Chapter 29

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The faint sound of water dripping onto the ground caused Ryker to come to. He struggled to open his eyes, the grogginess making it all too easy to want to keep them closed. Ryker’s back felt sore and stiff as uneven rock protruded into his back, and his legs were consumed by a weird tingling sensation as if they were falling asleep.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

The water now dripped onto his forehead. His eyes fluttered open, and Ryker managed to keep them that way long enough to take in his surroundings. A musty scent with a barely noticeable trace of something else filled his nostrils as his eyes scanned what was in front of him. Metal bars in a poorly lit, unfinished basement. His nose burned after a while which told him what the other scent mixed with the musk was; there was silver mixed with the metal on the bars.

Fucking great, he thought to himself.

While attempting to move his hands, the scratching of rope into his wrists made him growl as he realized he was in even further of a shitty situation. Tied up inside of a silver-lined cage under a packhouse was not a good sign. If it happened to be the one under the West Coast’s packhouse, he was really screwed. No one would hear him if he called for help. He would not be able to reach out to Ruby or anyone else within his small pack either as it was too deep underground.

As an added measure to assess just how royally screwed he was, he reached out through his mate and pack bonds. Sure enough, he was met with a wall. He could feel that the bonds were still there, and thankfully no one was killed during that fight.

Well that is a relief.

A pang of guilt riddled through him as he thought back to the attack. Ryker put all of those innocent people in harm’s way for living there for the past three years. He could have kept exploring the world. He had civil relations with the other Sanction’s Alphas, and they would have allowed him to pass through. Instead, he stayed in one place and allowed Tyson to find him. Ryker put his head back against the wall as the guilt cut him deeper the longer he dwelled on the thought. Rainer growled at the thought and chimed in.

If we would have traveled, we would have never found our mate, Rainer reminded him.

It was true. He would have never found Ruby if he hadn’t stayed in Wolf’s Den and built the community he did. That was the one thing that went right for him in his life.

But we put her in harm’s way, too. She was also attacked, Rainer.

She held her own. We did not need to help her once. We needed her help instead.

Ryker could only thank the Moon Goddess for giving him the most perfect mate at that moment. To be given such a powerful mate to be at his side was truly a gift. He only wished that he could go back in time and mark her as his when he met her instead of waiting so long.

Now I might die, and I didn’t even get to spend that much time with her as my mate.

I told you to stop being a dick.

Thanks, Buddy. So glad I have you in my life to tell me off.

You are very welcome, Rainer said proudly.

Ryker moved his wrists around and felt the sting of Wolfsbane cut into his skin. He leaned his head back with a groan knowing that his luck was just complete shit at the moment, and he was not sure if he would catch a break.

The sound of metal clanged faintly off to his right, then came the groaning creak from a corroded deadbolt. A door opened, and footsteps echoed down a staircase. Ryker was looking forward to seeing Tyson’s face. He hoped it would still be bloody from the ass kicking he gave him before he tranq’d him. Sure enough, Tyson walked into view, and Ryker smirked at him while he shook his head.

“Couldn’t beat me in a fair fight, so you pussied your way out, I see.”

Ryker’s insult hit Tyson exactly how he wanted. Tyson rolled his eyes and groaned before he unlocked the cell door, yanked it open, rushed in and punched Ryker on the right side of his jaw. Tyson grunted as his knuckles connected with Ryker’s face. He had to admit, it hurt. But he also wondered if Ruby punched harder than this guy. Ryker spit the blood that pooled in his mouth onto the floor and let out a laugh.

“Jeezus. I thought I taught you how to punch. I guess I was wrong.”

Ryker’s arrogance confused the shit out of Tyson. His face fell when he heard Ryker laugh instead of cowering in defeat. Within a few seconds, Tyson rearranged his facial expression to come off cold and calculating. Ryker fought back another laugh.

Tyson was never good at coming off confident. I thought a few years as Alpha would have changed all of that.

