Alpha
Page 11
His head snapped back, barely missing my face. He wrenched his body left and then right. I curled my legs around his waist and held on.
“Die you sick bastard!”
Movement behind me blurred as Diamond stumbled. His face turned red. I clenched tight, waiting for the moment he dropped to the ground. The Marine came out of nowhere, yanking his firearm from his hip and taking aim.
The blast tore through the room, and pain followed like a cruel punch to my back. I slammed into the back of Diamond’s head and my hold slipped.
Alpha’s eyes opened. He stared at me. I opened my mouth to say the words, I’m okay, everything’s fine…I’m…
But there was nothing, only a slow hiss of air as I fell. I hit the floor with a thud. My shoulder crunched with the impact, and my head followed.
I opened my mouth to breathe and agony flared. The bitter taste of blood filled my mouth. My stomach tightened as I coughed. Flecks of blood flew into the air and landed on the ground.
Glistening black boots stepped into view. I stared at the bottom of khaki dress pants as something heavy hit the floor with a brutal thud.
A sharp groan followed.
Alpha. Harsh breaths were nothing more than a wheeze as I searched for him. Heavy boots dragged my gaze toward them as air wheezed through my chest.
Blood filled my mouth with every jagged hiss of breath. The Marine dropped to his knee. I lifted my head to stare at him. Something warm slipped from the corner of my mouth. “Please.”
The Marine crouched lower. “You begging, wolf? You want to be put out of your misery?”
I stared at the muzzle of the gun as he dragged it to my temple. The steel bit into my skin. My wolf stalked closer, head down, shoulders rolling. A savage sound slipped from my lips.
“No. X.” Alpha whispered and lifted his hand, fingers extended, trying to reach me.
But there was no going back.
Hate filled me, just as it had all those years ago.
A harsh bark ripped from my chest. Blood spattered the floor as I dragged myself forward. Blood filled my mouth as the bullet moved, digging through the torn lobe of my lung and slipped into the space near my heart.
“You want to watch while I put a bullet in your boyfriend here?” The Marine snarled and rose.
He took a step to where Alpha lay and the gun rose in the air. I slapped a palm against the floor. Shards of glass cut deep as I dragged myself across the floor toward him.
The sting was blinding, nailing me to this moment. Glass sliced my palms, my stomach and then my thighs.
I clutched the steel table leg and stilled as the bullet inside skimmed my heart.
Glistening boots stepped in my path. “Look at this bitch go.”
I tried to swallow a breath and felt something hiss deep inside.
Alpha’s hand trembled midair, and then fell to the floor. I focused on the man who risked everything to protect me—the only man who mattered.
He tried to speak as Diamond crouched, fisted his shirt with one hand, and dragged his body from the ground.
“Stay back,” Alpha hissed, glazed eyes tried to focus on me. He turned to Diamond, licked his lips and kept his voice calm. “It’s me you want. Got nothing to do with her.”
Diamond shook his head. A sickening chuckle slipped free. He turned and shot me a gaze filled with jealousy and rage. “You haven’t told him about us, have you?”
The shards cut deep as I clawed my way forward.
“I had this bitch, had her good. She likes to fight. Likes to think she’s in control.”
Alpha’s lips parted. Hate coiled like a serpent ready to unleash. But Alpha’s life was more important. His head rolled, eyes closed. The slow rise of his chest was all I had to go on.
“Finish this,” Diamond snapped and dropped Alpha to the floor.
“No.” I kicked the floor and grasped Alpha’s foot.
His body was still as I turned and backed against his chest. I splayed my arms wide as the Marine lifted the gun. The barrel was a blank hole stealing my focus, swallowing my fear.
His finger curled around the trigger, knuckles glowed white. I closed my eyes, waiting for the agony.
“Stop.”
I flinched at the sound.
“We’re not fucking animals. Get the drive and leave.”
I wrenched my eyes open and stared at the older man in the doorway. Cold, unfeeling eyes swept over me and then slid to Alpha. There was a second where they changed. When love sprang from even the most stagnant part of him.
