Ch. 296..300: The Alpha Contract Chapter 296-300

Chapter 0296

Abraxas

"Well, is it an option?" She asks, growing frustrated when she doesn't get an immediate answer.

"No Neah, of course that is not an option." Damien tells her. "You have been bound four times. You should be dead and somehow you survived it. If you do it again, it might actually kill you this time."

"I'm not talking about me. I'm asking if binding her is an option, has it ever been done?" Her head twitches and she closes her eyes. The darkness keeps seeping in and out as she fights against her inner spirit, but now I finally see how it's working.

It seeps into her cracks, working its way through them like it's following the bends of a river. But it meets its end with nowhere to go and the darkness is forced to try a different route until it ebbs back.

The cracks don't meet and it forces her Lycan to push more. Is that what she wanted? To try and break her in any way possible. I had never seen the darkness work so strategically. The darkness of someone's soul doesn't usually have a mind behind it. It doesn't have a chance to hover and develop for years and years.

And I couldn't help but wonder what her Lycan's plan was. Turn her Rogue and then what? She would be incapable of leading anyone, unless she convinces others to go Rogue. The world would be fucked.

"She's not been with you for long, has she?" I needed a better understanding.

"Before I was pregnant." Her scowl deepens. "Less than two years. Why?"

"And you are twenty three now?"

"Yes, why? What does that have to do with anything."

Years and years her Lycan has had to stew, trying to break through. Her Lycan must be angry that it's taken so long to be able to speak to Neah. Because the reality is, they are always there. They just can't get through until the host comes of age. And in Neah's case, it had taken even longer.

"Trying to fill in the gaps." I murmur

"Well?" She asks me, staring at me with big blue eyes. "Please tell me it's possible!"

I shake my head. It's not something I was aware of, even throughout the history of Hunter's knowledge. But then her bloodline is rare too. I will have to ask surfer boy about that book that's allegedly written by her ancestor. See if there are more clues about her. "So it will happen. At some point, I will become the very thing I hate." Her face falls and her eyes become glassy with tears.

I was expecting Damien to chime in and tell her that we would figure it out. But even he is silent, wondering if what she is saying is true.

The black of her soul continues to retreat until it's at the edges again. I knew her Lycan could hear every word I was saying which is mostly why I hadn't spoken to Neah about what Nyx was doing to her. I didn't want to give her Lycan any ideas and I would really prefer it if I didn't have to put Neah down in order to stop her.

I wouldn't get all my answers if she was dead. I wouldn't be able to prepare Dorothy for the future Lycan Alpha's that she will need to deal with.

"So what can she do?" Damien asks

"Thought you didn't believe me." I cock a brow at him

"Not about the other stuff, but I can't deny the knowledge you have on Lycans." He mutters in annoyance. I could see it was taking a lot for him to admit it. Even if he did want to hit me the entire time.

"I need to look at my families recordings." I mutter, maybe there was something I was missing.

"I need to see my boys." Neah puffs

Damien gives her a smile. "I think that is a great idea. I will take you to them."

"Stay with her." I add as they head out, if she was going to turn Rogue, everyone needed to be ready.

Everyone thought standard Rogues were bad, dealing with one that has a bloodline like hers will be something else entirely.

As they head off to wherever her sons are being kept, I return to the training hall. Dane is still talking to the Lycans as Eric and Klaus chat to some pups.

 

Chapter 0297

A shiver goes down my spine. The last time I had been surrounded by this many Lycans, I had been hunting Blair.

I guess it's my gut that's making me feel a little off. Hunting is in my blood and to not be slaughtering this breed was more difficult than I had expected it to be when they are so readily available

Tension builds as the Lycans take note of my return, but so far, not one of the Lycans in here showed problems or appeared to be a threat. Their souls are clear and I'm almost annoyed. Even Blair's family were crystal clear.

"Do I need to go to her?" Dane asks as I stop by him.

"Damien is keeping her company."

"Look at that, you used his name." He scans the crowd. "Are we good here?"

"Annoyingly, yes."

