The Alpha's Daydream ✔️

Chapter 61

Don't let the title of the song above throw you... the music is perfect for this chapter, so just hit play and read 😌

3587 words

The cool night air was like fire, burning his throat and scorching his lungs whenever he sucked in a breath.

Malachi closed his eyes and bit back the scream that threatened to break free from his throat. His cells felt like they were being razed and melted down before reshaping into something new, his whole body being turned inside out as each minute passed. As the night drew on, as the moon climbed higher to its zenith, and as the earth's shadow fully eclipsed the lunar face, he could only pray that this wouldn't all end badly.

His death would be the best outcome.

His soul forging into one of eternal darkness would be the worst.

But none of this made sense. His mother had promised that he would get better, that he would get through this period of deadly urges to kill. She'd said he wasn't a demon, just a full-blooded Alpha male with dominant genes that were maturing and fighting to establish his position at the top of the pack.

She'd told him not to worry, that tonight all would be well and he would be free of the curse-like rages that took over his body.

But it was only getting worse. Seneca was pushing him, prodding him, smiling like she wanted his darkest and most dangerous tendencies to break free and control his body forever.

Yet he kept resisting with all his strength, refusing to embrace the demonic killer that he knew lurked beneath his skin.

He could feel himself slipping, growing weaker and giving in to the terrible pain that consumed him. Then Ariella had burst out of the forest and changed everything.

Her presence made him even more desperate to stop this transformation before it destroyed him forever. He hated that she was here watching, that she could see him so helpless and bound to the legacy of darkness that flowed in his veins. He'd rather she stayed away, heartbroken from his rejection. But instead she'd come back, determined to hang on to their bond even though he was a lost cause.

He could never be her mate.

He could never love her the way she deserved. He realised now with such a deep sense of hopeless finality that he would never be the Alpha this pack needed, nor could he lead them to a bright future of health and prosperity when he himself was dark, jaded, murderous, and bonded to evil.

He would become a demon, and there was nothing more he could do to stop it.

Looking around him with sadness, he saw his faithful Beta Hamilton, brother and friend, down on his knees with rogues holding their claws to his throat. He saw Rahul, his new Head Guard, also arrested in place. He saw his other warriors, each bonded to him in the way of the pack, each looking to him with no hope of getting out of this mess alive. The Alpha had blocked the mind link, not wishing to hear from them how much he'd failed them. He knew this was all on him for not reading the signs earlier, for not confronting his mother about his heritage sooner, and it was now killing him inside that he could do nothing to prevent this tragedy to his pack.

He also saw his father's former Beta, Knight, stalking in the shadows, watching intensely, untouched by the enemies that surrounded them. So he really was working with them to take down the pack, and Malachi cursed himself for not listening to Ariella earlier when she told him of Knight's treachery.

He hadn't wanted to believe that Knight could do that to them all, but he realised now if he had taken her seriously, it might have prevented some of this devastation. Knight just kept an eye on things, letting Seneca run the show yet always doing her bidding when needed. Malachi wondered how Seneca had managed to convince him to work alongside her, and to befriend Ariella before turning against them all. Hadn't Knight been loyal to Dennison, and therefore to Malachi as the new Alpha? But all these years, it seemed Seneca had been whispering her lies and promises in his ear and gaining his loyalty to her demented cause.