The Alpha's Hunt Chapter 96

He grabbed a fistful of my hair and pulled my head back. It felt like my scalp was being peeled off and my hair being pulled from the roots while his other hand released my arms and circled my neck- I realized that it was his claw that had dug into my throat and sent the poison into my skin.

“Why does the Elder care if I watch?” I seethed.

The Elder was leaned back in his chair not sparing us a single glance- he didn't seem to mind whether I watched or not.

Zade chuckled behind me and looked at the Elder- I drew a breath and held it when he rested his hand on my collarbone and his claw scraped the surface of my skin.

“He doesn’t,” he said behind me. 

I tried to whip my head around but I couldn't move. The smell of melting wax and oak swirled around us and it mixed with the scent of the human girl.

They passed her around like a rag doll, each one taking their turn and I watched in numbing horror as they bent her over the table and one of the men grabbed a candle from its holder. He smirked and chewed on his bottom lip while he tipped it over her back, letting the wax drip down her skin, and laughed when her body jerked and she whimpered beneath him. I winced and tried to shut my eyes but each time I closed them, Zade made another cut in my skin.

“Gabriel,” The Elder called.

Every imaginable comment passed through my mind of what he could possibly want when Gabe turned to face him with flaring nostrils and ragged breaths.

“Would like to do the honors?”  

A somber shadow flashed in Gabe’s eyes for a second and he turned a heavy head to look at the girl.

She was held back against one of the men and he kissed her neck while tears fell in a trail down her cheek.

“This is- after all, not your first time,” the Elder rasped out.

“What is he asking you to do?” I asked in an exhale but was met with a cold silence.

Gabe walked alongside the table and dragged his fingers over the tablecloth. He touched the rim of the plates and graced his fingers over the silverware until he felt the sharp teeth of a knife and dragged his hand down the handle before he grabbed it on his way. 

“Gabe?” My voice broke in question and everyone watched in silence as he continued over to the naked girl who stuck her chin out, sweat dripped down her face and her heavy breaths grew ragged the closer he got.

She stared daggers at him as he neared her and Gabe held the knife close to his side. The girl stuck her chin out and the hatred shone in her eyes, enlarged by the tears that had yet to fall. In the corner of my eye was one of the Bells, she held her head way down, much more than the others and when I watched her chest I could tell that she was holding her breath.

“I’m sorry,” Gabe’s voice was strong and monotone but his eyes held hers in a plead for forgiveness.

“No, you’re not. You’re all monsters, hating on humans because you fear that we will do to you what you do to us. You’re pathetic! All of you-“ her jaw dropped and the unshed tears in her rounded eyes fell gently down her face.

Gabe put his other hand on her shoulder and twisted the steak knife before he let go, his hand dropped to his side and the girl fell to her knees, staring mindlessly at the floor before her body slumped on the carpet.

A pool of blood was quickly forming around her body and the carpet soaked much of it up as everyone stood around and watched. Five seconds; that’s how long it took for them to move on and continue the festivities; five seconds.

Gabe hung his head and looked at her for a little longer and then he turned around and came back to me. 

The others twirled the girls and removed the lace sheets that covered nothing of their skin and they started dancing, kissing, touching, and living like they hadn't just taken a life much weaker than them.

Gabe’s eyes were dim and haunted when he looked at me but the Elder was happy from where he sat, proudly nodding his head. 

“Well done. Tell you what, why don’t you stay here and enjoy yourself and we will talk some more- you and I,” 

Gabe locked a challenging gaze with the Elder while he stepped towards me and Zade put a hand on my waist.

“Hazel and i are going for a walk, while we’re gone you can think about which person you want to leave with. Have an answer ready within the hour, or we might just have to find accommodations for all of you in the dungeon,” Zade sneered.

When I heard Gabe’s growl I couldn’t withhold my gasp, we were in a room full of the top members of the Dark Guard, future Councilmen, but he didn’t care. Gabe stepped closer and his eyes turned in a golden-brown hue.

“She’s not going anywhere,”

One of the Bells dragged her hand over Gabe’s shoulder- she was the one I'd seen in the corner holding her breath earlier. This Bell was also the only one who had a thicker white lace covering the lower half of her face. She pulled him down on the chair and moved her hips over his lap while she guided his hands up her front. 

The Bell seductively undid the lace around her face but I couldn't see her, Gabe however seemed mesmerized by the girl and he almost reluctantly turned to face me.

“You’ll be taken care of, and so will Hazel. She’s safer with me and you know it,” Zade’s lips pulled up in a grin and he pushed me ahead of him with a hand resting on the small of my back, “I know you do,” he winked at Gabe.

After the Bell straddled his waist and sank down on his lap, Gabe didn't put up much of a fight. He seemed to accept his fate, and mine, as Zade guided me out of the room and into the cold hallway where the voices were shut out and the air was thin.

It was just the two of us now and nowhere for me to run without getting caught but Zade still refused to let me go and stubbornly held his hand on my back.

“Now what?” I asked while we headed down the long hallway.

“What do you mean?”

“What happens now- are you going to kill me?” 

Zade stopped and turned to me, he gently cupped my cheek and tilted my head back while his eyes flickered between mine and my lips.

“Why would I kill you? We’re just getting started, angel- the game has only just begun,”