My Fated Alpha's Cruel Game

Elena’s POV

By dawn, the entire pack had emerged to survey the devastation that stretched beyond the packhouse walls. The attack had been far more comprehensive than anyone realized. The enemy had struck the town itself, which explained the delayed response from our warriors and why reinforcements never arrived when we desperately needed them.

The sound of something disturbing outside drew me downstairs. When I opened the front door, my blood turned cold. Marcus had a shirtless warrior bound to a wooden post, methodically delivering lashes with a whip. Each crack of the leather against skin echoed through the morning air.

I sprinted toward them and seized Marcus’s arm, shoving him away from his victim with enough force to make him stumble.

"What the hell do you think you’re doing?" The words tore from my throat.

"He was supposed to be here last night. He failed to show when his Alpha needed protection." Marcus’s voice carried a dangerous growl as his eyes flashed with fury.

I looked at the warrior again, recognition hitting me like a physical blow. Of course I knew him.

"He wasn’t protecting you because he was protecting his own damn family. Are you completely out of your mind?" My voice rose with each word.

"I don’t give a shit if he was protecting his family, his children, or his dying grandmother. When the Alpha calls, warriors respond." Marcus’s shout carried across the gathering crowd.

"You’ve lost your fucking mind. This is exactly why this pack has fallen apart. You have absolutely no clue how to lead these people." The fury in my chest threatened to consume me.

"Everything went to hell the moment you disappeared." His accusation hung in the air like poison.

"Don’t you dare put this on me. I left because of your treatment. Because I couldn’t stand being your mate while you treated me like some disposable plaything, all while you played happy family with whatever pack slut caught your attention." My voice carried far enough that the growing crowd of onlookers caught every word.

The immediate wave of whispers and shocked murmurs that followed made me realize something significant.

"Unbelievable. They don’t know, do they? You never told them why you transformed into such a complete bastard after I left." A bitter laugh escaped me. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Of course I didn’t tell them." His response was flat, emotionless.

"You never mentioned that I faked my death. That I rejected you. That I did everything in my power to disappear so completely that you’d never find me." Each revelation hit the crowd like individual bombs.

"Why would I share that information? They already despised you. They never showed you any respect." His words cut, but they didn’t surprise me.

"Right, because you and your psychotic father made sure of that. Speaking of him, where is the old bastard? I’d love to have a conversation with him." I scanned the crowd, knowing he had to be lurking somewhere nearby.

"He’s dead." Someone from the audience called out, but I couldn’t hold back my laughter.

"If you actually believe that bullshit, then you deserve to be terrorized by this incompetent asshole. He’s not dead. He’s very much alive and hiding somewhere on pack territory. Where was he last night when his precious son needed backup? Obviously didn’t care enough to help you." I let my gaze sweep over the crowd, watching doubt creep into their expressions.

"The only reason we were attacked was because of you. They came for you." Marcus’s finger jabbed toward my face as his voice reached a near scream.

"And because they wanted her, you now know how to eliminate them. Elena killed one last night. But you weren’t planning to share that crucial information with the pack, were you?" Damien’s voice cut through the tension as he descended the front steps.

"You told us they were immortal." Another pack member’s voice carried accusation and betrayal.

"I believed they were. Until last night proved otherwise." Marcus’s admission was barely audible.

"But you kept that to yourself. You’ve spent all morning feeding us fear instead of hope. You told us they’d return and anyone who failed to protect you would face punishment. You convinced us they were coming back to slaughter us all." A man’s voice rose above the crowd, and when I turned to face Marcus, I found myself speechless.

He’d been deliberately spreading terror instead of truth. Keeping them paralyzed with fear rather than giving them the hope that could save their lives. He wanted them broken and dependent on him.

The rage that had been simmering beneath the surface erupted. My entire body began trembling with the force of it, and even Damien’s presence beside me couldn’t calm the storm building inside.

Without conscious thought, I drew back my arm and drove my fist straight into Marcus’s face with every ounce of strength I possessed.

He crashed backward, hitting the ground hard as his hands flew to his bloodied nose. Damien moved quickly to untie the tortured warrior while I stood over Marcus’s fallen form.

I drove my boot into his stomach, feeling the satisfying rush of air leaving his lungs. Then I dropped down, grabbed fistfuls of his shirt, and hauled him up just enough to deliver punch after devastating punch to his face.

"Help me." His plea to the pack came out garbled through split lips and blood. He extended his hand toward the crowd, expecting rescue.

Not a single pack member stepped forward. Not one showed any inclination to intervene on his behalf. Many turned their backs entirely, unable or unwilling to witness more of what they clearly felt he deserved. Others simply walked away.

I rose to my feet, Marcus’s blood coating my knuckles and staining my clothes. The remaining pack members watched me with unreadable expressions. Whether they approved or condemned my actions, I couldn’t tell and didn’t care.

Their approval had never mattered to me before. Why should it start now?

I walked back toward the packhouse, leaving Marcus groaning in the dirt behind me. Skye sat in the living room with the children, and Damien followed me through the front door.

"What’s your next move?" Damien asked, but I ignored his question entirely.

I headed straight for the basement door and descended into the darkness where our captured enemy waited. The creature seemed to sense my approach before I even reached the bottom of the stairs.

I grabbed a wooden crate and positioned it directly in front of his cage, settling onto it while Damien maintained his distance several feet behind me.

"So my bite kills you. That much I’ve confirmed firsthand. What other parts of me are lethal to your kind?" I kept my voice conversational, almost friendly.

The creature remained motionless, studying me with those inhuman eyes.

"Don’t insult my intelligence by pretending you can’t understand me. My mother filled me in on your previous visits when I was younger." I leaned forward slightly, maintaining eye contact.

"I’m impressed she retained those memories." His voice carried an unsettling quality that made my skin crawl.

"She remembered everything. Now answer my question. What else about me can end your existence? My claws? My blood? Something else entirely?" I waited patiently for his response.

"I won’t provide you with information about our vulnerabilities." His refusal was exactly what I’d expected.

"Smart choice. You’re clearly more intelligent than Marcus gave you credit for. He obviously wasn’t conducting the right kind of experiments on you. Don’t worry about that anymore. You belong to me now, and I promise you this. Marcus showed you mercy compared to what’s coming. I suggest you prepare yourself accordingly." I stood and headed back toward the stairs, leaving him to contemplate exactly what that meant.