Chapter 6: LILA

One moment, I was on the floor, inhaling the air reeking of alcohol mixed with booming music, mocking laughter, and surrounded by the snarls of wolves who hated me, and the next second, everything faded into the heavy, rhythmic thudding of Beta Vane's boots against the pristine tiles.

He was walking too fast and didn't bother to look back, not even once. He didn't care that I was drenched, that I was noticeably limping, or that my wrist was still bleeding from the injury Brielle caused. The red liquid rolled down my skin, staining the white dress my mother had spent all night working on. All Vane cared about was getting me to the obsidian chamber to fix some damn system and save the bloody Alpha from dying, but I wasn't even sure I would make it to the destination alive.

This was my final walk. I knew for a fact that the moment I stepped inside the obsidian chamber, I wouldn't be coming out alive. God, my mother and little sister would be so worried.

An automatic obsidian gate waited ahead of us and slid open for Vane to step in. The man walked so fast that I had to force my aching legs to move quicker before the gate shut behind me.

The space was dark and freezing, like an invisible snowstorm was raging inside. My wrist had automatically stopped bleeding. My blood felt frozen; I could feel the cold deep in my bones. The only light in the hallway came from sparking systems flickering from different corners, and I didn't fail to notice the sentinels standing silently against each wall.

The bloody Alpha's Beta wouldn't even wait for me to catch up, let alone catch my breath.

As if he could hear my thoughts, he suddenly paused and pursed his lips. His hands were dipped into the pockets of his tailored trousers as he waited for me to limp faster toward him.

"Believe me when I say I'm being extremely slow because I'm walking with you. It would take me less than thirty seconds to get to the chamber," he stated casually while waiting.

He wasn't trying to hide the annoyance that I was slowing him down, but it was also not my fault that he chose a wolfless girl when they were other strong omegas that could keep up with his energy.

When I finally reached him, I couldn't even catch my breath like I wanted to. The passage was so cold I could feel it tightening in my chest. I was surprised Vane wasn't reacting to the temperature at all.

Not even thirty seconds later, Vane started walking again.

"We are almost there," he announced.

I had no choice but to follow him until I finally caught sight of another obsidian gate from afar. The gate was designed like a trident, gigantic and gleaming so brightly that I could see my reflection on its surface even from a distance.

"You must be the technician."

A man dressed in a doctor's coat stood in front of me as I arrived near the gate.

I nodded, recognizing him as the one and only best doctor in Seattle, Doctor Rhodes.

"Here." He stretched out a white fur-lined coat toward me.

Confused, I accepted it.

"It is a special coat designed to protect you from the effects of the obsidian chamber. It's going to be very hot in there," Doctor Rhode explained, warning me before hand.

I nodded as I wrapped the coat around my body.

"I also sent someone to fetch the necessary tools you'll need to fix the cooling system. When you step in, you're going to look straight ahead. There's a giant black air conditioner. That's the system you're to fix," Rhode instructed, passing me tool box.

I nodded again, accepting the box.

He exchanged glances with Vane, motioning for him to open the gate. Vane nodded and walked toward a large transformer positioned on the left side of the gate. His fingers were about to wrap around the handle and pull it down, but he suddenly paused, then slowly turned back to where I stood.

For the first time, he was looking directly at me, intensely into my eyes. I could see my reflection in his amber orbs. His stare was different from the way the bloody Alpha looked at me. There was something darker in Vane's eyes, something sharp and dangerously alert. I had no idea what this man wanted to say, but I was already terrified for my life.

"I want you to listen to me very carefully," he started, his tone laced with warning.

I forced the lump in my throat down. I had no choice but to listen.

"If you somehow make it out alive, whatever you see in the obsidian chamber must never leave your mouth," he warned, glaring at me before adding. "I'm serious, you're going to keep it till your grave"

What this man don't understand was I have no one to talk to even if I wanted to, his warning didn't phase me at all. What worried me was the fact that he was certain I wasn't going to survive.

A painful chuckle almost escaped me, but instead, I simply nodded, swallowing the pain building in my chest. Just how long will I endure mistreatment simply from just being a null.

"One more thing," he continued, and I slowly lifted my head from the floor to look at him. "Do not touch the Alpha, no matter what happens. You are going in there to fix the cooling system only. Stay as many feet away from the Alpha as possible. I'm telling you this for your own good."

I blinked like I was ever planning to touch him. I had heard that even getting close to that bloody Alpha during the Blood Moon could reduce someone to ashes, including his Beta and the doctor. That was why they stayed far away from him and monitored everything through a system. Even I was given a special coat for protection, though I wasn't sure how long it would last.

I better work fast.

Vane was about to pull down the transformer when I stopped him.

He stared at me with an urgent, impatient, and slightly irritated expression.

"If I don't make it out alive, can you please pass a message to my family? Helene and Marcy Whitlock." At the mention of my last name, Vane narrowed his eyes like he was trying to remember something, but the curious look disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

Now he was staring at me like I was a ticking time bomb.

"Just tell them not to cry for me and that I will always love them, no matter what," I added quickly.

Vane didn't reply. I wasn't even sure he acknowledged my request.

He pulled down the transformer, and the obsidian trident gate slowly lifted open. Rhode nodded at me, urging me to step inside.

I released a deep breath, my chest pounding violently against my rib cage, but I couldn't back down. It wasn't like I had been given a choice.

Staring into the dim red space before me, I inhaled deeply once more before opening my eyes.

Here goes nothing.

Mentally bracing myself, I stepped into the obsidian chamber.