Betrayed by Blood, Claimed by the Alpha-Chapter 192

Betrayed by Blood

Alaric froze, "What? What do you mean Cain is here? Hey! Wake up! Fucking—" a loud howl echoed through the air.

Everyone in the room froze, fear engulfing their hearts. Cain found them. How? How did he find them so soon?

Callum stepped forward, running his hands through his hair in panic. "K-king...what do we—" he didn’t get to complete his words.

The door slammed open, and Cain stepped inside, dragging a warrior by the throat. The man kicked and gasped, clawing at Cain’s grip, but it was useless. With a sharp twist, Cain snapped his neck and tossed the body away.

Alaric gulped hard at the sight. His gaze flickered around. He could hear the sounds of the rogues crying and screaming for help. Oh, how useless they were. He had gathered all the rogues for this. Dressed them to look presentable and fight with a promise of being able to trade in the region for a day freely. Of course, they jumped on it like the savages that they were. He had really thought they could fight, or at least withstand Cain’s army if it ever came to that.

Now he felt stupid. He had put too much trust in rogues.

Cain’s gaze swept the room, taking in the chains, the machines, the way Avery hung limply in that chair. The people dressed in surgical suits beside her. He immediately understood what was happening. Something inside him snapped.

Finally, he raised his eyes to Alaric, behind him was Callum. Just as predicted.

For a long, terrible moment, neither of them spoke. Then Alaric smiled. "Ah. The mighty Alpha Cain." He gestured lazily at the bodies on the floor. "You do love making an entrance."

Cain took a step forward, his jaw clenched hard. "Let her go."

Alaric chuckled. "Or what?" He spread his arms. "You forget that I am a king. I own everything in this region. Everything and everyone in it. Including your precious mate." He smirked. "Why don’t you wait, when I’m done with her. I might just let you have her back."

Cain’s eyes darkened. "You own nothing, Alaric! You’re just a fat old pig with no semblance of authority. You think you own me? Well, I’ll teach you exactly what it is to own a person."

Just as Cain stepped forward, Callum blocked the way, preventing him from getting to Alaric.

"You traitor," Cain snarled, "I see you’ve forgotten exactly how traitors are treated in Vehiron."

Callum scoffed, "You can’t call me a traitor if I’ve never been loyal to you now, can you? I’m going to tell you this just to end the Chapter right here because I am no longer a member of Vehiron. You want me to take you as pack alpha when you refuse to see me? See how hard I worked for the pack? I watched you give glory to that one-handed idiot. I was supposed to be beta, and you handed it to his sister! Every time! You betrayed me. You took my rights, and then you want loyalty from me?" He scoffed again, shaking his head. "Loyalty is earned, Alpha Cain, and since you couldn’t earn it. I sold it. So much has happened in your pack, and you don’t even know half of it. I worked closely with Alpha Matt before his death. I planned your removal as Alpha. I was the one who sent those assassins after you. I killed the poison seller. Everything that’s happened. It was all my doing... and now, I’m with the king. He’s seen my worth and offered me a position in his great army. I will no longer be sidelined or pushed away like some stray dog."

Cain’s grip tightened at his sides. His claws itched to tear Callum apart, to rip him open and drag the truth from his corpse.

"You also kidnapped my mate?" His voice was quiet... too quiet.

Callum smirked. "I did."

Cain took a step forward, "You sent those assassins?"

Callum lifted his chin. "I did."

Cain’s eyes darkened. "You killed the poison seller?"

Callum chuckled, shaking his head. "You really don’t know half of it, do you?" His expression twisted into something smug. "Yes, Cain. I did. And if I could go back and do it again, I would."

Cain lunged.

He moved too fast for Callum to react, slamming into him with enough force to shake the room. Callum barely had time to gasp before Cain drove his fist into his gut, knocking the air from his lungs.

Cain’s lips curled back in a snarl. "You think Alaric values you? You think you’ll be more than a dog to him? You were never meant to be my Beta. You were never worthy of my pack. You wanted power?" Cain’s voice was low, dangerous.

He shifted "Then fight for it."

Callum lunged first, claws slashing through the air, but Cain was faster. He dodged, catching Callum by the throat and slamming him against the nearest wall.

The other warriors around also shifted, immediately lunging for Cain, but he was already on them. He twisted through the first attacker with his claws. Blood sprayed across the room.

Another lunged. Cain caught him mid-air, fangs sinking into the wolf’s throat. A sharp crack, and the body went limp.

To the side, Alaric had begun unhooking the chains around Avery as quickly as he could.

Callum charged again, but this time, Cain let him. He took the hit, letting Callum drive him back, just for a moment. Then, he tore into Callum. A strike to the ribs, his bones shattered. A brutal rake across the chest, his skin and muscle tore. Callum stumbled, gasping, blood pouring down his body.

Cain loomed over him, breath heavy just as Callum shifted back to his human form. Beaten, weak, and done for. "Traitor," Cain snarled and with a single powerful strike, he cut Callum’s head clean off.

He shifted, Callum’s blood dripping off his body. His eye locked onto Alaric who was standing by the chair, Avery in his arms.

The second he locked eyes with Cain, a dreadful feeling settled on his chest as he looked around only to realize he was alone. The doctors were nowhere to be found or maybe they were dead? Callum, who was supposed to protect him, was dead. The warriors and rogues he brought were outnumbered. Even Finn wasn’t in sight. He was alone and at Cain’s mercy.

No!

Just as Cain took a step forward, Alaric lunged for the table, grabbing a large needle filled with some potion he knew nothing about. His trembling hands gripped it tightly. He turned toward her, eyes wild with desperation.

Cain’s eyes widened the second he realized, "What are you—Stay away from her!" He growled, about to leap forward only to stop in his tracks as Alaric pressed the syringe to Avery’s neck.

"Stay where you are or I swear to the goddess I’ll inject her right now." Alaric’s voice was low, his hand gripping the needle tighter. He grinned wickedly, "You want her alive? Then stay away! If you make one wrong move, Cain, I’ll end her life before you get the chance."

Cain’s heart stuttered, his body locked in place, the growl in his throat vibrating. His eyes never left Avery.

Avery managed to crack her eyes open, her vision blurry. Her body was numb, and every instinct screamed at her to fight, to break free. But she couldn’t. Her limbs felt heavy. She couldn’t move, couldn’t even flinch.

"You’re going to regret this, Alaric," Cain growled, but still didn’t move. He had to be smart about it. He had to trick Alaric. He had to save Avery.

Alaric’s grin widened, "You want her alive, Cain? Then stay away, or this needle will end her life."

In the blink of an eye, everything changed.

Before Alaric could react, Cain lunged forward swiftly. He was on him in an instant, just as Xander and Lydia burst into the room, moving quickly. Catching Alaric swiftly and pinning him down. But it was all too late.

With a sickening thwack, the needle plunged into Avery’s neck. A loud, pained gasp left her lips, and her body went slack instantly.

"NO!" Cain screamed. Avery fell, her body limp in Cain’s arms as he caught her mid-air.