My Jealous Alpha Stepbrother
Chapter 113

Tarryn

I wake up in the morning to the guards opening the prison cell. I stir in Alex’s muscular arms. His head rests on my shoulder, and I turn to see his sad eyes open.

Looking at him shatters the little safety I felt sleeping beside him. He is so large and powerful, but I know he can’t fight these guards alone. He realizes that, too, and sucks in a deep breath.

“f**k, Tarryn…” He nuzzles me, and I let him. I don’t know when we ended up like this, but I don’t hate it. “This sucks. I don’t want them to take us away from each other….”

I swallow thickly, whispering, “Me neither…”

There is fear in his beautiful blues, and he whispers into my ear, “I wish I could protect you…” right before he is pulled away from me by force by one of the guards.

“Cuddling time is over!” The guard yells into Alex’s ear and pulls him away from me. Alex is bigger, though, but when the guard realizes he isn’t stronger than him, he kicks Alex to show a point. “Move! Get away from the female, you filthy f**k!”

Alex growls but knows better than to fight. He moves away and holds up his hands in surrender. His body language might say he has given up, but his eyes are determined.

We both don’t like this situation, yet we know better than to fight.

With that knowledge, I realize I should sit up. I’m still on the ground and let out a whimper when the other guard kicks me with their black boot in the face. I swear I hear my bones c***k, and my nose hurts seconds before b***d trickles down from it.

Really?!

I try to wipe the b***d away, but the guard kicks me again. Harder this time, and then he laughs. “Rise and shine, princess! You don’t want to sleep the day away. The Luna has plans for you today!”

Plans?!

The guard kicks me in the face again while the other guard shoves Alex forward. I hear him growl at the guard, and then a taser is used in response. It fills me with horror.

“Don’t like it when we kick your friend? Well, too f*****g bad because this is going to hurt!”

Alex screams in agony while the taser zaps him. It’s obviously no ordinary taser. It’s stronger, and something smells burnt after the guard uses it on Alex’s back. It’s sickening.

Why is the Howler pack torturing us like this? I know why, but… how could they?! This is worse than just killing us! Torture shouldn’t be allowed! My pack would never use a taser, even on their worst enemies!

“I’ve been waiting to use this taser,” the guard standing by Alex muses. “And it’s perfect to use on scum like you!” The sound of the taser fills my ears again, and my heart bolts out of my ribcage. Not literally, but it feels like it when Alex doubles over in pain.

“Alex!” I cry out and claw at the guard holding me, but I’m hit in the face. Still, the ringing pain doesn’t stop me from shouting. “Don’t hurt him! He hasn’t done anything! It’s me that you want information from!”

“Oh wow, you care about him?” The guard holding me sounds amused while busy putting handcuffs on me.

“Oh wow, you care about him?” The guard holding me sounds amused while busy putting handcuffs on me.

I know I can’t outpower him, so I don’t try again. Instead, I keep my eyes on Alex’s tall, muscular frame. He is standing up now, handcuffed by the other guard. There is a taser held to his back.

“And the Luna wants you both,” the guard is talking behind me. “She needs information from you, but your friend? He will be a brainwashed warrior for our pack once we are done with him. First, we will try to make him recruit others, and then, through all the serums used on him, he will become something that isn’t natural.”

I shudder. “Something that isn’t natural?”

The guard doesn’t respond, and discomfort moves through my chest when Alex is pulled toward the stairs by the guard holding him.

“You’re coming with me,” the guard tells Alex. “But don’t worry,” dark eyes meet mine, and he smirks. “You will meet your tiny lover in your cell later… that is, if you survive the mission today.”

IF HE SURVIVES?!

Fear slashes my throat, and I feel so utterly helpless. Why am I so small? Why couldn’t I have been born tall and strong like Josie? I try to break free from the other guard’s grip on me. But it’s fruitless.