Some boys just don’t grow into men.

“I don’t know why you are so damn smug. Looks to me like I fucking won. You are here chained to where you can’t fight back. Not to mention, no one will find you here. I have your scent covered and in a location that not even your bitch knows about.”

Ryker kicked his legs out and connected with Tyson’s knees. Tyson fell back onto the cement and barely missed cracking his head on the floor. Ryker’s growl reverberated off the walls making it sound more daunting than he had ever heard before.

“Don’t ever mention my mate, or I will kill you.”

Tyson rolled onto his stomach and jumped to his feet. Tyson growled, and Ryker could not help but recognize that it did not have the same kind of power as Ryker’s.

“That little whore will meet the same fate as you.”

The next thing Ryker knew, there were two other wolves inside his cage. First came the foot to his face that made Ryker’s head explode with pain followed by a rain of fists and kicks connecting with every inch of his body. Ryker did his best to evade the blows to his head and kicked his legs out as the only defense he could manage. Rainer fought to shift, but the Wolfsbane kept him locked into place.

The beating felt like it went on for hours. Ryker did his best to fight off the attack, but with his hands tied behind his back…it was kind of impossible. Tyson called off his two other wolves, pushed Ryker to lay on his back, and then landed one final blow to his head, knocking Ryker out cold.

* * *

When Ryker came to,his whole body was sore. Dried blood caked the corners of his mouth, and he could barely move without causing himself excruciating pain. Ryker remained on his back as it was the only position that he seemed comfortable in. Rainer stirred inside of him, and then a warmth spread through his body.

What are you doing?

Pulling from the pack bonds to heal you.

We aren’t connected to them! How are you doing this?

The Wolfsbane is not as strong due to it seeping into our skin for so long. I doubt the mongrel knew that.

Before Ryker knew it, the pain dissipated all across his body. A look down at his body showed him only the bruises remained behind.

What about the bruises?

I focused on the deeper problem and allowed the visual to stay behind. This way it still appears you are injured when you are not.

You can do that?

Pack magic is a very useful thing. This is why we crave the pack life. Support and this added benefit. Only one bad thing…

And that is?

I cannot shift for at least twenty-four hours…Rainer yawned, and his presence became faint, only barely noticeable in the back of Ryker’s mind.

Wonderful.

Ryker managed to get himself from laying on the ground to being propped up against the wall to sit. His muscles were not screaming in pain, and it made him thank Rainer again for what he did, even though he could not hear Ryker right now.

The sound of metal sliding from a deadbolt and the door opening once again made Ryker suppress a groan. After just managing to get healed from the first round of beating, he was hoping that he would not have to see Tyson for another day or so. Yet here came the dickhead to continue his “torture.”

Tyson appeared on the other side of the bars with a smug smile on his face. He kept his arms behind his back as if to appear in control of the situation. Tyson had the advantage, that was for damn sure, but Ryker knew he was smart enough to get himself out of this situation. It just was not coming to him yet.

“It brings me such happiness to see the Big Bad Wolf sitting here in such a pathetic situation. Who would have ever thought that this would be your fate?”

The expression on Ryker’s face only conveyed boredom. “It does not shock me that you are getting hard over my misery. Judging by how aroused you are to see me like this, I have to ask. Did you always hate me?”

Tyson shook his head and let out a laugh, “no, I didn’t. There was a time I thought the world of you.”

“So one day you just woke up and wished for me to be dead and began plotting for it?”

“You could say that. It was the day you were crowned as the Alpha. I never understood how any Alpha could just hand down the position to an heir. I always thought there should be a better system in place.”

“Like what?” Ryker figured, if he could get the asshat monologuing, it would buy him some time to develop a plan.

“It’s pretty simple, actually.”

Well… that was easy.

