Taming the Wicked Rogue

Blood

Darkness greeted me when I woke up. Black nothingness stretched as far as I could see. A dot of red appeared from far away, gradually drawing closer. The object turned out to be a red ball. As soon as I touched it, the darkness fell away. A soundless scream tore out of my lips. One moment I was still free-falling. The next, I was in a playground surrounded by the merry laughter and chatter of children.

I felt a slight tug on my trousers and looked down to meet a pair of doleful silver eyes.

“I want to play, Mommy.”

My heart beat faster as I gazed longer at the boy’s chubby and white face. He looked to be about five years old. His height reached only mid-thigh. I leaned down carefully, crouching at his level, gazing deeper at those pair of silver eyes. Yet however hard I tried to look, I couldn’t see myself reflected in them.

“Mommy?” He called out cautiously, tears already pooling in his eyes. Slowly, he disappeared. The laughter died down, and the playground vanished.

I sat up in bed, gasping for breath. Sweat trickled down my cheek. As I felt down on my belly, I discovered it was warm. What was the meaning of the dream? Or was it a peek into the future?

“Baby, what do you want to tell Mom?” I murmured to the air. For a second, I waited for any kind of response, but there was none. Feeling foolish, I shook my head repeatedly. The skin of my belly had cooled down to normal. My hazy thoughts cleared up, and I remembered more pressing matters - Rhys and the Alpha Selection. I had no idea what the process would be like, but something tells me it won’t be a simple election.

I trudged down to an empty first floor. Only Hammer, Jiro, and Jamie were inside. Jiro and Hammer noticed me immediately.

“You should be resting,” Hammer spoke with his ever-present glower.

“I feel okay now. Where is Rhys?”

“Boss will be back. You should go back to the room.” Jiro said in a dismissive tone. My eyes narrowed. “The Alpha selection had started?”

The two men did not speak. Jamie nodded his head and received a threatening glare from Jiro instead.

“Great. Then take me there.” I made my way to the door, but Hammer blocked the way. “You can’t. It’s dangerous.”

“Why is it dangerous?” I asked and calmly added, “Will they fight each other?”

Hammer avoided my stare. “You’re human. You can easily get in the way.”

“Move or god help me, I will use my new powers on you and drag myself there!” I snapped. He growled.

“You’re bluffing.”

I clenched my fist, taking a deep breath, feeling the warmth from deep inside and pulling at it.

“Damn it!” I didn’t know what he saw, but his eyes widened. He ran a hand over his face in frustration. “Fine then, but we stay on the sides. The boss shouldn’t know.”

“Her human scent will give it away. “ Jiro sneered, but he was the first to walk out of the diner.

“Well?” I c****d my head to the side. “Is there a way to mask my scent?”

“Forget it. What do you know? Maybe the odds of winning will turn in our favor when you’re there.”

I didn’t understand his lack of confidence in Rhys when I was positive he was the strongest. That was until we reached a clearing at the back of the court. Rhys stood in the middle, shirtless and bloodied. Including Glenn, several men circled him. There were also two in wolf form. Scattered about were a dozen bodies. I just hope they aren’t dead bodies. The sight of dried blood on his body made me flinch, but a part of me instinctively knew it wasn't his.

“These men are all Alpha candidates?” I asked Hammer, who was coldly and calmly looking at the battle.

“Not really. Most are shifters against him being an Alpha. The only Alpha candidates are Boss, Glenn, and the Doctor.”

I was surprised the gentle middle-aged doctor was Alpha, but he wasn’t part of the battle and was instead on the far right with three men and two women. One of the women was Olah.

“Doctor Matt had stepped back. He chose to be part of the elder council of Verde Creek who would determine the victor.”

I couldn’t help but frown as I looked back at the battlefield and saw three men teaming up to take on Rhys. “Isn’t this unfair?” I asked in a low voice.

“Why would it be? We are shifters. We run in packs and rarely engage in combat alone.” Jiro was the one who answered.

“If Boss could win this, no one would question his Alpha status.”

I swallowed nervously as one wolf managed to leave a gash on Rhys’s chest. I couldn’t look away even if I wanted to, fearing that if I did, he would lose. But Rhys’s expression did not change – there was no pain nor anger, only calmness. One moment, I thought the men could besiege him, but he had knocked all of them out with brutal strength. His movements were precise and agile and could only be honed by experience.

I realized then that I knew little about him. What his past was like and why he had become a rogue.

One by one, the men fall until only Glenn and Rhys are standing in the center.

“Whoever wins this fight between Rhys Casimir and Glenn Rocke will become the Alpha of Verde Creek,” Doctor Matt announced in a loud voice. The two men just stood there, sizing each other up. Seconds passed silently, the afternoon breeze blowing across the clearing.

Simultaneously, both of them shifted into a wolf. It was very different from when Hammer shifted. Their change flowed smoothly and all at once. One black-colored and one light brown wolf slammed at each other and rolled down the ground, snapping at each other.

The breeze carried the rustic scent of blood. My stomach churned. I could smell Rhys’s blood and knew how odd it sounded. Nausea and dizziness bubbled up so suddenly. My vision swayed. I could faintly hear Jamie exclaiming and clutching at my arm.

The scent intensified, and pain bloomed in my abdomen. Coldness slithered from my insides to my skin. “It” was here again. I fought against the weightlessness, but my thoughts became more jumbled with the scent of blood.

“Rhys…” His name was the only thing I could call out as fear gripped my heart. My senses were becoming muddled, but I could vaguely hear a wolf’s howl.

The scent of blood suddenly intensified but with it was the potent smell of sandalwood and evergreen. The haziness of my vision cleared until I realized I was gazing at a pair of golden eyes. Relief spread through my veins, chasing ‘it’ away.

“I’m here.”