Page 72 of Alpha's Revenge Luna

As the car door swings open, I leap out and fling the back door wide, my gaze darting anxiously.

Time is ticking before they catch up, and our only chance is to keep their focus on us long enough for Emery to escape.

I forcefully push Emery into the emergency stairwell, my heart pounding with concern for her safety.

These people are capable of unimaginable horror.

Emery stares at me, panic etched across her face as I shove her inside.

“Go up into the mall. Blend in. I’ll handle things here,” I assure her.

“What’s happening?” she questions, just as Kyrio appears behind me.

“We’ll surprise them from below,” Kyrio declares, swiftly removing his shirt before bounding over the barrier to the lower level.

“Go, Emery. Now. I’ll find you,” I insist, turning to help Kyrio. But she attempts to follow, her determination shining through.

“No, I’m not leaving you—” she pleads, clutching my shoulders.

“This isn’t up for debate!” I snap more sharply than intended.

She hesitates, fear widening her eyes, and for a fleeting moment, I consider keeping her by my side. Yet deep down, I know she’ll be safer away from the imminent bloodshed. “Go!” I command firmly. Reluctantly, she turns and disappears up the stairs.

Kyrio has descended to the floor below while I sprint back to the car, maneuvering it down another level.

Eagerly joining Kyrio’s side, we take cover amidst the parked cars.

Our senses heighten as we listen for the approaching danger.

The sound of footsteps resonates from above level, where Emery remains hidden.

Panic gnaws at me with each passing second when her voice flits through my head.

“The bullets, Dion. They’re filled with poison!” she yells through the mind-link just as the first one rings out smashing the car window above my head.

“What the fuck are you still doing here. Get out of here!” I order her.

Hearing the voices of our ruthless pursuers, caging us in, I step out from behind a car.

Kyrio grips my arm, halting my impulsive move, and I meet his eyes.

He signals he’ll flank from the opposite side.

The familiar stench of the men we’ve relentlessly fought against at the warehouse fills the air.

Silently communicating through subtle gestures, we eliminate the armed men one by one.

But their numbers prove overwhelming, and soon, we find ourselves outnumbered when more SUVs show up with more men.

My chest is littered with bullet holes. And searing pain slices through me, yet that is forgotten as Kyrio groans, struck by a stray bullet.

Those bullets won’t take me down, but whatever is inside these weakens me.

My senses are off and so is my balance, so I wonder how many more I could handle.

But Kyrio isn’t as immune to death as me.

Rage simmers within me at the sight of his injury, but I force myself to remain focused.

The fight escalates into a frenzied whirlwind of gunfire and bloodshed; the sound of glass shattering and car alarms fills the air. My entire being screams for violence and vengeance, yet my utmost priority remains Emery’s safety above us all.

The mere thought of her being caught in the crossfire fuels my fury. This propels me to unleash with even greater ferocity when I hear Kyrio’s agonized scream once more. Whatever toxin is in these bullets, it feels like it is setting my veins on fire.

I look for Kyrio, my gaze searching for him, and my blood runs cold when I see him being dragged out from between two cars by two men, only to be dropped at the feet of another man who lifts a gun, holding it to Kyrio’s head.

“Surrender, or he dies!” he yells, his finger twitching on the trigger.

I freeze, weighing my options. If I attack, Kyrio’s dead. If I surrender, we both might be.

“I mean it, on your knees, Dion, or I shoot him dead,” the man warns, and my eyes dart to Kyrio, who is bleeding profusely and barely conscious. Reluctantly, I do as I am told and drop to my knees.

Moments later, tires screech on the smooth concrete. Alarms are still blaring, and surely local authorities are on their way. However, after figuring out who Emery’s grandmother truly is, I know they’ll be in her pocket and not come to our aid.

I don’t know why I never bothered to look at the woman. However, I didn’t know she existed until Emery demanded we take her brother out there, which leaves me wondering what she did with him.

She climbs out of the car. “Did you find her?” she demands, and the man holding the gun to Kyrio’s head shakes his.

“Where’s the girl?” the man demands, his eyes searching the parking lot.

I remain silent, refusing to give Emery away. I glance upward, and my heart sinks as I spot her peering over the edge of the level above us.

“Emery, run!” I mind-link her, desperation lacing my thoughts.

She shakes her head, stubborn and bravely stupid. “I’m not leaving you,” she replies through the mind-link.

I curse under my breath. “Emery, please. You have to go.” But she doesn’t move, her eyes locked on the scene below.

Time seems to slow down as I calculate my next move. The man’s grip on Kyrio tightens, his threat clear. I can’t risk Kyrio’s life, but I can’t let these men get to Emery either—my mind races, searching for a solution that doesn’t end in disaster.

I watch Bernice wander closer. “You always bring trouble; it’s like you’re a magnet for it,” she snarled angrily.

