Marked by the Alphas

Chapter 207: Chapter 207

Axel POV

We jump up as one and rush to the room. My heart jumps into my throat when I look at my brother. He is sitting upright, but his face is still swollen and bruised beyond recognition. Right now, we do not even look like family, let alone identical twins.

“How are you feeling?” I ask softly, cautiously sitting down beside him. I am too scared to touch him for fear that I might hurt him.

“It’s too painful to speak,” he mind links me. “But to answer your question, I feel like shit.”

“You also look like it,” I smirk. “You should shift, Kane, so your nose can heal. We did what we could, but none of us is a doctor.”

“Or a plastic surgeon,” Elara adds, smiling.

“I can hardly stand,” he replies. “I don’t know if I can shift.”

“How can we help?” Elara asks, kneeling in front of him. “Because we need you alive, and we can’t stay here, it’s not safe.”

The room turns silent with anticipation; everyone is waiting for Kane’s answer. He is the only one who knows how much his body can take.

“Help me outside,” he finally says. “I’ll shift.”

“I’ll carry you,” I say, jumping up.

“No, dumbass,” Kane replies. “I can walk, but my face is too swollen, and I can’t see shit. You’ll have to guide me outside.”

“At least your sense of humour is intact,” Elara chuckles.

“Come on,” I say, taking Kane’s hand. “Let’s get you outside.”

“If you deliberately bump me into a table or something, I’ll get Elara to kick your ass,” Kane warns me, and I laugh happily.

I know my brother. He is in pain, he feels helpless and ashamed. Cracking silly jokes is his way of avoiding further humiliation. I feel it, too. It is embarrassing that Mason singlehandedly defeated us and that Elara had to rescue us. We were supposed to protect her, not the other way around. I do not care if it sounds misogynistic. We are alphas, dammit, we have pride. And a shitload of it.

Elara and I guide Kane outside as the rest follow us. We do not wander too far from the cottage, because Kane needs his strength and energy to shift.

“Are you ready?” I ask, letting go of him.

“Yup,” he nods, and we all take a step back, allowing him space to shift.

Kane groans in pain as he kneels on the grass, and I look at Elara with concern. I do not want to admit it, but I do not think Kane can shift. He is too weak.

A deafening scream of pain and agony echoes around us as Kane cries out and shifts. But my relief is short-lived when I look at his wolf. His snout is crooked, and his eyes are red with blood. He tries to stand, but his legs give in, and he lands with a thud.

“Oh, Goddess,” Elara whimpers, then she shifts and lies beside Kane, supporting him with her body.

I walk closer, kneel by his side, and gently stroke his fur.

“How bad is it?” Kane asks.

“Let’s just say I’m the pretty twin,” I grin, trying to lighten the mood.

“Impossible,” he snorts. “It doesn’t matter how malformed I am, I’ll always be the pretty one.”

“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” Elara says, licking Kane’s snout. “More importantly, how do you feel?”

“Honestly, I do feel better,” Kane replies. “The pain is gone, and I feel less tired.”

“Then it’s working!” Elara shrieks, rubbing her face against his neck. freēwēbnovel.com

Kane POV

I stare at myself in the mirror and exhale in relief. The swelling has gone down, my sight is restored, but my nose is a little crooked, and I have a splitting headache. Not that it bothers me, I have survived. I am just grateful I had enough strength to shift and heal.

“Hi,” Elara says behind me, snakes her arms around my waist and presses her cheek against my back. “Are you okay?”

“Yes,” I reply, turning around and kissing her lovingly. “All thanks to you.”

“It’s also a little my fault,” she sighs. “If I didn’t stop you and Axel from kicking his ass, he would’ve never gotten the upper hand.”

“Not true,” I smile. “We underestimated him. We deserved the ass kicking.”

“Nobody deserves what he did to you,” she replies, her eyes glowing with anger.

“I ...”

“People, come on!” Braden shouts, interrupting me. “We need to go.” fгeewebnovёl.com

“He’s right,” I say, taking her hand and leading her outside.

I have shifted and gone for a run, spreading my scent. It will take the Council’s pets only moments to find us.

“Good choice on the vehicle,” I smile, making myself comfortable on the passenger seat. The Q7 has seven seats, and we all fit inside comfortably. “It has speed and space.”

“Happy to help,” Mindy says from the back as Braden starts the car and pulls away.

Mindy starts babbling about car alarms, but I tune her out when Braden’s phone rings.

“Quiet!” Branden snaps when he reads the name on the screen.

“Hi, Orson,” Braden answers the phone. “We’re driving and you’re on speaker phone.”

“Good, it saves time for you to repeat it to everyone,” Orson replies. “I just learned that four Council guards and two subjects are on their way to Birch Street.”

“Isn’t that ...”

“Yes,” Orson interrupts Braden. “They’re on their way to Isolde. Their orders are to bring her in alive.”

“Shit,” I mutter, clenching my fist. Alive is so much worse than dead. It could mean they want her for information or testing. Either way, it will include torture and pain.

“If you want my help,” Orson continues. “You’ll get her out of there in time.”

“We’ll do it even if you don’t help us,” Elara snaps from the back. “I promised her we would look after her.”

“How long before they’re there?” Braden asks, accelerating.

“Roughly an hour,” Orson replies.

“We’ll be there in forty minutes,” Braden replies and disconnects the call.