The three men in the car were in high spirits as they drove through the darkness of the forest road. They planned to drive through the night, taking turns driving, wanting to cover as much distance as they could.
The man driving the car, Alec Soier’s best friend, Jace chuckled, "I can hardly believe it worked. Alpha Soier’s plan was indeed flawless. That rogue was better than I expected."
The man in the passenger seat, Theo, nodded. "He played his part well. No one suspected a thing. By the time the Stormhold warriors realise that this Omega’s missing, we’ll be long gone."
"Did you see her? She must be thinking that she could stay away from us after getting enslaved to those princes. But look at that. They have not even touched her. I can make out! She is still a virgin!"
"That would definitely make Alpha Soier happier. Remember how angry he was that night when she disappeared... I’d say it was worth it, hiding here, near the Stormhold Pack for so many days. Once Alpha Soier has had his way with Emira, he might pass her to us to reward us."
Jace laughed, " I don’t care whether he gives us this Omega or the new one from Redwood Pack. She is a beauty too."
The other two laughed lewdly at that as they echoed Jace’s sentiments...
Just then, their laughter was interrupted by the ringing of a phone. Jace frowned and snapped,’ Theo! Why do you still have this burner phone? Get rid of it! We don’t want that rogue tracing us and trying to blackmail us..."
Theo nodded," I’ll throw it away soon..."
But before he could, his phone dinged with an incoming message and he frowned. The man sent us a video?"
Jace frowned. "A video? Do you think he is already trying to blackmail us? Did he record us?"
Theo shook his head. "I’ll check once and then discard the phone..."
Theo looked down at his phone, squinting at the screen as a picture came up.. For the first few seconds, his face showed only mild confusion, as he tried to understand what he was saying, but then all color drained from it.
His mouth fell open, his breathing hitched, and his fingers began to tremble.
His eyes were glued to the screen, wide and glassy, and then, suddenly, he let out a strangled sound-half gasp, half whimper.
Jace glanced at him sharply. "What the hell’s wrong with you?"
Theo didn’t answer. He just shook his head violently, like a man trying to rid himself of a nightmare. Then, without another word, he threw the phone down to the floor of the car as though it had burned his hand and buried his face in his palms. His shoulders shaking.
Jace frowned, irritation flashing in his eyes. "Theo! What’s going on? Is he trying to blackmail us?"
No answer.
Jace growled under his breath and spared a quick glance at Theo, who was still covering his face, muttering something under his breath that Jace couldn’t make out. The third man in the back, Owen, leaned forward, frowning.
"What did he send?" he asked, voice uneasy. "What was in the picture?"
Theo just whimpered again and shook his head. "No... no... that can’t be..."
"Speak up!" Jace barked, his patience wearing thin. His eyes flicked toward the road again before he reached down with one hand, feeling around the car floor until his fingers brushed against the edge of the phone.
He picked it up, still steering with his other hand, the car slightly swaying on the narrow path. "You’re acting like a damn fool," he muttered, bringing the phone up toward the light from the dashboard. "What could possibly—"
He stopped mid-sentence as his eyes fell on the screen.
At first, he didn’t understand what he was looking at. But then, he froze.
His grip on the steering wheel loosened and his body went rigid. The car wobbled slightly, veering toward the edge of the road, but he didn’t notice. His eyes were locked on the phone.
The thing in the picture...because it could hardly be called a person anymore, was sprawled across the forest floor. The body was bent in ways no body should ever bend. One arm looked human, but the other... the other had shifted, clawed fingers still half-transformed, jutting from a swollen, twisted limb covered in fur that was slick with blood.
The head,if you could call it that, was half wolf, half man, frozen mid-change. The jaw had split apart, teeth unnaturally long, one eye open wide in terror, the other dark and lifeless. His mouth was still stretched in a silent scream.
The flesh was torn in places where the bones had tried to change and failed. A ribcage jutted through shredded skin. His spine looked broken, curved unnaturally, and blood-dark, sticky blood had pooled beneath him.
For a few moments, Jace forgot to breathe.
The phone slipped in his hand, but he tightened his grip. His knuckles turned white.
From the passenger seat, Theo began rocking slightly, whispering under his breath. "It’s him. It’s the rogue. Oh, gods, it’s him. He’s dead. He’s dead..."
Owen leaned forward from the back seat, and asked with growing concern, "Jace? What is it? What the hell did he send?"
No response.
"Jace!" Owen shouted, louder this time.
But Jace didn’t even blink. His eyes were still fixed on the screen, wide and glassy, reflecting the grotesque image. His mouth opened slightly, but no sound came out. The only thing he could see was that face and the words below the image.
"You Next." It was a threat but also a promise. If that person had already killed the rogue then... he must not be far behind them... He needed to speed up... Jace urgently pressed down on the accelerator only for Owen to lean forward and grip Jace’s seat as he shouted. "Jace! Look at the damn road!"
But, it was too late.
The car jolted violently as one of the tires hit a rock and the steering wheel jerked out of Jace’s slack hands.