Page 133 of A Second Chance for the Beta

“What makes you think we are out for money?”

“You are telling me the beta and the information she has aren’t worth anything?” Richard laughs. “Who is the cocky one now?”

“Pick something else,”Dylan huffs.

“Hmmm, no money?” Richard whines. “Then give us fresh blood. Young blood. One of your pups maybe. My vampire says that innocent blood is the best.”

“How about…”Dylan says, and I can almost hear the disgusting smirk in his voice. “Three little teenagers. Are they young enough?”

Richard lets out a sigh. “Well, it would be better if they were younger, but I will talk to my sire. I will call in half an hour.”

“Don’t miss it,”Dylan says sharply. “Or I swear to the moon goddess I will find you, rip off your dick, and feed it to the rats. If you think I won’t find you, believe me, I will.”He sounds so serious I see Richard waver, but he doesn’t let it show to Dylan.

“Half an hour,” he says. “Expect my call.”

Once he hangs up, he releases a shaky breath, his whole body trembling. “That was the scariest thing I ever did,” he whispers while he falls down on his knees, his legs not supporting him anymore. Before I can say anything, the door opens with the others coming in. Livia pushes past everyone and approaches her mate.

“This was amazing, Rich!” she exclaims, hugging him. “You were incredible!”

“I… I just talked,” Richard mutters shyly, but he seems to enjoy Livia’s praise and wraps his arm around her middle.

“I have to agree with her,” Liam says. “You did well.”

“Thank you,” Dante says quietly. “For your help, Richard. The next task will be upon Julianus.”

“Richard laid all the groundwork. I won’t disappoint you,” Julianus says. He bends down, squeezing Richard’s shoulder. “Honestly, I wouldn’t mind having you as my personal blood bank. You know, I’m said to be quite the good lover too. A cute and smart guy would be to my liking.”

Livia tosses him a deathly glare. “Get your hands off him,” she hisses. “He is mine!”

Richard blinks in confusion, staring at the young woman in surprise. Livia, who is usually so straightforward, seems frozen in place, not sure what to say or do. She realizes she let the truth slip out thanks to Julianus’s little trick. Richard’s surprise makes it even more evident that she never told him who he was to her. Judging by the hopeful look in his eyes, he doesn’t seem to mind that she kept the truth from him.

“We should probably continue,” Dante says. “Thirty minutes have almost passed.”

Richard nods, hurrying back to his phone with newfound motivation. As Julianus predicted, the second part of the call is much easier. Richard talks shortly to Dylan before handing the phone to his so-called sire. Julianus is a trained warrior and spy; it’s easy for him to sound convincing and negotiate the conditions. The exchange will be in a few hours at a storehouse two hours away from our pack.

She is so close. Charlie is so close!

Once Julianus has discussed the details, he quits the call again, letting out a sigh of relief. For the next couple of minutes, we discuss the outcome with the others.

“We set everything in motion,” Dante says. “Let’s hope they don’t trick us.”

“I’m pretty sure they will,” I say, my nerves tensed again. This is our chance to get Charlie, Felix, and Dario back. I hope we didn’t endanger them further.

Before anyone can comment on my last words, the door opens once again and Elden steps inside. “I did it,” he says, handing me the necklace, the look in his eyes dark. His lips are a thin line while his eyes have taken the shade of the night. “I opened it. I know what’s inside and why they want it so badly.”

*CHARLIE*

Like Felix, Dario returns after a while, getting tossed back into the cell. Blood drips from his nose, and there is a gash on his forehead. And just like Felix he remains silent after what happened. The guards just laugh and remain in front of the cell now.

They start drinking. Soon the whole basement stinks of alcohol and their sweat. It makes me feel nauseous, but at least they are momentarily distracted. I just wish my vampire genes would kick in and make me be able to do something. At the end of the day I’m just a kid and can’t do anything despite being half werewolf and half vampire. The same can be said for the twins. Felix and Dario might grow into strong wolves, but they don’t have their wolf spirits yet.

“Are you okay?” I whisper towards Dario.

“Don’t worry,” he mutters.

His words don’t put me at ease at all. He is lying on his back with Felix next to him, both of them looking utterly drained.

“Let’s sleep a bit,” Felix whispers. “They are preoccupied now.”