The Alpha novel Chapter 50

Scarlet's POV

While distracted, Andromeda flings a purple light at a beam above me and the loud burst of splintering wood fills the room. "Look out!" Ethan yells as he quickly reaches out and wraps his arms around my waist as he pulls me into his hard chest. The beam comes crashing down in front of us, right where I had been standing a second before. Debris and dust fly up around it and as it settles, I spot the witch. Violet smoke begins circling the floor around Andromeda before wrapping around her and the next thing we know she has disappeared before our eyes.

Everything happened so fast that I stand there in a moment of shock. Ethan releases me and throws the heavy timber aside as he pushes his way through the mess. He is trying to chase after Lucien as I notice the hidden passage behind a bookcase. It is cracked open and Lucien is no longer cowering on the floor. While I was focused on Andromeda, he must have made his escape. Ethan shoves the bookcase away and looks into the dark tunnel. He lets out a frustrated growl that thunders around us as he sends his fist into the frame, sending fragments of wood and stone scattering. His eyes turn glossy as he uses his mind-link.

A crash behind me startles me and I turn to see that we aren't alone. Several other members of the Crescent Moon Pack are standing there though they all have their heads bowed with their faces tinted pink. They seem to be afraid to look up at me. Ethan comes up along my side. I look over at him and see his eyebrows furrowed as he seems to notice his men's weird behavior. Then he turns to me. A low, threatening snarl rumbles through his gritted teeth as his eyes roam my body. I look down and instantly remember what I had been wearing. Suddenly I feel incredibly exposed. You can see literally everything through the sheer gown that Lucien had put me in while I was unconscious. The thought immediately makes me feel nauseous again as Ethan moves to stand in front of me, blocking me from view. "Jonah, pass me a change of clothes," he demands, his voice controlled and husky. It is clear that he's trying to control his anger as he holds out his hand toward Jonah.

Jonah quickly drops a pack onto the floor and squats down to rifle through it before pulling out a t-shirt and sweatpants. Ethan gruffly takes the clothes and orders them to wait in the hallway before closing the door. "Hurry up and put these on. Lucien has probably already alerted his guards of our presence, so we need to leave," he says as he shoves the outfit into my hands. I hastily begin dressing as he lets out another growl, drawing my attention to him. "What did he do to you? I— I could feel him..." he continues, before drifting off as he gets choked up, unable to continue. There is pain in his eyes and I can tell he feels guilty.

"It doesn't matter. I'm safe now. Let's just get out of here while we still can," I mutter after getting the pants pulled on underneath the gown. I don't want to talk about Lucien. It will just make me feel sick again, dirty. I hate the way he looks at me, the way he touched me. A shiver runs up my spine and I look back up at Ethan. His eyes are opened wide with horror as he looks around the room with his mouth hanging open. I follow his gaze and see that it has landed on the painting I had spotted when I first woke up. His eyes travel across the other pieces and lands again when he sees one that seems to be an aerial view of the bed I had been strapped to. In it, my wrist and ankles are bound just like they had been in real life. However, in the portrait I am completely naked and writhing in ecstasy. I instantly feel my stomach drop. Tears sting my eyes and I quickly pull the sheer gown off and replace it with the t-shirt I had been given.

Ethan turns to me, barely controlling his anger as his eyes turn black, his wolf right at the surface. His eyebrows pull together and he slowly reaches out, pushing the neck of the t-shirt to the side as his fingers rub over my mark. The expression on his face is full of confusion and I do my best to see what he sees. My mark, that had been mostly healed, now looks fresh again as though only a few hours old. When I look back to him, his gaze comes up to meet mine and a low growl spills out of him as he asks, "What the fuck did he do to you?"

I shake my head as I feel my tears finally begin to leak from my eyes. I honestly don't know what he did to me. That is one of the worst parts of all. I have no idea how long I had been unconscious. There is no way for me to know what might have transpired during that time. The more I think about it, the sicker I feel and I protectively wrap my arms around me, hugging myself.

Suddenly, the sounds of thundering footsteps can be heard approaching us and Ethan immediately takes my hand in his as he goes to drag me out of the room. "Wait!" I screech as I yank my hand away.

"Scarlet!" Ethan hisses as he turns to me. I know we don't have a lot of time, but I can't just leave all of Lucien's vulgar paintings of me behind. Without another word, I turn to face the bedroom and close my eyes, trying to call on the power that I know is somewhere inside me. It starts as just a small center of energy in my chest and starts to grow, filling me with a delicious warmth. "Scar... how are you..." Ethan trails off as he looks down at my hands. They are holding glowing orbs again, but this time they are made of white-hot flames. I look down in amazement, almost surprised that it actually worked. I'm not sure what is going on with me, but it's exciting and something that I'm eager to test and experiment more with.

The pounding footsteps of soldiers grows closer and I send the balls of fire toward the walls of the bedroom. They immediately spread along the paintings as the material curls and blackens. When I turn to leave the room, Ethan grabs my hand and darts for the stairs, pulling me along with him. It's the only available exit. Unfortunately, just before we reach the top step, several armed guards show up, blocking our path.