Chapter Five

Alpha Din

Getting in is far from hard. I have been here many times before, summoned by Lor, the Ultimate alpha. As much as he is far too powerful and far too important to be close friends with him, he and I appreciate each other's company.

"Alpha Din. State your business." The burly wolves at the gate of the property demand.

They are not being rude, it is the protocol. And yet the familiar words cause my heart to stutter. This visit is nothing like the others.

"On official business to see Alpha Lor." I say.

If he is not around... all of my plans will be shattered.

When I stepped out of Olive pack territory today, I did not consider that he could be out on business already. Fear wracks my body at possibility that he could be out. Estrell cannot hold on for much longer. She will die if I don't find Alpha Lor today.

"You may go in." The guard says.

I conceal my relief and walk forward on shaky limbs, into the Ultimate Alpha's territory. I resist the urge to run to cover the distance faster. I have never been this shaken in my life.  My head is a mess and my thoughts are everywhere but what I must do remains razor-focused in my mind. I put one step in front of the other, hating myself, hating every step forward

"Alpha Din." Connie, daughter of the Alpha of the Ostrich pack comes towards me with a big smile on her face.

I force a smile onto my face and have to stop out of courtesy. Today of all days, I cannot act suspiciously.

"Connie." I say. My voice sounds like it is coming from another man, the man I was yesterday. "It's been a while. How is your father?" I ask her.

Only half my mind is on the conversation. The other half of my mind and my soul is still stuck in my house back in Olive pack territory, with my mate that is lying on the bed dying.

The alpha's house is now in my sight, I need to get there.

"He is well." She says conversationally as she peers at me closer.

"But I have to say, you are not looking too well." She says. "Is there any problem?"

Right on cue, pain lances through my body and I breathe through it. I am so far away from her and yet I can still feel the echoes of her pain. I cannot begin to imagine what she is going through.

No, Connie. You cannot help me. No one can.

"No. Pack business has been a bit hectic these days but you know how it is." I say.

I am already moving past her. I am running out of time, I can feel it.

"Tell your father I said hi." I call back.

"I will." She says.

Alpha Lor is home alright. I can scent him and feel him even from outside his house. His scent is very distinctive, sharper and more concentrated than the rest of the wolves. There is no being in his vicinity without knowing immediately that he is supreme.

More wolves call out greetings to me as I pass by, members of the Ultimate Alpha's pack. Their faces swim in front of me and merge together. I might have ignored them, or I might have reciprocated their greetings, I don't remember. Time has become meaningless.

I am finally at Alpha Lor's door and I know he must have felt my presence already. I knock and I am immediately bid inside. I don't need an escort to find my way to his meeting room.

He is sitting in the middle of two other alphas and he nods on seeing me, an acknowledgment.

The Ultimate Alpha is a beast of a man. He is one of the hugest wolves existing and his face is just as hard and indomitable. Being in his mere presence is like being in the eye of a storm.

"Alpha Din." He says warmly.

I stop in front of him and press a fist to my heart in respect.

As the Ultimate Alpha, he has dominion over all of the other alphas in the the werewolf community including me. His position is well respected and yet he does not abuse his power over the rest of us. My respect for him is unbounded and on a good day, we could be called close friends. As far as I know, he confides in only me the things about himself that he wouldn't confide to just anyone.

"Ultimate Alpha." I say.

"It is always a pleasure to see you, Din. Take a seat." He says.

"Thank you." He says and I do.

"To what do I owe the honour?" He asks.

"The honour is all mine and, it is a little private." I say, referring to the other two men.

I am here. I am really doing this. This is the first time ever but I feel my insides beginning to quake.

I feel like shit. I sound like a coward. I need to get him alone. There is no going back now.

I hide my chaotic emotions deep within my chest, where my fear for Estrell lies. None of the alphas here can sense it, ever. If they do, I will not walk out of here alive and worse, Estrel will die with me.

Never, my wolf snarls. I agree with him.

Alpha Lor rounds up his business with the other two alphas and within minutes, they are standing up, on their way.

"It was good to see you again, Din." Alpha Klemen says.

"You too, Klemen." I say, standing to show my acknowledgement of his power.

The two alphas make their way out and I sit back.

"It's been a while you came over." Alpha Lor says.

I wince.

"It's been a little busy back at Olive pack." I say.

"I know." He says. "I missed talking to a good friend is all."

