Contract Marriage With Alpha Snow - Chapter 446

Chapter 446: Hitting The Time Frame
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CHAPTER 446

~Alpha Storm’s POV~

The air was thick with the scent of salt and ash as I pulled my hood over my head, standing right at the jagged cliffside that marked the edge of the Serpent Crane. The waves below roared like angry gods, and the fog rolled in thicker, darker than ever.

Beside me, Draven tightened his gloves, his expression tense. We were so close. Just one more step, and we’d be inside the Crane’s cursed grip.

“You ready?” I asked in a low voice.

Draven gave a sharp nod, but before we moved, I held out a hand. “Wait. Check the tracker. Make sure Zara’s still in there.”

Draven hesitated, then quickly pulled out the device. His fingers tapped across the screen, and the soft beeping sound was the only thing between us and the marsh below.

Then—he froze.

I saw it instantly. His face paled, his lips parted.

“What is it?” I demanded.

Draven didn’t move.

“Draven!” I snapped. “What is the problem?”

His voice came out hoarse. “Sir… I’m getting a reading.”

“Well, spit it out!”

He looked up at me, stunned. “Zara… she’s back in the city.”

I blinked. “…What?”

“I triple-checked. The tracker is locked onto her signature. She’s not here anymore. She’s already back in the city.”

“You’re sure?”

“Yes.”

I clenched my jaw, eyes narrowing. “How the hell is that possible? She was right here before. Did she turn back?”

Draven opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He was as lost as I was. “I—I don’t know, Alpha. One second she was here, and now… she’s not.”

I stepped back, running a hand through my hair. “This makes no damn sense.”

“Should I call for backup?” Draven asked immediately.

“Call Dare Devil and Jupiter. Find out what they know. Now.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Draven said quickly, moving off to make the call.

As he stepped away, I looked forward again. The Serpent Crane stretched before me—endless shadows and deadly silence. The kind of place that ate men alive.

But I wasn’t thinking about that anymore.

My focus snapped back to one thing: Zara. She’d vanished… and somehow returned.

Teleportation? Forbidden magic? Something darker?

“Snow… Zara… what the hell is going on?” I muttered to myself, fists clenching at my sides.

Something was wrong.

And I had a feeling we were running out of time.

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~Zara’s POV~

The moment Kaid and I got into the car, my mind started spinning. Everything was moving too fast, but I needed to focus—focus on what happened before the teleportation, before the realm of dragons.

*Flashback*

“Richie… I need you to go to Zara’s apartment. Her address has been sent to your phone before.”

Kaid’s voice rang sharp the moment Richard picked up.

“I’m already on my way there.”

“Good. Once you arrive, take Siona and Snow’s body somewhere safe,” Kaid continued, with no hesitation.

“Snow’s body? Alpha Snow is…?”

He didn’t answer.

“Make sure no one disturbs her until I return.”

A pause. “And where the hell are you going?”

Kaid let out a half-smirk. “On a quest.”

*Flashback Ends*

I blinked back into the present. We were halfway through the drive when Kaid’s jaw tightened again. He was still trying to call Richard’s number, but there was no answer.

“Kaid?” I asked, feeling my own pulse quicken. “Nothing?”

He didn’t respond.

I clenched my fists, fighting back the urge to scream. Just then, the phone lit up and rang. Richard.

Kaid picked up so fast I barely saw it happen.

“Where the hell have you—”

I slapped my hand over his mouth.

“Kaid!” I hissed, glaring at him. “Let me talk.” He groaned, but nodded. I took a breath. “Richard. Where are you?”

“Um…”

“Don’t um me. Where is Siona? Where is Snow?”

“Zara…”

“Answer me!”

“We’re at one of Kaid’s mansions. The one on the outskirts of the city.”

I swore under my breath. “We are headed to your house, Kaid. How far away is this new mansion?”

Kaid did not respond and thankfully Richard did even though he hesitated a little. “Uh… thirty minutes, maybe.”

I turned to Kaid, fire burning in my chest. “How fast can you get us there?”

Kaid exhaled and pressed the pedal harder. “Richie. Which of the mansions?”

“Zara,” Richard replied again, softer this time.

My eyes narrowed. “Excuse me?”

Kaid’s lips curved in something between guilt and amusement. “I understand. We’ll be there in twenty-five minutes. Tell Siona we’re coming.”

“Aye aye,” Richard replied before the call ended.

I turned fully in my seat, staring him down. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“Nothing.”

“Kaid, don’t lie to me.”

He groaned. “Fine. I named one of my mansions after you, alright? I was gonna give it to you… as a vacation home. I hoped we’d get to a place where that would mean something.”

“Oh…” I blinked, not knowing what to say to that. “I… didn’t expect that.”

“No need,” he muttered, eyes on the road. “I’ll fire away and get you to Snow.”

With that, the car surged forward, its tires screeching as Kaid pushed it faster than I thought possible.

We were almost there. Hold on, Snow. I’m coming.

My heart was pounding. The city lights flashed by in streaks, Kaid’s grip on the wheel tightening with every second.

Neither of us spoke, but the silence was suffocating. I wanted to ask more about the mansion, about what he meant—but I couldn’t. Not now.

Snow was all I could think about.

I kept glancing at the dashboard clock. 11:45 p.m. Every tick of the second hand made my chest squeeze tighter.

We were running out of time.

Kaid didn’t speak either, but I saw the way his jaw clenched, the flicker of tension in his arms, the sheer will in his body to get us there faster.

We hit a turn, the tires screeched, and I slammed into the door, holding onto the handle.

“Sorry,” Kaid muttered.

“I don’t care. Just drive,” I breathed.

Finally, after what felt like forever, the towering black gates came into view. Tucked into the hills, trees surrounded the mansion and nearly swallowed by the shadows of the night.

“Kaid, please—”

He was already hitting the horn before I finished speaking. The gates creaked open, and he drove in, hard and fast, gravel scattering beneath the tires.

As we skidded to a stop in front of the wide marble steps, the front door flung open and Richard stepped out, looking breathless.

“Siona,” he said, already waving us in. “She’s upstairs with Snow.”