Alpha Killian
Chapter 18

The smell of sunblock hung in the air, a telltale sign that summer was in full effect. The sounds of teens splashing in the cool water could be heard, along with the sound of laughter and chatter. Summer was finally here, and I found myself excited to spend it with some human friend's I had made from school.

I slung my beach bag over my shoulder, feeling relieved that I had remembered to pack a towel and some water. Beer and other fruity drinks could be smelled with the passing breeze.

I turned to a pretty blonde girl, Maria. I had met her only two months prior, becoming friends instantaneously. Brandon and Hazel came to the forefront of my mind. I could've invited them, but I didn't.

Maria was one of the more popular girls at school, and I felt lucky to have been the target of her friendship. Brandon had graduated already, and Hazel happened to be home schooled. I had neither of them to help get me through the monotonous days of high school.

Maria began to peel off her short tank top and shorts, leaving herself b**e except for a scanty pink b****i that she wore. Typically I wasn't so self conscious about nudity, living in a pack and all, but these kids weren't from my pack. I slipped my t-shirt over my shoulders dropping my shorts around my ankles. While Maria's b****i showed how confident she was, I was glad mine offered some protection.

Maria and I laid out on our towels, Maria insisting she needed to work on her tan. I simply agreed with her, not bothering to mention my porcelain skin refused to darken in even the slightest shade. I lathered on sunscreen religiously, not wanting to suffer another horrific sunburn.

Maria caught the eye of one of the most popular boys in school; Damien Jackson. Typical gorgeous bad boy. A well placed smirk in our direction sent butterflies swarming around my stomach.

I had never had a boyfriend before, only rarely catching the attention of the other males in our pack. I couldn't help the insane thought that fluttered through my head, fueled by a teenage crush. "What if he's our mate?" The question accompanied the butterflies swarming in my stomach.

"I think Damien's into you." Maria smirked, flicking her radiant blonde hair over her shoulder. Her statement sent a blush forming throughout my body, disbelief clouding my features.

I looked nothing like Maria, with her slender body and long legs. Maria had this model-like quality about her, she radiated with confidence.

"You think so?" I found myself asking her, both of our eyes locked on a shirtless Damien. Damien was by far one of the most attractive males in our highschool, and I found myself surprised that he was simply a human. The chances of a werewolf having a human mate were extremely rare, but there's still that small chance.

"Look at him, he practically can't keep his eyes off of you." Maria purred, shooting me one of her sly smirks.

I met Damien's honey colored eyes, reigning in my excitement as he sent me a smirk and a half wave. His sandy blonde hair was still semi-wet and tousled from swimming in the pond. The pond was conveniently nestled in the woods, just on the edge of town. These human's had no idea, but the pond was a mere fifty feet from the pack's border.

I listened to Maria's usual chatter, my mind still on the topic of Damien. While Maria gossiped about some of the other girls, I simply nodded my head and added a few short responses to keep her occupied.

"Claire..." A deep voice I had only heard a handful of times came from over my shoulder, sending excited waves down my back.

I felt my head turn on it's own accord, locking eyes with Damien Jackson, Maria smirked at my bewildered expression, sending a elbow gently into my rib cage.

"Uh, h-hi." I smiled up at Damien's towering frame. In a move I had watched many times, he raised his hand to run his fingers through his already drying hair,

"Do you wanna come swim with me?" He smiled down at me, his athletic build open for me to see.

I'd be lying if I said I hadn't had a crush on Damien for quite some time. He was the first guy I had actually noticed, and took a liking to. He was a troublemaker when he wanted to be, getting in a few fights at school. For whatever reason, I found myself attracted to him.

"S-sure!" I choked out after a pointed look from Maria. I stood from my towel and followed Damien to the water, turning my head to see Maria flash me an encouraging smile.

I followed Damien into the water and swam for what seemed like hours. I found myself growing more comfortable with Damien, splashing him and jumping on his back when he wasn't looking. I had that same feeling all girls do when they begin to have the best summer of their lives, that feeling of prospective romance lingered in my bones, filling me with joy and excitement.

"Follow me, Claire." Damien gave me his lopsided smile, his honeycomb eyes urging me to follow as he led me down a small path into the woods.

Any sense of urgency left my mind, my legs carrying me to where I wanted to go.

"Where are we going?" I found myself asking. My voice was free of unease, simply curious. I was too innocent to notice the mischievous glint in his eyes, or the small metal thing he concealed in his hand. If my wolf had developed before this day, all of this could have been avoided. My wolf would've warned me of the dangers that remained just out of my reach.

