"P-Please, I was just running from- from people who were chasing me!" Pip squeaked when the men stepped closer. "I'll climb back over and never trespass again!" One of the men didn't stop smirking, and Pip felt very unnerved.
"Too late, you've committed the crime. Sid, get him."
Sid, the man with red hair and a pointed nose, did as he was told and marched to Pip, who was too scared to run away. He couldn't climb over the fence in time and running would only make him seem more guilty. Sid's grip on his shoulder hurt. Pip knew he was in a lot of trouble.
"Are you calling my family?" he asked, staring up at the enormous building. Fifty windows stared back. The building could have been a hotel, but for who?
A large oak door was propped open, waiting to swallow Pip up. The closer they got to the building, the more hesitantly he moved. The institute was a place he never thought he'd be, not at night, and not because he trespassed.
Pip slowed until Sid was pulling him along, not pushing him. "Go," Sid grumbled and shoved him across the grass and onto the stone yard.
Pip almost fell on his face. "A-are you calling my family? Or the police?" he asked, stopping at the door. He peered inside a room full of couches and cushions with a large TV on the right wall. Red seemed to be the main theme with red cushions, red blankets and deep red walls. The floor was a dark wood and a few unfinished board-games scattered across the table.
The other man scoffed. The light exposed three long scars on the left side of his face. "The police can't help you," he muttered and snapped his fingers for Sid to continue heaving Pip inside.
"You sure about this?" Sid hissed. "They'll smell him all over the building-"
"Well, we better be quick then."
Pip had to jog to keep up with their long strides across the room. The moment he set foot in that place his heartbeat heavier. Something felt odd. His intuition wasn't just hairs standing on the back of his neck because the building was creepy. Pip felt as though he had stumbled upon something he was never supposed to see.
"W-wait, wait! Please, just let me call my family, they'll-"
Pip's words were squeezed from his mouth when the scarred guy grabbed his throat and shoved him into the wall. Pip whimpered and started to tremble. Though from the corner of his eye, he saw someone stand up.
"Sid, Jordan, what are you doing? Who's that?" a tall woman asked, pointing to Pip, staring at him curiously.
"Nothing and nobody. Get back to your reading." Jordan yanked Pip from the wall, still clutching his neck. He turned the knob, but the woman rushed over and stopped him.
"Does Alpha Krey know about this?"
"Why should he? This human trespassed, so-"
"So, you're putting him in the cellar? Alpha wouldn't-"
"Wouldn't what? Approve? Please, Alpha Krey would have destroyed this human if he caught him."
Pip looked back and forth between Jordan and the woman. They spoke oddly, but they had stopped talking and stared down at him. Pip gulped, knowing that he looked terrified. He hoped they would sympathise. He looked a little younger than his actual age of eighteen.
"Why were you trespassing?" the woman asked, but Jordan cussed and made Sid move her from the door.
"I'll do the asking. Go find some cleaning to do, Omega."
Sid's hands were on Pip again, pressing on him hard enough for Pip to stumble into another room. This one was pitch black and he didn't see the stairs until his ankle twisted on the top step and he fell hard.
"Watch the-" Sid paused as Pip tumbled down the remaining eight steps, rolling and bruising every limb. "Christ, how have humans existed this long?"
Pip landed on the concrete floor with a heavy thud. He groaned and held his throbbing elbow. He coughed until he could breathe again, and someone switched on the light.
The colour drained from Pips face. Along the back wall were rooms sectioned by metal bars. The cellar looked like a dungeon from the eighteenth century.
Sid clutched Pip's sore arm and tossed him into the corner of the room. The rusted bars were locked behind him. "My family," Pip whispered, cowering on the dirty floor. "Y-You have to call them. They'll worry."
"Quit whining," Jordan demanded and paced back and forth, cracking his knuckles. He was a big guy, and so was Sid. If they were going to beat him up, Pip's bullies were like puppies compared to these men.
