A Fate So Cruel

Chapter 7 - Monster

 The Lycan—the Alpha—didn't spare Joseph a second glance after his body hit the floor. His cold, intense gaze was pinned on me.

"There you are."

Lethal power radiated off him, the air practically crackled with its electrical charge. It was overwhelming—suffocating. I wondered how Joseph and I hadn't noticed his arrival.

With predatory gracefulness, the Alpha stepped over Joseph's legs as if his body was nothing more than a piece of trash. I was paralyzed. Every fiber of my body was taut with fear as he prowled forward before stopping in front of me. He crouched down.

For a long moment, the Lycan quietly studied me with unsettling intensity. His eyes moved across my face with a penetrating focus.

Assessing for damage it seemed. Perhaps examining where to inflict the most pain to punish me for running from him.

The overwhelming weight of terror made it impossible to move, to speak, to even look away.

He cocked his head to the side. "I've been looking for you."

His tone was casual, almost friendly. I was shaking with fear but he sounded like he was greeting a friend. As if he wasn't a monster. As if the body of the man he just killed wasn't feet away. As if my life, my future hadn't just crumbled down in front of me.

"Funny," I bite out "because I've been hiding from you."

The gall of my own response shocked me. The brief flash of indignation that had cut through me was quickly replaced with dread when I realized what I had done.

My entire body vibrated to the thump of my heart as I waited for pain. But none came. Instead, his eyes danced and an amused smile sprang to his mouth.

Instinctually, my grip on the mirror shard tightened. A fresh wave of blood bubbled to the surface of the open wounds but the sharp, throbbing pain barely even registered.

The Lycan's nostrils flared animalistically. His eyes darted to the bloody mirror shard.

He lifted a hand and I flinched expecting pain. Instead, his hand wrapped around my wrist and the sensation of sparks coursing through my veins ignited at the contact, a subtle yet powerful reaction that sent shivers down my spine.

He silently lifted my hand and held it between us. I gripped the glass tighter.

"Let it go," he commanded.

When I didn't loosen my hold, his features darkened into a formidable look that instantly had my fingers unfurling.

"Good girl," he purred after deftly extracting the shard from my hand.

The knots in my stomach tightened. The shard couldn't do much against an Alpha even if by some miracle I was able to stab him with it but it was still the only semblance of protection I had. Now it was gone.

The blood-coated mirror glimmered in the dim light before being tossed just out of reach. The man pulled my hand closer and examined my wounds with concentrated focus. I held my breath.

He reached over and grabbed the bed sheet, only briefly releasing me to tear off a long, thin piece of the gauzy fabric. Pain shot up my arm as he wrapped my injured hand with the makeshift bandage and after he secured the tie, his fingers moved to grasp my chin. He tilted my face toward the light with controlled precision.

His eyes quickly fell on the mildly throbbing cheekbone that had hit the floor when I'd been knocked to the ground earlier. His jaw tightened. Something terrible flashed in his eyes.