Warrior Wolf (Complete)

28 Dark path

Rose's heart swelled with relief and joy as she spotted Alex amidst the crowd. For so long, she had been tormented by fears—visions of him shackled in silver, subjected to cruel experiments, or worse, lying dead. But here he was, standing before her, looking stronger and healthier than she had ever seen him.

"Alex!" she cried out, rushing to him.

His eyes widened in surprise as he turned to face her. "Rose?" he exclaimed, and they embraced, the tension of the past few months melting away in that brief moment.

"How did you get here?" he asked, pulling back to study her face.

"It's a long story," she said, her voice still thick with emotion. But as her gaze drifted to the vampires nearby, the joy of their reunion quickly gave way to confusion and concern. "Why are you fighting for him?" she asked, nodding toward a distant figure she knew to be the ancient vampire who had tormented her earlier.

Alex's expression darkened, shadows crossing his face. "When I was wounded and unconscious, our own soldiers left me for dead. That ancient vampire saved me."

Rose’s heart sank, struggling to reconcile her brother’s words. "But what about your loyalty to our Wolf King?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"The loyalty I had to the Wolf King died that day," Alex replied, his tone cold and resolute.

"Who is he?" Rose asked, a pit forming in her stomach as she feared the answer.

"Vampire King Drake," Alex replied, his tone laced with reverence. "He could have killed me or tortured me, but he didn’t. Instead, he ordered his people to treat my wounds and train me. He gave me a new purpose."

Rose's heart twisted in knots as she tried to process Alex's words. Could her brother really be on the right path, or had he been manipulated into this twisted loyalty? The Alex she knew, who had shared her fierce devotion to their pack, would never side with the enemy. But here he was, standing before her, unwavering in his allegiance to the Vampire King.

Her joy at finding him alive was now tainted with doubt, and a storm of conflicting emotions swirled within her. A dark temptation tugged at her—what if joining them was the only way to stay with her brother, to survive in this new reality? But the thought of turning her back on everything she once believed in filled her with dread.

Was this truly her brother’s choice, or was he just another victim of the vampires’ dark influence? The question gnawed at her, leaving her torn between her loyalty to her pack and the terrifying possibility of joining the very forces she had fought against.

Then she recalled the sting of humiliation, being cast out from the battalion, her efforts and sacrifices dismissed. In that moment, a dark thought began to take root: perhaps joining them wasn’t such a bad idea after all.