Where is he?

Alpha Hades

We chose to stand behind the gathering crowd. I don't want to let anyone know who I am until the time is right. Damon stands next to me and watches as the wolves arrive to take their places. 

He nudges me and leans closer, "Are you sure this is the right thing to do? We discussed the deal, and you never told the old Alpha you would think on the day of the ceremony. The Rogue Alpha signed the papers, my friend; we can't back out of this without losing our honour."

I scan the crowd once more and let a low groan pass my lips. I don't see the old fool among the guests nor the young Alpha. Have they decided to blow the deal before I've fully made up my mind?

Damon attempts to nudge me again, but I quickly catch his hand. If this fool keeps nudging me, he'll betray my lousy condition to the enemies. I'm one decent nudge away from bleeding all over this place. "Cut the crap, Damon," I hiss, fighting the urge to bring everyone, including my best friend, to their knees. "I want to watch them first and then decide if it's worth my time. I've wasted a whole week on this shit; I won't waste more unless I find something that catches my eye and makes me want to stick around."

As soon as he nods, I quickly scan the crowd. Thank God I didn't draw attention to myself- that'd be the stupidest thing I could do. For now, we need to stay away and act like guests, not the main characters in this charade.

Once my body relaxes, Damon's back with his bullshit: "What about young Alpha? I told you, he's quite the view."

I glance at my watch and shake my head, "There's got to be more to him than a pretty face." 

We can't discuss this in public. I can only imagine the rumours that might flood the neighbouring packs if someone overhears this conversation and finds out I'm the young Alpha's groom. 

Damon leans closer to me and whispers, "Well, he's never been with a man before, so that makes him a pretty perfect virgin bottom, doesn't it?" 

Be damned my curiosity! "How would you know?" The question leaves me faster than I can think of how to phrase a reasonable sentence. 

"Asked around." He shrugs and leans against the wall. To outsiders, Damon probably looks like the laid back, cool guy who has no worry in the world. However, my men know his body language and the message he's trying to send them- Damon demands they form a wall around us and don't let others near. 

Once the wall of men separates us from the remaining crowd, I chuckle. "As grateful as I am for the effort, you shouldn't have. For your sake, I'll rephrase myself. There's got to be more to him than a pretty face and virginity." 

"Come on, that's a big deal these days. Even I haven't met a man who hasn't been with someone before me. You know how open we are these days; even straight men fuck other men." If we weren't standing in the middle of a huge crowd, I'm sure he'd raise his voice. 

"Can we not discuss it? I'm not in the mood for your bullshit." I glance at my watch again. Whatever's going on, the old fart and his son are taking their sweet time. 

"Anyway, do you like how the pack prepared this place for your wedding? There's too much white involved; we stand out. Everyone on the brides' side is wearing white, while we're all draped in black. Talk about the inability to fit in wherever we go." I'm about to snap or at least throw a sarcastic remark at Damon when movement catches my eye. 

I can see the disturbing view even past my men. Not far from us stands an uncomfortable-looking woman with a man at her side. My eyes take them in; something feels off. As Damon describes the young Alpha I'm supposed to marry; I notice what's wrong with the couple. The man has his arm around the woman; his hand clasps her shoulder so tightly that she'll have massive bruises on her skin. 

"Zip it, Damon," I growl louder than I expected. A few heads turn in my direction, but one that stands out is the woman who caught my eye. Her cheeks are taut with remnants of tears, her lower lip appears to be split open, and her eyes are glowing bright red. What the fuck? What's wrong with this pack? Don't they care about their people? 

I feel Damon's hand on my shoulder, I hear him pleading to let it go, but I'm quick to shrug him off and force my way through my men. This isn't my pack, I have no right to voice my opinion, but I won't tolerate this bullshit on my land, and I'll be damned if I overlook it here. 

By the time I come back to my senses, the crowd around me watches me hold the piece of shit of a man in a deadly grip with his back pressed against the wall. My grip around his throat is so tight he asshole's nose bleeds while he thrashes against me. Thank God I didn't grab him with my right arm; I'd give out my state before I could hide it. 

A surprised hiss draws everyone's, including mine, attention towards someone else. "What in the world is going on here?" 

I look over my shoulder and see Damon leap in front of me, throw up his arms, and speak up, "Look, guys, here comes the bride!"

Before I can think about how much time this young Alpha has wasted, he keeps talking. To my surprise, he doesn't seem to care one bit about the man I attacked. "Where is he?"

"Where's who?" Damon asks, sounding all sorts of amused. 

"You know who, the Rogue Alpha. We have a ceremony planned here." At the mention of the title, I scoff and return my attention to my victim. Men like him don't deserve to walk the face of earth unpunished. My grip on his throat tightens as a delicate hand lands on my arm, and a soft voice rings out from my right. "And who are you to attack my pack member?"

I let go of the man and let him collapse at my feet. "We're aware of the ceremony, but thank you for the kind reminder. As for the most important question- not who, but why. I assume an Alpha would assure no member of his pack comes to harm, and this wonderful young lady doesn't seem too happy about this piece of shit touching her." I motion towards the frightened woman. 

"Again, who are you? And, please, entertain me, tell me who I look like to believe your words."

A loud laugh escapes me before I can suppress it. Turning to face the young Alpha, I take off my mask and flash him the best smile I can manage. "My name is Nero Hades, and you, Alpha, look like you're mine."