The Alpha’s Rejected And Broken Mate
Chapter 80

King

Stefan

I crept closer towards the location, my feet barely hitting the ground, the wind in my hair and face. I was fast, faster than I'd ever been and I had yet to see a trap of some sort. I really hoped that Dylan was managing to cover my absence without being questioned by the council too much. The map was clutched in my hand tightly, but I barely needed it, having memorized the map's co-ordinates.

The scenery passed by in a blur, the sun going down. I debated whether to make a stop or to continue in the darkness. After all, vampires can see clearly at nighttime, far better than shifters. I wanted to keep going though, the children relying on me to save them. I couldn't bear the thought of them spending another night separated from their parents, even if Dylan and I had not managed to replace said parents before I left.

I slowed down, wanting to be far more cautious, walking slowly now, my eyes scanning the dark forest. The co-ordinates led to a large cave and I could see what looked like two children in a homemade cage, restrained by shackles and chains to prevent their escape. There were no guards. That in itself was highly suspicious. I looked around but could see no evidence of anyone, nor could I smell the scent of rogues nearby.

There was a little boy and a girl sitting in the cage. Both had blonde hair and blue eyes and it seemed like they might be twins. The girl's hair was all matted, the pigtails she had were loose and dirty, and her clothes were slightly torn and ripped. The boy was not in much better shape, his hair too was dirty and his face was. His clothes were even more torn up and disheveled than his sisters, that is if they were brother and sister. Their facial features were almost identical. They were sobbing and the sound drifted up toward me, causing me to wince. It made my heart feel broken to hear them. How long had they been captured for? How long had they been missing?

I was careful, sliding my feet along, avoiding the leaves and debris, and trying not to make a sound that might give me away. There were no fires, no flames, nothing to help in the way of light or keep the creatures at bay. I managed to make my way to the back of the cage and held up a finger towards my lips, indicating that both children should keep quiet. Their eyes widened in disbelief. The boy hurriedly nodded, while the girl merely stared at me. "Ssshhh" I murmured quietly "what's your name, little ones."

The boy hesitated and then spoke, so softly that my ears had to strain to hear it. "I'm Cory," he said shyly and the little girl piped up with "Carrie."

"Are you both brother and sister?"

They nodded.

"Where are your parents?"

They looked confused by that answer. "We don't have any" Cory said with a bewildered look on his adorable face. My heart sank. That meant that these two had to have been stolen from an orphanage or something.

I began to test the branches of the cage. They weren't too strong, in fact, they were no match for my strength but they would make a hell of a lot of noise when I broke them into small pieces.

"Where is the person who brought you here?" I asked softly, moving around to peer into their eyes. Both looked about to cry and I fervently hoped they wouldn't.

"Don't know" Carrie whispered, sucking on her thumb.

The brother nodded his agreement. Great, had they just been left here? That didn't make sense to me. This was a trap, I was certain of it.

"Well Carrie, Cory. I'm going to get you out of here" I promised thickly. I sniffed once more, determining there was no one nearby. With a shrug, I began to pull, hard at the thick branches, bending them down like they were nothing more than small twigs and sending them flying across the forest floor. I ripped the chains off the children and they gave a small cry, hugging me profusely. Then I stiffened as I heard someone's voice behind me.

"I guess you were right Alpha Gordon, he went straight for the children and ignored the fact we were surrounded" scoffed the voice. I quickly let go of the children, who were looking terrified, and straightened my shoulder's turning around. I was greeted by none other than the Alpha Rogue who must be Gordon, who looked immensely satisfied to see me.

"King Stefan" he greeted me cordially "it's a pleasure to meet you."

"I wish I could say the same thing" I snarled, eying the Alpha. He was huge, with broad shoulders and muscled arms. He had long shaggy brown hair and beard, and his skin was tanned from being outdoors. He looked like a viking warrior or something, that's how tall he was. I felt my mouth go dry just looking at him. He was surrounded by several other men, most looking tall and impressive, but some in a state of starvation. Clearly, these ones he found to be expendable, I thought to myself as they were the weaker shifters. Even as rogues they looked like they were easy to take care of.

"Jordan" snapped Alpha Gordon, motioning towards the man who had said his name, a scraggly-looking dude with unbleached blonde dreads and dark brown eyes, tanned skin, and stout looking. He resembled more of a surfer guy than he did a rogue and it made me wonder absently how the two of them had met. "Get the children" snarled Alpha Gordon.

I put both children behind me. "No, the agreement was that you would let them go if I came and I did as you asked."

