Alpha (Jacob Seed X Deputy OC)

3 - Capture

One day later I sat alone on the bank of Clagett Bay, hooking bait onto the end of my fly. Piercing the maggot in the gut, a slight smile pricked at my lips. Maybe this time I'd catch a sturgeon. Getting to my feet, I cast the line out into the water and watched it bob tantalisingly at the surface.

'The wolf who hunts alone, dies alone.' Jacob's voice crackled through my radio. It made my blood run cold. Eyes almost glazing over, my grip grew slack on the fishing pole and it was tugged free from my hand by a hungry trout. 'Stay put. My men are coming for you.' Snatching my radio up I tried to cut into the line.

'Jake.' It was useless, he'd already turned his radio off.

'Dep? You need to get running. If Jacob's men have you marked-' Dutch tried to instruct me but I turned the knob of my radio down. There was no point. If I knew Jacob, and I did, he'd get his own way regardless. I placed an arm across my forehead to scan the area and shield myself from the sun. Where could they be? A stabbing pain tore through my right calf and my leg buckled. Of course they were behind me. A hallucinatory feeling washed through my veins and I grimaced. What happened to not needing the Bliss to get what he wanted? Knees connecting to the ground, my weight teetered sideways until I was hunched over in the dirt.

***

'Ngh...' The passive groan escaped my lips as I sat upright. A ringing whistled through my ears as though my eardrums had burst.

'Welcome to your new home pup.' Jacob's face came into view. He was pressed up against the cage bars with a glowering expression intent on winding me up. It had no effect though since I still couldn't see straight. 'Hey! Look at me when I'm talkin' to ya.' The snap of his fingers drew my attention and I turned to face him sluggishly. 'There she is.'

'What's happening?' Mustering the words took great strength. It was as if my tongue was swollen. Jacob gave his usual deep chuckle and stood back from the cage.

'Your training. It starts here.'

'Training? What training?' I tried to struggle to my feet but fell straight back down onto my bottom woozily. Jacob didn't answer, eyeing me carefully. One of his henchmen approached nervously and whispered something in his ear. The ginger haired man gave a tight nod before taking his leave. 'Jacob? Jacob!' I called after him but he ignored me, striding away like I didn't matter at all. Crawling on my knees, I grabbed the rusty iron bars that held me captive and shook them aggressively. The metal jangled but barely budged. 'Fuck!' Leaning back into the mud, I felt it seep through my trousers. Surely he wouldn't keep me here forever?

I was wrong. So damn wrong. Four days in and I hadn't eaten or drunk anything. Despite spending most of my time sat down, I was utterly exhausted. The blistering sun was searing my skin and making me sweat profusely. I could do without losing so many fluids. Night time at least brought me some comfort as the temperature would cool and I could function a little better. If only I could quell the awful churning sensations of hunger that rattled my stomach. Curled up in the corner of my cell, I was dozing when a deafening reverberation shook me awake.

'Wakey wakey Deputy!' Lifting my head, a cultist jeered at me. He ran the barrel of his gun across the bars rapidly once again. The vibrations tore through me.

'What do you want?' I grunted, rubbing my eyes and sitting upright.

'Brought you some food at Jacob's request.' His words were almost slurring together and I narrowed my eyes. Was he drunk?

'Show me.' I stated, leaning forward ever so slightly. Maybe he was telling the truth? On cue, the shaggy haired man produced a bowl of raw meat from behind his back. He shook it in my face and I found myself salivating just at the sight of it. Something instinctual took over me and before I could process it I was scrambling over on my hands and knees. Reaching my arm through the bars, my fingers grazed the edge of the bowl. With a jerk, the cultist whipped the food away and yanked his other arm around. There was a chain wrapped around his fist with a Bliss filled judge on the end of it. Fangs dug deep into my skin causing me to let out a horrific howl of pain. The cultist laughed manically as the creature thrashed me around like a shark with its prey.

'P-please stop!' My screeches must've caught Jacob's attention because he burst out of the Veteran's Centre.

'What the fuck is goin' on out here?' He boomed, fists curled up in annoyance at being disturbed. The judge released it's grip on me and I slunk back into the shadows, cradling my arm. Blood oozed from the puncture wounds, dripping onto the ground.

'Just having some fun!' The cultist raised his palms innocently, tugging hard at the judge's collar.

'Not with this one.' Jacob instructed, his blue gaze briefly flitting over to look at me. 'She's on a special program.' Dismissing his subordinate, he crouched in front of the cage and used two fingers to beckon me towards him. I hunched over, afraid and in pain. 'You can't be so trusting.' He instructed, peering into the shadows to try and catch a glimpse of my face. I turned it away and let the darkness swallow me 'You oughta let me fix that up.' He gestured to my arm but I continued to stay silent.

'Go away.' My hiss bled through my clenched teeth. The pain radiating around the wound was excruciating. It hurt so damn much.

'It'll get infected.'

'Don't care.' Lying down, I curled back up and turned my back towards him. 'Now leave me alone.' Jacob scoffed at my attempt at telling him what to do.

'Hmph. So stubborn.' He grunted. I heard his joints click as he raised back up to his feet. He must've stood there staring at me for a few minutes because it took a while for me to hear his footfalls disappear into the distance. This was going to be far harder than I anticipated.