Page 57 of Villainous Fate

So why do they have four human females playing a part in the game between Alphas?

As I ponder the why of it all, Marcus takes a step onto the stage, dropping to his knee in front of the woman marked as ours. He speaks to her gently as he unties the fabric from her eyes and mouth.

“Ma’am, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m just going to take this off,” he says, his words low and reassuring as he slides the blindfold from her eyes, causing her to flinch at the onslaught of light before her eyes go wild. Without warning, she attempts to lash out at him, falling backward and kicking out a leg. He blocks the move easily and holds his hands in the air in surrender, trying to calm her.

“Hold on, hold on. I’m just trying to help you,” He continues, not lowering his arms and keeping them where she can see them.

Finn and I remain still, not wanting to add to her distress by intimidating her further with more men in her face.

She stops attacking but keeps her distance now closer to the center of the stage. The other women try to shout around their gags as she assesses Marcus, and eventually allows her eyes to move from him to us.

As her chestnut eyes meet mine, I’m surprised to see no fear in them. Confusion, anger, even hate, but no fear. She holds my gaze for a moment before dropping her eyes to the ground in a sign of submission she wouldn’t be able to help.

We’re Alphas, and part of that is dominating others into submission. Some Alphas are stronger than others, but we all possess the ability to force lower ranks to yield.

Her assessment continues as her eyes slide to Finn, taking him in as she did Marcus and me. She keeps her chin up and her shoulders back, refusing to crumble before us in a way that makes me proud.

“Can’t I take off your gag without you biting me?” Marcus asks quietly, pulling her attention back to him.

We all hold our breath as we wait to see how this is going to go. We need to get the clue from her neck, but we aren’t monsters. Slowly, she nods, moving herself back to a kneeling position and closing her eyes.

Marcus moves carefully behind her, removing the sign and handing it to Finn before he sets forth, untying the knots at the base of her neck and on her wrists. As soon as she is free, he moves back over to us, giving her as much room as he can.

“Thank you,” she whispers, rubbing her wrists, which are red and swollen from the ties. Marcus offers her water, which she reluctantly takes as Finn removes the note from the sign.

Before he can even begin to read the clue, the woman stands and walks over to another one of the women, reaching to untie her. I move before I can think twice, grabbing her by the waist and lifting her before moving back to our place on the platform. She’s lighter than I expect in those oversized sweats, and I end up slamming her back into my chest with the force I put into the lift.

She cries out, kicking before wiggling to break free. My hand flies over her mouth to quiet her yells so she can listen.

“You’re hurting me!” she screams through my hand.

“Hey! We don’t know what the rules are yet.You need to wait. If we are allowed to free them, we will. But for right now, I need you to wait while we figure out this next fucked up puzzle. If we choose wrong, you all could die, understand?” I finish forcing command into my voice, and the fight leaves her. I wait a minute to ensure she is no longer going to yell before releasing my hand from her mouth and placing her feet on the floor. My grip on her waist loosens but remains steady as I look back at my team for answers.

Finn takes that opportunity to read the information from the sign.

“Congratulations on finding your item. This human contains the map you need to find your way to the finish line. The map is all you must provide to complete the trial. How you accomplish this task is up to you; however, remember, should your human see or hear anything that they are not allowed to know, they will be eliminated. You may not remove any of the other humans or their maps from this platform or release them, or they will also be eliminated. Your human's only chance at survival comes down to your choices. May The Fates guide you.”

Contains the map? What the fuck does that mean?

The question rolls around in my head, and I think the rest of them are wondering the same based on the looks on their faces.

Finn hands the paper to Marcus, who rereads it himself, his brow creasing more with each sentence.

“We need the map,” I say, voicing the question we are all thinking about as our eyes scan the platform, searching for the missing piece.

“I’m the map,” the woman says, startling me.

“So you know the way?” Finn asks, his tone shifting to sound more hopeful.

The woman shakes her head.

“What do you mean ‘you’re the map’?” Marcus asks.

At his question, she lets out a sigh. “Ifhewill release me, I can show you.”

My eyes meet Marcus’s, and he nods slightly, giving me the ‘go-ahead’ to let her go. Slowly, I release her, stepping back to give myself enough room to respond to an attack.

We all stand at the ready as she turns away from us and pulls the sweatshirt off her body, revealing bony shoulders and vertebrae that stick too far out. We can even see the lines to her ribs as they connect at the center of her spine, but the thing that catches our attention most is the freshly-inked tattoo spanning from her shoulders to hips.

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