Chapter 84: Anna Shows Face
They almost lose hope, until the screech of an Omega wolf slices through the trees, followed by an eerie growl so loud that the trees shake.
Julian is the first to unhook his seatbelt. "That- that has to be Adrian. Come, let’s go."
All three of them quickly step off the truck, but as they walk down the path toward the screams, Julian grabs Leah’s wrist, pulling her aside.
He pushes a phone into her hand that’s already dialing a number. She looks down at the name and frowns when she sees the caller ID.
"Julian." she whispers. "Adrian is gonna be pissed when he sees this."
"I know, just..." Julian’s expression hardens. "...just tell him to come here with backup. The location on my phone is on."
"What?"
"I’ve got a bad feeling about this place." He keeps his voice low, glancing toward the woods where the others have already disappeared. "Anna’s real target might not even be Nyra."
Leah frowns. "What if this whole thing is just to lure Adrian here? Think about it."
Julian continues quickly. "When he answers, tell him to come as fast as he can. I’m sure the news of Nyra’s disappearance has already spread all over Moon-Crest by now. He should know how urgent this is."
Leah hesitates, looking down at the phone as the person on the other side picks up. Finally, she nods, pressing the phone to her ear as she mouths an ’okay’ to Julian.
---
Julian and the others continue to run toward the source of the screaming and growling. They are currently in the middle of the thick forest, with branches whipping across their faces as they race toward the sound.
They are surprised, however, to find a clearing in the middle of all the big trees, but they pause when they find Adrian’s enormous black wolf helplessly pinning a small grey wolf into the mud.
There is blood staining its silver-grey fur. The source is a deep wound where Adrian’s long, sharp claws are digging deeper into her shoulder.
The wolf screams again, trying to wriggle free, but it only makes the claws dig deeper into her skin.
Julian groans at the sight, rushing forward. Just how many wolves is Adrian going to kill today?
"Adrian, stop!"
The black wolf doesn’t even look up. "I’m going to ask one last time." The deepness of his voice makes the trees shake. "Where. Is. My. Mate."
The Omega coughs blood onto the grass, and that’s when they all finally recognize why Adrian is so hell-bent on torturing the Omega.
"Mia?"
Leah gasps too when she realizes. "Oh Goddess, it’s really her! That means Nyra is around here somewhere!"
Adrian is still ignoring them, pressing his claws harder and harder until they hear the crack of her shoulder blade breaking.
Julian rushes forward. "Adrian, wait! She’s an Omega, you’ll kill her!"
Adrian finally lifts his head, and again his Enigma wolf has completely taken over. One of his eyes is silver again, the other Alpha red.
It seems his Enigma wolf only surfaces when Adrian is extremely angry, weak, or desperate.
Just like how his wolf had surfaced--though not fully--in the combat ring all those days ago.
"I shouldn’t kill her?" he growls at Julian. "I’ll rip her fucking throat out if she doesn’t tell me where Nyra is."
Julian cautiously steps closer. "I thought your bond led you here? With or without Mia’s help, we can find her."
"It did." The wolf sniffs the air again. "She’s supposed to be here, but can you fucking see her!?"
He glares down at the Omega struggling to breathe beneath him. "I don’t know who exactly Anna got involved with, but whoever it is knows black magic and guns."
Everyone falls silent. Guns are technically illegal in most werewolf packs, especially silver bullets.
You infact get a much lighter sentence for killing a wolf with your claws than for using any form of weapon.
If Anna has one that means she’s been involved with someone shady.
"How do you know?" one of the girls asks.
Adrian looks at them incredulously, like they still dare doubt how strong his sense of smell is even in this state. "The warehouse smelled of gunpowder. Those dead Alphas smelled of it too."
He lowers his nose to the earth.
"And here, I can tell there’s another masking spell. I can see its traces in this form, but I can’t tell exactly where they are." He tilts his wolf head. "...So no, Julian, I can’t just let this fucker go until she tells us exactly where they are!"
Julian slowly exhales. "Then that’s all the more reason we need Mia alive."
"No. I don’t." His claws move from her shoulder to her throat. "I really don’t."
Mia whimpers. "Stop."
"Then cooperate if you don’t want to die!" Naya shouts at her. "Just tell us where she is. What’s so hard!?"
