The Alpha’s Curvy Cinderella - Chapter 153: Chapter 153

Josie POV
We were in the study and I was seated on Rohan’s lap when Rohan’s eyes went cloudy and he stiffened, quickly standing up and depositing me on the ground. “Rohan, what is it?” I asked, suspecting I knew the answer.
“Rogues” he growled, “get Claudia and Rose and lock yourself up in the room.”
I wanted to protest but he was already racing out the door, a determined look on his face. We had no way of knowing if Alpha Drake was amongst them or not, so in order to be safe, I would have to do as he asked, although my wolf was chomping at the bit at being told to hide rather than fight.
You know that we could take Drake out easily, why are we staying upstairs she whined.
Because we have Rose and Claudia to think of as well Amber. We can’t just leave them alone. That wouldn’t be fair. Rose doesn’t have a wolf yet and Claudia’s not as strong as we are. We have to protect them both if it comes down to it.
We can protect them better by fighting!
Rohan wants us to stay put and I think we should abide by his wishes.
My wolf gave a low growl but remained silent as Claudia and Rose joined me on the landing, all of us quickly scrambling into the Alpha and Luna’s quarters and shutting the door. I locked it and we all sat on the bed, waiting. It was nerve wracking. Claudia swallowed hard. “Do you think it’s him?” she whispered, wringing her hands.
I didn’t have to ask who she meant.
Rose’s eyes were hooded and her face was devoid of color. She looked as though she was going to be sick. I reached over and patted her hand.
“If it’s him, then he’ll never get past Rohan and the others,” I said confidently “there’s nothing to worry about.”
But I wasn’t convinced. I could feel my heart beating wildly in my chest. I was frightened, not for myself, but for my mate who was out there fighting to keep me safe. It didn’t seem right. I got up and stared out the window. Thanks to my sensitive hearing I could pick up the sounds of fighting in the distance, and hear the howls of pain as wolves were injured. I saw Rohan’s wolf in the distance, fighting off two rogues with a furious thrash of his tail as he moved between them, his wolf agile and strong, the rogues fighting hard to keep themselves from being killed. I breathed a sigh of relief seeing that he was okay for now.
My ears pricked. It could have been my imagination but for a moment I could have sworn I had heard footfalls. I swallowed hard. No matter how hard Rohan and the rest of us had looked, we had never found the tunnel that Rose had alluded to. We had hoped that maybe it hadn’t existed or that it had collapsed in on itself. I tried to listen harder, but the sound was gone and I dismissed it, turning as the painting on the wall splintered, and a large figure stepped through, swiftly grabbing hold of a struggling Rose and holding her by her neck, a silver-bladed dagger at her throat. Her eyes were wide in terror and she was clawing at her neck, but her brother was stronger, a twisted smile on his face.
I looked at Drake in shock. There was a tunnel behind the painting. He’d sent plaster flying along with the painting. He was breathing heavily and he was covered in dust and grime. His eyes were dark and there was a maniacal look on his face. He was unhinged and dangerous. He sneered at all of us as Rose continued to struggle to breathe, tears filling her eyes. “Well, well, well, if it isn’t all of the girls I wanted to find” he breathed “the betrayer, the illegitimate b***h and my mate” he snarled.
Claudia flinched, Rose’s eyes bulged and I tensed. If I shifted, I risked Rose being killed before I could get to him. He looked at me knowingly.
“Let her go Drake,” I said quietly as Claudia just stared, looking helpless “you’ll kill her if you don’t ease up” I warned. Without warning he drew back his hand and threw the dagger. It spun wildly in the air and I screamed, unable to do anything but watch as it hit Claudia directly in the heart, her mouth dropping open as she let out a strangled sound, her body flopping to the ground as blood pooled around her body. She was gone. Her heart was beating no more. Drake chuckled, still holding Rose. He glared at me. “Don’t even think of making a move towards that dagger or I’ll snap her neck” he threatened.
I said nothing, tears in my eyes. Rose flailed, sobbing. He used one hand to fish something out of his pocket, a small vial, that he tossed towards me. I caught it automatically, staring down at it dumbly. What did he want me to do with it? It was a dark green colour and I could smell a faint trace of a herb within it. One that was oddly familiar. “Drink it” he said coldly.
I raised my eyes. “How do I know it’s not poison?” I whispered, hesitating.
He snorted. “You should be able to smell wolfsbane by now. I’m merely ensuring that you don’t shift and try to kill me when we leave. Now be a good girl” he said mockingly, the fight continuing outside “and drink up. Hurry up now” he said, tightening his grip even more, Rose’s lips turning blue “she doesn’t have much time left.”
I pulled out the stopper with trembling hands.
Don’t do it Josie, you don’t know that he won’t kill you right after.
We don’t have a choice if we want to save Rose. Look at her! She’s barely alive as it is.
But the second we drink this we can’t mind-link Rohan.
I know, but we have to hope that Rose can somehow get to him and let him know what happened. It’s our only choice. I won’t let her die, not when Claudia is dead already. She’s just a teenager.
I wrinkled my nose as I reluctantly brought the vial to my lips, the wolfbane smelling repugnant and repulsive as I paused before I gathered up my courage and drank it, gulping the whole lot down as Alpha Drake watched intently. He never once moved his eyes off me, until there was nothing left and I dropped the vial with disgust and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.
“Are you satisfied now?” I rasped, glaring at him “you said that you would let Rose go, so let her go Drake. She’s only a kid. Please, let her go” I pleaded “you promised.”
I was hoping that the fight would cease outside and that any minute Rohan would realize that Drake had manged to get inside the pack house. Drake smirked at me, enjoying the panic in my eyes as Rose began to go limp.
He slammed Rose’s head against the wall and dropped her. I gave a sharp cry and rushed forward, blood pouring from her wound. I checked for a pulse and was relieved to find that she was breathing, her chest rising steadily up and down. He had merely knocked her unconscious. He gave a chuckle. “Relax, she’s not dead” he said impatiently, as my eyes watered “I kept my word, now you keep yours” he snarled.
My mouth went dry as he grabbed me. His grip was rough and tight, unyielding. I started to struggle and he let out a low growl, sounding annoyed. “Keep going and I’ll grab that dagger and stab it into you” he hissed.
I ignored him. I opened my mouth. I might not be able to mind-link my mate, but I still had my voice and I could scream loud enough that he would be able to hear. Alpha Drake, guessing my intentions, slammed his hand on my mouth, muffling the sounds. I bit his hand and he grew angry as he began to back into the tunnel or passageway.
“Looks like I’m going to have to find a way to keep you quiet” he murmured in my ear and before I could do or say anything, he grabbed the back of my head, his fingers entwining in my hair and propelled me forward, towards the wall, whacking my head into it hard, causing me to cry out as pain ricocheted through my head and my body, my body slumping as he picked me up and cradled me. My vision began to grow blurry as he sidled through the passageway and my head lay limply backwards. I moaned, feeling weak and lightheaded. I struggled to keep my eyes open, but between the wolfsbane and the pain, it became too much and I succumbed to the darkness slowly creeping in, falling deeply unconscious as Alpha Drake continued to carry me to god knows where.