* * * * *
Krey glared from his bedroom window when someone knocked on the door. He was enjoying the peace, so he was reluctant to answer the first knock. Whoever disturbed him was persistent.
"Alpha, it's Francis, one of your Omega's," a voice yelled.
Francis knocked again. Each loud bang irritated Krey until he curled his fingers to fists.
"Alpha Krey. Something is going on downstairs in the cellar." Francis knocked again. "Alpha-"
Krey stormed through his room and yanked the door open. He stepped into the hall with such a fierce stare, Francis jumped back a few metres. She had almost turned and ran, but instead diverted her eyes to the floor.
"Omega," Krey's voice was very deep, so he didn't have to shout to be heard. "Why are you daring to come to my quarters?"
"It's your Beta wolf, Jordan. He has a human and is detaining him in the cellar."
"I know. I saw from my window."
Francis tapped her fingers together. She didn't have many chances to talk to her Alpha and wondered how far was too far. "Are you going to see what's going on?"
"Why should I?" Krey loomed over Francis, and she was just over six foot. All the women were tall. All the men were tall. Everyone who lived in the institute was six foot or taller.
"The human is probably about sixteen, and he looked petrified. He's also alone, so I don't think he's a threat. I think it's a little unfair to let your Beta torment him." Francis felt the intensity of Krey's stare without having to look.
The silence rung out between them for what felt like hours until Krey grumbled, "Not my problem." He stepped back into his room and slammed the door. He stared at the dark wood until he heard the Omega's footsteps walking away.
Her scent faded, so he returned to the window. After a while of staring into the darkness, Krey started to smell the human. His scent was weak, but a lot sweeter than the werewolves and a lot less musty.
Nobody had trespassed in almost six months and Krey wasn't forgiving to anyone, let alone a human, and this human broke into his home. How? The fences were usually charged with electricity, and guards patrolled the grounds, especially at night.
Krey stared up at the moon, large and bright and round in the dark sky. He shivered, feeling his inner monster clawing to get out.
The longer he stood, the more he thought about the human. Krey had seen Jordan and Sid get him, and the human couldn't have been taller than 5ft 5. The boy shouldn't have been able to stand the electricity. Guards would have been on him before he even touched the fence.
Krey's brown eyes scanned the field. If a small human could get in, who else could?
* * * * *
Pip wasn't sure when he started crying, but his face was wet, and his vision blurred. He spluttered out apologies and pleaded for them to let him go.
Jordan laughed at him, and Sid showed no emotion as he stood by the door.
Pip had lost his composure, but he was surprised he didn't burst into tears on the field. He wasn't a brave soul, and he was frightened beyond belief. The institute was a sketchy place. Pip had been thrown in the cellar so easily. They didn't care about why he was there; they only saw someone to taunt.
"What should we do first? Break fingers? Nose? Ankle? What will teach you a lesson?" Jordan asked, walking up to the metal bars and grinning like a mad man.
Pip's bottom lip quivered, and more tears flooded his eyes. He couldn't even bring himself to plead anymore, though he wanted to. He would make himself look like a fool if it meant being set free.
"What do you think, Sid?" Jordan looked to the guy with red hair standing at the top of the stairs.
"Fingers." Sid didn't get a chance to grin because the door burst open and whacked him in the face. Now it was Sid's turn to fall down the stairs.
Pip watched his head bounce off every wooden step with satisfaction. The dirt ruffled in the air as Sid sprawled out on the floor, squeezing his shoulder.
Pip rubbed the tears away, so he could see the man standing at the entrance.
The presence in the room quickly changed. The air felt thicker and hotter as Jordan quickly bowed his head and Sid scurried to the wall, not glancing at the man either.
Though, Pip looked. He didn't know what gave him the courage, but he stared.
The man's deep brown eyes streamed lifelessly around the room, seeing straight through Jordan and Sid like they were merely ghosts.
Then they locked with Pip, and the man held their gaze with such intensity, Pip felt like he was falling far into them, further and further with no way out.