The Alphas Prize

Chapter 33: Running out of time - Part 1/2

Erik towered over me, and his lip twitched upwards in disgust as his eyes held darkness to them. I dug my hands into the cool earth and backed away from him, but the further I got, the closer he came. Finally, I tried to get up from the ground, and Erik kicked me back down with his boot.

I stilled, deciding to stay where I was and instead propped myself up onto my elbows. "What the fuck, Erik?" My tone's anger and the hurt of his betrayal only grew.

His upper lip curled into a snarl as he narrowed his eyes. "That cure is coming with me." He growled out, his tone deep and demanding.

I snorted and then gave him a deadpan stare. "Over my dead body." Even though I was shitting my pants right now, as he had an advantage over me, I refused to let him take what was rightfully mine. I had earned this cure and gave up a piece of myself in the process, just to get it.

Erik stepped closer, his feet on either side of my legs now, trapping me in my place, before stopping and sniffing the air. His expression was overtaken with confusion and then repugnance. "You gave up your wolf for that fucking cure, didn't you? For that piece of shit, Cain." Erik hollered, his body now shaking with anger.

I opened my mouth to respond, but he didn't give me a chance. "How could you? Why do you want to save that fucking monster? You've been told the same stories as I; the things he has done are cruel and inhumane. He attacked our pack, our families, he killed Mikael and yet, you still want to save him." His face turned red as he ridiculed me for my actions.

I pushed myself up, getting into more of a sitting position and scowled at him. "Yes, I do, and you are right; Cain is a monster, but at least he doesn't deny it. Cain doesn't hide his true self; he is honest and loyal, unlike you, Erik. You were my friend; I loved and trusted you; now look at you. You say he is a monster, so what does that make you?" I asked in a grave and contemptuous tone.

Erik's eyes turned black, his expression furious now, and a low growl rumbled from him as he bent down to sit on my stomach. I raised my arms and tried to smack him, attempting to get him off me, but he gripped my wrists together and pinned them above my head, putting a halt to my useless attacks.

Erik leaned down, our faces now mere inches away from one another. "I am nothing like him, and if you can't see Cain for who he truly is, then I guess I have no choice but to kill you too." His voice was low and deadly, sending shivers down my spine.

I twisted under him, mustering up every ounce of willpower I had within me to get free from the man I thought I once knew so well. Erik and I were childhood friends; we did everything together; we were once so close. Now, I didn't recognize the person trying to take my life, all because I chose another over him.

My attempt to get free was abruptly halted as Erik's other hand came crashing down around my neck, squeezing my windpipe to the point where I thought he would crush it. The air was slipping from my lungs, and I gasped to breathe. Unfortunately, my hands were still held firmly above my head, rendering me useless and unable to fight him back.

Erik's hold around my neck tightened, and he grinned down at me as he watched the life drain from my eyes. Then, just when I thought all was over and I was going to die, Erik was harshly thrown off me, sending him flying through the air. I lay there, coughing and gasping for air, finally able to breathe again. I had known that Gunnar was close by and that he would come to save me, but to my surprise, when I looked up, the hand that was extended out to me belonged to none other than Eve.

My brows furrowed in udder confusion as I stared into the eyes of the person who had just saved my life, the very same person who I thought hated me with a passion and also tried to destroy my life at one point in time. I shook my head and grabbed her hand, allowing Eve to help me up to my feet. I brushed the dirt and debris from my body before looking up at her. "Thank you." I said, confusion in my tone, "Why did you save me? I thought you despised me and wanted me gone?" I asked curiously.

Eve sucked in a deep breath. "I do hate you, and I do want you gone. However, I know that Cain will always choose you over me no matter what I do or what I say because he loves you. I also heard about what happened to Cain." She closed her eyes, and her features were overcome with grief. Eve opened her eyes again and straightened herself, masking her emotions now. "I know you have the cure, and I still love Cain. So, if saving you means saving him, then I'll do whatever it takes. I won't let him die, especially knowing I could've done something to prevent that." So she told me, her words filled with honesty and loyalty.

I gave her a sympathetic smile, grateful that she was willing to put aside her feelings for me in order to save the one we both loved. But, unfortunately, before I was given a chance to say anything else to her, Erik suddenly barreled into Eve, at full force, tossing her to the ground.

Erik released a loud and deadly growl, "You stupid fucking bitch." He roared, fury evident in his tone.

I looked around the ground and spotted a large boulder. I quickly grabbed hold of the world's heaviest fucking rock and yanked it out of the earth. My grasp on the boulder was slipping, barely able to hold onto it, but with as much strength as I could muster, I bashed Erik over the head with the rock. The impact caused him to collapse to the ground, and he was now unconscious, allowing us the opportunity to getaway.

I rushed over to Eve, helping her up from the ground and onto her feet. Then, not wasting another minute, we bolted away from an unconscious Erik, heading in the opposite direction. However, Erik came up from behind me, gripping my hair and tossed me into a tree, face first. He stalked towards me, a dangerous look in his eyes, but before he could reach me, Eve body checked him, causing him to stumble backwards and away from me.

Erik's nostrils flared, and his jaw went rigid as he glared between Eve and me. Eve's head whipped in my direction. "Run, Freja." She hollered.

Eve then charged towards Erik, fist cocked and swung at him, but he caught her by the wrist and spun her around, Eve's back now to his chest. Erik gripped her head firmly in his grasp and twisted, snapping her neck with one swift movement.

Eve's limp body fell to the ground, and her now lifeless eyes stared in my direction. I gasped, my hands covering my mouth, in complete disbelief that Erik had just so easily taken her life. Erik stood there, staring down at Eve's body for a moment before his gaze turned to me and a menacing grin spread across his face.

I spun around and started to run in the opposite direction, needing to get as far away from him as possible.

"You can't run from me, Freja. Especially, being a weak and pathetic human now." He laughed deeply.

I ignored his remarks and continued running, but I didn't get very far, as Erik caught up to me within an instant. He grabbed hold of the back of my neck and pulled me to him, my back colliding harshly with his front, knocking the wind from me.

His arm wrapped around my neck, cutting off my oxygen, as he rested his lips against my ear. "You better hope the moon goddess will have mercy on your soul for fucking that monster of a mate of yours." He whispered his words like the venom of a poisonous snake.