Rise of the Alphas

by Alexis Davie

  “Oh, Brooke. What have they done to you?”

  “Pretty much everything you can imagine and worse,” she said. She gave him a quick smile that made pain move through her face and she winced slightly. “They didn’t break me, though.”

  “Let me help you,” he urged.

  She shook her head.

  “No, thanks,” she said. “Look, I’m not saying you’re like those guards, but they’re your people. You’re their prince. And if it comes down to me or them, you’d choose them.”

  Adonis opened his mouth, but Brooke hurried on.

  “I’m not saying I don’t get it. Of course you’re going to choose your pack members over a stranger, especially one who came to kill your mother. But I can’t accept your help, because if I do, then I risk forgetting that and letting myself believe that you’re different.”

  “I am different, Brooke. Trust me, if it was up to me, they would not be doing this to you. And at this point in time, it doesn’t matter how either of us used to be. Right now, we’re all each other has and we’re in this together. If we stand any chance of escape, you need to be fighting fit.”

  “So you’re just going to wave a magic wand and make everything okay?” Brooke asked.

  “Not exactly,” Adonis said.

  He smiled at her and then his face changed. He closed his eyes and screwed his face up. Brooke frowned, trying to work out what he was doing. Her mouth dropped open slightly when she saw tears running down Adonis’ cheeks.

  He opened his eyes and smiled at her. He reached up to his cheek and wet his fingertips.

  “Dragon tears have healing properties,” he explained. “Just close your eyes and try to relax. This might sting a little bit.”

  He reached out and touched his wet fingers to one of the burns on her face. White-hot, stinging pain flooded her and she went to pull her head back, but almost instantly, the pain was gone. She reached up and touched the spot herself. The skin there was smooth and unblemished. Brooke looked at Adonis as though seeing him for the first time.

  “Why would you do this for me?” she asked softly.

  He moved on to the next injury.

  “Because it’s the right thing to do. I’m not my mother, Brooke.”

  “So, if you were in charge here, what would you have done? You expect me to believe you wouldn’t have tried to find out where the other hunter is?”

  “No,” Adonis said. “I would have needed the information. While killing mortals isn’t my idea of fun, I would have needed to know where the hunter was to ensure my pack’s safety. I would have monitored him and made sure he didn’t get into the town. But I wouldn’t have tried to get the information like this.”

  Brooke nodded, wanting so badly to be able to believe him—to be able to believe in him. She closed her eyes for a moment and just concentrated on how good it felt to have her pain slowly sucked out of her like this.

  Now that her pain was receding, she was very much aware of Adonis’ fingers on her skin and how that made her feel. Wherever he touched her, her skin tingled and he spread fire through her. Not the painful kind—the kind that made her center wet. The kind that made her want to forget what he was and crawl into his arms and have him make love to her.

  “You’re not what I expected a dragon to be,” Brooke said, needing to fill the silence between them.

  Adonis’ fingers were still working their magic on her body and the air felt charged. She knew that whatever it was that she was feeling, there was a part of him that felt it too.

  “And you’re nothing like what I expected a hunter to be,” Adonis laughed.

  She opened her eyes and found Adonis looking straight at her. Their eyes met, and in that moment, Brooke decided to trust him.

  “I wasn’t always a hunter,” she said. “In fact, my destiny was to become part of the Protectorate. My parents were part of it. I was brought up to believe that dragons were gentle creatures, misunderstood for the most part, and that it would one day be my duty to help to keep the pack safe.”

  “What changed your mind?” Adonis asked.

  Brooke smiled sadly.

  “I was fourteen. I heard a commotion and I came outside to see what was going on. Your mother had already killed my father, and as I watched, helpless, she killed my mother. In that moment, I saw my parents were wrong. Dragons were monsters. And I vowed to get my revenge.”

  “Shit,” Adonis breathed. “Brooke, I’m so sorry you had to see that.”

  She shrugged.

  “Me too,” she said. “But at least it opened my eyes to the truth.”

  “And do you still believe that dragons are monsters?” Adonis asked.

  “How could I not? Look at where I am and what they’re doing to me,” she said, gesturing to the cell around her and then pointing to her now healed face.

  Adonis nodded and the expression on his face made Brooke’s heart hurt. She hadn’t planned to say more, but she couldn’t help it.

  “I guess now, though, I can see that maybe not every dragon is the same,” she admitted. She smiled shyly at him. “I guess I always felt there was something different about you. That’s maybe why I couldn’t kill you that night in the woods.”

  “Or maybe that was just because I came toward you and you freaked out,” Adonis said.

  Brooke laughed softly and he frowned.

  “By the time you worked out I was there, I’d had a clear shot at you for three or four minutes. I could have taken you down ten times over,” Brooke said.

  11

  Once Brooke’s wounds were all healed, she had yawned loudly and within minutes, she had curled up on the floor and fallen asleep. Adonis couldn’t help but watch her. He was tired himself, but he didn’t want to let himself sleep and miss seeing Brooke this way. She was beautiful any which way, that much went without saying. And when she had let her guard down a little earlier and showed him her real smile, her real laugh, he had seen just how beautiful she was. But none of that compared to how she looked when she was asleep.

