Page 54 of Alpha Scorned

The other two alphas were in a worse state. They hadn’t spoken, just hung limply. I wondered if they were already dead and the vamps had just left them to rot.

I strained against the chain again, gritting my teeth and pulling hard. Dust fell on my head. “Don’t worry. Shane. We’re gonna get out of here.” I pulled in between each word, my muscles rock hard as sweat ran down my body. I was getting stronger thanks to my wolf. He’d sacrificed his own strength to heal me. Now it was up to me to get us out of this mess.

The metal door slammed back against the wall. Beyond the doorway, I saw a crowd of vampires. I inhaled, and my heart stopped as beneath the stench of death, familiar scents hit my nostrils. They were too familiar. I’d been stupid. We all had.

“Fuck!” muttered Shane, and with my enhanced hearing I heard his heart rate skyrocket. He put a brave face on, but I could scent his hatred and anger. Anger that was tainted with fear and revulsion. He was aware of what was coming.

I twisted around. Six vampires, all dressed in dark combat gear stained with blood, marched into the room. Two remained by the door. One took his phone out and threw it to another. “Film this for the King. He’s gonna watch his second in command humiliated and then killed.” His gaze turned to Shane. “He can also watch this arrogant fucker die. Quickly, before the Count finds us.” His accent was upper class British, and cold as hell. No panic, just curt instructions, infused with maybe a little frustration when he mentioned Balthazar. Hope flared in my chest. If the Count was here that meant Connor had gotten my call for help.

The guy with the phone tapped the screen, lighting his face in the dull cave. He turned it around as the other three vamps pulled masks down over the top halves of their faces and struck at Shane. I roared as they pulled his head back and took turns feeding from him.

The leader just regarded me coldly, but he couldn’t hide his glee at what was happening to Shane. “Enough. You can feed again in a moment. But his death is mine.” His attention rested back on me as he began to speak.

“This is just for you, Shifter King. You allied with the wrong vampires. Break your alliance with Balthazar Rossi and the Originals who follow the Vampire King and his son, or we will continue killing your kind until there are none left. I realise my brethren have failed to wipe out your Canadian pack—for now, but while they regroup, just sit back and enjoy the show...”

I yanked and pulled at my chains as they grinned and circled Shane, who struggled as hard as his weak body would allow. Somehow, I had to get their attention. And if they were filming for Connor, maybe I could send him some clues to give to the others. They might find us before we both died at the hands of these evil fuckers. I began yelling.

“Don’t you fucking touch him again, you fuckers! I’ll kill all six of you in this cave, and the rest out there!” I looked directly into the camera, willing my brothers to hear me.

Two of them held Shane immobile. The vamp who had spoken moved so quickly he disappeared and reappeared in front of Shane. Without pause, he struck.

I roared, anger tearing through my gut. “I’ll kill you!”

Over and over they struck and fed until Shane hung limp and pale from his chains, no longer fighting.

They turned on me.

“Don’t touch him?” The vamp crooned. “Then how about you? Will you taste as good, I wonder? Well, let’s find out. Then your King may begin to understand that unless he breaks ties with the one who has condemned our kind, he will lose all of his brothers very, very soon, not just his Beta, or an isolated pack in the middle of nowhere.”

The leader nodded at the vamp with the phone and he shut it off, passing it back. “You got your own phone?” The vamp nodded. “Good. It’s time for me to have some fun with this one. Take the others and annihilate that pack. Every single one of them. Film it for the King of Shifters. He needs to see his people die. When you are done send it. I will send him footage of his Beta being drained.”

“What do we do if this doesn’t work and he keeps his alliance with the Count?” the vamp asked.

The leader smiled. “Then we pick another pack and another, maybe even his home and family, until he either gets the message or we take out his entire shifter population.”

“War then?”

The leader smiled. “Indeed.”

I continued to thrash against my chains, yanking hard. I had to get free. The scent of the pack hit me again as the door was pulled open.

Dread sucked at my belly.

The scents were stronger now. Blood, terror and despair, the cloying scents travelled with the wind down the tunnels. Lina! Oh, fuck no, I’d sent her right into the arms of our enemy. I tried to think past my rage and fear. These were the caves at the back of the town. The original caves that I’d found when we’d escaped from the prison. I snarled. That meant they hadn’t forced themselves into the town; they’d been here all along, as had Shane. Someone had told them about this place. Just as Shane had suspected, we had a traitor in our midst, and now Lina and Devon were in danger.

The leader contemplated Shane. “I’ve changed my mind, you can kill that one, he’s worthless now.”

One of the vamps moved towards Shane, who’s eyes flickered open. He focused on me. I couldn’t let them kill him. Godsdamnit, he’d survived so much.

“Hey! You!”

The vamp turned and studied me with cold eyes.

“Yeah, you. That’s it, you motherfucking coward. You wanna kill someone, come try and kill me.”

My heart plummeted when the vamp turned back to Shane. The leader watched, a smirk on his face, but he didn’t stop my ranting.

“What’s wrong? Are you too chickenshit to fight arealman? That’s it, isn’t it? You fuckers are walking corpses, without any strength of your own. Without power from males like me and him, you’re nothing!” I sneered, relief surging through me when he turned towards me, ignoring Shane. “Balthazar’s right, you’re just leeches that deserve to be hunted down and wiped off the face of this planet. You are pathetic! Nothing…”

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