The Rejected Mate

Chapter 108

Chapter 108

Alaric's POV

The room was damp of stone and rusted metal. The single flickering bulb which hung from the low ceiling sent long shadows to dance like ghosts against the crumbling walls. The walls were damp and full of dirty bloodied marks.

I sat on the cold gritty floor, my wrists raw from the tight iron shackles that bit into my skin with every slight movement. Already it had wounded me, and I feared it would leave a scar once healed up. Opposite me was Ryan, his face set in a mask of anger with dark hair plastered to his forehead by a sheen of sweat. Arielle sat a little apart, with a tangle of her bright red hair streaked with grime and her green eyes flashing defiance.

Before us stood the kidnappers in a loose semi-circle, the one in the wolf-shaped mask seeming to be the leader-if only by the virtue of his body language commanding respect or fear from the others. Besides, the wolf-masked man was the one who had captured us and brought us to this godforsaken place. He had been talking for some time now, ridiculing them; his voice ran thick with malice.

"Three Alphas," the wolf-masked man drawled, strolling-the malevolence seeming to reverberate from his boots to the air around him. "We didn't even need to try. You all but handed yourselves over to us on a plate: weak, foolish, stupid and arrogant asshole." He turned in our direction in due time, and his icy gaze, through the mask, bored into mine. "Your Packs must be so proud of the three of you."

My lips compressed, my resistance to rise to the bait, but his hands were balled into fists and the chains across his wrists softly clinked.

"Let me guess," the man continued smoothly, his voice taunting. "You were too busy arguing to notice us closing in. Too distracted with your petty rivalry to work together. You were too busy with the crazy enmity going on between you both till we closed in. Isn't that right, Alaric?"

My jaw clenched tight. I said nothing, but it stung-the truth of the accusation.

The wolf-masked man laughed darkly, his gaze turning on Ryan. "And you, Ryan. So blinded by your hate for him-" he nodded towards me "-because of a woman, all because of the opposite gender. A female Alpha, at that. You let a female come in between the both of you making your cooperation non-existent. How. embarrassing."

I stood there, my heart racing, as it dawned on me that the rogues had outsmarted us. They had f*****g taken advantage of our quarrel and attacked, and because we were too distracted, they hit so strong er fell into their trap. They had taken advantage of the one weakness we wouldn't acknowledge: the enmity between Ryan and me.

Ryan was my love rival. Just the thought of him, of what he had done, infuriated me beyond belief. I had been striving for the favor of a woman like him hence the c***k-a great rift which broke us apart. I had tried putting it aside in my mind, putting on a superficial mask of there being no existence, but far down in the heart, deep inside, one knew it remained there and that too sizzling.

And now, apparently, our petty squabbles had put our entire Pack in danger. A wave of anger washed over me and onto Ryan, on myself, onto this whole situation. How can we be stupid to behave in that manner? How could we let a woman come between us to that extent that attacked and ended up caught? What would our pack members make from that?

"Why didn't we see this coming? Why didn't we see their level of attack coming, that everything revolved round and I growled, my frustration boiling over.

Ryan turned to me, his expression grim, his lips set tight in a slow motion. "We were too busy fighting each other l, we were too carried away by the hatred we have for each other to notice the real threat," he snapped.

His words cut deep, but I knew he was right. I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down.

"It's too late for regrets now," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "We need to work together if we're going to survive this."

Ryan nodded, his expression softening a smidgeon. "You're right. Let's put our differences aside and protect our Pack."

And honestly, it was too late to regret now. It's either they die regretting or die protecting their Packs.

The wolf-masked man spoke all along about how their differences helped them in securing them.

Ryan's eyes flashed, and he surged forward, but the chains binding him to the wall yanked him back. "Don't talk like you know us," he snarled.

"Oh, I know you," the man spat. "Predictable. All of you. That's why you're here, now, in chains, while we." He spread his arms melodramatically. ".are about to change everything. Change everything for good."

I glared at the wolf-masked man. My anger boiled over as I spoke, "I don't know what the hell it is they're planning, but I needed someone to tell me it won't stand down well." "You think you're clever, don't you? You think you are the smartest wolf?" I sneered.

He laughed, eyes bright with mirth as he looked down at me. "Oh, I am far more intelligent. Can't you see? Can't you read it the hand-writing on the wall? Three Alphas-that is whom I have caught. And let me tell you how amazingly simple it has been. I've said earlier that your differences have made the work of catching all three of you a lot simpler. Oh, I wish more people were dumb and so full of differences. God, I wish this world would let everyone be foolish enough to only get caught.

Ryan, beside me, growled, "You think that you are strong because you caught us off guard? That is not strength, that's luck. You didn't right us; our difference has made us lack an operation to push you out.

The man shrugged. "Call it whatever you want. Luck, strength, anything you like. But the fact remains, you three are weak. Especially you two." He nodded towards Ryan and me. "I mean, two male Alphas who can't even get along because of a female Alpha. It's almost laughable."

Arielle, standing on the other side of me, spoke up. "That's not true. We're not weak. And our personal issues don't affect our ability to lead."

The man snorted. "Save it, Alpha. I've seen the way you three interact. The tension between you two," he nodded towards Ryan and me again, "is palpable. And as for you," he turned to Arielle, "you're too soft. You let your emotions cloud your judgment."

I spoke finally, my voice low and even, with an edge of steel. "If you think this is going to turn out the way you want it to, then you're wrong."

The laugh of the wolf-masked man was sharp and cruel and seemed to echo around the room. "Oh, we've already won. You just haven't realized it yet."

"Enough of this," Arielle snapped, the cool edge in her voice slicing through the moment. Her shoulders went further back, and she faced the rogues. "If you are going to kill us, do it now, or are you too cowardly to take on a decent fight?

Her words hung in the air, daring them. The wolf-masked man tilted his head, clearly amused. "Kill you?" He shook his head. "Not yet, sweetheart. You’re far more useful to us alive… for now."

Ryan growled low in his throat. "What’s your plan? You’ve got us here. What now? Parade us around like trophies?"

The wolf-masked man had barely started his sentence when another figure emerged from the darkness. This figure wore a black cat's-face mask, sleek. His voice was softer, more collected with a chill in it. "Why spoil the surprise?" he said almost mockingly and turned to one of the rogues that stood near the door. "Bring it in. Bring the product."

A knot coiled in my stomach. Bring what in? He looked over at Arielle, who met his eyes briefly, her expression screaming horror.

With that, the guard disappeared into the darkness, his footsteps swallowed into the chilling silence of the room.