her as she scooped more soup into Maya’s mouth.

As much as she wanted to refuse, Maya was worried she would be alone with Keenan. He didn’t leave the room; rather, he sat across from them as Winnie offered to help her eat.

She did her best not to look in his direction, and unfortunately, the meal finished faster than she could build courage.

Winnie smiled at her and stood up. "That didn’t take so long. Try not to move too much, okay?" As she spoke, she cleared the dishes, including the tray that had fallen to the ground.

With the dishes in hand, she bowed to Alpha Keenan and walked towards the door. She glanced back briefly and smiled at her before exiting the room, leaving her alone with him.

"Bye," Maya whispered under her breath as she tried to combat the growing anxiety.