RIVALRY

THE POISONED GAMBIT

Bruce hated two things: men who hurt children, and loose ends. Adrian was now both.

The sound of Adrian’s footsteps faded down the marble hallway, desperate and uneven. Bruce didn’t watch him go. He set his crystal glass down on the side table with a soft clink and let the silence of the villa settle back over him like a second skin.

"Don’t ever allow him inside the villa if he comes looking for me again," he told the butler without looking up. The butler bowed and vanished.

Bruce walked towards his balcony, his hand trailing along the banister. The villa was his, built with blood, kept clean with worse. And in all his years of running Xforsa’s underworld, he had only made one rule that was not negotiable: 'Children are off limits’

Adrian had broken it. Worse, he’d tried to lie to Bruce’s face about it.

Bruce smiled at the thought of Cullen. He remembered how ruthless Cullen was back in the day and how he admired him and always regarded him as an equal. But they walked different paths.But now Adrian is about to witness Cullen’s ruthless nature and he couldn’t wait to watch the whole thing.

Alpha Adrian already knew that running would be fruitless so he didn’t do anything or go anywhere, he just stayed home and waited for Cullen or his men. He was drinking rum when he felt a presence. He turned and saw someone covered with a hood. He became very scared because he thought that the dreaded day had finally arrived.

"Who are you and what do you want? Are you Cullen? If you are the one you don’t have to bother covering yourself. I already know that you will eventually kill me one of these days. I’ve been indoors and I’ve not gone anywhere because I was waiting for you," Adrian said with a mocking smile as he sipped his drink.

The intruder chuckled as he got closer to Adrian before he removed his hood and showed Adrian his appearance.

"You are---" Adrian stammered as colour drained from his face.

"Yes I’m the one ,Adrian. This city seems to have forgotten me and has recognised two weaklings as its leaders. I was once worshiped by many and respected but I was instantly erased by fools who think that they can just walk over my legacy," the intruder said as his eyes turned bloody red and Adrian felt goosebumps all over his body. He really wished that Cullen had been the person before him rather than the devil in his home.

The intruder passed Adrian as he sat down on Adrian’s sofa and gestured to Adrian to sit down.

"I heard something Adrian and I must say that I was quite disappointed to see you cower here in fear. I can’t believe that a mere Omega can make you so afraid and force you to seclusion,"

Adrian became so confused when he heard what the person said. He was not hiding for some Omega. He was hiding because Cullen Sinclair was after his life.

"I’m not hiding from any Omega sir. Cullen Sinclair is the one after my life. He has already made it clear to everyone that I was his next target. Everyone in Xforsa knows that I’m already a walking dead," Adrian explained with beads of sweat covering his forehead. He really thought that he had found the solution to his problem but this person was very clueless.

"That lad has fooled everyone into thinking that he’s some ruthless Alpha. I remember how his younger self always sucked on my c**k like some starving dog just to clear his father’s debt. But he now parades himself around and calls himself an Alpha that plays hero for Omegas. It’s really laughable," the intruder said as he threw his head backwards while laughing.

Adrian became more confused because the only Alpha that has the guts to take care of Omegas in the whole of Xforsa is Cullen. And this person is just implying that Cullen isn’t an Alpha but an Omega.

"Do you mean that Cullen Sinclair, the leader of Black Rose Organisation in Xforsa, is a lowly Omega?" he asked.

"Yes," the person confirmed.

"You also mean to tell me that the same Cullen had such a disgraceful past too?" he inquired further.

"Absolutely," the person confirmed.

Adrian laughed out loudly. He couldn’t believe that he had been hiding like a rat for some Omega. He, an Alpha that has always been at the top of the food chain was behaving like a coward because of an Omega. It was truly laughable and it would be a shame if people knew about it. He swore to make Cullen face the doubled version of the humiliation he caused him. He was still thinking of ways to make Cullen die in many ways when his unwelcomed visitor tapped him. He jolted, surprised because he had no idea when the person got that close to him.

"I know that you want to kill Cullen Sinclair because of the humiliation he caused you but I would like you to calm down and think of a good plan. Cullen may be an Omega but he is a very strong motherfucker, he has killed more Alphas than you can imagine and the rumours surrounding him are ninety percent true," the intruder reminded Adrian. "But you don’t have to worry because that is why I’m here today," he added as he brought out something from his pocket.

The intruder handed Adrian a vial that contained black unidentified liquid.

"What is this thing?" Adrian asked as he inspected the bottle and sniffed it. "It has no smell but I can tell that it’s very dangerous," he added while inspecting the small vial.

"It’s something that I developed myself. It doesn’t affect Alphas but it causes permanent damage to Omegas. You have to inject it on yourself and wait for Cullen to approach you. If he comes in contact and even touches you he would be meeting his doom. He won’t die but he will be in a helpless state and would be at your mercy," the intruder explained with a dark smile.

Adrian shivered at the thought of injecting himself with an unknown liquid. He might be done for but he wasn’t stupid. He can’t just inject himself and wait for Cullen to touch him, that was a gamble that had lots of loopholes. But this is the only positive help he had received since he started living like a rat. Nobody wanted to help him even after everything he has done for people. He looked at the intruder and sighed deeply, already making up his mind.

"I will do it, I will let you inject me and make sure that Cullen suffers," Adrian said, making up his mind.

"I knew I made the right call Adrian, I know that you won’t disappoint me," the intruder said as he used a syringe to inject Adrian with the liquid.

Adrian felt cold instantly as soon as the unknown liquid was injected inside his body. He felt dizzy for a split second and was hit with an intense headache that came and withdrew quickly as it hit him. His eye colour changed but the effect wasn’t life threatening.

"Remember to make sure that Cullen gets close to you so that our desired result will come through," the intruder instructed as he left Adrian's house.

~~~

*AN UNDERGROUND LAB.*

Many Omegas are seen inside transparent tubes as men in white lab coats can be seen busy with many activities but they all paused when a figure in black hood entered.

"Welcome back Master," they all greeted in unison as the figure took off the hood and a man with a burn mark came into view.