Held Captive by the Alpha: No Escaping Destiny

Chapter 8: More Bad News

HUNTER'S POV

Colton and I examined the bodies—or what remained of them—strewn across the ground. The fatal wounds bore the unmistakable signs of claws and bite marks.

"Rogues," Colton announced, sniffing the air as he took in the c*****e before us.

Cyrilla's account of being chased by wolves aligns with how these bodies were found. There were obvious signs of struggle such as drag marks, torn clothing, and scattered flesh and blood all over the surroundings.

I felt a tug in my heart at the thought of her being torn and disfigured in this way.

I took a few steps away from the bodies and turned to my men. "Find out which pack or coven they belonged to," I ordered. "Gather any personal belongings, tag the bodies properly, and transport them to the pack grounds for a proper burial."

Without hesitation, they sprang into action.

Colton, Theon, and I made our way back to the pack grounds, our conversation turning to the implications of what we’d just witnessed.

I clenched my jaw, uneasy with the possibilities. "Someone is trying to pin these killings on us," I said, voicing my thoughts.

"That’s what I figured too," Theon agreed. "Whoever is behind this wants to stir chaos between werewolves and vampires."

"But how are they controlling the rogues?" I questioned. "Even the feral ones can’t be compelled, unless they’re weakened or injured."

"I think we need to bring this to the Council before it gets out of hand," Colton suggested. "Maybe we can ask Cyrilla to testify that vampires were behind this."

I stayed silent for a moment, turning his words over in my mind. Finally, I nodded. "I'll inform the King about everything."

My uncle, King Robert, represents the entire Werewolf Kingdom at the Council. Something like this—an attack meant to drive a wedge between us—needed to be brought to his attention.

As we stepped into the house, an irritatingly nasal voice—one I had no desire to hear, especially not today—pierced the air, grating on my already frayed nerves.

"Alpha," Tiffany called out, breathless.

I didn’t bother turning, but I knew she was running toward me. Sure enough, she skidded to a stop in front of us, blocking our path.

I frowned, already losing patience. "What is it, Tiffany?"

"Alpha Hunter, is it true that you're allowing a human to live among us?" she demanded, her tone confrontational.

"Yes, temporarily," I replied dryly. "And I expect all of you to be on your best behavior. Theon has already explained why she needs to stay here."

Tiffany pouted, clearly unimpressed. "But I don’t think it’s fair for the entire pack to make these difficult adjustments just to accommodate one human."

I shot her a glare, making her flinch. "What you think about this doesn’t matter," I growled, letting my aura press down on her until she lowered her head. "Are you challenging my decision, Tiffany?"

"N-No, Alpha. I'm sorry," she stammered, quickly submitting.

Without sparing her another second of my time, I walked past her, Colton and Theon following suit. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the flicker of annoyance on her face. She clearly had more to say but thought better of it.

Once we were at a safe distance, Colton muttered, "Think she’s going to cause trouble?"

Before I could answer, Millie suddenly appeared, flashing a playful grin as she planted a quick kiss on Colton’s lips.

"I can take care of her!" Millie declared.

As we continued walking, Millie nudged me, her eyes gleaming with mischief. "I hope you don't mind, Alpha, but I took the liberty of visiting Cyrilla at the hospital today," she said. "Since she's going to be here for a while, I thought I'd do a quick vibe check on her."

Colton chuckled. "Well, did she pass, dear?" he asked.

Millie flashed a soft grin at her mate before smirking at me. "With flying colors. She's really nice. Very smart," she paused, then winked at me. "And very pretty, too."

"You told her?" I asked Colton, my voice tinged with betrayal.

Before Colton could respond, Millie quickly jumped to his defense. "Oh, stop it," she said, wrapping her arms around her mate as if shielding him from me. "You know he can't hide anything from me."

She reached into her pocket and handed me something. It was my credit card. "Here," she said. "I already got her some clothes and a few other things she might need."

I took the card from her, my tone curt. "Good."

"I also had her eyes checked," Millie continued. "Poor girl, her eyesight is terrible. She lost her glasses when she was abducted."

I scoffed. "Humans."

Millie ignored my sarcasm, carrying on. "I ordered contact lenses for her. I don't want her eyes hidden. She really has beautiful eyes, don't you agree, Alpha?" Her tone was teasing.

It's true. Her eyes are gorgeous. But I chose to ignore it, hoping she would stop talking about Cyrilla.

There was a time when I used to tease Colton and Millie before they even realized they were mates. Now it was Millie's turn to do the teasing.

We decided to go directly to the office to file the incident report and upload the photographs from the crime scene. I turned on my computer to begin working, but an urgent email notification appeared. Opening Outlook, I clicked on the subject line and my heart sank as I read the contents of the email.

"Guys," I called out to them before I continued. "We have more bad news."

"What is it?" Theon asked, stepping closer.

The others gathered behind me, peering at my computer screen.

"I just received reports from Alpha Jace of the Silver Moon Pack and Alpha Grayson of the Golden Grove Pack," I said, voice tense. "There’s been another series of killings near their territories."

"Damn it! It’s like they’re ramping up their efforts," Colton muttered.

I clenched my jaw, frustration building, but I pushed it aside to focus on action. I turned to Theon. "Theon, I need you to investigate any connections between the locations of these killings. We need to figure out if they’re targeting specific sites or if it’s all random. This will help us anticipate future targets and warn the other Alphas," I instructed, sighing heavily. "The body count keeps rising. We can’t let this continue."

"Already on it, man." My Gamma complied as he went to his desk and fired up his laptop.

"I will reach out to Alpha Jace and Alpha Grayson if they need any assistance," Colton volunteered.

I nodded. "That would be great. In the meantime, let's widen the perimeter of our patrol," I said, then turned to Colton. "Can you assign two or three warriors to regularly survey the nearby forest? We can't afford this to happen again near our territory."

"Consider it done," Colton replied.

Exhausted and famished, I ordered the group to head downstairs for some food. As we approached the dining area, we were greeted by a smiling Rosalie.

"I figured you had a long day, so I made you something special. Hurry and sit!" she instructed, her enthusiasm contagious.

She began plating the dishes, and Theon jumped up to help her. After about five minutes, they returned to the table, placing the food down. The sight of it made my mouth water.

I smiled broadly at Rosalie. "I was expecting dinner, not a feast," I joked.

Rosalie beamed back, her smile as warm as ever. We all chatted and bantered as we dug into the meal, the atmosphere light despite the weight of the day’s events.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Tiffany and her two friends, Sarah and Ashley, sitting at the far end of the dining area. They were deep in conversation, occasionally glancing our way. Normally, I would’ve ignored them, but tonight I couldn't help straining to overhear what they were saying.

The way Tiffany expressed her disapproval of me letting Cyrilla into our pack concerns me. Knowing how persistent she is, she’s unlikely to let this go easily. She is definitely bad news waiting to unfold.