Something akin to pride echoed in his gaze as he stared at Alpha. “We have what we came for. Leave them both alive.”
“No,” snapped Diamond and moved closer.
He dragged his hand through the air, claws ready, already tinged red with blood…my blood.
Alpha moved against my spine. His chest rose, and a guttural moan escaped. “X?”
Diamond slid his focus to Alpha. His lips curled, eyes shimmered, a sick need escaped.
Kill him, my wolf urged. Kill him, or we all die.
My tongue snaked out. Hate dragged her leg higher and planted her foot against the ground. Hate shoved her palm against the floor and climbed to her feet. “You touch him and I’ll kill you, right here, right now.”
“Diamond. Now,” the commander snapped.
The shifter inhaled, turned his head to glare at the human. His body trembled, wolf fought human. I clenched my fist, nails pierced my palm. I’d kill…I’d kill them all.
Diamond would never stop coming, never stop trying to find a way to get to Alpha—not while I was still alive…and maybe, even if I was dead.
He was that man—that cruel, sadistic savage. I knew him well. Parts of him lingered inside me—parts that resonated—that saw alike.
Diamond’s nostrils flared, drawing in this knowing. His eyes widened, lips curled. I took a slow step, drawn by something far greater than flesh and blood, drawn by a sense of freedom—a sense of resurrection.
The commander lifted his hand, palm up. “Get the device, Diamond.”
The shifter dropped his gaze. The small thing they wanted sat in the middle of the floor, just out of reach.
“Don’t fucking move, X,” Diamond warned.
But X was long gone. X was a shadow, one small face of this broken shard of glass. I was X, and Hate, and somewhere deep inside lingered another name—one I left behind a long time ago.
That cruelty spilled along my throat and out of my mouth with a deep rumble. Diamond glanced to the device, and then to me. Panic flared in his eyes, so clear and sharp as I took another step.
“Get the fuck back!” screamed the Marine. His gun wavered. A killer’s stare trained on me. “I said get back!”
My steps stilled, knees bent, muscles trembled. There was no more fighting…no more battle for control.
The buckles were open, the straps untied. Hate lowered her head, dropped her stance and unleashed.
I flew through the air and hit the Marine head on. My stomach muffled the blast. Fire singed, burning through my side. Fangs carved the inside of my mouth. I wrenched open my mouth and struck. It was the rabbit all over again. Screams filled my head—sickening terrible screams that filled me with fear.
A blur came from my left. Something hit my head with a crack. Flesh tore as I ripped my fangs free. Diamond stood above me, eyes wide, hands shaking. “Jesus Christ, X.”
I licked warm lips and tasted copper. My voice was not my own, deep, feral, unhinged. “I’m coming for you.”
“Leave her. Now, Diamond,” screamed the human from the doorway.
I wrenched my head toward the sound and peeled claws from flesh. The Marine hit the floor with a wet thud and stayed there. Pain lashed my middle, buckling my knee as I took a step toward the doorway.
The commander shook his head. His hand lifted, fingers pointed. “You stay away from me.” He shot a panicked gaze to the beast at my back. “Do something you filthy fucking dog.”
My feet left the floor; still all I could see was the old man. I could almost taste his blood, feel the warmth, see his life spill out over my hands.
The world would be a better place.
Alpha would be safe.
And to me that was all that mattered.
Diamond dug his fingers into the back of my neck and rammed my face into the floor. Glass cut into my cheek, slicing close to my eye. “Stay the fuck down, X. Stay the fuck down, or I’ll put you down.”
The bullet in my chest slid into the back of my throat. I could feel the warm metal wedged tight. I grasped his wrist and held on, curling my body, until my knee hit my chest.
Footsteps sounded out in the hall and in the distance, the wail of a siren drifted into the apartment on a breeze. Glass sliced my cheek as I growled. “I’m coming for you. I’m coming for all of you.”
