Chapter 28

Song: I Don't Wanna Live Forever by ZAYN & Taylor Swift

[Chapter 28 - The Mute Alpha]

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*Jax's POV*

Darkness encircled me, blocking me from seeing my surroundings. My arms ached and screamed, begging for release. The bastards used silver chains to imprison me, not wanting to make escaping easy for me. I didn't know how long I was trapped here, or when I found the asshole's fancy cabin overlooking a cliff. These guys definitely didn't treat me as a guest or give me a warm welcome - I never expected them to - and greeted me with a silver bullet to my thigh.

I remembered stumbling to the ground as warm blood seeped through my pants and oozed onto the white snow. I didn't know what I expected when I followed their instructions. Maybe something peaceful or whatever. I was stupid and made an impulsive decision without much thought.

Now I hung from the ceiling, wrists above my head with chains that burned my skin. Along with my wrists, I was bound by my torso and ankles as well. I could barely move, and when I did, the metal rattled and burned me, forcing a groan to leave my throat. I leaned my head back against the cold wall and closed my eyes. At least Autumn was safe.

The wound on my thigh stung as the chilly air swept into the room. I could feel my body grow weaker due to the bloodloss, dehydration, and malnutrition, but I hoped the injury would heal soon. Although, silver made up the bullet, so it was difficult to tell.

The sound of a door opening echoed loudly, and a bright light shone into the room from the hallway as a man stood in the doorway. Dim lights on the ceiling flickered on as he stepped in. My body flinched as I squinted my eyes to adjust to the new light.

"Ah, Alpha Jaxton," the man's thickly accented voice greeted me with a smirk, his obsidian eyes glinting with amusement. "What a pleasure it is to finally meet you."

'I wish I could say the same about you,' I wanted to say. Instead, I gave him the best glare I could muster, hoping to intimidate him at least a little bit. Nevertheless, it only made the man's grin grow wider.

"You know," he started, ambling slowly towards me, "it is quite rude of you to not greet your host. Are you not the least bit curious about who I am?" When he got closer, I noticed his leather cloak and slacks covering his bronze skin as well as the raven hair tied into a ponytail and the facial hair decorating his scruffy face.

"Oh, that's right," the man chuckled. "I forgot how broken beyond repair you really are."

I growled at him, which made him grin. Was I broken?

"I am quite pleased that you are here. However, it pains me to know that you do not trust me enough to follow through with your part of the deal," he said, shoving his hand in one of the pockets in his pants. He stepped towards me some more, until he was directly a few feet in front of me. He casually pulled out an object from his pocket, one that glistened under the light. A pointed blade.

He must've caught my confused expression because he answered my thoughts. "I told you not to tell anyone," he said, dragging his finger across the blade while looking down at it.

"But I didn't," I thought to myself, wishing I could just tell him that.

"Give me one good reason why I should not slit your throat right now," he said, pressing the cool blade against my neck. The icy object created a shock to ripple through my body, and I released a groan, flinching away from the dagger. He must've enjoyed my reaction, because he swiped the sharpest part of the weapon across my stomach, puncturing my skin through the ripped fabric of my shirt. I cried out in pain as I felt the burn from the silver.

"That's what I like to hear," he chuckled. "Although, I would prefer to hear you speak. When's the last time you uttered a word?"

He gripped my jaw with his gloved hand and forced me to look at him. I shivered when I felt the tip of the blade drag across my arm. Then he slashed it across my chest, causing me to wince.

"You know, you look just like your father," he gritted out. "The motherfucker who killed my parents."

My dad murdered his parents? When?

"Aren't you going to apologize!" he shouted at me, the veins on his face and neck popping out. When no response came from me, his fingers curled around my neck in a death grip and he shoved the knife into my shoulder. "Apologize, you fucking mutt!"

Not a single noise left my mouth. He sighed in frustration and backed away. "Fine," he smirked, but his eyes still held the fury from moments ago. "I don't suppose you know who is coming to find you..."

I closed my eyes. I swear, if Autumn didn't listen to my note...

"I got a message from one of my 'companions', and they gave me some pretty interesting information... Would you like me to tell you?"

I glared at him through blurry eyes, consciousness fading in and out as my body stung and burned. I could feel the blood seep out of the wounds and soak into my shirt. He laughed when he saw the expression on my face and took it as his cue to continue.

"Apparently your little mate and Beta are on their way here. Right now they are a little west from us," he stated. "They somehow survived the plane crash I had planned, but it's whatever. I have something else in store for them..."

Dread filled my stomach as he flashed me a sinister smile.

"My companions will give them a warm welcome, while I will get you to speak."

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*Autumn's POV*

Large, white flecks fell from the thick clouds above us, coating the auburn fur of my wolf. Darkness surrounded us, the moon and stars hidden. The air felt chillier than earlier, but the warm coat on my body provided just enough heat for now.