  Her face was relaxed, no hint of the cynical hunter showing. Her lips were parted slightly and her eye twitched every now and again. She looked a lot younger in sleep, like the weight she carried with her fell away.

  Adonis smiled to himself as he watched her, wondering what she was dreaming about. He couldn’t help but hope it was him. It didn’t matter now how much he reminded himself that he was meant to hate Brooke—he didn’t. He couldn’t. And when she had admitted that she could have killed him but didn’t, he had felt his heart soar.

  He was pulled from his thoughts when he heard footsteps approaching the cell. He pushed himself to his feet, standing in front of the cell door. If they were here to torture Brooke again, this time, they would have to go through him. Even without his dragon to fight for him, he wasn’t going to stand by and let this happen. They could kill him, because that’s what it would take for them to get her.

  His jaw dropped when his mother appeared out of the shadows and stood before the cell door. She smiled at him, a cold smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

  “So now that you’ve seen what happens if you’re against me, are you willing to prove to me that you’re with me and get out of this cell?” Alexandria said.

  Adonis nodded his head. He would say or do whatever it took to prove his loyalty to his mother and the pack, and then he could find a way to get the key and get Brooke out of there.

  “Kill her,” Alexandria said.

  “What?” Adonis said, praying he had heard wrong but knowing he hadn’t.

  “Kill her,” Alexandria repeated, nodding toward Brooke, who was mercifully still asleep.

  Adonis thought fast.

  “I will,” he said. “But not yet.”

  Alexandria raised an eyebrow and Adonis hurried on.

  “I can get the information out of her about the other hunter. She’s starting to trust me.”

  “Oh, really,” Alexandria said. “You expect me to believe that?”

&
nbsp; “I know why she became a hunter. Her parents were part of the Protectorate. She saw you kill them. If she’s told me that much, she’ll tell me more.”

  12

  Brooke kept her eyes closed tightly, feigning sleep. She had woken up when footsteps had started to approach the cell, but she had heard Alexandria’s voice and she had kept her eyes closed, thinking she might reveal something to her son that she wouldn’t say if she thought Brooke could hear her.

  What she hadn’t expected to hear was Adonis betraying her. He had agreed to kill her, and that had hurt her, but what had really punched a hole in her heart was when she heard him telling Alexandria what she had told him. He had known for mere hours and already he had used that information to betray her. She had been really starting to believe he was different and to think she could trust him, but her Uncle Steve had been right.

  No matter what Adonis felt for her, she would never be his equal. He was immortal and she wasn’t, and when it came down to it, she would always be disposable to him, something he could have a bit of fun with and then toss aside. He would always choose his own kind over her.

  She kept listening. She knew no good would come of it, and that she would only hear more things that hurt her heart, but she wasn’t ready to open her eyes and have them see she was awake. And maybe this way, she could find out something she could use against Adonis. Even now, the thought of betraying him right back hurt her, but he had chosen his side and she wasn’t on it. Like she had always known, she was on her own in this.

  “And I’m meant to trust you to tell me what she tells you?” Alexandria said.

  “I told you the last thing she told me, didn’t I?” Adonis countered.

  “You’re such a fucking idiot, Adonis,” Alexandria snapped. Brooke could imagine her shaking her head in disgust. “I still can’t believe that you, my own flesh and blood, have ended up in this mess.”

  “You’re the one who put me here,” he pointed out.

  “Don’t try to make this my fault. Your own actions put you here and you know it. Falling for a mortal is one thing. Stupid, yes, but it passes after a few decades. But you had to go one step further, didn’t you? You had to fall for a hunter. You know when she looks at you, she sees a monster, right?”

  Adonis didn’t reply. Brooke felt her head spin. Adonis had fallen for her? To the point where his own mother knew it? But then why had he betrayed her?

  “Was she worth it? Was she worth you killing one of my best soldiers so she could live? A man you have known for centuries? Because if you think for a second she’s ever going to feel for you what you feel for her, you’re wrong, Adonis.”

  “I see that now,” Adonis said quietly. “And that’s why I’m going to prove myself to you. Just give me some time, okay?”

  “I am not a patient woman,” Alexandria warned him.

  Brooke heard her moving away from the cell door and she heard Adonis sitting back down. He gave a loud sigh. She kept her eyes closed. Her head was spinning still. She couldn’t work out whose side Adonis was really on. He had killed a pack member to save her life. But he had also given his mother information she could use against Brooke. Maybe he was just on his own side, saying whatever it took to both of them to save his own skin.

  She so badly wanted to question him and get the answers she needed, but she couldn’t risk it. She couldn’t risk the pain if he told her he had just been using her. And if he asked for the information about Uncle Steve, she wasn’t sure she could stop herself from giving it to him. She could withstand physical pain. But the mental pain, the emotional pain… that was something else. Something she thought could break her in seconds. Had that been Adonis’ plan all along?

