Mated to Her Alpha Instructor Chapter 79

Regis

The message from Eileen arrived just as I was reviewing training schedules in my office, and something about its brevity made Valdor stir uneasily.

I read it twice, searching for what felt missing. No explanation of what had happened. No mention of when she'd return. Through the bond, I reached for her, but she was too far now. The thread between us stretched thin, conveying only exhaustion and something heavier underneath—resignation, perhaps. Or dread.

*Her family.*

Valdor snarled at the thought. We both remembered what she'd told us—the cold mother, the dismissive father, the brother who could shift while she could not. The house where she'd learned to make herself small, to apologize for existing.

I forced myself to breathe slowly, to think past the Alpha instinct screaming at me to go after her immediately. She hadn't asked for help. Pushing too hard now could undo the fragile confidence she'd been building.

Instead, I typed: [Understood. I'm here if you need anything. Stay safe.]

I sent it before I could reconsider, then immediately hated how inadequate it felt.

The morning dragged. I went through the motions of teaching, correcting stances and demonstrating techniques, but my attention kept fragmenting. By midday, Valdor's restlessness had infected my entire body.

I couldn't stand the uncertainty anymore. I reached out through the mental link to Kieran.

*I need information. Student records. Wylde family residence. And someone to make inquiries—carefully—about what's happening there.*

A pause, then his voice came back cautious. *This is about Eileen.*

*Yes.*

*Understood. You'll have the address within the hour. Inquiries will take longer.*

The address came through ten minutes later: a modest dwelling in the southern edge of pack territory, nearly three hours by carriage. I stared at the notation, memorizing the route even as I forced myself not to order a carriage immediately.

*Respect her autonomy. Trust her to ask if she needs help.*

But what if twenty years of conditioning had convinced her that help must be earned rather than offered?

The afternoon classes passed in a blur. By the time I dismissed the final group, several students looked clearly relieved to escape my distracted harshness.

Kieran found me in my office as the sun angled toward evening.

"Your inquiries," he said, closing the door behind him. "The younger brother—Gareth—was injured in a fight three days ago. Picked a confrontation with someone from the Thornridge family."

My eyebrows rose. The Thornridges were not a family you crossed lightly. "How badly injured?"

"Badly enough that he should be in the healing ward. But the local treatment centers are all funded by Thornridge interests. They're demanding triple rates—essentially pricing the Wyldes out."

"So they called Eileen home to serve as their private healer." The words came out flat, cold.

"That would be my assessment." Kieran's expression darkened. "My contact heard raised voices from the house. Male, aggressive. She was seen through a window—looked exhausted."

The tension coiling through my chest tightened another degree. Valdor pressed against my control, demanding we leave immediately.

"Give her tonight," Kieran said quietly. "If you haven't heard from her by morning, then reconsider."

It was reasonable advice. Everything I would tell someone else in this situation.

I hated it.

But I nodded, because Eileen deserved the chance to handle this her own way. Even if waiting felt like slowly dying.

After Kieran left, I tried to work. Failed. The evening meal sat untouched on my desk. By the time full darkness fell, I'd given up any pretense of productivity and simply sat, one hand resting over my heart, trying to send wordless reassurance through the bond.

*I'm here. You're not alone.*

The hours crawled. Nine o'clock passed, then ten. Around midnight, I felt something through the bond—a spike of pain, quickly suppressed. Then tears, hidden where no one would hear them.

My control nearly fractured. I was halfway to the door before I forced myself to stop, one hand braced against the frame.

*No. Not yet. She didn't call for help.*

But every Alpha instinct screamed that she was in distress, that she needed me, that I should have been there hours ago.

*Morning,* I told myself firmly, returning to my desk. *Give her until morning.*

I didn't sleep. Instead I began making plans. Routes to the Wylde residence. Contingencies if her family tried to prevent her from leaving. Legal arguments regarding my rights as her bonded mate versus their claims as blood family.

By three in the morning, I had a comprehensive strategy for extracting Eileen from any situation—peaceful options first, escalating only if necessary.

At half past four, Valdor stopped his restless prowling, settling into watchful patience. He knew what I'd decided. Come sunrise, we were done waiting.

I reached out to Kieran through the mental link. *I'm going to get her.*

*Now?* His surprise rippled back. *Regis, it's barely dawn—*

*I need a carriage. The fastest we have. Can you arrange it?*

A pause, then: *Twenty minutes. I'll come with you.*

I changed into travel clothes, gathering the soft blanket from Eileen's room—the one that still carried her scent. She might need familiar comfort after whatever she'd endured.

The sun broke the horizon as I strode toward the waiting carriage. Kieran stood beside it, already dressed for travel.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

He simply nodded and climbed in after me.

The carriage lurched into motion. I forced myself to breathe slowly, evenly. Two hours, perhaps slightly less if we pushed the horses. Two hours before I could reach her.

But I was coming, whether she'd asked for me or not.

Because sometimes the bravest thing wasn't handling everything alone. Sometimes it was accepting that you didn't have to.

I rested one hand over my heart, over the bond that connected us, and sent a single thought southward:

*Hold on, Eileen. I'm coming.*

Through the thin thread of our connection, I felt nothing back—she was probably still asleep, exhausted from yesterday's ordeal. But I kept the thought steady anyway, a promise repeated with every mile that passed.

*I'm coming. You're not alone anymore.*

The landscape blurred past the window. Valdor remained coiled and ready beneath my skin, patient now that we were finally taking action.

Whatever I found when we arrived—whatever her family had done or said to her—we would handle it together.

And then I would bring my mate home, where she belonged.