Broken and Still Alive

Chapter 5

Crimson's POV

The air hung thick with mist, a shroud clinging to the overgrown field as dawn struggled to break. I stood at the edge of the woods, the damp earth seeping into my boots. Beside me, Luca, my pack's Delta, stood like a granite statue, his eyes sharp and focused. Behind us, five pack warriors shifted impatiently, eager to unleash their pent-up energy. In the distance, the skeletal outline of an old white farmhouse and a dilapidated red barn punctuated the landscape like forgotten memories.

"Is that the place, you think?" Luca's voice was low, a rumble in the stillness.

"I don't think, Luca. I know," I replied, my voice calm and unwavering. There was no room for doubt, not now. Too much was at stake.

I focused my mind, reaching out through the pack link. "Alpha, we are at the edge of the woods, awaiting your order."

A familiar voice, laced with weariness and a tightly controlled rage, echoed in my mind. "Is she there?"

"Yes, Alpha."

"Then go get her, and Crimson, make sure she stays alive. I want to let Angel decide her fate when the time is right."

"Gotcha, Alpha," I responded, severing the link. This was it. The moment we'd been planning for, the moment we'd been dreading, was finally here.

Turning to my team, I laid out the plan. "Luca, you, Alger, Donnacha, and Marco, take the back. Me, Camilla, and Marcus will go through the front. Do not let her escape. And remember," I emphasized, my gaze hardening, "the Alpha wants her alive."

We moved with practiced efficiency, a silent, deadly wave rolling across the fog-laden field. As we neared the house, Luca and his warriors peeled off, melting into the pre-dawn shadows to circle around the back. My team and I continued towards the front, the rotting porch groaning under our weight.

I held up a hand, signaling for Camilla and Marcus to stop. Directing Camilla to the right of the door and Marcus to the left, I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what we would find inside. I raised my hand again, counting down silently. One, two, three. Then, with a brutal kick, I sent the flimsy wooden door crashing inward, splintering apart and filling the air with dust and the stench of decay.

Camilla and Marcus surged in behind me, our movements synchronized, our senses on high alert. Inside, the scene was exactly what I expected - a squalid living room crammed with decaying furniture. A middle-aged woman, hefty with short, greasy brown hair, leaped from an old, stained blue recliner. Surprise flashed across her face, quickly followed by panic. She bolted for the back of the house, but before she could reach the doorway, Luca appeared, his face an impassive mask. He grabbed her, expertly restraining her, and dragged her back to me, forcing her to her knees in the middle of the room.

Luca's grip around her face was firm, forcing her chin up, exposing her to my gaze. "Would your name happen to be Tabitha?" I asked, my voice as calm as I could manage, fighting the urge to tear her throat out.

"And who wants to know?" she spat out, a defiant smirk twisting her lips.

"Just answer the question. Are you Tabitha?" I pressed, a hint of warning lacing my voice.

"Yeah, I'm Tabitha. What's it to you? And what the hell are you doing in my house?" she yelled, her bravado cracking slightly.

"I am Crimson, Beta of The Wild Heart Pack, and I am ordered by Alpha Ezekiel to arrest you on the charges of abuse to the Luna," I announced. The smirk vanished, replaced by an expression of utter bewilderment.

"Luna? What the hell are you talking about? I know no one by that name, and I sure as hell haven't touched her. You have the wrong person! And who is this Mr. Alpha? By what authority do you have to arrest me? Show me your warrant!" She rambled, her eyes darting around, a wild animal cornered. It was clear she had no knowledge of our kind, no understanding of the world that existed just beyond her limited perception.

"Oh, dear Tabitha, we do not need a warrant. Our laws are…different from the laws of humans," I leaned down, my voice dropping to a sinister whisper. Her eyes widened in terror, and she began to tremble.

"Luca, cuff her. Let's get ready to head out," I ordered.

As Luca snapped the restraints around her wrists, she bucked and screamed, desperately trying to break free. "And gag her while you're at it. I can't stand the sound of her voice," I added, the disgust evident in my tone.

Luca rummaged around, finding a filthy rag to stuff in her mouth. Before he could force it in, she stopped, a sly, manipulative smile spreading across her face. "Wait! I have something better you can have in the basement, if you just let me go."

Curiosity piqued, a sense of foreboding gripping me, I hesitated. "Show me."

The smile widened, reaching her eyes. "She's right this way. Oh, I know you'll have fun with her, as many others have."

My stomach churned. This was a trap, I knew it, but I had to see what she was hiding. I followed her down the rickety wooden steps, the air growing heavy with the stench of mildew and stale urine.

At the bottom, Tabitha stopped abruptly, her face contorting in shock. She spun around in a blind panic, yelling, "Where is she? She was here! I swear, she's never left the basement!"

Looking around, my heart plummetted. This was it. This was where she kept the Luna.

There was no bed, only a damp, dirt-caked floor. A rusty bucket in the corner reeked of human waste. Chains, thick and cold, hung from a rotting wooden post. This wasn't a room; it was a cage. A prison. The Luna had been kept like an animal, starved and abused.

The rage inside me began to build, a molten fire threatening to consume me. My wolf clawed at the surface, demanding release. My wings, usually hidden, burst forth, ripping through the confines of my clothes, their span filling the cramped space.

I spun around, my eyes locking onto Tabitha. Her face was pale with terror, her body shaking uncontrollably. I stalked towards her, each step deliberate, each breath a struggle against the rising tide of fury. I backhanded her, the force of the blow sending her sprawling to the floor, blood gushing from her mouth.

As she sat there, weeping and spitting, I leaned down, my voice a chillingly calm whisper that belied the storm raging within me. "This is where you kept our Luna. This is where you abused her."

Standing up, I looked at Luca, my eyes burning with righteous anger. "Gag this b***h and cuff her. Make them extra tight. And for good measure, duct tape the gag in her mouth."

"Yes, sir!" Luca responded, a smile playing on his lips, a little too eager.

As Luca carried out my orders, I mind-linked Alpha Ezekiel. "Alpha, we got her. We're on our way back."

"Good job, Crimson. We will let Angel decide her fate," he said, his voice sounding even more tired.

"And Alpha," I added, my voice low and grave, "there's more to her abuse than what you see on her body."

I severed the connection, the weight of what we'd found settling heavy on my shoulders. This was just the beginning. The road ahead would be long and arduous, filled with pain and difficult choices. But we would face it together, for Angel, for the pack, and for the justice that had been so cruelly denied.