I followed him down the trail for another two minutes, until we came to a small clearing, a large oak tree sitting off to the side. Damien led me over to the oak tree, gently pushing me against it's base as he wrapped his hands around my waist. Butterflies swarmed in my stomach at his cool touch, and I found myself giving him a small smile, my eyes locked on his own.

"I've been wanting to do this all day." He breathed, his face leaning towards mine in what seemed like slow motion. I had time to ponder the situation, to internally freak out over what would be my first kiss.

I let my eyes close, anticipating his lips on my own. I felt his lips brush mine, once, twice, and then settle on my own.

Beer lingered on his breath, making the kiss equally sweet yet bitter at the same time. We stayed like that for a few moments, our lips gently moving together. The kiss quickly became harder, his fingers digging into my hips with a sense of urgency.

The butterflies that swarmed merrily in my stomach turned into a nest of wasps, angry and swarming as they stung my insides.

Damien pushed his hips into my own, deepening the kiss until I winced at the pressure on my lips. I moved my hands until I was pushing against his chest, mumbling against his lips frantically. The excitement had vanished, and his touch was cold, much too cold.

"What took you so long?" Damien smirked, turning his head at the sound of someone else coming down the trail. My heart clenched and my stomach rolled, threatening to spill it's contents.

"Run, Claire." A distant voice in my head urged, but it was so quiet, so meaningless against the fear that froze me in place.

Another guy, someone I recognized as Damien's best friend, came down the trail, his eyes taking in the scene before him. For a split second, I thought he would notice the fear on my face and come to my aid. I felt my hope c***h and b**n as an ear splitting grin came over his features.

Blake Luck made his way into the small clearing, and by the glint in his eyes, I felt like a trapped animal. Blake was just as good looking as Damien, but he had never caught my eye. His dark hair was long and shaggy, but his body was just as athletic as Damien's. Something about Blake had always set me on edge.

"Look what you've got here, looks like a little kitten." Blake smiled coldly, his amused eyes flicking from Damien to me.

"Run, Claire!" The voice in my head spoke a little louder this time, loud enough to snap me out of my terrified trance. I felt my eyes flicker between Damien and a quickly approaching Blake. Without any control over my own feet, I took off in the direction of the forest line. All I needed to do was get onto pack territory, everything would be fine if I did that.

A sharp pain radiated through the back of my head, slamming me down on the forest floor. The impact shot through my back forcing black spots to cloud my vision as I struggled to breathe.

When the black spots faded, and I could s**k in a sharp breath, I noticed a smiling Damien standing over me, in his hand was a clump of my hair.

A whimper escaped my parted lips as Blake's face came into my line of vision. My ears were still ringing from being pulled to the ground, but I knew from the slight movement of their lips that they were talking about me. "...Take her in..." Damien said something along those lines to a smirking Blake.

"Still...have fun with her...until then." Blake smiled cruelly at Damien, who shrugged.

Slowly, Blake bent down and pulled out something that seemed to glint cruelly in the sunlight. With a flick of his finger, a silver blade popped out of the handle.

My throat constricted in fear, as I locked eyes with Blake. His eyes were so unusually flat, so empty. It was like my body and mind were working on overdrive, I found myself noticing everything. I could smell the sunblock on our skin, a smell I had once enjoyed assaulted my nose. The sun beating down on us felt hot and welcoming, but then why did I feel so cold? I felt like someone had dunked me in an ice bath.

"Now now, kitten. Were just going to have some fun before were done with you." Blake grinned at me, letting his knife trace over my stomach in a slow pattern. Just when I thought I couldn't get more afraid, his words sent another wave of terror rushing through my body. The silver from the knife scorched my skin, and from the widening smile on his face, he knew the blade would effect me this way.

I ground my teeth together, each wave of agony rolling over me until I wanted nothing more than to pass out. From Blake's smile at my reaction to the silver blade, him and Damien had to know what I was. What they wanted with me, I had no idea.

Blake began to press harder, using the tip of the blade to draw blood just above my navel. Another wave of pain rushed through me, freezing cold yet somehow burning my skin as the scarlet drops seeped through the slice on my stomach. A whimper escaped my lips, prompting Blake to press harder with the silver blade. Blood ran off the side of my stomach in a stream of crimson, it's coppery scent filling my nose as I tried not to gag. Blake's other hand began fumbling with my bathing suit bottoms, trying to force them down my hips while he used my stomach as a canvas for his cruelty.

