Elena’s POV
The cool evening air brushed against my skin as I paced around the periter of the packhouse, my eyes scanning the dense treeline that stretched endlessly into the darkness. Sowhere out there, hidden among those shadows, was the master who had managed to evade capture for centuries. The thought gnawed at relentlessly.
His proximity was undeniable, yet he remained frustratingly elusive. We desperately needed a concrete strategy to track him down, not just vague hunches and wishful thinking.
My gaze drifted toward the narrow basent window, barely visible above ground level. A dangerous idea began forming in my mind. What if that grotesque creature trapped below had so instinctual pull to return to its creator? The beast wouldn’t willingly guide us to the master, but if it believed it could slip away undetected, perhaps we could follow its trail.
The pieces of a risky plan slowly assembled in my thoughts. It wasn’t foolproof, and it certainly wouldn’t guarantee my safety, but it might be our only realistic shot at locating this phantom enemy.
The frustrating reality was that nobody dared speak his na, not even in the darkest corners of the supernatural underground. Our extensive network of informants had proven useless. The mont we ntioned the master, doors slamd shut, conversations died, and even the most hardened criminals suddenly developed selective hearing. Fear had a way of silencing even the boldest tongues.
Most preferred the comfortable delusion that he was already dead, buried sowhere in history where he couldn’t hurt them anymore.
If only I could embrace that fantasy. But with governnt forces mobilizing against this pack and ti running out, denial wasn’t a luxury I could afford. Despite my complicated feelings toward these people, an unwelco sense of duty weighed on my shoulders. I despised that obligation more than I cared to admit.
Even now, surrounded by pack mbers who should accept as Marcus’s mate and the mother of his children, I remained an outsider. Their barely concealed hostility shouldn’t have surprised . Marcus had spent years systematically destroying my family’s reputation to maintain his stranglehold on power.
A strange, labored breathing sound broke through my brooding thoughts.
The scent that reached my nose was puzzling, familiar yet completely wrong sohow. Like recognizing a lody played in the wrong key.
Turning slowly, I found myself face to face with Marcus’s father, the supposedly dead forr Alpha, standing casually beside the building as if he had every right to be there. Our eyes locked, and I felt my expression shift into sothing cold and deadly.
He saw the recognition dawn in my features and nodded grimly.
"So your mother finally found the courage to tell you the truth?" he asked with disturbing calmness.
"You an about how you murdered my father? How he didn’t die heroically protecting you like everyone believed? Yes, she enlightened ." My voice carried venom that could have poisoned a lake.
"I regret the necessity of it, but it couldn’t be avoided," he replied without a trace of genuine remorse.
"Necessity?" I stepped closer, my hands clenching into fists. "You killed him because you couldn’t bear the thought of my family reclaiming what was rightfully ours, isn’t that right?"
"More or less. My ancestors spilled blood to seize control of this territory. I refused to watch their sacrifices beco aningless." His matter-of-fact tone made my blood boil.
"You made one critical error," I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
"Which was?" he asked, tilting his head with mock curiosity.
"You left alive."
Before he could react, I launched myself forward with a savage growl, my wolf surging to the surface. We crashed to the ground with brutal force, my claws and fangs extending as raw fury consud . He struggled beneath my weight, but I managed to wrap my fingers around his throat, my claws piercing his weathered skin.
He went completely still, staring up into my eyes with an expression I couldn’t quite read.
"You’re as stunning as your mother was," he said softly.
"Don’t you dare speak about her," I snarled, pressing my claws deeper. "My mother’s dead. Don’t you dare speak about her."
"I know. And I’m sorry for that loss."
Heavy footsteps thundered from inside the house, and within seconds both Damien and Marcus appeared in the doorway, freezing when they took in the scene before them.
"Found your supposedly deceased father," I announced without taking my eyes off my captive.
"I warned you to disappear, dad. What’s wrong with you?" Marcus’s voice carried exhaustion and disappointnt.
"You knew I’d never abandon this place. This pack belongs to ," the old man replied stubbornly.
"You’re speaking to now, not him," I interrupted, applying more pressure to his throat.
"Dad, I told you I couldn’t shield you if Elena discovered you were alive," Marcus said helplessly.
The forr Alpha looked back at with defiance gleaming in his eyes.
"Are you planning to end my life?" he asked. I responded by driving my claws deeper, drawing fresh streams of blood.
"What do you think?"
Despite the obvious pain, he managed a twisted smile that spoke of decades of arrogance and cruelty.
"You’ll make suffer first. Like a true Alpha would."
"I’m not an Alpha," I said, plunging my other clawed hand directly into his chest cavity. "I’m just a vengeful daughter."
His agonized scream echoed through the evening air, his breathing becoming rapid and shallow. When he realized death hadn’t claid him yet, I saw him try to relax. That defiance infuriated beyond asure.
I twisted my embedded claws savagely, eliciting another tortured cry.
"Help , Marcus!" he gasped desperately.
"I told you to leave. You should have listened," Marcus replied coldly, making no move to intervene.
"Skye, take the children inside imdiately," Damien commanded. I heard her retreat quickly, followed by a door slamming shut.
Looking down at this pitiful shell of what had once been a feared Alpha, I felt nothing but contempt. He had beco less than nothing.
"Why not just finish this?" he spat through gritted teeth.
"Oh, I will. But first, how does this feel?" I twisted my hand again, savoring his screams.
"Do you honestly believe you can destroy those creatures without my knowledge?" he wheezed.
"That’s no longer your concern. Sweet dreams."
In one swift motion, I shifted my grip inside his chest and wrapped my fingers around his still-beating heart. With a decisive yank, I tore it free and let it fall beside his lifeless body.
Standing over the corpse, I felt no remorse, no revulsion for what I’d done. When I turned around, both Damien and Marcus regarded with the sa professional detachnt they’d show any necessary execution.
After washing the blood from my hands with the garden hose, I headed back toward the house.
"He claid we needed him to fight those creatures," Damien ntioned.
"He was wrong. I have a plan."
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