Betrayed by Blood, Claimed by the Alpha-Chapter 116

Betrayed by Blood~

Callum slammed the door to the room shut, kicking off his boot roughly. He grabbed a glass of water sitting on his table and gulped it down, swiping the bits of water that trickled down his chin with the back of his hand. He dragged his hand over his face, frustration and anger bubbling inside of him.

How did he manage to mess it up so badly? Xander should’ve never stepped into the pack. He shouldn’t even be alive, and yet...

Callum groaned in frustration. Everything was crumbling before his eyes. He had worked so hard to have everything go smoothly, only for it all to crumble this way. If only he had stuck a bullet in Xander’s head that day.

His phone buzzed from inside his pocket, and he took it out, a distasteful sneer coming to rest on his face. He swiped left, cutting the call off. Of course, the caller didn’t stop. They kept calling until he picked up.

Callum placed the phone against his ear. "What?" he barked out angrily.

"What? What? What the hell do you mean, ’What’? I have called you several times, and yet you didn’t pick up any of my calls. What the hell do you think this is about, Callum?"

Callum shut his eyes as he punched the bridge of his nose. "I’m not in the mood for your crap, Matt. What the heck do you want?" Callum snapped.

"And you think I am? Tell me you didn’t see half the bullshit that’s happening. Xander returned to the Vehiron, you dipshit! He returned to Cain. Did you forget your job in all of this? You were supposed to kill him. You should’ve done your job, you coward!" Matt snarled over the line.

"I tried my best! I did everything I could to get him, but he slipped out of my grasp," Callum defended.

"Oh, he slipped out of your grasp. Such a perfect excuse, isn’t it?"

Callum paused, a bitter scoff escaping his lips. "You have a lot of nerve calling me to talk like this whole mess didn’t start because of you. You caused this! If only you had taken him out when you were supposed to instead of looking for a way to have him on your side and turn on Cain. Tell me, how has that been going for you? Did Xander tell you the miraculous secret you wanted, or did he escape? Did he play you for a fool?" Callum gritted out through clenched teeth.

He heard Matt exhale over the phone. "Well, there’s no need to cry over spilled milk. What’s done is done. We need a solution out of this," he said.

Callum let out a sharp, humorless laugh. "A solution? You’re mistaken, Matt. Whatever we had going on is done and over with. You really think that I am going to jeopardize my own life for you? Hell no! At this point, it’s every man for himself. I took care of the problem that could in fact tie me to you, and that’s it. My name is free from this chaos, and I intend to keep it that way."

There was silence from Matt’s end, like he didn’t hear what Callum had said.

Callum sighed, massaging his temples slightly. "Listen, Matt. You can’t just—"

Matt chuckled, low and dark, cutting Callum’s words short sharply. "Is that so? You really think that’s it. That you’re done and that’s it."

Callum rolled his eyes. "I don’t think, Matt. I know this as a fact. I am done with this crappy thing. Ezek, the poison seller, is dead, and that’s the only thing that ties you to me."

Matt chuckled bitterly. Callum could imagine him gripping the phone angrily. "You have another thing coming for you if you for a second even think that you’re free from this. This is as much your burden as it is mine, and I promise you, you are not off the hook." He pushed and then began to laugh.

"Oh, you’re one clown, Callum. What did you think this is? A school where you can clock in and out of? You really think you’ll leave me alone to bear all of the consequences? You are sorely mistaken if that’s what you think. Tell me, what did you think? That you will manage to remove yourself from this, and I’ll sit still and drown in a mess we both created?" Matt paused again.

"You seem to be under the impression that you have a way out," Matt continued, his voice cold. "That you can cut ties and pretend none of this ever happened. But here’s the thing—you don’t get to choose when the game is over. You seem to forget exactly who it is you are playing this game with. If I go down, I’m dragging you with me. I will sing your name like a bird. And Cain? Oh, Cain would love to know exactly who’s been playing him from the inside."

Callum’s jaw tightened at the man’s words. His fists clenched hard. "You wouldn’t dare," he spat out.

