Alpha

My eyes burned with the sight; Cassidy was rising from Marcus’s bed, half-naked. Her eyes wide, she was only wrapped in a blanket.

Anger and rage swirled within me, forming an explosive cocktail as I lunged at her and grabbed her arm.

She squealed like a startled squirrel: "Kane."

"I’d say I’m shocked to find you here, but I’m not. Where’s Marcus?" I abruptly turned her to face me. The blanket slid halfway down, revealing her nakedness.

I wanted to burn her to ashes.

"I don’t know... I can explain." She said.

I leaned closer, my breath brushing her face. At that moment, hatred froze in my eyes, and I wondered why I’d ever liked this woman.

She tried to pull away from me, horror etched on every inch of her face.

"I don’t need your explanations, I already know everything. Remember, you’ll pay them several times more than you and Marcus did to my mate."

Two of my men entered the room behind me.

"Tie her up and throw her in the car. I’ll deal with her later. Find her phone and leave it with the police so they know she’s involved." I pushed her toward them, and terror flashed in her eyes.

"No, please, Alpha. Listen." They grabbed her, and I left the room, completely ignoring her pleas and screams.

Cassidy was dead to me. My target was Marcus, and I needed to find my mate.

Hades’ voice came over through the mind link.

"We’ve found a basement room, but it’s locked. We’re going to blow the door. It’s behind the laundry room."

My feet shuffled across the carpeted floor as I rushed toward the laundry room. Beyond the sliding door, I saw a staircase. Where the staircase ended, there was another metal door. Its silver surface gleamed in the dim light that illuminated the sides of the staircase.

Another of my men stood there and escorted me down, handing me a gas mask. I put it on. By the time I started down the stairs, they were already blasting the metal door.

Hades’ voice rang out, stopping me halfway down the wooden stairs. "Get ready, stay back."

And then there was an explosion, blowing out the lock on the metal door. Black smoke rose, but I didn’t care. Throwing myself down, I kicked the door hard and ripped off my mask.

Smoke swirled around me like a black devil. Hades appeared behind me, and I handed him the mask. Kicking the door again, I let it swing open.

I entered, squinting, trying to find what I was looking for. And there he was, at the far end of the room, holding a knife pointed at my mate’s throat.

My Blue Rose, my mate. My heart sank into a bottomless pit, seeing her condition...

It took all my willpower to stay on my feet. So frail, as if she had withered from the proximity of the devil, who had inflicted upon her pain beyond my wildest imagination.

Her head was tilted to the side, her eyes closed; blood dripped from her nostrils and mouth.

The storm of my rage crashed against the shores of sanity, causing my body to tremble uncontrollably. I clenched my fists at either side of my legs and barely restrained my wolf from rushing at Marcus and knocking him to death.

"One more step and I’ll slit her throat," he roared in a trembling voice, and my bloodied eyes fixed on him.

I was going to revel in tearing this man to pieces. The face of a traitor and a vile man took on new meaning for me.

"Let her go, Marcus, there’s no way out," I growled at him, trying not to grind my teeth.

"Oh! Really? As far as I remember, the police tried to catch you and search your pack house," he blurted out, but I saw the confidence in his voice evaporate.

Cold, lifeless eyes. Not a shred of humanity remained in them. Truly the devil incarnate, and I wondered how Zara could have been so blind as to never see him for who he was.

Hades’s presence beside me was accompanied by his low voice.

"Let me know when you want me to shoot."

I nodded and warned Marcus again: "Get away from her if you want to live. This is my last warning."

Marcus looked from me to my men and smiled, but rather anxiously.

"So you’ve finally embraced your dark side. Do you think she’ll love you now? She hates you, and she’ll never be yours."

The knife pressed hard against her bare neck, and all my composure crumbled. "I’m fine with that, as long as she’s safe from the likes of you," I spat venomously. "Shoot," I muttered under my breath to Hades.

Marcus’s full attention was focused on Hades. He was watching us... your hands, so he wouldn’t be focused on the man behind me.

Hades whispered through mind link, and the sniper behind him, I aimed the tranquilizers straight at Marcus’s arm.

Before Marcus could even comprehend what was happening, he was struck on the wrist, and the knife fell from his hand, clattering to the ground.

His eyes rolled back in his head, and I moved like lightning. Before he could hit the ground, I was already in front of him. Clenching my fist with the tattoo, I punched him hard in the face, grabbing him by the collar.

Once.

Twice.

Three times. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

And then I lost count...

All I heard was the hideous sound of breaking bones and spurting blood. Hades’ hand on my shoulder, and his loud voice brought me back to reality.

"We need him alive, remember? Let me take him from here, and you save our mate."

My heart was pounding, my body was shaking so violently that I allowed Hades to take the unconscious Marcus from me.

I turned to Zara, tears stinging her eyes. Reflexively, I tried to feel her pulse in her injured neck.

"I’m here," I whispered in a rush of emotion, not even recognizing my own voice.

My eyes were fixed on her face, almost unrecognizable due to the injuries she had sustained.