FATED TO ALPHA HUNTER BY VENNEH LISAH

𝐃𝐖𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕:

His little arm had a bruise, and he cried when I grabbed him, as if he thought I was about to hurt him. "Shh, shh. What's your name?" I asked him. He eyed Richie, clearly petrified of the man. He was all skin and bone, with big brown eyes that had no light, hollow cheeks, sunken-in eyes, and matted, knotted hair that sat on his shoulders.

"He doesn't talk," little Keon said, coming back out in her dirty pajamas. She was about nine years old, one of the oldest ones there, which I thought was strange. However, seeing a rogue child was even more bizarre, and I had a feeling it was just for show in case the King stopped by. But one thing was apparent: none of these children were being cared for properly, and that really ground my gears.

"Does he not talk because he can't or because he doesn't know how?" I asked her. She shrugged, and her eyes darted to Richie. It was clear she was scared of the man.

"Richie is leaving today; he is retiring. You can speak freely; he won't hurt you," I told Keon. She bit her lip before scratching the back of her hair.

"I heard Richie fighting with Scovia. Scovia wanted to take him and his brother; Richie and Lucy wouldn't let her," Keon told me.

"He has a brother?" I asked. "And where is Lucy?" I added.

"He had a brother; we haven't seen him for two days. He bit Richie when Richie smacked Osborne," Keon said, pointing to the boy in my arms. "Lucy packed up a few days ago with her pup, saying she was going to see her parents, but she hasn't returned." I knew Lucy was never coming back; she struck me as an opportunist who didn't see any value in Richie now that he was no longer king.

"His name is Osborne?" I confirmed with Keon, who nodded.

"What is the brother's name?" I asked.

"Lezlie, sir," Keon answered, and I nodded.

"And what about Scovia? Does she hurt you?" I inquired, looking at Keon.

Keon shook her head and looked nervously at Richie, who stared vacantly out of the window above the sink. He knew he had screwed up.

"Richie had the butcher hurt Scovia for sticking up for them. He broke her arm, but she's okay now," Keon said.

"Keon, can you find some clothes and socks for Osborne?" I requested, and she nodded, holding her arms out for him. Osborne went to her, and she took him upstairs while I turned Richie's wheelchair with my foot.

"Where is his brother?" I bellowed.

"The kid is a menace; he bit me like a savage," he sneered.

"Where is the boy?" I growled, and Travis glared at him while twisting his knife between his fingers as a warning.

"I suggest you answer him. We don't tolerate child abusers, but I assume you already know that," Travis cautioned him, and the man gulped.

"He's in the laundry room outside," Richie blurted. I stormed outside in search of it and found it hidden behind the shed. As I approached the wooden door, I could hear whimpering. Pushing it open, I found a boy inside a cage underneath the bench next to the washer. Anger coursed through me as I bent down and snapped the lock. The boy looked to be about Keon's age but was freezing cold and covered in bruises.

"Did Richie do this to you?" I asked. The boy shook his head and moved to the back of the cage.

"I won't hurt you. I'm here to help," I assured him.

"Help my brother, please," he whimpered, cringing away when I broke the front door off and opened the dog cage.

"Who put you in here? Was it Scovia? I won't hurt you, and I won't let them hurt you," I promised him while taking off my jacket. I draped it over his skinny frame, and he shook his head.

"No, she tried to help me," he told me.

"Who brought you out here, then? Richie couldn't have. He wouldn't have been able to get down the back steps," I inquired.

"The Butcher did, Sir," he replied, staring at my outstretched hand.

"Come on, you and your brother are coming home with me. I won't hurt you, but I need you to come inside where it's warm. Travis is inside making pancakes; you'll like him," I reassured him. He hesitated before dropping his hand in mine, and I pulled him out of the small cage.

"How old are you?" I asked him.

"I'm eight, sir," he replied. I nodded before noticing his bare feet, and I scooped him up. Carrying him inside, I walked into the kitchen.

"Where is Richie?" I asked, noticing his wheelchair was gone.

"He went to get more flour," Travis replied, winking at me.

I smirked, taking Lezlie to the living room and wrapping the surrounding blanket from the couch around him. Then, I went to get firewood and filled all the fireplaces, lighting them.

The smell of pancakes wafted through the place, and a young lady walked in just as I got the living room fireplace going. She was a young woman in her twenties with shoulder-length hair. The kids seemed to like her, jumping around and vying for her attention. She stopped and stared at me as I stood up.

"Who are you?" she asked, looking at me nervously. She sniffed the air before baring her neck to me.

"I am Dwight. Travis is out there. I assume you are Scovia?" She nodded her head.

"Richie?" she asked.

"He's in the basement," I told her, and she nodded before her brows pinched. She opened her mouth to say something before spotting Lezlie by the fire, and her eyes widened. Osborne was sitting on her lap. She rushed over, and I gripped her arm.

"I won't hurt them. I am not Richie or Lucy," she spat at me, and I let her go.

She rushed over and fussed over them. I sighed before walking to the door. "Help Travis feed the children. You just got promoted," I told her, and she nodded. Walking to the kitchen, I could hear groaning and pained wails coming from the basement.

"Want a hand?" Travis asked, and I looked at him, covered in flour.

