Page 117 of The Alpha King's Fate

He didn’t bother to respond. There was no point repeating himself.

The sound of another vehicle coming down the road rang clearly through the still night. His eyes focused on the road until the car appeared, driving slowly. Just one car. A civilian vehicle instead of a military one. He closed his eyes and focused again. Only one person was in the car, and with the four guards at the gates, that made five. The Hunters hiding outside the wall had all gone inside with the others. They were almost as good as unprotected.

Five Hunters. He could gut them with his eyes closed.

His eyes snapped open as he turned his attention to the gates again. They remained closed, but he would make his move the moment they slid open. It was time.

He rolled his neck as the muscles in his body tightened, and his jaws started to lengthen. His vision sharpened, as well as his sense of smell. The stench of Hunters assaulted his nose, but instead of turning away from it, he used it to fuel his pool of rage.

‘Shit,’ Dylan mumbled. ‘I’ll tell the others to prepare. Don’t go in without us.’

The car slowed to a stop as it reached the gates. He crouched, watching the first two guards approach the vehicle with their weapons drawn. Once the Hunter was verified, they would open the gates. He’d seen their pattern. The guards at the second gate became less diligent with all the cars coming through them. They weren’t bothering to check credentials a second time. The second gates would slide open when the car started to drivethrough the first. There would only be seconds to cross the open space in front of the gates, and there was a chance they would raise the alarm before he got to them.

And the other wolves likely wouldn’t get time to go through after him. He’d fight them alone, after all.

The car door opened and a young man in civilian clothes got out. The scent of his fear and desperation carried over to him even from that distance.

“Please help me,” the man said, pulling something from his wallet.

“This is private property, kid. Beat it,” one of the guards said.

“I’m a recruit. This is my ID,” the young man said, shoving it at the guard. His movements were jerky as if he couldn’t stand still. “Please. I’ve been calling since yesterday, but no one came out to help me.”

“Didn’t you get the memo to return to base? Where’s your uniform?” the second guard asked.

“That’s not important right now!” the young man screamed.

Both guards stepped back and aimed their weapons at him again. The man ran his hands through his hair and turned away, sniffing as if holding his tears back. He seemed to pull himself together before turning around.

“They murdered him. They murdered my friend in his home,” the man said more calmly.

He cocked his head to the side and looked more closely. The man looked familiar.

“Then the Clean up crew will take care of it,” one of the guards said. “Head in and find a uniform before you get into trouble.”

“You don’t understand. The crew came and didn’t even process the scene. They chose to go hunting instead.” The man’s voice became louder and more shaky as he spoke. “They didn’t even bother coming into the house. They didn’t see what I saw. They didn’t see his body tied up and left to rot there!”

Ah.

It made more sense now.

Samuel. The young man was Irvine’s lover.

“If they went hunting, they probably caught the animal that did it. Head inside, recruit.”

“But who will take care of Irvine?” Samuel shouted. “We can’t just leave him there. He has no other family. He—”

A guard invaded Samuel’s personal space, putting his face close to the scared young man’s.

“If you were not ready to take on the risks, you shouldn’t have signed up. Either go home and face the consequences or head in and follow orders,” the Hunter growled. “You know the rules. Don’t get attached to anything or anyone. You seem very attached to me.”

Samuel lowered his head and his shoulders slumped. He looked like he gave up hope.

“Are you saying we should let those animals win? Just leave Irvine there for his neighbours to find? What if they call the police?” Samuel asked.

“We bow to no one,” one of the guards said, stepping back to the gate. “If you’ve called it in, then there’s already a plan in place. They’ll move as soon as they’re able to. Didn’t your guardians teach you this before you enlisted?”

“We’ll let this slide just this once. Get inside before you’re disciplined, kid,” the other guard said. “All the families in town are on alert for the next few days. Get your shit together before someone sees you.”

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