I’m not strong enough to fight the guard, and Alex is already led away by the other guard. s**t. What are they going to do to us? What will happen to Alex? Why did the guard say he might not survive?!

A helpless sob breaks from my lips, and Alex looks over his shoulder, smiles, and whispers, “I will be okay. Don’t worry about me. I will come back to you.” which does the opposite.

I worry even more and barely pay attention to my surroundings. The guard who got me handcuffed takes me up the stairs, but in the opposite direction from Alex.

It breaks me. I don’t want Alex to die, and every footstep shatters my heart a little more. I’m so worried about him, but I’m not allowed to look back. When I try to glance over my shoulder, the guard hits me hard in the face at the speed of light.

“WALK FORWARD, b***h!”

I wince and do as he says. I’m not a fighter and can’t beat him. No. I’m a thinker. Someone smart and determined. Maybe I can replace a way to escape from here?

I have to, for Alex’s sake!

“Faster, woman!”

My eyes narrow, but I say nothing. I speed up my pace, and we walk, and we walk until finally, we stop by a door. The guard knocks on it, and it opens to reveal a luxurious dining hall.

“Ah, Tarryn!” Marissa beams at me from inside. She is sitting by an over-shaped table and wears a big smile. Her clothes are fancy: a dress and big silver earrings with diamonds embedded into them. “Why don’t you take a seat by the table? Sky and I were just eating breakfast. He is my youngest son and the future Alpha of the Howler pack.”

My eyes widen when I see a teenager sitting by the table. He can’t be older than fifteen. He is lanky dark eyes, black hair, golden skin, and beautiful features that tell me he will be a looker once he is older. Heck, the guy is gorgeous even now. Even more so than Alex.

I keep staring at him, and to my surprise, the kid stands up. He is tall. Seriously, I’ve never seen a teenager so large. My mouth falls open, and I gape at him when he pulls out the chair next to his.

“Why don’t you have a seat?” He says in a calm tone.

I gulp and nod before hurrying over. I sit in the chair Sky offers me, and he pushes me toward the table. Marissa smiles at that, and then she stands up from her seat.

“I will go and refill my glass with wine, be back in a jiffy.”

The greying woman hurries away with her fancy dress, and I hesitantly glance up at Sky, who is calmly peering down at me. His expression is hard to read, but his face softens as soon as his mother is gone.

“My mother is trying to replace me a suitable Luna. She doesn’t care about the mate bond but wishes for me to have a child as soon as possible since she deems me unworthy of becoming the Alpha,” he explains, and we both know that’s why I was brought here to eat breakfast.

“Unworthy?” I ask.

He half-smiles. “I’m not evil like my parents; neither can I be controlled—this is a problem for them.”

After talking, Sky bends down and grips my handcuffs. Then, in the blink of an eye, it burns and melts away without hurting my skin. I gape at him, half convinced he is crazy.

“But if you do this, your mother will—”

“I found the wine!” Marissa enters the dining hall and pauses upon seeing me freed from the handcuffs.

She stares at me; I stare back. s**t. What will happen now? My heart is pounding faster than ever. I expect Marissa to yell at the guards, but suddenly, she freezes in motion.

It confuses the hell out of me.

“W-what happened?” I ask. “Why is she just standing there?”

“I stopped the time,” Sky explains without breaking a smile. His eyes are entirely serious, and he smiles when I stare at him. “I can’t do this for very long. So we better hurry and replace that friend of yours.”

I blink. “You’re… you’re helping us?”

He grimaces at me. “Yeah, why not? I honestly wish this hadn’t happened to begin with. If I were the Alpha of the Howler pack, I would never take innocents as prisoners. It’s not right, especially since you haven’t done anything… anyway, should we go?”

He holds out his hand for me, bringing me out of my stupor. I have to replace Alex, and I shouldn’t waste any time.

I let Sky pull me up from my chair and allow my determination to take over my state of mind. “I hope you know where to replace my friend because I’m not leaving without Alex.”