Betrayed by Blood, Claimed by the Alpha
Chapter 59

Chapter 59: Chapter 59

Betrayed by Blood

The dungeon was cold, its damp walls reeking of mildew. A single torch flickered in the corner. Xander sat slumped against the wall, his face pale, his severed arm wrapped in dirty bandages. His remaining hand clenched into a fist, nails roughly biting into his palm. It had been days, and he was slowly losing his mind locked in here.

Footsteps echoed down the corridor, slow and deliberate. Xander didn’t look up. He didn’t have to. He knew who it was.

The guards had mysteriously disappeared earlier, and he wasn’t stupid enough to believe it was a coincidence.

The heavy iron bars creaked open, and Matt stepped inside, his eyebrows cocked up arrogantly, his lips twisted into a smug smile. It irked Xander. Matt carried himself with an air of arrogance.

"Well," Matt began, his voice dripping with mockery as he stopped right in front of Xander. "How’s our fallen warrior today?"

Xander didn’t respond. He kept his gaze fixed on the ground, his jaw clenched so tightly it ached.

Matt chuckled, crouching to meet Xander’s eye level. "Giving me the silent treatment, I see. How very noble of you. Tell me, how’s that working out so far?"

No response.

Matt’s smile widened as he leaned closer, his tone soft but sharp. "You know, I came here out of courtesy. A second chance to hear your decision. Will you join me, or will you rot here, wallowing in your self-pity like the pathetic shell Cain has reduced you to?"

Xander snapped his head up, his gaze filled with rage. "You think I’d trust you?" His voice was hoarse, but it carried enough venom to wipe the smirk off Matt’s face for a moment.

Matt recovered quickly, his smile returning, this time colder. "Trust me? No, Xander, this isn’t about trust. It’s about revenge. About justice. Or..." He paused, letting the silence stretch. "Maybe you’ve decided Cain’s betrayal wasn’t enough. Perhaps you enjoy being his discarded toy, watching him take everything from you."

Xander flinched, and Matt’s grin widened. He stood, brushing imaginary dust off his coat.

"Speaking of taking," Matt said, his voice calm, "did you hear? Avery is in pre-heat."

The words hit Xander like a physical blow. His body stiffened, his breath catching in his throat.

Matt noticed, of course. He circled Xander slowly. "Oh yes. Poor thing. Weak, trembling, all that stress finally catching up to her. And Cain?" He chuckled darkly. "Well, we both know how he handles things like that, don’t we?"

Xander’s hand shot out, grabbing Matt by the front of his shirt. "Shut up," he growled through gritted teeth.

But Matt didn’t flinch. If anything, he looked pleased. "Touched a nerve, did I?" he said playfully. "Come now, Xander. You’ve seen it yourself. Cain takes what he wants. Avery has been in his room ever since. She’s his mate regardless of what he wants or she wants. He has a duty towards her. Do you really think he’ll let her out of that room unscathed? She’ll spend her heat with him. Her body will writhe and tremble when she cries for his cock and you? You’ll be locked in here wallowing in self-pity. She’ll be fucked all the way to Sunday."

Xander’s grip tightened, his teeth bared in a snarl. "You don’t know what you’re talking about." He spat out, though the doubt in his voice betrayed him. His teeth bared in a snarl as his mind raced, torn between anger and fear.

"Oh, don’t I?" Matt said, tilting his head, his lips curled into a mocking smirk. "It’s a pity, really. You lost your arm for touching her. Just one itty bitty touch and he forgot your loyalty to him. You became his enemy in less than a second. Tsk, tsk. All of that just for her to end up in his bed anyways? Such mediocrity."

The last word was a knife to Xander’s chest.

The weight of Matt’s words settled heavily in Xander’s chest. He shoved Matt away, breathing heavily, his vision swimming with anger.

