The sick game of eenie meeny miny moe continued as Alpha Adrian stalked down the line of kneeling defectives. He moved with the slow, deliberate grace of a predator toying with its prey. He paused in front of a teen boy whose shoulders were violently hunched, smelling the acrid scent of fear—piss and salty tears—as the boy crumbled before he was even chosen. Alpha Adrian let a low, guttural scoff escape him, an almost imperceptible smile playing on his lips.
His gaze then traveled to the ends of the kneeling line. On one side stood Jess, the Dean girl, Trinity's friend. On the other, Ryan, the hunted orphan. He wondered which lever of loyalty—loyalty to a male, or loyalty to the sisterhood—would finally bring Trinity out of her hiding place.
With a calculated slowness, he made his way toward Jess, his smile spreading. The defiant girl stared back, her eyes fierce as if she didn't realize she was the chicken and he the wolf. Stopping before her, he crouched down until they were eye-to-eye.
"You look brave! Perhaps you should be next?"
Jess did not answer. She had played this game of false choice many times; the dangling idea of agency was long past amusing. She simply rolled her eyes, offering no words.
Alpha Adrian's hand slowly stretched out, as if to tap her head, officially choosing her for the altar. Before he could make contact, a voice called out, deep and sharp.
"Choose me! I'll go next. Both of us! Whip me instead. Stop tormenting children!" Ryan yelled, his mind scrambling to grasp the reality around him. He pulled himself up onto his knees like the others, desperately trying to divert the Alpha's attention from Jessica.
Noah felt the toxic sting of guilt rise up in his gut. Ryan, having only just regained consciousness, had already done more for Jess than he could. It wasn't that he wasn't tempted to jump in, but he told himself that for someone of his low standing, his words would only do her harm. It wasn't his mate. That was the cold, ugly excuse he clung to in the recesses of his mind—that only a true mate would compel you to risk your own life. He might feel a connection, something akin to love, but it wasn't that. It couldn't be.
Alpha Adrian pushed himself back up, his slow steps closing the distance to Ryan. Ryan's luminous brown eyes were unlike the rest of the pack, who possessed the typical deep black of their inner wolf's emotions. His glowed with the same brown, only brighter—a lesser form, a lesser spirit. An abomination, even with the ability to shift.
"A little more wolf-blood in your veins makes you believe you are on the same level as real wolves. I will humor you. Do not say I am not a benevolent Alpha. He's next. He will be whipped twenty times."
"And Jess?" Ryan asked, his throat tight, hoping his sacrifice would be enough.
"You will do her punishment. She will be spared." Alpha Adrian said, though the smile at the corner of his lips stretched wider, a chilling sight.
None of them truly understood the terror he had planned. A few whips of silver was not the end; it was the beginning. This was a line-in-the-sand moment for the pack. He was not just punishing; he was demonstrating power, status, and the divide. Defectives would not just bring shame upon themselves, but their entire bloodline. And he intended for everyone who supported them to understand the true cost of protection.
Trinity's breath caught in a sharp, agonizing choke in her throat as Ryan's wrists were cuffed with silver and his body was strung up, ready to be flogged. She glanced over her shoulder into the inky forest, searching for Grayson. He was still hidden deep in the shadows, his presence a greater alarm than hers. She was supposed to get closer, observe, report.
As the warrior stretched his arm and the silver whip cracked through the air before ripping Ryan's back, Trinity had to violently clamp a hand over her mouth. She fought back the urge to scream, to call out, to run to protect him. She squeezed her eyes shut, and in that moment, a brush of air grazed her arm as something fast flew past her. The sensation lasted only a moment, but it was enough for her eyes to shoot open in absolute horror.
"Don't!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, a desperate, futile plea to stop Grayson.
But it was already too late.
Grayson moved in a blur of grey fur and snapping teeth, charging toward his brother. His fangs were bared, claws poised to rip apart the warrior. The lash had only made contact with his brother's skin once, but it was enough.
The vicious, ripping growl that tore through the clearing made Ryan's spine stiffen. He craned his neck, saw his brother, Grayson, and dropped his head, a string of despairing curses escaping his lips.
Warriors poured out from every corner of the clearing, running at full speed toward the rogue.
Trinity didn't even know when she started to move. In an instant, she felt the untamed power inside of her—the energy she didn't understand but knew how to channel—surge through her body like a bolt of lightning. Her blue eyes, normally flecked with gold, were suddenly overtaken by a vibrant, shimmering gold, the color of her dormant wolf straining to escape.
She moved like a ghost, a shadow taking form. Just as the wolves were about to descend on Grayson, she was at his side, a visceral, vicious growl slipping from her own throat. The approaching wolves all paused, their inner beasts momentarily confused, unsure of what they were facing.
"Stop!" Alpha Adrian commanded, his voice sharp, his lip curling ever so slightly. His slow strides were unhurried as he made his way toward the encirclement. No one moved. No one growled. No one said a word.
He let the silence hang, a heavy shroud above them. He stared at her, her gold eyes fierce and dominating, the way she had moved like a sudden phantom—it was all so intriguing.