  She stayed in place, her eyes closed. She only opened them when she heard Adonis start snoring. She sat up and looked at him. He was slumped against the wall, his head against his chest. He didn’t look in the least bit comfortable or peaceful, and she found herself almost ready to wake him and tell him to lie down properly or he was going to get a stiff neck. She had to bite her tongue to hold her laughter in. He had betrayed her, and she was worried about him getting a stiff neck.

  She watched him for a moment longer, trying to work out who he was playing, who he was really helping. She sighed. There were no answers, only more questions. She had to play this as though she were on her own now.

  Brooke jumped to her feet when she heard footsteps approaching the cell once more. Adonis didn’t stir. Two guards appeared and one of them began to unlock the cell door. Brooke backed away. The guard slammed the door open, and Adonis woke up quickly, jumping to his feet. The guards grabbed Brooke and began dragging her to the cell door. Adonis stood in front of the door.

  “Where are you taking her?” he demanded.

  “Upstairs,” one of the guards replied. “Queen’s orders.”

  “I think you’ll find the orders have changed,” Adonis said.

  “Well, unless the queen tells me that, then nothing has changed.”

  Adonis stepped forward, his face a mask of anger. The guards released Brooke for a second, but it all happened so fast that she didn’t have time to react. One of the guards punched Adonis in the face and the other one kicked him in the stomach at the same time. He flew backwards and the guards seized Brooke again.

  She reached for Adonis, and he reached out for her, but she was dragged past him and shoved roughly into the corridor. One of the guards kept dragging her while the other one locked the cell door. She could hear Adonis shouting her name and the anguish in his voice brought tears to her eyes.

  He was either on her side or he was one hell of an actor. She still didn’t really know which, but she wanted to believe the best of him and so she let herself forget the fact he had told his mother he would get her to talk.

  Brooke was dragged up the stairs and toward the torture chamber. She was mentally preparing herself for another couple of hours of pain, but the guards surprised her and pulled her past the room.

  “Where are you taking me?” she asked.

  They ignored her, just like she had known they would. They kept dragging her along and took her into a small room that looked like some sort of study. Alexandria sat behind a desk in the room. She smiled when the guards brought Brooke to the desk and forced her into the seat opposite Alexandria.

  “Leave us,” Alexandria commanded.

  “But…” one of the guards started.

  “But what? You think I can’t take on a human if I need to?” she said icily.

  “Sorry, ma’am,” the guard said, bowing his head.

  The two of them left the room and closed the door behind them.

  “I thought perhaps it was time you and I had a civil conversation, Brooke,” Alexandria said.

  “I think it’s a little late for that, don’t you?” Brooke fired back.

  “I can see why my son likes you. You’re fiery,” Alexandria observed.

  Brooke raised an eyebrow and Alexandria laughed softly.

  “Let’s not lie to each other, Brooke. You heard the conversation we had downstairs. And we both know Adonis was just trying to buy you both some time. He’s not going to betray you. He always was a bit of a dreamer, and somehow, he thinks you’re his true love. You. A mortal. As if.”

  Brooke didn’t say anything. She wasn’t quite sure what to say.

  “Tell me, Brooke. How do you see this mess ending?” Alexandria asked after a moment.

  “With me dead,” Brooke said honestly.

  “I could deny that. Patronize you and tell you it doesn’t have to end that way. But I won’t. Instead, I’ll give you an honest option. You can tell me where your uncle is…”

  Brooke couldn’t keep her face neutral. Her surprise showed and Alexandria paused and smiled.

  “Brooke Flannigan, right? Your uncle, Steven Flannigan, is an Order member. The one we somehow missed.”

  Brooke nodded. She wasn’t telling Alexandria anything she didn’t already know. Alexandria smiled approvingl
y.

  “I’m glad you, too, are being honest. Now, your choices. You can tell me where your uncle is, and I will personally execute you. It will be quick and painless. Or you can force me to have my guards do it instead. And I think you already know that they are very good at dragging things like this out, and they are very good at making things as painful as possible.”

  “I’ll never tell you where my uncle is, so you may as well just get the guards back in here,” Brooke said.

  She had resigned herself to her fate, and although the thought of her death scared her, she wasn’t ready to let Alexandria see her fear.

  “Killing me will definitely draw my uncle out of hiding. He’ll come here and he’ll get revenge on you,” she added.

  “Yes, I don’t doubt it, Brooke. Your family has a history of killing mine,” Alexandria said.

  Brooke raised an eyebrow and snorted down her nose.

  “I think you’ll find it’s the other way around. My parents dedicated their lives to protecting you and the pack, and you slaughtered them like fucking cattle.”

  “You only know half of the story, Brooke,” Alexandria said, smiling sadly. “I had always trusted the Protectorate. But they betrayed me and the pack. Your parents were traitors. They and some of the other members were working in secret with your uncle. Your parents let the Order into my castle. They killed my husband, and my baby.”

  “But…” Brooke started, shock filling her.

  She wanted to scream at Alexandria, to call her a liar, but she couldn’t. She could tell by the sad smile on Alexandria’s face that she was telling the truth.

  “For what it’s worth, I had no idea you saw your parents being killed. I would never have done that in front of a child. But you understand I had to do it, right? You came here to kill me for killing them. I was only doing the same thing. They got half of my family killed.”