Matt stumbled back slightly, a grin slowly made its way to his lips. "There it is," he said, his voice almost triumphant. "That fire. That anger. It’s not her you’re really mad at, is it? It’s him. Cain. He’s taken everything from you, Xander. Your arm, your pride, her. Are you going to let him keep winning?"

Xander glared at him, his chest heaving.

Matt took a step closer, his tone softening, almost coaxing. "You don’t have to answer now. But think about it. How long will you let Cain destroy you before you fight back?"

Matt turned to leave and walked to the door. He paused in the door, looking over his shoulder. "I’ll be back tomorrow and that’ll be the last time. I leave Vehiron tomorrow. Let me know when you’re ready to stop being a victim."

The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Xander alone in the dark yet again.

Matt’s words echoed in Xander’a head over and over again. Avery cannot be in pre heat yet. He knew everything there is to know about her. He listened to what Lydia said and so he knew it was impossible. Xander shook his head, Matt was only trying to rile him up even more. That’s all there is to it.

________________________________________

"What do you mean you can’t find it? I thought you said you had it under control, Callum?" Lydia huffed out exasperatedly, she leaned back against the chair, her fingers up in her hair, she almost pulled at her hair. She was frustrated and exhausted. She was surviving on caffeine and Aderaline at this point.

There was a mountain of papers on her table, different maps and none of it lead to anything. Finally, she got a lead. Somewhere bloodroot was supposedly sold outside the region. She almost left for it but couldn’t...Cain wouldn’t allow it and so she asked Callum, her trusted friend and also a part of Cain’s inner circle. Except, now, Callum is the at the said location and can’t find the seller.

"Calm down, Lydia. I’ll check and ask around some more. I’m sure there’s something we are missing." Callum replied over the phone.

Lydia shut her eyes close, her lips were bitten raw at this point. "Do everything you can, Callum. Please." She ended the call, her fingers trembling as she set the phone down. Her eyes drifted back to the mountain of papers and maps sprawled across her desk. Notes were scrawled in nearly every sheet, connecting dots that refused to align. Every lead had led to a dead end, and her patience was waning.

She sighed deeply, leaning back in her chair. Her gaze darted to the mug of cold coffee sitting on the edge of the desk. Coffee had long stopped working, but it was better than sitting in the silence with her frustration.

"Still burning the midnight oil, I see."

Lydia flinched at the voice, she looked up to see Matt standing by the door that has now been opened. She had been so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn’t realize there was an intruder.

Matt stepped in, his hands slipped into his pockets, his eyes feeding on the papers on the table.

"What are you doing here, Alpha Matt? This place is out of bounds for guests."

Matt smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. "I could say the same about you, Beta Lydia. Working yourself to the bone in the dead of night. Isn’t Cain supposed to have a pack of enforcers for this sort of thing?"

Lydia’s jaw tightened. "You’re avoiding the question."

"Am I?" Matt countered smoothly, his eyes flicking to the papers scattered across her desk. He leaned slightly, pretending to glance at the coffee mug. "Cold coffee and sleepless nights. You’ve been busy."

"And you are crossing very clear boundaries, Matt. Unless you have a reason to be here, I suggest you leave." Lydia spat out, dropping the title.

Matt raised his hands in mock surrender, his smile widening. "No need to get defensive. I was just concerned. It’s not every day we see Cain’s trusted second-in-command so... preoccupied. I’m leaving Vehiron tomorrow, thought it would be nice to seek you out and say my goodbyes."

Lydia’s eyes narrowed, Matt was full of bullshit, he was worse than his brother and she knew it. This one’s nothing but a sly motherfucker. "I doubt there’s any need to personally seek me out, Matt but I acknowledge it. If that’s all, please leave."

Matt shrugged, "Alright. I’ll leave but I do hope you get to rest. Those eye-bags under your eyes tell a different story." He said with a wink and walked out, shutting the door behind him. He paused in the hallway, glancing back at the closed door. The image of the papers, the maps, and all the information Lydia had gathered flashed in his mind again.

He had to get Xander to agree before it all blows up.

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