"I'll try to come more often." I say.

The note that was left beside Estrell burns an imprint into my memory. I cannot believe I came here.

I wish I was strong enough to stay home. I wish I was strong enough to burn that note. I wish I was strong enough not to make the trip here.

And yet here I am, pulling the biggest performance of my life. I cannot fuck this up.

"Actually, I wanted a little advice on something." I say.

"What is it?" He asks.

Just like every other time i was here, he stands and heads towards his refrigerator to get me some Vodken. It is an honour to be offered the drink from an older or a more powerful wolf.

I stand and follow close behind.

"Our neighbour wolves have been demanding that we surrender a piece of land to them because we shared it in ancient history but they say that solely to spite me because I have finally found a use for the land." I say.

"Land disputes. That is too common these days, and it could get bloody if not resolved well." He says.

He takes the Vodken and heads towards the black glass table, grabbing two glasses on the way.

"Exactly." I say.

He is right in front of me now. This is going to be my one and only opportunity.

I hesitate, event though I am well aware that hesitation could cost me my life. But then I think about Estrell with her cold blue lips and her slowing heart. Her immortality is slowly being drained by the poison that has been injected into her system.

'Kill the Ultimate alpha, and she will get the antidote.

Fail and she will die.'

That is exactly what the note said.

Immediately, I knew who it was from, who was responsible for gripping my heart and ripping it out of my chest.

And I knew what I had to do. He made sure of it, there is only one measure that I can take to ensure that Estrell lives. I have to go dance to his tune, have to go against every single one of my beliefs.

I have to sacrifice myself for Estrell. It is a sacrifice that I would make any day.

There is no more hesitation as my hand comes out of my cloak holding the dagger that has already been coated with silver. I stab it right through his back, ripping through muscle and bone directly into his heart.

Something inside of me dies with my actions.

He gasps and stills. He must feel the poison spreading through his vessels by now. I can almost hear his brain trying to figure out what just happened. I stabbed him through the back, there is no greater dishonour.

With a snarl, he spins around, my knife still shoved into his back to the hilt and he grabs me by my throat.

I am flying through the air and I hit the wall hard and slide to the floor. There is a crack on the wall where I hit it.

He is there immediately, his thick hand wrapping around my throat as he raises me off the ground. His hands are claws and they dig into my throat, spilling my blood. Even sick, weakened and dying, he is still capable of ripping my neck out. This is why he is the Ultimate Alpha. A lesser wolf would be dead two seconds after the silver ripped into his heart.

He is staring into my eyes and I stare back at him, letting myself drown in the betrayal I see in them.

"Why?" He snarls.

"I had to." I reply. It comes out in a choking whisper.

Anger turns his face redder and his fist tightens on my throat. I am choking, my body jerking in the air and I have no intentions of fighting back. Even if I wanted to, i couldn't even fight back because even with one foot in death, he still packs a massive energy that I have no choice but to bow to.

This is how it is going to end. He is going to rip out my throat and eat my heart before he finally dies. Werewolves might be immortal but there is not much living to do without a head and a heart.

The moment stretches. He is looking at me with his thick brows drawn down in pain and I cannot breathe or I would have told him to kill me already. There is no life worth living for me after this.

He throws me to the wall and I crash hard. I cough as my injured throat immediately begins healing himself. But there is silver in his own heart and that is stopping him from healing at all.

He drops to his knees, breathing heavily.

I groan as I get to my own knees, feeling battered.

His breathing is getting shallower. He is not even looking at me, like he cannot bear to. He let his guard down with him, and it will cost him his life.

"I'm sorry." I whisper. "I wish there was another way."

I am sure he does not care to hear my excuses but I say them anyway. I shouldn't have bothered, they don't make me feel any better.

He slumps to the floor with a loud thump, dead.

I will never forget that sight, my first dishonourable kill. My only betrayal of the werewolf community, the worst kind. I will never recover the piece of my soul that I have lost.

Immediately, it seems like the entire pack has gone to hell. They all feel it.  I smell everyone's panic and my ears pick up the sound of their feet pounding ever closer.

Any minute now, they will burst through these doors and find me here. I don't try to run. I will not get anywhere, and it will only make it worse.

When I left home and set off for here today, I knew that there was no chance that I would make it back home.

I came anyway.

Estrel will live. I can die in peace.