"Good." He turns to the people. I see how he hesitates as he prepares to make Neah's speech. "Neah has said that if you do not wish to help her, she understands and you are free to go. If you are staying, you can follow me to accommodation."

The last few days had seen the Wolves clearing trees and knocking up log cabins at the side of the pack in preparation. I told them it was a stupid idea, but apparently, the idea had come from Neah and I said no more.

There are mutterings between the adults and Ryken steps forward. "We are all in agreement." He does a final check in with his mate, Blair's mother, who nods her head. "Blair needs to be stopped."

Blondie and surfer boy lead them to the log cabins as Dane stays behind with me. "I know what I feel when it comes to Neah, but I need you to tell me the truth. How bad is it?"

"Really fucking bad." I say calmly and I see his shocked face. I explain to him what I saw, about the darkness using the old trauma cracks to creep in. "I thought she had more control over her Lycan. But it turns out, the unconnected cracks are what is stopping it." "Damien and Mallory..."

"They don't have cracks like Neah. They have some small ones from their time as humans, but nothing like Neahs. Nyx is using the cracks. At first I thought she was using them to take over Neah, but I think she is trying to fill them. Make them whole. Make them hers." "To embed the darkness in her."

"Something like that. But she did make a request. Something that I don't have the answer to."

"What?"

"She asked if her Lycan could be bound."

He stares at me with wide crimson eyes. They slowly narrow until they are slits. "It will kill her."

"That's what we said. But she isn't asking for herself to be bound. She's asking for her Lycan to be shut down. In theory, if we could do that, she would still have a strong bloodline. She would still be in charge of the others. She would still be able to heal and do all the other Lycan things. She just wouldn't have a nagging voice in her head. Like everybody else."

"And it still might kill her! She has been through enough."

"And it's far from over. You are inviting more Lycans into your home, Dane. Do you really think having them here to defeat Blair is going to be the end? For all you know, Blair could be working on her own plan. Maybe she even has people on her side already. None of us know." I hold up a finger, because from his expression, I could see a question forming.

"I may know a lot about Lycans. I may have spent most of my life hunting them. I may also be able to see and read souls. But I can't see those of the people that are not here. What I can do is some digging."

"You should speak to Klaus. He's pretty good at finding information."

"Perfect. I will go find him."

"And don't call him surfer boy. You might just get the punch you've been waiting for!"

 

Chapter 0298

Neah

Damien knocks on the door and gives me a tight smile. I knew he was only following me because he was concerned, but it did make me feel a little uneasy.

Eric's mother, Athena opens the door with Logan in her arms. "Neah, perfect, come with me." She grabs my wrist and pulls me through to where Eric's father, Sebastian, is encouraging Evrin to walk.

I watch my son take a few steps before dropping onto his bum. Sebastian cheers and both Evrin and Logan clap in excitement. I can only imagine what Eric's parents were like when he went through his firsts.

A smile stretches across my face and everything that I was worried about falls away. Logan had mastered walking a couple of days ago and now Evrin could join him. Though they were still both early walkers. Abraxas had said it's their Lycan gene.

Sebastian and Athena didn't care that the boys were Lycans either. Insisting that the boys were just like any other baby. And somewhere along the line, they had become the unofficial grandparents to my sons.

I didn't mind, neither Dane or myself had parents.

Logan and Evrin loved seeing them as much as Sebastian and Athena did. And they are more than happy to take the boys without a single question.

I swoop Evrin up into a hug, breathing in his delicious cinnamon scent. He buries himself against me as Damien asks me if I feel better.

I had briefly forgotten he was here with me. "Yes."

Athena takes my hand and smiles. "Is it bad again?"

"Nothing that my boys can't fix." I give her the same answer every time she asks. I knew she was only asking out of kindness. I also knew that if she thought my boys weren't safe with me, she would call Dane and she hadn't done that yet. Hopefully she will never have to do that. "Any news on the Lycans?" Sebastian asks Damien.

"Last I checked, they were still in the training hall with Dane and the others." He replies

"The Hunter hasn't shot any then?"

"No. I think if he had, you would be the first to hear it." Eric's parents lived closest to the training ground.

