Selling Myself To The Alpha
Chapter 42

Liana

POV

I take deep breaths as I storm out of Silver Enterprises and walk down the street. I am hurt because Axel is going to marry that cow and I am furious at her for rubbing it in. But mostly I am mad at myself for allowing her to get to me. Nothing Angela said is new to me, but it still stings like a bitch, and I wish it did not. I wish I did not fall in love with him. I wish I could pull out a magic wand and transfer my feelings to Luther.

By the time I walk back into Silver Enterprises, I am calmer. But it does not last long when I see Angela walking out of the elevator.

For f**k's sake, what must I do to be rid of her? Why does the universe hate me so much that I must see her again? She should have been gone by now.

"Liana," Angela shrieks when she sees me.

Nope, I shake my head and take the first corridor I can replace. In a physical fight, she will kick my ass because she is a wolf, and I am not. But I am so over her, that it will not stop me from attacking her. Removing myself from the situation is the best option.

I notice a boarded-off passage and quickly dodge towards it when nobody is looking. I walk into the ladies' room and go hide in a stall. I hardly breathe as I hear footsteps coming my way. I sit down on a toilet and pull my legs up to my chest so that she cannot see my feet from beneath.

I hold my breath as the door opens and somebody comes inside. The person slowly walks up and down the bathroom, before they leave. Relieved I release my breath and lower my feet to the floor.

I place my elbows on my knees and rest my face in my hands. Now I must go back to the office and face Axel. How do you look the man you love in the eyes, knowing full well he is going to marry another woman and not lose your shit?

Just as I was about to get up, I hear the door again. Silently I lift my feet and listen to the footsteps entering. There is a banging sound and suddenly water pours down on me.

I inhale sharply as I look up at the fire sprinklers that are spraying the room. I want to jump up and get out, but I know this is just a ruse to lure me out. I endure the icy water until I hear the footsteps disappear and the door closes.

Quietly I leave the stall and walk to the door, but the handle does not want to move. I press and pull but it does not move an inch. What now? I sigh as I push my fingers through my wet hair.

I want to reach for my phone and sigh heavily as I remember it is laying on my desk.

"Hello!" I shout as I slam on the door but besides my voice and the pouring water echoing there are no sounds. I try again and again until my hand is red from banging against the door. "Dammit!" I shout as I turn around and look at the bathroom. There are no windows. I am stuck in a box with only a door.

Cold starts settling into my bones, and I rub my hands together. These wolves and their heightened body heat. I do not even want to imagine how cold this place will be during winter. And being wet certainly does not help.

Swiftly I rub my arms for a little heat as I look at the ceiling. The air conditioner is blowing at - which feels like - full speed. Even if I climb onto the toilet and manage to stay on top of the stall divider, I will not reach the ceiling. There is only one way out and that is through the door.

My teeth start chattering as I look at the door's hinges but without a screwdriver and hammer, I am stuck. Frantically, I start banging on the door again as I shout at the top of my lungs but give up after a while. I do not know when the sprinklers stopped spraying water, but I am eternally grateful.

The cold is becoming unbearable, and I rub my arms as I jog on the spot. My shoes are killing me but taking them off is not an option. It is still better than no shoes. I walk from stall to stall until I replace a corner with the least airflow. I bundle into the corner and keep on moving to keep my blood circulating. I repeat the pattern of banging at the door for a couple of minutes before returning to the warmer corner.

I look at my watch and bite back my tears when I see the time. I have been stuck here for nearly four hours. I must stay calm and positive; I tell myself as I continue banging on the door until my hand hurts too much to continue. Shivering I take a seat on a toilet. The floor is too wet and pull my knees up to my chest. I need to rest, just for a moment. My hands and feet are killing me. I rest my face on my knees and blow warm air into my hands and lap. Tiredly, I close my eyes. Just five minutes, then I will get up and try again. Axel POV

"Where's Liana?" I ask irritated as I look at her empty desk. All her stuff is still here so she has not left for the day.

