Alphas War

Chapter 43

My eyes snapped towards the entrance to the building where a few girls were fighting against the large men keeping us trapped inside.

"Let me out!" One of them screamed, most likely overconfident from alcohol. The man that stood before her remained unbothered and stoic as she slapped at his chest, attempting to get him to move.

When that didn't work, she charged at him, looping her legs around his waist and sending him a few steps backwards in shock. "Let me out!" She demanded again, shrieking at the man and gaining the attention of the entire party.

"Get off me!" He yelled, spinning in circles as he attempted to detach her.

"Why can't we leave?" Someone asked, causing others to start to notice that the exit was blocked.

Chatter filled the room as people eyed the mayor and his bodyguards, suspicion and fear crossing everyone's faces.

"How the hell are we going to get out of here?" Liam muttered beside me, causing me to turn and meet his questioning gaze.

I bit my lip, turning back to the commotion that was occurring on the other side of the room. More people had begun to question what was going on and some guys had moved to help the girls fighting to get out.

"I'm hoping brute force," I finally answered, leading them all to turn to me. "It's not just us that wants to leave. I'm hoping everyone will get annoyed and start trying to leave, then we can just join them."

"Do you think this has something to do with us?" Ryder asked. "I mean, why else would the mayor have business at a grad party?"

I shrugged, keeping my gaze locked on the man in question. While his bodyguards attempted to fight off the rowdy teenagers that were protesting being trapped inside, he simply watched silently from the sidelines. "I have no idea."

"We want to leave!" Someone chanted from the front of the room. "We want to leave!" A few others joined in before they attempted to stroll straight out the doors. Of course, they were unsuccessful as the men forcefully pushed them backwards.

"This is ridiculous," Mason hissed, shaking his head from a few feet away from us where he watched his step father intently.

The chanting continued to grow louder until it was like a switch had been flicked and the mayor suddenly snapped into action. "Silence!" He ordered, nodding his head at the men.

Everyone frowned in confusion, wondering what exactly had just been set in motion and I clutched Zach's hand just a little bit tighter in my own. "Whats going on?" Caroline asked from Mason's side.

A soft waft of earthy scent hit my nose before I froze, my eyes wide as I surveyed the room. In every corner were large vents that looked like they were to air condition the room, however, right now I was certain they served an entirely different purpose.

"I can smell wolfsbane," I growled under my breath. "We need to get out of here, now!"

With a nod, we all began to move forward, joining the crowds of people who were yelling and fighting at the front of the room.

"Zach," I whispered, grabbing his hand as the effects of the wolfsbane gas started. My head suddenly felt lighter and my limbs weaker as I leant my weight on him.

"I feel it too," he muttered, holding me steady beside him.

"Guys," Ryders voice rang clear in my head but my vision began to fog and with all the people crowding around, I could no longer see my friend. "We aren't getting out of here."

"I don't understand. Why would they want to capture high school kids?" Mason asked. "Surely they would be better off going after the adults."

"They probably want to lure the adults out and have some sort of leverage over them," I muttered, unsure if he could hear me over the shouts coming from the people around us.

When a scream pierced through the noise, I turned in Zach's arms to see Jordan lay across the cold floor, her chest rising and falling while her eyes were pressed shut. "Jordan!" I croaked, fighting against Zach's arms to reach her.

Before I could even take a step, two men appeared, lifting her from the floor and dragging her away while I screamed and fought through the crowds. "No!"

"Ella!" Zach called, taking my hand and pulling me back towards him just as another thud sounded and Olly hit the ground. Liv stumbled to the ground beside him before the two of them were dragged away.

"Caroline! Stay awake," I heard Mason hiss as she fell limp in his arms. I was frozen in my place, my head swirling around as my friends started dropping to the ground, the effects of the wolfsbane gas too intense for them to fight.

"Let go of her!" Mason bellowed as his girlfriend was dragged away. His screams, intermingled with the shouts and screeches of my old classmates as they watched us being carted off, were the last things I heard as my vision went black and I stumbled into a pair of awaiting arms.

****

A ringing sound pierced through my skull, causing me to groan in agony as I rolled onto my side. I could feel the cold, hard ground beneath my sore body and whimpered at the aching pain throbbing in my head as I moved.

I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes, the pain was already too intense. I splayed my fingers across the ground and steadied myself as I tried to remember what had happened.

All I could remember was noise. Shouting and yelling and screaming echoing around me before the world went dark.

An ache formed in my chest, one I was unfamiliar with, and I managed to peel my eyes open to find I was blanketed in darkness. Blinking a few times, I forced myself up into a sitting position despite the protesting ache in my limbs.

The stench of wolfsbane was prominent, filling my nose and throat and causing me to choke. Everything burned like I had swallowed boiling hot poison but I couldn't focus on that right now. All I could focus on was the longing feeling that tugged on my chest.

I scanned the room, my gaze landing on a few bodies beside me once my eyes adjusted to the darkness. With all my strength, I dragged myself closer before grasping a shoulder. "Jordan," I whispered as I recognised my best friend. "Jordan!" She stirred slightly and I breathed in relief before choking on the taste of the wolfsbane. "Caroline," I called, turning to my other friend, my voice nothing more than a groan of pain. "Car!" I managed to shout, shoving her limp body and coughing loudly.

Similar to Jordan, she stirred slightly before a groan escaped her lips. The final body in the cell was Ryders and I shuffled towards him, managing to reach him before collapsing right on top of him. "Ryder," I hissed, my head feeling faint again.

Tears rolled down my cheeks as I watched, paralysed, as Jordan sat up and scanned the room. Her eyes met mine for a brief moment before sobs echoed through the room and she scrunched up into a small ball, crying from the pain I knew she was feeling.

"El?" Ryder croaked from beneath me, pulling a sob of my own from my lips as I rested my head on his chest. "What happened?" He bit out, his voice weak.

"We're trapped," I told him, staring over at the large metal door on the one side of the room. I hardly had the strength to stand, let alone break down the door.

"Where are the others?" He groaned, using what little strength he had to sit up. He whined as I imagined his head exploded with pain in protest to his movements.

All I could do was cry as I leant my weight against him. "I don't know. I don't know where he is," I cried, drowning out the sound of Jordan's soft sniffles.

The four of us looked at each other, not having another word to say as we remained still, praying that the pain would dull as we waited for our fate.