The longer everyone stood immobile, the more Trinity felt the wolf inside her begin to settle. The strength flickered away. Her eyes turned back to their familiar blue with gold flakes.
Alpha Adrian's eyes fogged over as he sent a cold mental message to his wolves: Don't touch the boy. Kill the rogue! I'll take care of Trinity.
"I have been waiting for you!" Alpha Adrian spoke, his voice smooth as silk. His wolves began to circle around Grayson, tightening the noose. "I did promise to take care of you. What would my oldest friend think if I let his precious daughter get hurt?"
His smile stretched wide, and Trinity's skin felt like it was crawling. The instinct that screamed danger and run blared in her head. With each mild step forward he took, she couldn't help but take two back. It was the slowest, most agonizing chase. Her feet crunched loudly under the leaves and fallen sticks.
She felt herself beginning to cower the closer he came, stepping back, and back, until she was almost at the edge of the forest line. Only then did she notice what she had done. What he had orchestrated. She had been moved like cattle, drawn away from the true fight.
The sick, silent moment shattered as Alpha Adrian's gaze dropped to Grayson and his wolves launched forward.
Six massive Warrior wolves, their black fur sleek and their movements coordinated, descended upon Grayson's grey form. The attack was swift, merciless, and designed to overwhelm. Grayson, snarling with raw, desperate fury, became a flurry of motion. He slashed out with his claws, managing to gash the shoulder of one attacker, but his resistance was futile.
Two wolves immediately clamped their powerful jaws onto his hind legs, their teeth sinking through his fur and tearing at the muscle. A third ripped a long, deep gouge along his flank. Blood, dark and hot, sprayed onto the damp earth and stained the grey of his coat crimson. He was the mouse being batted by a group of cruel cats. He thrashed violently, his head whipping left and right, snapping at the air, but the warriors worked as one.
On the podium, Ryan was a figure of absolute, unhinged agony. He banged his chained wrists against the silver cuffs, the harsh, frantic CLANG-CLANG-CLANG the sound of his panic.
"GRAYSON! RUN!" Ryan shrieked, his voice raw and cracking. "GET AWAY! LEAVE! PLEASE! Don't do this! Run!" His face was slick with tears and sweat, his throat tearing with the desperate, futile cries.
Trinity watched, paralyzed for a terrifying, fleeting moment. She saw the sickening flash of white teeth against the red-soaked grey fur. Her breathing was shallow and ragged, the darkness of the basement threatening to pull her under, telling her she was weak, she was nothing.
Then, a warrior wolf, larger than the others, executed a final, brutal move. It slid low beneath Grayson's guard, avoiding a frantic kick, and with terrifying precision, its powerful jaws snapped shut around Grayson's throat. The wolf didn't bite down yet; it simply held, a silent, promised death grip. Grayson's thrashing immediately seized, a choked, desperate gurgle escaping him as he struggled to draw air, his eyes wide and panicked.
The image—Grayson's bloodied body pinned, his life held in the warrior's teeth—pierced through the haze of Trinity's terror like a shard of ice. The fear was still there, a cold knot in her stomach, but a new, defiant rage ignited within it.
She straightened her spine, pulling strength from a reservoir she didn't know she had. Her voice came out, firm and strong, cutting through the din of the fighting wolves and Ryan's screams. Her blue eyes, locked on Alpha Adrian, suddenly possessed a strange, faint light—a tiny, barely perceptible glimmer of gold at the edges of her iris.
"Stop!" Trinity commanded, her voice ringing with an authority she didn't know she possessed. "The Council knows what you are doing. I have informed them."
Alpha Adrian's triumphant smile froze on his face. He quickly raised a hand, a sharp, decisive motion, halting the warrior with Grayson's throat in its mouth just before it could execute the killing blow.
He turned his full attention to Trinity, suspicion and calculation warring in his eyes. He scrutinized her face, searching for a tremor, a tell, anything to indicate a lie. He quickly dismissed the idea. She was bluffing, grasping at straws.
"I don't believe you," Alpha Adrian stated, his voice a low, cold dismissal. "You are just a frightened little—"
Before he could finish his contemptuous word, an alien sound ripped through the afternoon air.
It was a howl.
Not the fierce, chaotic snarl of a warrior, nor the raw, anguished cry of a defeated wolf. This howl was resounding, deep, and chillingly assertive. It echoed off the trees, vibrating in the chests of every wolf present, a sound of supreme, unquestionable authority. It was the Council Howl.
Alpha Adrian's jaw dropped. His eyes, fixed on Trinity, widened in a mixture of shock and dawning horror. He had killed Jonathan Meyers less than two hours ago—a direct, blatant violation of Council law. He knew that howl. It was Carly, the Council Head, demanding the immediate presence of all local Alphas.
How much had she told them?
The Warrior wolf, still holding Grayson's throat, stood motionless, waiting for the Alpha's command, but Alpha Adrian was frozen, listening to the ominous echo of the unexpected summons.
Author's note:
I know it's been some time since I've posted. It's just hard when everything's very high intensity. I mean I'm anxious writing this chapter lol. A few more coming soon.