Must kill the human.
I stand and take a step to the side, but he follows, keeping his body between me and the human. I nip at his feet, trying to get himto move without actually hurting him, but he stays steady, refusing to let me past, refusing to let me complete the task given.
I want to growl. I want to snarl. I want toscream.
For once I can see a future past this moment, this fight, this night.
But if I do not kill the human…
The sound of the gate lock pulls my attention away, then the click of gears shifting into motion.
They’re coming.
They’re coming.
No. No. NO.
I haven’t had enough time to kill the human.
That means they’ll take him away… Hurt him. Collar him. Cage him.
No.I won’t let them touch him. They’ll have to kill me first.
I spin around, positioning my body between the gate and my newfound mate. They will not lay a single finger on him.
Not as long as I draw breath.
Eight
Neil
OnesecondI’mworriedI might have to actually fight my fated mate and the next the alpha spins around, his low growl directed at the metal gate on the opposite side of the ring. A beat later, a loud clang precedes the slow slide of the gate, opening enough to allow three people to slip past and into the ring.
One of the new arrivals is holding a dogcatcher style metal pole with a loop on the end, his attention focused only on the alpha. The second guy keeps himself slightly angled behind the first as the third edges along the side of the ring with something that looks uncomfortably like a taser in his hand.
Whoever these guys are, this can’t be good. They don’t appear to be more fighters, but adding unpredictable variables to an already tense situation is a surefire way to make things worse.
The alpha lowers his head, the fur along his back standing on end as he snaps his teeth and growls in Pole Guy’s direction.
The aggressive display doesn’t appear to phase Pole Guy. He simply sneers. “Down, mutt.”
There’s no Alpha command in his voice, but for a second it seems like the alpha might actually listen, a slight wobble in his knees as if he’s fighting to stay on his feet. But after a split second of unsteadiness, he tenses his muscles, growl rising in volume, as the guy with the pole continues forward.
Pole Guy scowls, then glances over his shoulder at the second guy and jerks his chin toward the alpha. Guy Number Two narrows his eyes and lifts his hand to display a small, black, rectangular object resting in his palm.
The alpha lunges forward, snarling, but he doesn’t get far. Number Two presses the button on the strange remote and the alpha yelps, falling to the ground with a painful-sounding thud as his legs give out. The asshole with the remote grins, malice flashing in his eyes, and presses the button again, this time holding it down as the alpha’s muscles jerk and twitch, his paws scrabbling at the air.
My heart twists in my chest as I watch the looped end of the pole go around the now unresisting alpha’s neck. Seeing such a powerful animal brought down by something so tiny just feels wrong.
I’m not sure what I expected, though. It’s clear by now that the alpha is not here voluntarily and they’d have to have a way to control him. I guess I just never thought I’d see an alpha wearing a shock collar like, well, a dog.
The loop tightens just below the metal collar and the guy holding the pole yanks the alpha to his feet. The wolf stumbles as his captor drags him forward, forcing him toward the still open gate. Bleary, pained eyes meet mine, then the alpha looks away, defeat and shame hanging heavy on his shoulders.
My wolf urges me a half step forward, one hand out, instinctively reaching for my mate. Raquel’s grip tightens on my arm and she lets out a soft whimper, pulling my attention away from the alpha. The third guy, the one I’d completely forgotten about, is drawing closer to us with what I can now confidently identify as a taser held out in front of him, the prongs pointing in my direction.
“You going to come quietly? Or are we doing this the hard way?” He snickers as he aims the taser at my chest.
My gaze darts from his face to the alpha and back again, my mind spinning as I try to weigh my options here. Getting tased woulddefinitely not be ideal. If I’m incapacitated, I can’t protect Raquel, and, without knowing what’s going on or why they chose to break things up, it’s probably best to go with the flow or whatever.
