Marked by the Alphas

Chapter 210: Chapter 210

Elara POV

My heart is pounding, and I can hardly breathe, but I am frozen to the spot. No matter how hard I will my body to move, it does not respond. Time stands still and has lost all meaning.

“Can you guys move?” I mind link Kane and Axel, but they do not respond.

“Lily, are you there?” I try, but her only response is a soft purr.

Strangely enough, I am not afraid. The light is warm and comforting, but it also makes me feel small and insignificant.

“Your sacrifice doesn’t go by unnoticed,” the voice continues. “And your effort will be rewarded.”

I open my mouth to ask what is happening, but my vocal cords are not responding. It is frozen like the rest of my body.

“I cannot grant you immortality,” the voice says. “But your love is pure, and you’re fighting for my children. Therefore, I will grant you each an opportunity to return if you should die. But you will return as a human. The choice will be yours.”

And just like that, the light is gone, and we are standing like statues, holding hands. The atmosphere is loaded with something that I can only describe as pure and holy, and I am too afraid to move or speak. I do not want to disturb the aura.

“I can’t see,” Kane finally breaks the silence.

“Me neither,” Axel replies.

“Our eyes will adjust momentarily,” I whisper, blinking rapidly.

“Guys, was that who I think it was?” Axel asks softly.

“I think so,” I reply, hesitant to say it out loud.

“The Moon Goddess,” Kane whispers, and a shiver runs up my spine. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

“Holy shit,” I mutter, and suddenly my knees are weak, and I let go of their hands and sit in the dirt.

I stare at my hands until my eyes adjust, and I gasp when I look at my left wrist.

“What’s wrong?” Kane asks, kneeling beside me.

“Look at your wrists,” I mutter, holding mine in the moonlight. Three overlapping circles around a wolf symbol glow brightly. “Are yours the same?”

“Yes,” they reply simultaneously.

“And you should stand up and look at your feet,” Axel says.

I do as he says and gasp softly when I look at the ground. The symbol on our wrists is also edged into the ground. I gently rub my foot over the markings, but it does not disappear.

“Everything is so obvious, and yet, I have a million questions,” I mutter.

“I feel it too,” Kane says, taking my hand. “But I think we should keep this quiet. At least until we can comprehend this ourselves.”

“Agreed,” Axel nods.

“Agreed,” I say.

Mason POV frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

There are not a lot of people at the lodge when I arrive, and I sigh inwardly. Just another consequence of the Council’s pets. People are in hiding after what happened in Stillwood.

I order a beer and sit at the bar while I scout the crowd. I know most of them, and not one is a tracker or has similar skills which can help my cause. I am about to give up and try another location when Carlos and Tom enter. They are not bright, but what they lack intellectually, they make up for with cruelty. Those bastards do not have a conscience.

“Hey, guys,” I call out to them. “Can I buy you a cold one?”

“Hell, yeah,” Carlos grins, exposing his yellow teeth. “We’re broke as fuck.”

“Yet, you’re in a bar,” I state the obvious.

“We were going to scam them,” Tom whispers. “Now, you’re saving us the trouble.”

“So, I take it you’re free to do a job for me?” I smile, winking the bartender over, and they order their drinks.

“No way,” Carlos shakes his head. “Haven’t you heard what happened in Stillwood? We’re leaving the state.”

“I know what happened,” I reply dryly. “I was there and killed those monsters.”

“Bullshit,” Tom calls my bluff, but I keep my composure.

“I don’t care what you think,” I shrug nonchalantly. “I’m alive, and they’re not. Neither am I running away like a pussy when things get tough.”

“Hey, man,” Carlos glares at me. “Don’t let me wring your neck be the last thing I do before leaving.”

“What’s the job, and how much?” Tom asks.

“Dude, what the fuck?” Carlos sneers. “I’d rather be alive and poor than rich and dead.”

“Or you can be rich and alive,” I grin. “How does a million sound?”

“Please,” Carlos snorts. “You don’t have that money.”

“No, I don’t,” I agree. “But the Council does. They’re offering a million and pack status to any rogue who brings in the alphas’ mate. And I just happen to know how to find her.”

“Then why don’t you do it yourself?” Tom asks suspiciously.

“Because the Council saw me with her in Stillwood when we killed those things,” I reply. “I was about to hand her over to them, but her mates showed up, and I got screwed. I barely escaped. Also, there’s a chance that I might’ve killed Kane. I beat the shit out of him, but I had to run before I could finish him. I don’t know if he’s alive or not. We’ll split the money. I’ll settle for a hundred, and you can split the nine hundred.”

“I don’t know,” Carlos says hesitantly. “I don’t want to fight those things.”

“Aren’t you listening?” I ask, irritated. “You’re not going to fight anyone or anything. I want your help tracking down the female. We grab her and go.”

“I’m in,” Tom nods, and I look at Carlos in anticipation.

“Fine,” he reluctantly agrees. “Only grab and go. You’ll have to pay more for anything else.”

“Deal,” I smile, lifting my beer and toasting to it.