KIERA'S POV
"Incompetent. I groomed you to be my successor, to be unfathomable and powerful. Any sign of weakness would attract traitors and backstabbers like bees to honey. You have to be the smartest, the strongest, the most feared to keep your prestige as the revered alpha of a pack such as ours!"
Alpha Xander, spurred by a flash of rage, smashed his bottle of beer into the nearest wall. The foul liquid flared as the glass shattered.
Even though the bottle had collided just behind his head, Tyler did not flinch. The stoic set of his clefted chin remained. Alcohol soaked the better part of his dark leather jacket.
Kiera watched, leaning against the cracked fireplace mantle which no longer spurted flames, and conveniently safe from any flying bottle, without concern.
Her face must've been too smug because Alpha Xander's drunken red eye flashed with rage when his attention strayed towards her.
"You stand there feeling all high and mighty because you survived? You fool. The only reason you breath is because they had mercy on you. They pitied you. That's all you'll ever be. The target for misjudged pity, a receptacle for wasted semen and wanton lust. Nothing more."
Nothing like Tyler, she couldn't hide her tongue.
"They took us by surprise. The plan was to sneak in and sneak out. No confrontations. They were—"
"You're justifying the fact that you lost three good men? Betas of my pack at that? Could you be anymore pathetic!"
Another bottle, this time fortunately already deprived of its bitter content, went sailing. Somehow, though his current rage was directed at Kiera, the bottle still locked on to Tyler's general direction. It crashed just above his head. Glass shards rained down. He did not move.
Kiera licked her lips. A keen observer would've assumed her enjoyment of the whole scenerio.
"Obviously, the rumors are true. The two are mated to a single person. A hollowborn girl."
A bitter taste corrupted her tongue. She'd almost had the puny little thing. She should be playing with her right now and relishing every moment of it. If only the Alphas had not appeared.
She felt two pairs of eyes on her person. Tyler's attention was piqued, as well. For the first time he seemed to actually be here.
"Hollowborn?" He asked.
Kiera shrugged. "That's the vibe I got. Nothing interesting about her in the paranormal sense."
Alpha Xander looked ready to tear her apart for that comment.
"Are you that stupid? Werewolves can't be mated to the unbound! If she's truly their mate then she isn't hollowborn. You had the chance to capture her but failed. You came running back like the snivelling bitch you are!"
Kiera snorted, not at all bothered by the murder he oozed. "It was either that or get dismantled by the Alphas. Pardon me for choosing to stay alive over foolishly fighting a pair of invincible alphas."
Alpha Xander lost what little restraint left. He stormed towards her, claws already sprouting from his fingers, his face darkening. "How dare you you talk to me like that?"
Kiera's head snapped back when the slap connected. She felt the bones of her jaws shift from the impact. Four claws left bloody trails across her cheek.
Pain exploded from her face but she didn't show it. In Dark creek pack, any speck of weakness would spell your doom. You'll be trampled on and tossed about like gabbage.
She faced him squarely, her eyes filled with every hate she harbored for him.
"I did nothing to be ashamed of."
"You still have the mouth to talk. I will rip out your tongue, bitch."
His hand lifted, this time fused into a fist that would probably punch a hole through whatever it impacted.
Kiera did nothing to block it. She'd never blocked any of his slaps or punches. He couldn't hold his anger, most especially with her. It meant she had control of him. Though her Alpha, she worked him like a puppet for her own amusement.
But the blow did not reach her.
Alpha Xander took a few seconds to get over his shock. His head pivoted to stare at Tyler. Tyler who had the alphas' wrist in a tight grip.
Tyler didn't flinch from his growl. "Enough."
Kiera used the distraction to take two convenient steps back, out of arm's reach.
Alpha Xander broke away. He whirled around, picked up a half-empty bottle of beer and shugged it down in one gulp. The bottle crashed into the opposite wall.
"Out! Get out, you bastards! Scum! Vermin!..."
His insults trailed after them as they exited the room. Something smashed against the door immediately Kiera shut it.
She chuckled. "He's quite animated today."
Tyler glared at her. "Keep feeding his anger and one of this days you'll get maimed."
Kiera slipped a slender arm around his much thicker one. She offered him a swooning leer. "Afraid that I'll get your dear father so crazy he'll take my head off in a fit of rage?"
Tyler bristled and shoved her aside. "He's not my father."
"Oh, but your blood says different. It pulses through you. The blood of the Mad Alpha."
She caught the flash of his wolf in his eyes before he pushed her against the wall, grip tight around her neck.
Face hardened into an attractive yet deadly mask, he leaned towards her face. His fuming nose only an inch from her own.
"I warned you to stop!"
His obvious anger excited her even more. She stuck out her tongue to lick his nose, leaving a wet trail down to his lips where she lingered.
His lips tasted sweet. It ignited a flush of lust through her core.
Her eyes mocked him. "What will you do if I don't?"
His hips pressed against her. She spread her legs as wide as she could go, allowing her to grind the centre of her thighs against him.
Her eyelids fluttered. A moan escaped her lips. "Are you going to…make me beg you to stop?"
His grip strengthened but she felt no pain. His broad shoulders crowded over her as he jammed his free hand just above her head.
She wrapped her legs around his trim waist, increasing the friction between them with slow, dragging pivots of her hips.
"Because that will never happen."
His face twisted into a devilish smirk. Cold. Brutal.
"Are you sure?"
She purred into his lips. "Very."
His eyes flared. Obsidian rings of his wolf taking over. He let go of her. She got only a couple of seconds to catch her breath before he threw her over his shoulder like a sac of wine.
He practically flew across the hall towards his room.
Challenge accepted.