“There should be a Challenge day–when the current Alpha steps down, the top wolves in the pack should be allowed to challenge who is named the successor, or even have the top five or six wolves in the pack fight one another to see who is actually the best fit. It should not just be handed down to an heir. That makes no sense. What if that heir has no business being an Alpha? What if he is not powerful enough to lead the pack! This system is from the beginning days of our species. It does not fit our current society! We need change.”

“So let’s just say you end up with an heir someday who could take over as Alpha…you would not want him to be able to take over for you?”

“Absolutely not! He needs to prove himself!”

“So you hated me because I did not prove myself to be the rightful leader of the pack? Regardless of the fact that I was challenged multiple times and won?…is that what you are telling me right now?”

“Clearly you did not deserve it if multiple people saw you as unfit,” Tyson growled.

“Or they were power hungry and did not realize I could wipe the floor with them.”

Tyson grew irritated with Ryker’s words. Ryker had to stop himself from smiling at his success. Tyson wanted to believe that he was the smartest person in the room, even the strongest person in the room. He was neither, but his ego told Tyson differently.

“Everything will end once and for all tomorrow.”

Ryker scrunched his face at the statement. “What the hell is tomorrow?”

“Our Challenge day. I am going to end this in front of everyone! Tomorrow, I will finally show this sanction that I deserve to be Alpha over you. Enjoy your last night alive, Ryker.”

Tyson turned and walked away. Ryker heard the door close, a deadbolt slide into place, and then metal clang together as if Tyson put an added lock onto the door. It was an intimidation tactic to make a show of the door being locked in multiple ways. If Ryker was a weaker wolf, it may have worked, but being who he was, it really just annoyed him, and he rolled his eyes at the action. Since Tyson was holding off on the challenge until tomorrow, Rainer may be back by then. Ryker could possibly heal and would not have a disadvantage in the fight. From what it seemed, Tyson was banking on the beating he and his two wolves delivered having to take longer than tomorrow to heal from, especially having the Wolfsbane seep into his skin and weaken him and his wolf.

Too bad he is a dumbass and did not understand how this rope worked.

Just as his thoughts were turning to making a plan, he heard the door being unlocked and a pair of feet coming down the stairs that definitely weren’t Tyson’s. Ryker rolled his eyes and thought what now? The only thing he could think of was that Tyson had sent a wolf down to kick the shit out of him some more so he would be weaker for tomorrow’s fight. What he did not expect to see was a silver haired, red-wearing beauty on the other side of the cage.

Ruby was in a red tank top and a black pair of leggings with black boots. Her silver hair was tied up, and she was wearing the sexiest shit eating grin on her face. Ruby’s red eyes gleamed a hint of mischief as well, and it only made his dick hard to see this air of confidence and sass on her.

“The Big Bad Wolf is the one needing saving? Even worse… his female mate is saving his ass right now? Whoever would have seen this coming?”

Ryker leaned his head down for a moment as he shook his head. He looked up at his mate with his own grin. “I would tell you to stop gloating and get me the fuck out of here, but I think I deserve this a little since I was an ass who didn’t think you could handle yourself not that long ago.”

“Now that…is a turn on. Remind me to make you repeat that shit the moment we get you back to our apartment.”

Ruby had a key and unlocked the cell’s door. After she stepped into the cell, she reached down and pulled a knife out of her left boot. Ryker had to admit, it was another turn on to see Ruby being tactical, and he was now kicking himself for thinking that the Goddess made a mistake to give him a mate the day that he saw Ruby just outside the barrier.

Ruby used the knife to cut through the ropes and helped Ryker to his feet. His shoulders remained stiff from the position he had been sitting in.

“How did you manage to get here?”

“I had some help. Rozalind was hella pissed off at what happened. She said she couldn’t intervene in helping you directly…but she decided to give us a little assistance in helping us to get you out of here. We just need to get you upstairs, and then we will be set.”

“What’s upstairs?”

“A portal…”

Well. Looks like I have Rosalind to thank when this is all over.