Chapter 97: Servant

MAXINE.

The silence that fills the circle is chilling. It's the quiet call of something more sinister. It's cold anger, the kind of rage that's willing to bide time and soon release all the chaos it's been keeping inside.

The Alpha Supreme seems to be oblivious to it. He's just flashing a regretful expression like an actor, but I think everyone sees through it now. The mask is off, and we can see him for what he is. For all the evil he's hiding.

He steps forward as soon as the guards move the guillotine away. The Overseer's blood is still on the floor, like a flag waving and saying that this is what happens to everyone who crosses him. He knows it very well. His stance very much screams confidence and indifference when he speaks again.

"The new Overseer would be much more worthy of our collective trust," he says, still in that pretend sad voice. "He will uphold all the rules and all the ideals of our group of people, unity among all. The best person to give us that is my son, Draco Cavalliere."

I thought that he would appoint Ajax, but who am I kidding? I think he knows very well where Ajax's loyalty lies and it's not with him, so he's never going to give him an important position. Even though I know Ajax is trying to gain his approval again, I don’t think it’s going to work.

I worry for him. I worry for everyone in here now that Draco is the new Overseer.

“Please, get back to your respective tasks,” the Alpha Supreme announces, holding his arms open like a generous god, and everyone starts to disperse.

Theo and I keep our heads low as we walk away, trying to blend in with the crowd still. A couple of Unclaimed tenants see us and recognize us, but they don’t say anything. They just give us nods, completely understanding what we’re there for.

We head back to where Jonathan is, and he is waiting for us with a shocked expression on his face. He doesn’t say anything even as we get into the back of the cart. I thought he would say something to us when we get back from the trip, but it seems that the events have rattled him enough to just stay mum.

He drives us outside the camp, deep into the forest. He doesn’t say anything even as he gets out of the car and opens the door for us.

Theo climbs out first, looking at him with a strange expression. Jonathan doesn’t even meet his gaze.

“What was it that you wanted to say when we left?” Theo asks. “What was it about?”

“About her.” His voice breaks. “The Overseer. She was the one who… she wanted me to make sure you got to the Human world safely. She was already under surveillance by the Alpha Supreme and I told her that. But she didn’t care. She said this was more important than anything she had ever taken care of.”

Theo and I go silent. How does anyone even react to that? To such nobility and bravery?

A threat of tears drums behind my eyes but I just take a deep breath and ask, “Is that all?”

Jonathan looks like he wants to say more. A lot more. But he says, “I’m already putting my ass on the line by doing all of this. I don’t want to end up like her.”

“No one does,” Theo points out, his tone suddenly cold. “Why don’t you get back inside before your boss catches you with the criminals?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Jonathan tries to explain. “It’s just that so many things are in danger here! For me personally. I know some of you don’t have much to lose, but I do.”

Theo doesn’t say anything. He just takes my hand and leads me deeper into the forest. Jonathan stays in his place at first as though waiting for us to come back and make it up to him, but eventually he drives away. Theo and I get deeper and deeper into a place until we reach a cliff overlooking everything. The trees are so thick here that we have no problem hiding. The foliage is doing all the work for us.

Thankfully, Theo was mindful enough to bring some of our supplies and some other things from the cart. We have a big sleeping bag that we can share, as well as a big bottle of water and a pack of cured meat. We would be able to live off of this until tomorrow morning, when we have to figure out what to do and where to go.

I’m not looking forward to any of it at all.

Nighttime falls. Theo and I can’t fit into the sleeping bag due to his size, so he lets me have it and just lies down on the grass next to me. He’s completely awake, but I know that it’s been a while since he slept so I stroked his hair to relax him. Soon enough, he’s breathing evenly next to me, but I find that sleep is elusive.

I lie awake, staring at the stars. The silence is almost delicious, but I hate that it’s making me hear my own thoughts. About Livia being okay. About Paul being dead because of me. I still have the pocketwatch with me, wrapped up around my wrist all this time. My mother. My father. What it all means for me and my future—

“There, that’s the spot.”

The commanding voice makes me flinch. Theo’s eyes fly open immediately, and I vaguely wonder if he slept at all. But he’s crouching before I can even move, locating the sound.

It seems to be carrying from way down, right below the cliff we’re in.

I get out of the sleeping bag, thankful that it’s not making a sound. We both position ourselves on the edge of the cliff, hiding behind the massive trunk of a fallen tree.

Right below is a drying river, as well as two men and five women standing on one of the big rocks. The first man I recognize as Draco, and the other man is in a white soldier’s uniform.

The five women are all young, college-age, all bound together with a single chain.

“Make them stand there,” Draco commands the soldier, when he flinches, he laughs. “They are your catch, aren’t they? You got them just by being at a college party. What are you doing being shy when you actually managed to make these filthy Human bitches think you’re going to fuck them? Make them stand on the edge.”

The soldier pushes them to the edge, making them scream, but they don’t fall.

“Lie down,” Draco commands, and they follow. “There. I got everything set up for you. Now do what you’re supposed to do.”

The soldier hesitates at first, especially when the women start to shake and plead. But he just crouches, leaning in against one of the women’s necks and sniffing.

“Now bite,” Draco urges.

And the soldier obeys, sinking his teeth into one of the women until she screams and cries and passes out, completely drenched in venom.