Alpha Gordon cackled "you think that I would take your word for it? There's no way I'm going to lay bets you'll do everything I ask" he sneered. But I wasn't going to let them take the children. Instead, I turned to them both, watching them as they stared wide-eyed. They would have to take their chances in the forest, with luck I would be right behind them.

"Run" I muttered under my breath and they seemed to understand, Cory grabbing hold of Carrie's hand and tugging her along with him. Jordan let out a roar and went towards them and I punched him, hard in the face, making him stumble backward and giving the children a chance to escape. I immediately went on the offensive, running over and kicking and punching the men attempting to grab the children, fighting for all I was worth. I wasn't a King for nothing. One of them I drained completely dry of blood as I held him by the neck, gasping for air as Alpha Gordon watched me with narrowed eyes. He did not look pleased with how everything was going.

Jordan came running towards me and I tackled him, both of us rolling over and over on the ground, my fangs protruding as I bit him in the neck. He swatted me away and got to his feet, kicking out and missing as I dodged to the side and got up, my eyes now glowing red in my anger. I spared a glance over my shoulder. Over half the men had been taken down and the other half looked hesitant to approach me. There was no sign of Alpha Gordon but I could hear the kid's running footsteps as they got further and further away. They were safe then. I heaved a sigh of relief and then moved toward Jordan who raised his fists at me.

Thwack. I got a good hit on the side of his head and he gave a low growl and then shifted into his wolf form. Great, this was just the beginning then. He raced towards me, his claws glinting in the moonlight and I raced towards a nearby tree, climbing up and then throwing myself down on his back as he let out a loud roar, trying frantically to get me off of him. The other men shifted as well and I grimaced. I might be a royal vampire but there were more than half a dozen wolves now and the odds definitely weren't in my favor. I went flying off Jordan's back and hit a tree trunk hard, hard enough that it went flying on its side. I was lucky not to be impaled on one of its branches. I rolled and got back to my feet, watching the wolves as they approached me in a circle, effectively cutting me off from escape. I pondered what to do and was about to jump up high when I heard a strange whirring noise come towards me and then felt a slight sting in my thigh. I glanced down in puzzlement, to see a dart embedded there. I glanced back up quickly and saw Alpha Gordon standing there with a tranquilizer gun, a smirk on his face. He slowly lowered the gun down as the shifters growled, still in their positions.

What the f**k had he used on me? My limbs began to feel heavy and I felt myself topple sideways, hitting the forest floor hard. My limbs felt like they wouldn't move, no matter how hard I tried and I could feel my airway becoming constricted. Vampires, luckily, don't need to breathe oxygen as shifters do, otherwise, I was certain I'd be unconscious by now. As it was, all I could do was stare mutely up at the shifters, as they made way for their Alpha, who stepped past them all, a wide grin on his face.

"Finally" he breathes "finally I have you and your blood. You will heal me and all will be right," he said cryptically. I sniffed once more and was bewildered. Why couldn't I sense his wolf? He was an alpha, he gave off that aura, but I couldn't smell or sense his wolf at all, almost as though he didn't have one. But then, how had he gotten all these shifters to be loyal to him without one? It made no sense.

My eyelids were beginning to flutter closed. Alpha Gordon chuckled lightly under his breath. "You should see how pathetic you look" he hissed "such a weakling of a vampire. I expected more from you" he commented sourly.

I said nothing. My mouth opened and closed, but not a single noise was I able to utter. He bent over me and I felt another prick, this time in my arm, my eyes glancing down involuntarily to see a needle drawing blood. f**k. My blood was potent, stronger than the average vampire, and could be used for all sorts of things. I imagined he wanted it for its healing abilities, but I couldn't see him using it on his lackeys, etc. He wanted the blood for himself, but what did he need to be healed? It had to be some sort of tumor or disease that was eating away at him, for he looked fine on the outside.

The needle withdrew from my arm and I grimaced, as the Alpha stood up and then quietly injected himself with the blood right in front of my eyes. I hissed, seeing his eyes glow red for a moment. The fool didn't know what he had just done. With that much blood, he would not only heal whatever was ailing him, but he would turn half-vampire as well. Maybe that had been his intention though. I swore silently under my breath. He began to convulse as his men looked on shocked, before he fell to the ground, frothing at the mouth. For a moment there was nothing but silence and then I heard Jordan's voice. "Alright, everyone, leave Alpha Gordon alone. Get the Vampire King and restrain him. You know what to do."

I felt myself being lifted up by several arms and then moved toward the cave. As we reached the cave, I closed my eyes in resignation, unable to fight the sedative I'd been given and passing out unconscious before they could restrain me.