Kian and Theo flanked my sides as we trekked across the heavy snow. The snowflakes shot down at a faster pace, making it difficult to see our surroundings. Eventually the wind picked up, whipping the snow into my eyes. We slowed down because it was nearly impossible to see where we were headed. Our wolves huddled closer together in an attempt to protect us from the blizzard.

'We need to stay close together,' Theo mindlinked, pressing his warm body into me. Kian did the same thing to my other side, creating a barrier between me and the bitter air.

Minutes passed by, and the storm only seemed to get worse. Our wolves shook as we continued on the best we could.

Even though chills traveled up and down my spine, my form shook violently when a vicious growl erupted from above us. I tilted my head up, ignored the burning sensation in my eyes, and, through the thick snow, I spotted a large blob standing on one of the ledges of the mountain. More appeared from other ledges as well. I couldn't make out what they were, but I knew they weren't friendly.

One of them leaped from their post and landed directly in front of us. I swore I felt the ground shake, but I was probably imagining it.

When the large animal neared, I noticed their glowing yellow eyes, untamed black fur, and strange scent. This was undoubtedly a rogue. Their "friends" decided to copy them and jump down from their spots as well, flanking the larger animal.

From the corner of my eyes I saw Theo baring his teeth at the rogues, warning them to back away. Of course they didn't listen. Rogues weren't ones to obey commands, because they preferred independence. Theo stepped in front of me, blocking me behind his and Kian's massive forms.

'Go find somewhere to hide,' Theo commanded, using an authoritative tone. My stubborn self wanted to argue, but the loud roar from the rogue caused me to flinch and recoil. I suddenly felt minuscule in comparison to the beasts before me. Theo's order seemed more appealing at the moment. However, I didn't want Theo and Kian to fight alone. They had no chance whatsoever against six rogues.

'No! I'm not leaving you guys!' I replied.

The rogues were the first ones to attack, pouncing onto Theo and Kian, who, fortunately, dodged out of the way and used that as an advantage.

The wind speed increased even more, blowing snow in my eyes. I felt something sharp dig into my side when I got distracted by the large amount of snowflakes whipping in my face. My wolf howled in pain, but I tried to ignore the stinging and defended myself. The large wolf  who slashed my side with their long nails made a move to bite my neck, but I slid out of the way and nipped at their thick back leg and kicked their stomach afterwards.

I didn't know how long this lasted, but I felt some sense of victory when the rogue I fought fell limp to the ground, blood seeping out of the wound I created on its neck. It was a good thing my dad showed me how to fight, or else I would've definitely lost. My confidence diminished, however, when something heavy landed on top of me. I gasped for air, but it was difficult to breathe. I yelped when they sunk their teeth into my shoulder.

The weight was gone within seconds as Kian's silvery wolf shook the rogue like a rag doll and tossed it into a large boulder on the side of a steep mountain. The impact along with the thunderous growl from the rogue made the ground rumble.

As Kian was about to pounce on the wounded wolf, I noticed the leader, I guessed because he was larger than the others, leap into the air in the direction of Kian. Before he turned his head, a blur of black zoomed by and jumped in front of Kian's stunned form, tackling the rogue to the ground. I watched as the two fought viciously, and I winced and cried out when the rogue dug its teeth into Theo's flesh. But Theo gave a fair share of bites.

I ran over to help, but a strange sound made me pause. I glanced around to find the owner of the sound, but I couldn't locate them. The "whumph" noise grew louder. It sounded like it came from above. My eyes widened when I spotted the large mass of white tumbling down the steep slope.

Shit!

'Theo!' I called out as I turned to make a run for it. My eyes widened in horror when I spotted Theo's wolf falling to the ground as a red substance dripped onto the ground.  Kian stumbled over his paws as he attempted to walk over to Theo's body, but his injured leg made it difficult.

The one rogue left, the one who attacked Theo, noticed the sliding slab of snow and dashed in the opposite direction. My legs carried me over to Kian, who happened to see the forming avalanche from above. I could detect the fear in his emerald eyes as he nudged Theo's body with his nose. It didn't work as he remained unconscious. What were we going to do? His wolf was too big for me to run with him on my back. I didn't know if Kian was capable of doing it alone, but it seemed like he was determined, so I helped him hoist his mate up and drape him over his back.

Unfortunately, the cloud of snow slid down the mountain at a faster pace, and I knew we weren't going to make it, but it was worth a try. We took off in a sprint in the same direction as that rogue, and I hoped we wouldn't encounter him again.

The snow caught up to us fast, right on our tails. My wolf panicked, and I ran as quick as I had ever gone before, but it was to no avail. I found myself surrounded by thick, white powder.

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