"I don't know," Juliana frowns. "I haven't seen her since Angela was here. I thought you send her out or something."

"Call reception and hear if they've seen her," I order as I walk to the elevator. "And no mind-linking, I don't want people gossiping about a missing person."

"Yes, sir," Juliana replies as I get into the elevator.

This is unacceptable, I grunt. Granted, Liana had reason to be upset but it is four o'clock already. She should have been back hours ago.

"Juliana?" I answer my phone as I step out of the elevator and walk to security.

"Shelly confirmed she left this morning, but she returned fifteen minutes later," Juliana sounds concerned. "She walked towards the East wing when Angela called out to her."

"Thanks," I grunt as I end the call. Why does it not surprise me that Angela is partially involved? Where there is drama, you will replace Angela.

Security guards jump to attention when I barge into their office.

"Get me the surveillance for the East wing from ten this morning," I order as I look at the cameras.

"Sir, most of the cameras are disconnected due to renovations," the guard informs me and my irritation builds.

"Just show me what you have," I cross my arms in front of my chest.

"There," I point out when I see Liana walking down the corridor. "I need to know where she went."

Anxiously I watch as she hastily walks down the hallway. A moment later I recognise Angela going the same way.

"That woman as well," I point to Angela.

"That's it, sir," the guard says. "All the other cameras are disconnected."

"Are you serious?" I look at him in disbelief. "That's the only angle we have. She could have gone anywhere from there." "I'm sorry, sir," the guard lowers his gaze.

"Fine," I sigh as I push my fingers through my hair. "Fast forward and see if she returns."

It feels like an eternity as hours of recording fly by without any movement. Not even Angela comes back that way.

"Keep on looking for her," I order when we have watched the entire recording. "She could've taken an elevator or stairs."

"You four," I turn to a group that is silently sitting in the corner. "Search the building. Her name is Liana Erikson and she's a human employee here. And keep it quiet, I don't want panic and chaos. I will have your heads, do you understand?" "Yes, sir," they nod in unison before they scurry away.

"Let me know if you replace anything," I say as I walk towards the corridor Liana was last seen.

Finding her is not going to be easy, I realize as I look around from the last spot the camera picked her up. The quickest way would be through surveillance, but I will go out of my mind if I must sit behind a screen and not actively do something.

I rest my hands on my hips as I look at all the possible directions she could have gone. All the hallways lead to stairs or elevators that could take her to other floors. All, but one. The old legal department. All the stairs and elevators are locked and sealed off. If Liana went that way, she would have no alternative but to return on the same path. And she did not. This leads me to the logical conclusion that she did not go there.

Something is wrong. The thought jolts through me and I take a deep breath to remain calm. If it were anybody else, I would not panic, but this is my mate, and I cannot control the fear that is creeping closer.

Frantically I pace up and down the hallways in search of Liana. Employees greet me as they leave for the day, and I nod absentmindedly. I enter every office and bathroom but there is not a soul.

It feels like an eternity before the guard from the control room phones me.

"No sign of her, sir," he reports. "But we did replace the second woman. She exited at accounting and left the building."

"Thanks," I disconnect the call and start undressing. Everyone has gone home, and I can shift freely without alarming anybody.

I run to accounting and scour all angles from which Angela could have made it to here from where she was last seen on camera following Liana. I rush towards the stairs and am relieved when I pick up Angela's scent. I follow it all the way back to where I started. A low growl rumbles in my chest as I continue tracking her scent into the old legal department and it is not long before I catch on to Liana's scent.

My heart starts beating rapidly as her scent gets stronger and I look in horror at the scaffolding piece that has been jammed underneath the door handle.

Ferociously I claw the scaffolding to the side before I ram the door open. I slide over the wet floor and stammer backwards when I see Liana unconscious and curdled up into a ball on a toilet.

Swiftly I shift back and kneel by her side.

"Liana," I call urgently as I touch her hand and my heart skips a beat when I feel how cold she is.

"No," I mumble as I pick her up and hold her tightly against my chest before I carry her outside.