The cold encompassing my body was becoming unbearable, but the sight of Blake trying to remove my bottoms sent a jolt of awareness through me. I lurched my body into a sitting position, trying to claw my way to my feet when something ripped through my abdomen. I swore I could hear the tearing of my skin as the knife sunk into my hip. The same freezing yet burning sensation rushed through the wound in my stomach, only this time it was so much worse. Black spots lingered at the edges of my vision, threatening to pull me into the darkness at any moment.

Something or rather someone had grabbed a hold of my ankle, yanking me down as my head bounced against the forest floor. I could hardly feel the pain in my head, as it was nothing compared to the wound in my stomach. I watched helplessly as Blake continued his task of removing my bottoms, my scarlet blood watering the earth as if to mark what had happened here today.

Somewhere deep in the back of my mind, I remembered a conversation my father had with the Alpha of our pack.

Something about hunters, werewolf hunters. That small part of my mind that was safe from the searing pain, wondered if Damien and Blake were hunters. I'm sure I wouldn't have the chance to ask.

"I'm surprised the little wolf isn't fighting harder." Damien commented, watching as Blake lifted the blade and traced another line down my stomach. My quiet whimpers filled the clearing, and each of the boys fed on the sounds of my pain and fear. I felt the knife being lifted from my skin, just long enough to cut my top off of me. I held in a sob as I felt cold hands grab at my b*****s, tugging and pulling at me.

This wasn't how I wanted things to go. I felt stupid in that moment, as if this entire thing was my fault. My stupid crush clouded my judgement. Was I to blame for all of this?

I could hear Blake snicker as he fondled my b*****s, bending his head down to leave beer scented kisses on them. I turned my head away, not wanting to see what was going to happen next. I couldn't help but pray I would have one of those moments where my soul disconnects from my body, shielding me from the pain I was about to be put through.

I wasn't sure which I heard first, Damien mumbling "s**t" under his breath, or the feminine gasp from the edge of the trail. I lazily turned my head towards the source, and found a horrified Maria watching the scene unfold. With her wide eyes glancing between me, Blake, and Damien she bounded into the forest.

"Go after her." Damien snapped at Blake who shot him an incredulous look.

"You always get to have fun with them. I wanted this one." Blake glared at Damien who stood his ground.

"If you catch the other b***h you can have her." Damien snapped, shoving Blake toward where Maria had ran.

"See you next time, kitten." Blake smiled at me, his eyes gleaming wildly with the thrill of the hunt as he bounded into the forest after Maria.

"Such a shame, Claire." Damien sighed apologetically, kneeling down to where my bleeding body was. His honey eyes held no remorse as he pulled my b****i bottoms off my crumpled body.

"Y'know, I think I'll do you this one favor." Damien smirked, untying the string on his shorts.

"Typically I wouldn't f**k one of your kind, but you're too tempting to pass up. What kind of wolf doesn't even fight back." He smirked, his voice coming off as gentle, while his eyes roamed me hungrily. He forced his lips down on my own, and I wondered if I would see the bruise the next day. The bitter taste of beer flooded my mouth, and this time lyrics did gag.

Damien picked up where Blake had left off, trailing his mouth down my neck until his lips reached the sensitive skin of my b*****s. I let out a sob as I felt his hand travel the length of my body, settling on my most sensitive spot. The tears I had been too terrified to release, came pouring from my eyes as I felt a finger push its way inside of me. Damien's eyes were clouded with I**t, his knife sitting just far enough out of his reach as his hands continued to roam my body. "Now, Claire! This is your only chance!" The voice in my head screamed, and what felt like adrenaline rushed through my body. The sensation was unlike anything I had ever felt before, and I knew without a doubt that my wolf had finally surfaced.

Another consciousness flooded through my mind, along with it's strength and courage.

In one fluid movement, I brought my knee up and used all of the strength in my body as I jammed it into Damien's most sensitive area. Without waiting to see his reaction, I jumped to my feet and took off into the forest, heading towards the pack territory.

The blood ran from the wound in my abdomen, but the adrenaline pumping through my veins fueled me. While I still felt freezing cold, and my shredded bathing suit was back in the clearing, I barreled through the woods with no mercy.

I nearly cried out in relief as I passed into the pack's territory. The sight of a little house came into view and I used what remained of my strength to force me forward. A few feet in front of the house my legs finally gave up on me, coming out from under my body as though they were made of cardboard.

The black spots continued to dance around my vision, but I wasn't afraid anymore. I let out a sigh and gave into the darkness that was clawing at me.

The last thing I remember was hearing the voice inside of my head,

"You're safe now, Claire. My name is Sierra."