The horror of it washed over him, and he felt lightheaded. He knew they were evil, knew they had no limits in what they would do to him beyond what the center put in place, but it was too much. The grotesque array of images was too fucking much.
A sharp prick on his arm made him whine, hugging it close to his chest. “What did you do that for?”
“Just a little something to make sure you’re in the mood. A true heat would cause you to miscarry, and while I’m certain I can breed your fertile womb with ease, I wouldn’t want to lose a potential alpha son just the same. That injection will send you into a pseudo-heat, and you’ll look just as lovely as you do in these photographs.” Dax’s hand found his stomach once again, pressing down enough to feel the shape of Sidian’s womb, taut with the growth of his child as he tossed what looked like a slender syringe into the center of Lilac’s nest. “I wonder what your children will think of you when they’re old enough to see their mother for what he is, hmm?”
The reminder of his children was all Sidian needed to act.
He ripped himself away from Dax’s touch, a snarl twisting his lips as he stared up at the alpha who had ruined so much of his life. The rage that washed over him was familiar, an old friend that he knew how to work with. Fear and pain and grief didnothing for him, but rage was something Sidian knew far too well. And no one had ever taken it from him.
The flicker of amusement in Dax’s eyes only fanned the flames higher. “What are you going to do, little bitch? Do you think you can stand up to me?”
Sidian lunged at him. Even if it killed him, that alpha would die tonight.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Seven of the eight alphas of Pack Kincaid loitered on the wide back porch, talking amongst themselves, smoking, and passing around what looked like a bottle of gin.
That was not what Roman wanted to see. He had been of the belief that the pack would likely wait inside with perhaps one of them standing guard over the yard to see who would emerge victorious from the trees first. On the one hand, he didn’t have to worry about sneaking into the house if they were all outside, but it meant he and Puppy had to be careful in engaging with the enemy. They were at a supreme disadvantage like that.
Puppy huffed in irritation and stamped one bare foot into the dirt, squinting through the leaves before turning a questioning glance toward Roman. She didn’t know what to do.
A distraction was necessary. Roman weighed the odds of what he thought they might get away with, though he doubted they would get more than one alpha out into the woods with them. Killing one would alert the entire pack to what was going on.
So it had to count. “Walk further down. Cry like you’re hurt. Don’t make any other sounds.”
Puppy stared at him for a moment before grunting and slinking through the trees, her footsteps eerily quiet as she avoided stepping on twigs and leaves. She disappeared from his sight after a moment, and Roman could only hope that she would do as she was told, gripping a branch above his head and giving it a sudden, harsh shake. The wind had died down mostly, and a few curious heads tilted toward the sudden rustling noise.
No one stepped off the porch, though. Not until a high-pitched whine split the night, sharp and brittle over the cascading rain. An alpha had good hearing, and every single member of Pack Kincaid looked toward the forest, each of them clocking the noise. Would one of them come to see what was the matter, or would they leave an injured female alpha in the woods to die?
“Shit,” Axel Kincaid swore from the porch. “Was that Puppy crying?”
Knox cocked his head, his eyes sweeping the forest, though Roman knew it would be hard to see through the foliage. The grass was long and thick and lush, and the lack of moonlight or even starlight made the night darker. “She sounds like she’s hurt. You think Kane fucked her up that bad?”
“The alpha is going to bepissedif she’s hurt,” Nash groaned, taking a drag on his cigarette. “Axe, you go get her. You’re the only one who can handle her when she’s jumpy.”
Axel heaved a put-upon sigh. “Fine. Fucker. Next time, deal with heryourself.”
He stepped off the porch and cursed under the rainfall, jerking the hood of his jacket up as if that would do anything to protect him. Roman crouched low to the ground, never taking his eyes off of his target, his tongue sliding over his teeth in preparation.
On every single mission he had been on with the Vipers, he could kill one staff member of each breeding center. All of themhad been betas, and while Roman had delighted in their deaths, they weren’t proper challenges to him. A beta could never stand up to him, and now that he knew what he was, he realized just how pitiful they were as prey compared to what hecouldhave.
Killing an alpha would be easy. Pitifully easy. Especially when it was an alpha who stood between him and his darling, who had done nothing but aided in Sidian’s suffering. For that choice, for that mistake, Roman would pay back the agony tenfold.
After all, hadn’t he been trained to do just that?
He nearly jumped a foot in the air when he felt a pair of small hands around his neck, fingers curling under the metal of the shock collar that still rested against his throat.
He glanced up to see Puppy looking down at him, with a meaningful expression in her eyes as she gave her wrists one quick twist. Whatever the latching mechanism on the collar was, it broke, emitting a tiny electric whine that was drowned out by a rumble of thunder. She slipped the metal between her teeth and crept back into the shadows with it, though Roman didn’t know why she wanted it.
He watched her go before turning his attention back to the yard, his blood rushing in his ears as Axel stepped through the trees and entered the darkness of the forest.
“I don’t know where the fuck you are, but I know you’re in here,” he shouted, all bravado whether or not he knew it. “Puppy, where are you, you misbehaving little bitch?”
Roman edged just behind a trunk so he would be out of Axel’s direct line of sight, his lips parting as he inhaled the alpha’s scent. It was rancid—they all were—and he took some comfort in knowing it would never torment Sidian again. Just a little closer. You’re almost there.
Axel’s head twisted off toward the right when something rustled in the bushes, his shoulders tensing and his eyes narrowing. But he was looking the wrong way, and it was easyfor Roman to slink around the trunk of the tree and take him down from the left side.
“Fuck!” Axel thrashed like a child, punches and kicks thrown wild as Roman wrapped an arm around his waist and slammed him into the ground. “Get the fuck off of me, you damned mutt!”