Blood bubbles from Mia’s mouth as she opens it, and for a moment they all think she’ll cooperate.
Instead, she just laughs weakly, blood splattering on Adrian’s face in the process.
"What... is so special... about Nyra...?" She coughs again. "Just go back to Anna... then Nyra... will be safe."
Fuck her then. Fuck all of them.
Before any of them can even blink, Adrian rips Mia’s wolf head cleanly off her body, flinging the head onto the ground beside her.
Mia’s remaining body goes limp beneath him.
Lena covers her mouth, feeling like she wants to vomit. Naya stumbles backward, looking at Adrian in shock.
Julian shuts his eyes for one painful second.
Adrian simply wipes the blood from his claws against the grey fur before lifting his head. His eyes hold not even a single hint of guilt.
"Let’s keep searching."
He barely takes three steps away from the body when Leah’s whimper reaches them from behind.
They all turn around to find Anna holding Leah hostage, a hand wrapped around her neck, with the barrel of a gun pressed against her temple. A thin line of blood already trickles down her temple where Anna struck her.
Leah is still holding Julian’s phone in her hand, but the screen looks badly broken.
"Nobody move if you don’t want me to blow your friend’s brains out," Anna says sweetly, though her eyes are wide and crazed.
Again, there’s no sign of Nyra.
Adrian feels like he is about to go mad.
"No!" Naya cries out. "Please don’t kill her!"
Adrian doesn’t even blink, no longer caring about his secret being exposed to Anna. His silver-red eyes blaze with barely contained rage.
"Where. Is. Nyra."
Anna laughs, a wild, broken laugh. "You still only ask about her. You don’t even care about the baby?"
She slams the butt of the pistol into Leah’s head again. The girl cries out in pain, making Naya cry in fear too.
It’s all a whole mess.
"STOP!" Julian bellows.
"There... now that’s better." Anna smiles. "Adrian, baby, how about you try that again, huh?"
"Anna..." Adrian takes one careful step forward. "If I’m the one you want, then just let her go."
"Let them all go, and I’ll stay."
Anna tilts her head. "You think I’m stupid? I can see your eyes, Adrian. I know exactly what you’re capable of."
She smiles to herself. "Though I need to give myself some credit. My mate turned out to be an Enigma. What are the odds, huh?"
She leans into Leah. "What do you think? Hot, right?"
Leah, shaking in fear, can’t even respond.
Adrian exhales loudly, blinking the colored eyes away. If he wants any of them to leave here unscathed, he needs to play Anna’s game.
"Anna, baby, tell me what you want, and I’ll give it to you."
For several long seconds she simply stares at him. And just when he thinks it wouldn’t work, Anna pulls down the collar of her shirt, exposing her scent gland.
"Mark me. I want your mark." Her eyes glisten with obsession. "Please, Adrian. Just mark me and I’ll let everyone go."
The entire clearing freezes, the implication hanging clearly in the air.
If one rejects being mates, both the Omega and Alpha would survive, though with repercussions.
But if your Alpha marks another Omega while you’re already marked? The first Omega bearing his mark would be irreversibly marred for life.
Often these Omegas end up growing old alone, as no one wants a discarded, marked Omega. That is, if they don’t die from heartbreak first.
"No!" Julian shakes his head. "Adrian, don’t do it!"
Naya and Lena also shake their heads. "Adrian, you know she’ll never keep that promise!"
Adrian doesn’t look at them, his eyes pinned on Anna. "But better a marred Omega than a dead one, right?"
Anna preens. Fucking preens like she’s won. "Exactly! That’s why I’ve always loved you, Adrian. So damn smart."
She turns to the others. "You have no other choice. I have this place surrounded. None of you can leave if I don’t give my word. Besides..." She looks at Mia’s body on the floor. "...you already killed one of my friends, so why shouldn’t I?"
Adrian steps forward again, his eyes softening. "If I mark you, you’ll let all of them go?"
Her eyes glint as she nods. "I swear on our love, Adrian. Mark me, and I’ll make sure every single one of them returns to Moon-Crest unscathed."
Adrian highly considers it. "Even Nyra?"
"Of course. Once we’re together again, I won’t need to waste my time thinking about her anymore."