The Bully Alpha's Fake Alpha Mate (BL)-Chapter 18: THE INVESTIGATION

REED

I sat in my room with my laptop open, staring at the screen with growing frustration.

Asher Graham.

The search results mocked me with their emptiness.

No Pack registration, no family records, no social media presence beyond a fake Instagram account created three months ago with exactly twelve generic posts.

Everything, all search ended with nothing. J had thought Callum did a bad job at finding out about Asher but searching it out myself and finding nothing was devastating.

For someone who’d supposedly come from the Silverwood Pack, there was a suspicious lack of any digital footprint connecting him to that territory.

I’d been searching for two days straight. Between classes, during meals I didn’t taste, through the night when I should have been sleeping. I couldn’t stop, I kept digging.

My fingers flew across the keyboard, trying different search combinations.

"Asher Graham Silverwood Pack"—nothing.

"Graham family Silverwood territory"—nothing.

"Silverwood Pack members registry"—a list that didn’t include anyone named Graham.

My jaw clenched.

Someone was either very good at covering their tracks, or Asher was lying about his origins.

I leaned back in my chair, running a hand through my dark hair. My wolf paced restlessly inside me, as agitated as I was.

’You need to find him, know him, and understand him.’ My wolf kept repeating but I couldn’t, the obsession was getting worse.

I’d barely slept since the training mission disaster. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Asher’s defiant look and the zeal to have him trapped underneath me, while I made him moan my name loud and hard.

’Stop it.’ I slapped myself hard on the face. Asher means nothing. He means nothing to me and he will continue to mean nothing, but that was a lie, and I knew it.

I knew one thing for sure, once I get to find out about him, this damn obsession will come to an end. I need to focus on finding who Asher Graham really was.

I pulled up the Academy’s student database, entering my administrative password, a privilege of being an Alpha legacy student with connections.

Asher’s file appeared on screen.

Basic information: Age 18. Height 5’8". Weight 145 lbs. Blood type O-negative. Emergency contact: Nadia Graham.

I clicked on the emergency contact information.

Nadia Graham, no Pack affiliation listed. Phone number with a Montana area code. Address listed as "temporary residence, relocates frequently."

What the fuck?

What kind of wolf didn’t have a permanent Pack residence?

Rogues, my mind supplied, outcasts, or criminals on the run but Asher didn’t carry himself like a rogue. He was too refined, too educated, his fighting style, while uncommon, showed formal training, and his scent...

I closed my eyes, remembering that strange sweetness underneath the Alpha musk. The way it called to me on an instinctual level I couldn’t explain. Something was off about Asher Graham, and I was going to figure out what.

A knock on my door interrupted my thoughts.

"Come in," I called, minimizing the browser window.

Marcus entered, one of my friends since childhood. He took one look at me and grimaced.

"You look like shit, Reed."

"Thanks for the observation."

"Seriously, man. When’s the last time you slept? Or ate?" Marcus dropped into the chair across from my desk. "The guys are worried about you."

"I’m fine."

"You’re obsessed." Marcus’s voice was blunt. "With the newbie. Everyone can see it."

I bristled. "I’m not obsessed, I’m just curious. There’s a difference."

"Right, that’s why you’ve been stalking his social media and digging through Academy records for two days straight." He stated and I shot him a sharp look.

"How did you—"

"You’re not subtle, Reed, and you forget that I can access the same systems you can." Marcus leaned forward. "What are you hoping to find?"

"The truth," I said simply. "Something about him doesn’t add up."

"Maybe he’s just a normal Alpha who transferred here and had the misfortune of pissing you off on his first day."

"Normal Alphas don’t move like he does, they don’t fight like he does, and they don’t smell like—" I cut myself off.

Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Don’t smell like what?"

I shook my head. "Nothing."

"Reed." Marcus’s voice gentled. "I know you’re struggling with whatever’s happening between you two, but have you considered that maybe you’re looking for problems because you’re trying to justify your obsession?"

"It’s not an obsession," I growled.

"Then what is it?" He asked, his brows arc.

I didn’t have an answer.

The truth was too complicated, too fucked up, and I couldn’t even explain it to myself, let alone to Marcus.

How could I tell him that I couldn’t stop thinking about Asher? That I jerked off to thoughts of him every night? That I wanted to simultaneously destroy him and possess him and keep him safe from everything, including myself?

How could I explain that when those rogues had hurt him, hurt what was mine, I’d felt a rage so pure and primal that I’d nearly lost control completely?

"He lied about his Pack," I said instead, pulling up the Silverwood registry on my screen and turning it toward Marcus. "Look. No Graham family listed, and no records of him anywhere in their territory."

Marcus frowned, studying the screen. "Maybe his family joined recently? Or maybe they’re peripheral members who don’t appear in the main registry?"

"I checked peripheral members, extended family networks, and historical records going back fifty years." I shook my head. "Asher Graham doesn’t exist in the Silverwood Pack. He never has."

"So he lied." Marcus leaned back. "Maybe he had a good reason, and maybe his family situation is complicated."

"Or maybe he’s hiding something dangerous." I added.

"Like what? You think he’s a spy? An assassin?" Marcus’s tone was skeptical. "Come on, Reed. He’s just a kid trying to survive at this Academy. You’ve already put him in the infirmary twice. Maybe he lied because he didn’t want you digging into his personal business."

I wanted to argue, but part of me knew Marcus had a point.

Still, the mystery gnawed at me.

"What does your father think?" Marcus asked carefully.

I grimaced. "I haven’t told him about Asher."

"Probably smart. Alpha Thorne would tell you to eliminate any potential threat immediately."

That was exactly what I was afraid of.

My father’s philosophy was simple: dominance through absolute control. Anything or anyone that posed a question mark was either brought to heel or destroyed. If he knew I was obsessing over some newbie Alpha with a mysterious background...

If he knew I’d nearly compromised a training mission because I’d lost control...

If he knew I’d carried Asher through the forest like a fucking mate... I couldn’t let my father find out about any of this. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"I’ll figure it out on my own," I said finally, and Marcus studied me for a long moment.

"Just... be careful, Reed. Whatever you’re feeling for this guy, don’t let it cloud your judgment. You have responsibilities. A legacy to uphold."

"I know."

"Do you?" Marcus stood up. "Because from where I’m sitting, you’re spiraling, and that’s not like you."

After Marcus left, I sat in silence for a long time. He was right, I was losing my focus, but I couldn’t stop.

I pulled up Asher’s file again, studying his photo. Those defiant blue eyes stared back at me from the screen, that sharp, beautiful face that haunted my dreams.

Who are you, Asher Graham, and why can’t I let you go?