“I should have made sure you stayed dead, just like you were a pain in my ass, but you’re an even wor se one now, getting in my way,” she snarls.

Confusion washes over me, and I glance at Kyrio, who is now completely passed out due to blood loss.

She chuckles, drawing my attention back to her.

“I know you were young, and Donovan marked me, but I thought you’d still recognize me somehow.

Surely my scent hasn’t changed that much.

” she sneers. I sniff the air subtly, but all I smell is gunpowder and blood.

My eyes flit to Emery briefly above before falling back on her.

“What nonsense are you spouting about now?” I growl. However, as long as her attention is on me, it’s not on Emery.

“I heard you looked for me for years, right pain in my ass trying to keep you hidden from Donovan. Nobody wants used goods, after all, and your father wasn’t about to take you in.

” She shakes her head. “And to think the fool thought he killed me when he finished with me,” she tells me with a chuckle, and I stare at the woman, trying to put her words together yet not liking where my thoughts are leading.

I refuse to believe it. She can’t be, can she?

Yet the following words shatter the illusion of my denial.

“Now, Son. Where is Emery?” she demands, and I feel bile rising in my throat.

“What do you want with her!” I snarl, my canines and fangs slipping from my gums as I fight the urge to rip her to pieces; I can’t afford any sudden moves while that gun is aimed at Kyrio’s head still.

Yet Deacon presses beneath my skin violently, wanting to tear my mother apart for what she did to me.

“First, you nearly killed me when I birthed you; for three years, I lived with the reminder of what that bastard did to me. I wasn’t going to let you ruin my chances once I found my mate.

You’d already taken so much from me. Then you took my daughter, your own half-sister, and if that isn’t horrid enough, you nearly brought my husband’s empire down with it and brainwashed my granddaughter.

I’ve worked too hard and for too long to risk losing everything now,” she warns me.

I grit my teeth, ensuring I keep my eyes on her and not Emery on the level above.

“I always wondered what happened to Donovan after I killed his father and freed my people; I never realized he married and had kids,” I tell her, though I realize she never answered about Emery and her connection to all this.

By the God’s Emery better not be blood, or it’ll get awkward if I mated my niece.

Deacon’s voice flits through my head at my thoughts.

She isn’t. We already determined that by her Omega heritage, he reminds me, but that doesn’t make me feel any better knowing the woman before me is my mother, the mother who threw me off a cliff and into a waterfall.

“Kid, Brielle was our only child, and you took her from me,” she reminds me.

“And what happened to Donovan?” I ask, trying to buy time, something I know I’m running out of.

Bernice laughs sadistically. “Donovan?” She laughs again.

“Donovan was the first man I encountered who was weak. When I met him, he was just as ruthless as his father. The moment we had our daughter, Brielle, he became weak. I had no choice. He suddenly grew a conscience: What is it with you, men? None of you have the balls these days to get things done. Donovan couldn’t do what needed to be done, and neither could Michael when the time came. ”

“It was you who killed Trinity?” I ask her, trying to keep her distracted.

“No, Brielle killed her when Michael failed.” she shakes her head and clicks her tongue.

“You brainwashed her, filled her head with nonsense, let her believe she could take us all down. Her death is on you!” Bernice snarled, and her eyes flickered under the dim lights, her canines slipping past her lips. “Now, where is my granddaughter?”

“Is she even your granddaughter?” I ask her.

“I loved her like one, and still do, but you’ve played your games, and now it’s time to hand her back over. Do so, and I may let you live.”

“Not a chance. She is my mate.” I peer around, glancing at how many men are here, trying to gauge my chances of taking them out before they reach for their guns or before the one behind me pulls the trigger on Kyrio.

“Why do you want her?” I demand. “She isn’t really your granddaughter, is she?” I ask her.

“Of course not, but Brielle loved her regardless. After a time, I came to love her, too. She was the only way to keep Elder Sloan in check, his dirty little secret. And he’s been right up my ass about her whereabouts.” I pinch my brows in confusion.

“Elder Sloan?” I ask her. I’ve had no run-in with the man, but he is one of the higher ups in the council, and mostly Elder Eric deals with him.

“Yes, he brought his mistress to me after knocking her up. Wanted us to get rid of her. We kept our promise, but we waited until after she gave birth, as we needed to ensure we had the council head in our pockets. Foolish man he is, he actually believed Brielle and Michael were his friends.” She chuckles before tapping her chin thoughtfully.

“Now where is Emery?” she snarls.

“I’ve marked her; I won’t give her up,” I tell her.

“Ah, that’s an issue. I have no need for you, and she’ll forgive me over time.

So I guess your time is up,” Bernice says, taking the gun and aiming it at my head.

I glare at her when I hear her voice. “Grandma?” My heart leaps in my chest, hearing Emery and the parking lot turns silent.

I don’t know how much she has heard, but she needs to run.