"None look dead." Athena is looking out the window. "However, they are on the move."

Sebastian joins her. "Looks like those cabins are going to be put to use after all."

Athena elbows him and he winks at her. It almost reminded me of how Dane looks at me.

"I'm going to take the boys home." I thank them for watching the twins

"Are you sure? Athena asks. "Your Hunter acquaintance is on the move and not with the crowd."

Damien shoots out the door like a rocket and I give Evrin back to Sebastian. "I will be back as soon as I can."

Damien is already charging towards Abraxas demanding to know where he is going.

"To see a man about a book." Abraxas doesn't slow down.

"Why?" He pushes as I catch up with them both

"Curiosity."

"I'm going to need more than that."

Abraxas comes to a halt. He slowly turns his face towards Damien. "It was suggested to me. Now if you have a problem with that, I suggest you take it up with Dane."

His answer surprises me, "Dane told you to speak to Klaus?"

"I hear surfer boy is pretty good with research. So I am going to speak to him and see if there is a way we can help you with your request."

"Oh."

"Maybe I should accompany you." Damien mutters.

"No need, surfer boy is a Wolf and I am more than capable of handling shit on my own." There's a flash of anger in Damien's eyes. "Maybe you should go and help Dane."

Damiens cheeks pulse as he clenches his teeth, though he manages to keep his fists at his side. He stalks away before the rage bursts free.

"Why?" I mutter. "Why do you do that?"

"It's nothing." He snaps at me. His tone throws me off. Even when he threatened people, his tone was usually very level, pickled with amusement and a sarcastic comment. Now something else was going on.

Chapter 0299

"Did my darkness...."

"No." He mutters before I get a chance to finish

"Did...did something happen?" Athena had said there were no dead bodies.

"You don't need to concern yourself with my problems, Neah."

"Is Dorothy okay?"

"Dorothy is fine. Let it go!" He starts walking again and I run to keep up with his long strides.

"What is wrong?" It had to be something bad, but the guy could protect himself. I had seen it more than once.

He stops again. "I came here to do a job. The job is what I will do. I will try to help you with this other problem. After that, Dorothy and I are leaving." He looks up at the sky. "You are taking the piss!"

I was quite tempted to ask who he was talking to, but my mouth stays shut. When Abraxas starts moving again, I don't.

'He's plotting to kill us.' Nyx mutters 'It's easier to keep secrets when you don't have to talk to them.'

I close my eyes, trying to find my own way to block her when I smell Dane coming towards me.

He comes up behind me. His hands gliding over my hips and moving around until he laces his fingers together. "We will find a way to get through this."

"I hope so." I whisper back. "I'm just...."

"They will find a way. We will find a way."

"Not that. Abraxas is being weird."

"Brax is weird." He presses his lips against my neck

"Weirder than usual." I mutter. I knew something was up

"Maybe he is just pissed that he didn't get to kill anyone today. If he has been hunting and killing almost every day for the last twenty years, this must be a little boring for him."

****

"Well Dorothy?" I ask as she sits next to me in the office.

"I think I like them."

"Are you sure?"

She looks at the women sitting across the desk. She sweeps her bottom lip with her tongue and nods.

I didn't like using her to test people but Abraxas had requested for her to sit in whenever Lycans arrived so she could understand them. So far I had managed to make it a game for her and it was nice to have the company, right up until she looked at one and dug her nails into my hand.

Abraxas practically broke down the door to drag the guy out while I forced headphones over his daughter's ears.

Three weeks had passed since the first Lycans had turned up and now, we easily had a couple hundred here from all walks of life and so far, no issues.

Dorothy leans across the desk with stickers to give to the women who were watching her with fascination. "You passed." Dorothy beams at them. "You have to wear these so my Daddy can see."

They raise their brows at her. "You can go." I tell them. "One of the men will show you your accomodation." I did worry that we were putting Dorothy in danger, by letting her meet the Lycans. She is the daughter of a Hunter. "Can I go see Daddy now?" She mutters as she neatly puts away her stickers.

