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There’s no way he can fight these men, and right now, the only thing that concerns me is whether, or not, he’s going to be okay.
A silhouette steps forward, and as it nears the truck, I’m certain the man approaching us is the Alpha of the group. The scars on his face prove he’s no stranger to fighting, and the moment Cadmus abandons Titus, I know the man is prepared for a battle. As Cadmus strides past me, I grab his arm, pulling him back.
“No. Wait.”
Cadmus comes to a halt at my side, the veins in his neck and the tension in his jaw only revealing a fraction of the rage that must seethe inside of him. For as much as he, himself, fights with Titus, it’s clear the injuries of his brother have rattled his fury.
“You have something that belongs to me.” The other Alpha’s voice is deep and rich, as I remember of Valdys’s. The voice of an uncompromising leader, and I’m certain if my beloved was here now, his presence would carry equal weight.
“You claim humans as property?” I dare to ask, drawing those intense blue eyes to my direction.
“He is a member of our camp. Protected by our people. If you value your life and those of your friends, you’ll release him.”
“Perhaps you’d like to discuss this over fists.” Cadmus’s voice is equally intimidating, and the opposing Alpha would have to be a fool to entertain his challenge.
As if contemplating that very thought, he narrows his eyes on me. “What is it you want with the man?”
“He was a friend.”
“I was no friend of yours.” The voice draws my attention to Kenny, stumbling along the side of the truck toward us.
“You know them?” the Alpha asks, his gaze fixed toward Cadmus, who stands poised for attack.
Kenny keeps his distance from Cadmus as he skirts around us, backing himself toward the other Alpha. “She’s the bitch who murdered my girlfriend.”
A sting hits the rim of my eyes, threatening tears at the memory of the friend I was forced to leave behind. “Murder?” Grinding my jaw fails to hold back the tears that spring to my eyes. “It was your kind who murdered her. Legion who shot her dead like a fucking dog.”
“You prompted them!” He lurches toward us, but slams to a stop the moment Cadmus snaps his attention toward him. “She wouldn’t have been there, if it weren’t for you! She sacrificed her life for your freedom!”
“And I have mourned her ever since.”
“What business does she seek with you?” The other Alpha also swings his attention toward Kenny, and it’s clear by the tone of his voice, there’s an air of distrust between them.
“If I had to guess? Springing her beloved prince from his tomb.” The venom in his eyes bleeds through his words, and I have no doubt that he doesn’t plan to help us. “She wants me to open the doors to the hospital.”
A unison of voices come with the chatter of disagreement and scoffing amongst the men who’ve gathered around us--ones of smaller build, when compared to the Alpha, but big enough to pummel me.
The fact that Kenny knows Valdys was taken there makes me wonder what role he played in tracking us down. I had no doubt the slave bands worn by the Alphas helped Legion officers find us in our little oasis.
“You sealed someone inside.” Tears slip down my cheeks that I quickly wipe away. “Someone very important to me.”
“He’s dead.” It’s not Kenny who answers, but the other Alpha, and I let his words wind around my spine, giving life to the months of pent-up anger.
“Fuck you! He’s not dead! He’s alive!” I charge toward him, dodging Cadmus’s reach for me, but before I get within arm’s length of the other Alpha, my feet fly out from beneath me and the ground crashes into my spine, banishing air from my lungs. One of the Alpha’s men stands over me, lip peeled back in a snarl.
Not a second later, I see Cadmus’s fist slam into the man, knocking him into the air before he skids across the dirt. “I’ll fucking kill you for touching her!” The rage in Cadmus’s voice is a distant sound to my gasps for breath, as I turn over, clawing at the dirt, desperate for air. Against the resistance in my lungs, I suck in what little oxygen I can, until I’m able to breath in and out again.
“What’s going on here?” The melodic voice of a woman draws my attention toward a lighthaired female, standing alongside the Alpha. Eyes colored in surprise, she stares back at me and to the surrounding men. “What are you doing?”
“Wren, go back to the camp.” The Alpha steps ahead of her in a way that tells me she belongs to him and he’s protecting her.
“Who is she?” she asks, her gaze falling to me once more. “And why is she on the ground? Have we taken to harming other females?” As she comes around the Alpha, he grabs her arm, forbidding her to approach, but she wrenches herself free.
Crossing the distance between us, she kneels at my side and reaches for my arm, helping me to my feet.
“She came for Kenny,” the Alpha says, as I gain my composure once more. “To open the doors to Calico.”
Her gaze swings back to me, wide with what I surmise as incredulity. “Why would you consider such a thing? Do you not know what lives behind those doors?”