The blast echoed. Diamond’s grip slid from my face. The boom came again. I glanced over my shoulder to where Alpha lay in the pool of blood, gripping the Marine’s gun in one hand. His hand shook, and then bucked as the blast tore free.
Heavy steps thundered around me. I turned as Diamond stumbled for the doorway. His wide palm left a bloody print as he gripped the frame, but in his other hand, he gripped the device. He took one look at me over his shoulder. “Not if I don’t come for you first.”
Then he was gone, leaving a bloody print and the stench of gunpowder in the air.
“Alpha.”
Bits of glass fell from my face as I scurried to where he lay. His hand slipped in the blood. The gun clattered to the ground. I caught the fall, sliding my hands under his head before he hit.
His gaze was unfocused, pupils wide. In the reflection, a savage face with shorn hair stared back at me. I flinched from the sight. That animal wasn’t me…she wasn’t me.
“Have to get out of here. Cops on the way.”
I nodded. Blood stained my skin and my nails. My claws were gone, but the damage remained. The Marine’s eyes were open, his hand stretched out wide. He stared at me, unfulfilled screams lingered in his open mouth.
Hot acid spilled into my throat at the sight of his neck. Veins shredded, tendons torn. There was nothing left for me to do…but run.
I grabbed the gun and shoved it into the waistband of my jeans. “Okay, I…”
Alpha jerked his hand from my hold. He shoved against the ground and snarled. “I can walk. Just…stand there, and let me lean on you.”
I fisted his shirt and pulled as he struggled. “Don’t be so damn stubborn. Let me help you.”
His hand swept the air, slapping mine aside. He tried to roll and slipped. The knees of his jeans darkened with blood. His voice lost all conviction. “I can…damn it.”
I grabbed him around the waist and held on while he climbed to his feet. He took one look at the Marine and then turned to me.
There was no judgment, no bitter scent of fear. But there was no compassion either—only the hardness of this brutal reality, and lastly resignation.
“Just get me to the damn car. I’ll take care of the rest.”
I wrapped my arms around his waist as he swayed. The doorway was mapped by slow painful steps. I lifted, carried until he growled, and barked in my ear. “I’m not a fucking invalid. It’s just my eyes…can’t see a damn thing.”
My knees shook. Panicked thoughts shoved their way to the front of my mind. Someone peered from the crack of a door across the hall.
“I’ve called the police,” a timid woman called and slammed the door shut.
The scrape of a bolt came behind me as we stumbled and limped. Alpha favored his right leg, something inside him was damaged…and it was all my fault.
Every single blow, was all my damn fault.
“Should’ve seen them coming,” Alpha growled in my ear. ‘Fucking stupid…stupid!”
He gripped me tight as we stumbled. Sirens wailed louder outside. I gripped the banister, steadying his weight, and lowered him down the stairs.
Alpha was silent, rage and pain settled into his face as we took each stair. And with the rage and the hate came clarity. His gaze burned with precision as we hit the first floor.
“The car. Get me to the car. X.”
I dragged him more than carried him, and shoved through the glass door. I could smell them coming, these humans with their fetid stink and stale dreams. Alpha dug into his pocket, pressed a button, and the doors unlocked.
“Front seat,” he demanded.
There was no time for arguing. I yanked the handle and shoved. Alpha tumbled, gritting his teeth in a painful silence. The engine started as I slammed his door and scurried around to the other side.
Panic closed in as I fumbled for the handle and lurched inside the car. We were already moving, pulling out into the street and taking the first corner hard as the sirens screamed behind us and then died.
“That was close.” I glanced over my shoulder.
But Alpha was silent. His hands strangled the steel. Blood shone on the back of his head. I wanted to say more, to ask human questions. Are you okay? Do you need a doctor?
These words died in my mouth as I watched him take corner after corner. He divided his focus between the road ahead and the rearview mirror. The bitter smell of rage rolled off him to permeate the inside of the cabin.
I pushed myself against the door, watching…waiting. He’d never hurt me, only himself. Blood seeped along the back of his head and slowly trickled down his neck. The car swerved to the right. Horns blared behind us. He needed to get out of here. He needed to get somewhere safe.