"Abraxas isn't back yet and Damien is with Raven." It wasn't always clear which one she was asking about as she continued to call both 'Daddy', much to Abraxas's annoyance. It also made them compete for her attention. "Is he forgetting about me again?" Her bottom lip sticks out.

"No, he never forgot about you before. You were just very hard to find." Her brow creases into a frown. "And he said he would be back by dinner time."

She looks up at the clock even though she couldn't tell the time very well and puffs out her cheeks. "Can I go play?"

"Sure." She hops off of the chair, leaving her stickers behind and races past Mallory coming in.

Mallory takes the seat opposite me and sighs heavily. She had started coming to sit in silence in the office, especially when it was just us. It had taken a long time, but I was finally getting used to Mallory's presence. Though today she seemed a little deflated.

Chapter 0300

"Everything good with Eric?"

""He wants kids." She doesn't even hold back.

"And you don't?"

"It's not that. His boys were killed not that long ago. I know they weren't his, but he still raised them."

"You think he is trying to replace them?"

"I don't know. I mean.... I never saw kids in my life, ever and then I was mated to Eric and things have gone crazy...."

"I never saw kids in my life either."

Her brown eyes lock with mine. "But you are a great mum. I became just like my dad and what if I pass that on?"

"You do know who you are talking to, right? My parents had me bound twice. My uncle had me bound twice. My parents tried to abandon me. How do you think I felt about having the twins?"

"Gotcha." she mutters

"Just talk to him."

"Good idea."

She doesn't move.

"Is there something else?"

She taps the armrest with the side of her fist. "I think... I think Abraxas might need to look at Maddie again."

"Why?"

"She hasn't said anything. But she's become a little off in the last couple of weeks. Some days she refuses to leave the house, muttering something about someone finding her. Other days she is quite happy to leave and goes back to her normal self." "She was in a messed up hostage situation."

"But the guy is dead. And no one else has turned up here looking for her."

'Told you.' Nyx murmurs. 'She is plotting to kill us'

'Not everyone is a murder.' I snap back

'But you are Neah. You like to see them lose their life. You like to watch their heart stop beating.'

'And I can't wait until I see you die.' I growl at my Lycan

She stops talking to me, finally.

"I will come over." I tell Mallory. "Is she home now?"

"I think so."

Maddie is sitting in a corner of the kitchen. Her knees are pulled up to her chest with her arms locked around them. Her chestnut eyes dart up to me and I notice how sweaty she is. "Is she ill?" "Shouldn't she heal."

"He's watching me." Maddie mutters

"Who?"

"He's always watching. It's wrong. It can't happen. He's watching."

Mallory looks at me with a face that screams 'help'

"Maddie, who is watching you?" I push

"My mate." She whispers as her eyes bulge and she starts to rock.

"The guy who marked you is dead." Mallory crouches down to her.

"Enzo's dead. Enzo's dead." Maddie mutters over and over. Her words dropped to a whisper. "He will kill me."

"Who?"

"My mate!"

Mallory stands up and pulls me away. "Do you think we need to take her to the hospital? It seems like she has lost the plot."

"I will link Damien to come help."

Damien puts Maddie on a hospital bed and drags Raven away from Jenson. Maddie continues to mutter how her mate will kill her as Raven gives her a quick once over.

Raven grabs a syringe from the draw and jabs Maddie who eventually passes out.

"What's wrong with her?" I quiz

"It seems she has the same issues you had." Raven mutters with no emotion. All this time she is spending at Jenson's bedside was not doing her any favours. She was becoming a shell of herself. She turns to leave. "What is that supposed to mean?" I push

"She fears her new mate." she glances back at Maddie, "She will be out for a few hours. Now if you will excuse me, I need to spend time with my brother."

"Her new mate?" I turn to Mallory and ask if Maddie had been seeing anyone.

"No, like I said she will leave the house for a couple of days and then spend days inside."

"Like she is avoiding them."

"I guess."

There was only one person that was in and out of the pack for days at a time. I almost wanted to laugh. Maddie is a Lycan, the very thing he hated.