The Alpha's Search (The Craven Trilogy, #1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

body. I stared into his eyes, and felt as though I was being drawn into their depths. Focus! I had to focus. I pulled my hand away.
    “Did you see?” he asked.
    “See? See what?”
    He looked disappointed.
    “Do you know me?” I asked. “From before my accident?”
    “Yes.”
    “How? How do you know me?”
    “It's complicated.”
    “No shit. Just tell me!”
    “We were...” He hesitated.
    “What?”
    “You were my mate. You are still my mate.”
    “Mate? Do you mean friend? We were friends?”
    “No. Much more than friends. We were a mated pair.”
    “As in ' had sex '? That's bullshit.”
    “You said you couldn't remember anything before your accident.”
    “I'd remember that.”
    “Your name is Louise. I took you as my mate.”
    “Why do you keep saying the word ' mate' ? You make it sound like we're animals. Are you trying to tell me we were lovers?”
    “Yes.” He nodded. “And so much more.”
    “Right.” The man was obviously deranged. “Well that's okay then.”
    “You remember?”
    “Of course I don't fucking remember because there's nothing to remember. You're full of shit. If we were lovers before my accident, why didn't you come forward when I was in hospital? Where have you been for the last five years? What happened? Did you suddenly wake up one morning and notice I wasn't in the bed next to you? Did you think ' I haven't seen Louise for five years' —I wonder what happened to her?”
    “I have been looking for you. I never stopped looking.”
    “For five years?” You can't have been looking very hard.”
    “I've been searching for you for almost forty years.”
    “Forty years?” I laughed. “My bad. Of course you have. I should have realised that you've been looking for me since fifteen years before I was born”
    I stood up. “I'm done here. If I see your sorry arse anywhere within a mile of me again, I'll get the cops on you.”
    “Louise wait!” He held out a hand, but I brushed it away. Alison was at a table close to the door. I motioned towards the exit, and she nodded.
    *********
    “Y ou need to tell the police,” Alison said. “The man's a sandwich short.”
    I'd just given her Cliff Notes of my conversation with Craven.
    “Forty years? Was he high?”
    “God knows. I should never have agreed to meet him.”
    “Why did you?”
    “I thought he might have known me from before the accident.”
    Alison nodded. She knew how my past—or lack of it—played on my mind. I'd tried to move on with my life, but there were always the nagging doubts. What had I left behind? Who had I left behind? My parents? Who were they? Were they still alive? Did I have siblings? Friends? If I did, why hadn't they come forward? How could I have disappeared without anyone noticing?
    “I thought I might actually find out who I was.” I couldn't hold back the tears any longer.
    “Come here.” Alison put her arm around my shoulders. “Let's get you home.”
    Alison could be a pain, but she was also a good friend. She called a taxi, and took me back to the flat.
    “I think I'm going to have a lie down,” I said. “My head feels like it's going to explode.”
    “Good idea.”
    “You go back to town if you like. I'll be okay now.” I tapped two aspirin from the bottle.
    “Nah. I'll stay here. I'd only spend money I don't have.”
    I wasn't sure if I'd sleep, but as soon as my head hit the pillow, I'd gone.
    I could hear footsteps echoing around the cave—coming from somewhere behind me. I was running—trying to get away. The footsteps were getting louder—getting closer. My throat was on fire, and my legs felt like jelly, but I had to keep going. Ahead, I could see a pin-prick of daylight. I had to get out of the cave. The footsteps were louder still—only a few feet behind me. I couldn't let him catch me. I ignored the pain in my lungs, and pushed forward. Not far now!
    A hand grabbed my ankle.
    “No!”
    I sat up in bed. My heart was racing. I ran a palm across my forehead