The Alpha's Exiled Mate Chapter 142

Thorne's POV

The hospital corridor felt too bright, too sterile, too confining. I'd been sitting beside Kaelin's bed for hours, holding her hand as she drifted in and out of sedated sleep. Her parents had finally gone home to rest, leaving me alone with my restless thoughts.

Kaelin's fingers twitched in mine, her brow furrowing even in sleep. The moon phase syndrome was brutal—I'd seen its effects on her since we were young. The uncontrollable shifts between human and wolf traits, the emotional volatility, the physical weakness during its peak. No wonder she couldn't handle the stress of the design controversy on top of everything else.

But even as I sat there, my duty keeping me at her side, my mind kept wandering back to Grey Estate. To Freya.

My wolf paced inside me, agitated by the conflicting instincts. Stay with the wolf I'd promised to protect. Return to the one who...

I cut that thought off before it could form fully. Freya Riley was nothing to me except a complication, a remnant of the past that should have stayed buried in the Wilds.

Kaelin's hand went slack in mine as she fell into deeper sleep. Dr. Maloy had assured me she would be unconscious for hours, her body needing time to reset from the severe episode.

I stood, stretching muscles stiff from sitting too long. Through the window, I could see the moon, nearly full, hanging heavy in the night sky.

My phone vibrated with an incoming call from Mark.

"Alpha Thorne," he began formally, telling me he was calling in an official capacity. "You asked to be notified if there was any movement regarding Miss Riley."

I tensed. "What's happened?"

"She hasn't returned to Grey Estate. Security reports she left the hospital over three hours ago."

My grip tightened on the phone. "And you're only telling me this now?"

"You ordered us not to disturb you while you were with Miss Brooks unless it was urgent," Mark reminded me carefully. "We assumed Miss Riley was taking some time to herself after the... confrontation at the hospital."

I fought back a growl. "Find her. Now."

"We're trying, Alpha. But we couldn't track her cell phone signal."

The northern hills. Silverstone territory bordered those hills. Jasper Stone.

"I'm returning to Grey Estate," I decided. "Keeping searching her phone singnal. Send a team to her last known location."

"Yes, Alpha."

I ended the call and looked back at Kaelin's sleeping form. She wouldn't know I'd left. The doctors had everything under control. And something in my gut told me finding Freya was urgent—that if I didn't act now, she would slip away for good.

I drove back to Grey Estate myself, sending Mark to coordinate the search teams. The familiar gates opened automatically for my car, the security systems recognizing my vehicle. As I parked, I noticed the garden lights were still on, illuminating the roses Freya had been tending so carefully.

Inside, the house was quiet, most of the staff having retired for the night. I went directly to Freya's room, not bothering to knock before entering.

The room was neat, almost too neat. The bed was made, surfaces clear of personal items. The closet door stood partially open, revealing empty hangers. On the bed sat a small duffel bag, packed and ready.

She had been planning to leave. Not just for the night—for good.

I picked up the bag, anger and something that felt uncomfortably like panic rising in my chest. She had no right to leave. Not without my permission. Not when there were still questions about her involvement with Jasper Stone, about the anonymous design allegations, about her intentions toward my pack.

I rifled through the bag, looking for any clue to her destination. There wasn't much—some clothes, toiletries, a small notebook, a few photographs. One fell out as I moved the items: a faded picture of the Riley family, taken years ago. Freya stood between her parents, her brother Ethan's arm around her shoulders, all of them smiling. A family intact, before exile and disgrace tore them apart.

I set the photo aside, continuing my search. At the bottom of the bag, I found a folded piece of paper. Opening it revealed a list of cities, each with notes beside them—possible locations of other Riley family members.

She was going to look for her family. Not just leave Moon Bay, but actively seek out the other exiled Rileys.

My wolf surged forward, a growl building in my throat. I couldn't allow it. Whatever the truth of the Riley exile—and I wasn't as certain of it as I once had been—I couldn't risk Freya discovering it and returning with evidence that might destabilize the pack.

I pulled out my phone and sent a text to the number I'd been using to track her: [Stay where you are. I'm coming for you. - T]

The message showed as delivered, but not read. Either she was ignoring it, or she didn't have her phone.

I stalked out of the room, my decision made. "Assemble a search team," I ordered the Beta guard stationed at the end of the hall. "I want every inch of our territory searched until we find Freya Riley."

"Yes, Alpha," he replied immediately, already reaching for his radio.

---

I stalked through the main hall of Grey Estate, my footsteps echoing against the marble floors. The scent of lemon polish and old wood couldn't mask what was missing—Freya's distinctive pine and wildflower aroma that had, despite my resistance, become a familiar presence in these walls.

Lucy was dusting the antique clock in the corner, her movements becoming increasingly frantic as she caught my approach. My wolf senses picked up her spike of fear even before she turned to face me.

"Alpha Thorne," she greeted, her voice unnaturally high as she dropped into a hasty curtsy.

I didn't waste time with pleasantries. "Freya Riley has disappeared," I said, my voice deceptively calm while my eyes shifted to their wolf gold. "Do you have any information about this?"

Lucy's ears visibly drooped, a Beta wolf's instinctive reaction to an Alpha's displeasure. "N-no, Alpha. I have no idea where the... where Miss Riley has gone."

I took a step closer, letting my dominance fill the space between us. "You're certain? Because the last time we spoke about Freya Riley, you were quite interested in her comings and goings."

"I swear on the moon, Alpha," Lucy stammered, her gaze fixed firmly on the floor. "After you warned me last time, I've stayed away from her completely."

I studied her, searching for signs of deception. My wolf was restless, pacing inside me, furious that Freya had vanished without a trace. The text I'd sent her had gone unanswered, and her scent at the estate was growing stale.

"From today forward," I said, my voice dropping to a low growl, "you will no longer work inside the main house."

Lucy's head snapped up, eyes wide with shock. "Alpha, please—"

"You'll report to the groundskeeper. The gardens and outbuildings need attention." The punishment was clear—a demotion from her prestigious position in the main house to exterior work, away from the heart of power.

"But Alpha Thorne, I've served your family faithfully," she protested weakly, her voice trembling. "My mother before me—"

"Should have taught you better loyalty," I cut her off. "I know you took Freya's designs and gave them to Kaelin."

All color drained from Lucy's face. She opened her mouth, then closed it, no denial forthcoming.

"Your reassignment begins immediately. You may collect your things from the staff quarters and report to Thomas before noon."

Lucy's shoulders slumped in defeat, tears welling in her eyes. "Yes, Alpha," she whispered, her voice barely audible even to my enhanced hearing.

I turned away, not wanting to witness her breaking down. My wolf felt little satisfaction in the punishment; it wanted to find Freya, to drag her back where I could see her, where I could ensure she wasn't with Stone.

The thought of Jasper Stone made my canines lengthen involuntarily. If he had taken her, if he was using her against me...

I headed toward my office, already planning my next move. Stone's territory was the obvious place to start looking. And if she was there willingly, if she had chosen to align herself with my rival...

The growl that escaped my throat echoed through the empty hallway.