I grabbed the bottom of my T-shirt and dragged the fabric over my head, leaving me in a cotton bra two sizes too big.
Alpha wrenched his head, and winced at the movement. His gaze settled on my body and then the shirt in my hand. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“You’re bleeding,” I answered and leaned closer.
He flinched, skin paled. His tongue snapped out to wet his lips. “Put it back on. Put your damn shirt back on, X. Jesus fucking Christ.”
I fisted the cloth and raised my hand, pushing it between the headrest and the wide gash. “You need a doctor, someone to close the wound.”
“I need you to back the fuck away,” he snapped and glanced at my body.
His voice rose in octaves. Panic seeped through. I deserved it. I deserved it all.
Blood crusted in the corners of my nails. I could smell the heady scent of blood on my skin, and taste it in my mouth.
I swallowed the hurt and wrenched my hand away, leaving my shirt in place. “I’m not going to hurt you, Alpha. You don’t have to be afraid of me.”
He jerked his head toward me. “I’m not afraid of you, X. Just…” He looked down at my chest. The cotton bra gathered at the edges as I moved.
I barely had enough cleavage to fill the cup, let alone upset him. I hugged my chest, curled against the door and stared at the cars as we left the city behind.
Something had changed between us, and the uncomfortable silence broke my heart. Concrete turned to pine trees. I tried to find the right words to say, anything that would ease this divide.
The icy touch of hate seeped into my veins; she whispered the things I wanted to hear. Diamond was coming for me and Alpha, that I knew. I lifted my gaze to the sky. Night was coming, and so was he.
“Shit, I suck so much at this. You saved my life there.” He turned his head, and lifted his arm.
I slid across the seat. He stiffened as I wrapped my arms around his waist. There was more than the uncomfortable silence, some tendril of warmth…love?
My pulse picked up the pace. I searched for that sliver of heat, that yearning between the two of us and I held on.
I pressed my face into his chest. His scent invaded, filling every darkened corner of
my soul. I would stay here forever, just like this, holding him…loving him.
I slowly craned my head, staring at his pasty skin. Desire roared. Love…the word took me by surprise.
My world revolved around survival for as long as I could remember, until Joslyn came along and set me free. But this…this wasn’t freedom. This tightening in my chest was a trap, a snare designed for even the most skilled of animals.
I never saw this ache coming, and I was helpless to fight for control. Alpha did more than invade my mind. He crawled under my skin. He filtered through my thoughts, and my emotions.
Fight…run… that desperate voice cried as I curled tighter against him.
His arm dropped around my shoulders and squeezed tight. “Okay, we’re almost there. You need to…”
He looked down at my hands. The blood had dried during the drive. I splayed my fingers wide—blood stuck the skin together—and finished for him. “Shower.”
“Yes,” he muttered and scanned the workmen as we drove past. “Hiding a half-naked woman in my car.”
He forced a smile and waved to someone out of view.
“Alpha…”
Those brown eyes settled on me, picking apart every thought. I was an open book to him. My voice trembled as the car veered.
He stole glances at the road and tapped the brake.
“I killed a man…killed one of you.”
The muscles of his jaw bulged as he pulled the truck to a stop. He reached for the key and killed the engine. “Now you listen to me. That deceiving, backstabbing sonofabitch was nothing like me, you hear me? They came there to take, and kill. You did what you had to do, X. Gunny was right.” He eased against the seat and stared through the windshield. “This is a goddamn war, and I just lost one fucking thing we needed to level the playing field.”
“That thing, what was it?”
He turned his head. “I have no idea. But whatever it was, it was worth killing for. And that made it worth fighting for.” His focus sharpened on my face. One slide of his hand and his knuckles skimmed my cheek. “Let’s get you inside and cleaned up.”
He grabbed my wadded up, bloody shirt and jerked the door handle. His movements were slow—one foot hit the ground and followed with the other. He held on until his legs were steady.