"Try me then. You either get your head in that game and fix this, or I will fix you. If I ever go down, trust me, you are going down too. Think about it because we don’t have time on the outside any longer," Matt said and cut the call.

~~~~~~

Xander sat still on the bed, his gaze fixed on the world outside the window, his thoughts filled with just one man. Ezek. He felt an incredible amount of guilt towards Ezek. The old man didn’t even want to be involved in his mess, and yet he had dragged him here to solve his own problems, only for him to be murdered so brutally.

Xander gulped hard. There was just one thing he could do to ease the immense guilt he was feeling, and that was to expose the person who killed him. Lydia was currently investigating his death, and with all he’s told her already, he knew she was well on her way to finding out.

The door squeaked open, and he snapped his head towards the door, expecting to see Lydia. The expectation in his eyes dimmed, a nasty frown settling on his face.

"You," he snarled, getting up to his feet in an instant.

Callum raised his hands in faux surrender. "Now, now, calm down," he muttered, shutting the door behind him.

Xander’s body was tense, his sharp gaze locked onto Callum as if the sheer force of his glare could set him on fire.

Callum stepped forward, his eyebrows arched as he took in the sight of Xander. It was pathetic, really. He had lost an arm, lost his respect, and his title as the head warrior. All because Matt saw him one day speaking to Avery with a love he couldn’t contain. Matt chose him to be the scapegoat that day. He had a perfect opportunity and reason for it.

Xander was in love with Avery. There was no better opening and opportunity, and Matt grabbed it like a desperate man.

Xander, on the other hand, fell right into his play. He stared at Avery lustfully, and each time he did, Cain was there to see it. The want, the lust, the hunger in Xander’s eyes. It only fueled everything more, and when Callum got the drug and poison from Ezek, it worked perfectly. Cain didn’t question Xander’s motive at all.

"What the heck do you think you’re doing here? Huh? Here to point a gun at me? Stab a knife in my chest?" Xander spat out bitterly.

Callum’s face fell for a second at Xander’s words.

A humorless chuckle left Xander’s lips. "Did you really think I wouldn’t know?"

Callum frowned, his jaw clenched hard as he stepped closer to Xander. "Know what?"

"Know that this was all you. I know you stuck that damn knife in Ezek’s chest. I know you had the warriors flaunting and shooting at me even when you weren’t ordered to. I know you didn’t even go to the bloodroot seller’s place that day and only lied to Lydia that you did. The only thing is I can’t think of why you, a man I’ve known for this many years, would choose to stab me in the back this way. Why you would betray me this way. What the heck did I ever do to you?"

Callum’s face remained eerily blank, but the flicker of something—guilt, maybe, or anger—passed through his eyes. It was gone in a second. He stepped closer to Xander. "You think you have it all figured out, don’t you?" His voice was low, almost amused.

Xander didn’t waver. His jaw was tight, fists trembling at his sides. "I don’t think—I know. I know it all."

Callum scoffed. "And what? You’re expecting some grand confession? You want me to say, ’Yes, Xander, I did it. I stuck the knife in Ezek’s chest. I sent those warriors after you. I lied to Lydia.’ Would that make you feel better?"

Callum chuckled, running his fingers through his hair. "Tell me, would that make you feel better? You dragged him into a war he wanted no part of, and look where that got him." His voice lowered, words like a sharpened blade. "You killed him as much as I did, but of course you’d rather blame me."

Xander saw red. He leaped at the man, pushing him roughly against the wall. "You stabbed him! You stuck a knife into his chest, you freak!" Xander growled, his eyes flashing a bright red.

"I did, and I would do it all again," Callum spat out, pushing Xander off him. "Ezek was merely collateral. I came here to warn you. Whatever you think you know, whatever you think Lydia is going to find out—it won’t end well for either of you."

Xander laughed, low and dark. "You think I’m just going to let you walk away after everything you’ve done?"

Callum studied him for a beat longer before taking a step back. "Suit yourself," he replied calmly, but he was anything but calm on the inside.

He turned to leave, but before he could open the door, Xander’s voice stopped him.

"You should be scared," Xander murmured. "Because when I come for you, I won’t miss."

Callum stiffened slightly but didn’t turn around. He walked out, leaving Xander seething in anger.