"Nope," I told him, snatching the knives from the counter and opening the basement door. I heard Travis flick the radio on, which was sitting on the windowsill and blasting music.

Stomping down the steps. Richie tried crawling away where he had been pushed down the stairs, his legs tangled in the wheelchair as he clawed at the ground.

"Change of plans. I wanna hear you scream," I told him. Reaching down, I gripped his hair and yanked his head back.

"And screaming you will scream," I snarled.

Travis had to keep turning the volume of the music up because Richie's screams echoed around the basement.

Eventually, his screams cut out completely, his body bloody and lifeless, having skinned that monster in the name of Richie alive.

Washing my hands in the filthy sink, I dried them using a hessian bag I found around then headed for the stairs with a shrug. The rickety old steps creaked under my weight as I climbed them. Opening the door, I shook my head when I saw Travis shaking his ass and dancing to the music he had blaring loudly. Travis was still wearing his floral apron while doing the dishes.

Scott came into the kitchen with another pile of plates clutched in her hands, a tea towel draped over her shoulder. She gave me a wary look. She hesitated for a second, then hurried past me toward the small kitchen. I watched as she set the plates on the bench beside Travis. He grabbed her hand and twirled her around before pulling her to dance with him, tugging her flushed body to flush against his.

As I stood by the basement door, he finally noticed me and smirked, releasing Scovia before drying his hands on his apron.

"It's about time; I thought you were trying on Richie's skin and planning to wear it as a suit with how long you were taking," Travis said.Scovia stared at me with wide eyes, but when I turned to look at her, she quickly averted her gaze.

Travis removed his apron and placed it on the counter before giving Scovia a quick peck on the cheek. "I'll see you later, Dollface," he said, winking at her. I shook my head as he headed towards me but then stopped at the door leading to the hallway. "On second thought..." he turned back and grabbed the apron from the counter.

"You don't want this, do you?" he asked Scovia, to which she shook her head. I was pretty sure she would have given him her kidney if it meant he would get away from her. She might have even cut it out herself.

"Good, good, it looks better on me anyway," Travis said, chucking the item over his shoulder and sauntering out.

"Ah, Richie?" Scovia asked me as I turned to follow him.

"No need to worry, I already hung the body up to dry. Just let it air out for a bit," I told her, following Travis back through the area. I stopped when I passed Osborne and Lezlie, who were both still sitting in the same spot, huddled underneath a blanket, watching the other children play with some puzzles.

"I will be back in a few hours to pick you up. I have someone I want you both to meet," I told them. Osborne rested his head on Lezlie's shoulder, sucking his thumb.

"Who?" Lezlie asked me, hugging his brother closer.

"A woman named Zara. You will like her, and she will love both of you. She will take good care of you," I told him. He chewed his lip while looking at his little brother, then nodded. So I turned on my heel and walked outside.

Outside, I was confronted by Alpha Dylan and Alpha Brian, who were having a heated argument with Travis.

"Can I help you?" I asked them, coming behind Travis and stepping over the small brick fence that ran along the footpath.

"Do you mean 'Can I help you?' This isn't your pack, and we were called here about a disturbance," Alpha Dylan stated.

"Is that so? Well, as far as I know, werewolves are lower on the food chain. And the King's pack can go anywhere. So I suggest you move along before you meet the real big bad wolf," I snarled. Alpha Dylan looked at Travis and me, then focused back on me and scanned me from head to toe.

"Well, the King never informed either of us that you would be showing up. If we had known, we would have prepared for your arrival," Alpha Dylan added, glancing around nervously.

"No preparations are necessary. If you'll excuse me, I have a butcher who needs to be taken care of," I told them before smiling and shoving past them both. I opened the driver's door, and Travis tossed me the keys. I snatched them out of the air and was about to climb into the car.

"Exactly why are you here?" Alpha Brian asked.

"This Alpha is a little slow. No wonder the pack is going broke. There's not a single brain cell between the two of them," Travis said, and I smirked at his words.

"The two rogue boys inside will be leaving with me when I return. If you touch them, you'll be hanging alongside your alpha friend Richie in the basement," I warned them before climbing into the car.

They glanced at the pack house behind them, and we drove off. Travis gave me directions to the butcher's shop in town, which happened to be in the small town square. As we entered the small shop, we received a few nervous glances. A huge glass display fridge took up half the store, but I could see a room out the back behind the till.

Pushing through the hinged door beside the fridge display, I went out the back of the small store to the freezer room. As I approached the enormous steel door, I could hear muffled yelling. Twisting the handle, I yanked it open and stepped inside. The room was freezing, and I shivered instantly.

"Oh, a little frosty in here," Travis chuckled. However, my attention was solely on the butcher, who stared at us with big brown eyes. He was in his mid-forties, still dressed in plaid pajama pants, his hair a mess and sticking up at odd angles. His teeth chattered, and his lips were blue. His chest was bare, and his nipples were hard, and goosebumps covered every inch of him.

Travis had skillfully tied him up, so there was no way he could have shifted to get out of his restraints. I stood guard as Travis dealt with him. His screams echoed around us before they finally died out, and Travis emerged looking exhausted. I didn't even want to know what he did to the monster. There was nothing that we hated more than child abusers and pedophiles, and the whole Kings pack loved and protected children.