Sacred Flame: His Enemy, His Mate (BL) Chapter 45: Dangerous habit

Kain Locke

"Is your room around here?" Alec asked as we walked down the hallway,

"It’s just around that corner." I pointed behind and he nodded.

After the al, he suggested we go on a walk, and since I promised to go out with him today, I can only agree to it, and here we are, walking in the hallway.

Alec walked beside , his hands buried in his pockets, his steps slow, unrushed. The hallway was mostly empty, probably because most were still in the dining hall, so only their distant voices that could barely reach us made aware of the fact that there are others here, aside from us.

"You know," Alec said, breaking the silence that was beginning to grow between us again, "when I first saw you on your hocoming, I thought you wouldn’t last. Like the rest." he added the last part and chuckled a little afterwards making wonder why?

I frowned, glancing at him. "The rest?" Of course I could guess, after all he’d stated that he’s tired of seeing the likes of dropping down dead.

He nodded. "Yeah. Fresh blood shows up all the ti, but most don’t make it. This place chews them up and spits them out just as quickly. And I’ve always been there to watch the recruit’s body get stacked up on each other and disposed of." He let out a short breath, tilting his head as if rembering sothing. "But that day, I didn’t want to stand there and watch it happen, so I walked away."

"And now you’re saying this to my face? Thanks." I said with a little smile. It’s really such a bad thing here,

"What? Would you rather I lie to you?" he asked, shaking his head. "But you didn’t die. And sohow, you ended up as my roommate."

"Now you’re free of ," I shrugged, "I got a new roommate though. You t him at the table already," I muttered, kicking at a loose tile on the floor.

"Guess so." His voice was softer this ti, almost thoughtful. He didn’t say anything for a while, just walked in silence beside . Then, out of nowhere, "What do you really think about this place?"

"It’s sick." I didn’t have to think twice before I answered. Now wasn’t he being so talkative today? What has gotten into him?

Alec humd, nodding slowly. "Yeah... probably." But there was no agreent in his tone. No anger either. Just sothing distant. Detached sohow.

He exhaled, rolling his shoulders. "But this place is everything to anyway."

I turned to him, sothing about the way he said it made pause.

"Ho?" He let out a quiet laugh, shaking his head. "Does it even count as one? I an If I drop dead tomorrow, no one’s coming to fetch my body. No one would care. But this?" He motioned vaguely to the walls, the lights overhead, the whole place around us. "This is all I have."

Sothing in my chest tightened because for , this place had always been temporary. A hellhole I needed to claw my way out of. But for Alec... this was it.

I’d always thought we weren’t so different. We were both stuck here, both just trying to survive. But standing next to him now, I realized there was a difference. A very big one at that.

I had sothing outside these walls. A past. A future I was fighting for.

But Alec?

Now he’s saying it, I figured this place might just be more than that to him, for the fact that he called it ho. Ho is such a big word, so big I don’t even have one, I never did. And maybe I never will.

"Doesn’t that seem weird to you?"

I looked up at his purple eyes, "No." I answered sincerely. "Why did you think that?"

"I just thought you’re quieter than before," he noted, glancing at .

I shrugged. "Just thinking."

"Dangerous habit." He smirked. "Should I be worried?"

I huffed a quiet laugh. "Maybe."

"I never knew you could be interesting... and you should laugh more often. It suits you best." He remarked.

And I found my cheeks heating up, however, before I could respond, the corner where we were walking ca to a fork, and just ahead a staircase ca into view. My steps slowed slightly as recognition settled in. "Isn’t that...?"

Alec cut in smoothly. "Yeah. The stairs to the second floor."

I rember Bella and I passed here for the first ti through the staircase when power was out, and the elevator stopped working, so we had to pass the second floor to reach here. And I don’t have to say who owns the entire floor, of course who could be so narcissistic to the point of keeping people out of their floor.

I rely rolled my eyes,

"We should probably go the other way." I suggested and he nodded.

"Yeah, now I’m curious, do you...." The rest of the words remain incomplete when we were approached by soone,

I expected him to walk past, but instead, he stopped right in front of us. He didn’t say a word, didn’t even acknowledge , just stood there, facing Alec.

It wasn’t the act of standing there that unsettled . It was the fact that he was, in fact, a Beta.

Alec’s expression shifted, sothing unreadable flashing in his eyes before he turned to .

"Sorry, Kain. I’ll have to see you later..." he flashed a faint smile and walked away with him, and just like that, he was gone.

I should be walking away too but curiosity is a damn thing, and I couldn’t stop myself from wondering what the hell is going on? Didn’t Alec hate Beta? Yet a Beta just ca and he actually followed?

I was still lost in thought when I heard soft movents up ahead. My body tensed instinctively, and without thinking, I pressed myself behind a pillar, barely peeking out.

A figure in a dark hoodie stood near the stairs. The hood was up with a facecap underneath it, and a face mask covered the rest of their features.

Their movents were careful, deliberate, as their eyes darted around.

Then, without hesitation, they started climbing the sa staircase no one was supposed to be on!

I frowned. The concealer Sam gave must be the only reason they didn’t notice , the stuff masked everything, including my own scent. Otherwise, I had no doubt they would’ve sensed my presence.

So I doubt he’ll find out if I followed him, moreover I want to know what this person is up to, therefore,

Quietly, I slipped out from behind the pillar and followed.

They moved without a sound. And I made sure of my distance, heart thudding in my chest as we ascended. Step by step, until we reached...

Kael’s floor.

I barely had a second to process that before the person pulled sothing from their pocket. A key card.

What the hell?

My grip tightened on the railing. Whoever this was, they weren’t just sneaking around. They had access.

A hundred questions fired through my mind, but before I could do anything, before I could even blink, an arm hooked around from behind followed by a hand clamping over my nose and mouth,