Alpha Kowen
In the middle of the night, he parked his car in a dark corner in a shady part of town, outside an old, dilapidated apartment. A five-story building that was one shake away from collapsing, and had probably broken the building code in more ways than one.
What was he doing?
Stalking!
"Really, Kowen!" He mumbled more to himself, careful not to let his wolf read his thoughts.
But—
It didn't work.
"Yeah! Instead of insisting on taking her home, here you are..." Kael mockingly whispered in his ear. "...reducing yourself to lurking here in the dark like a creep, hunting his prey." His wolf knew him too well, as he snickered inside his head.
"Hey, watch your mouth. I'm no creep." He flung back, furious at his wolf for accusing him of such. "I'm just making sure that she went home safe." After all, he was the reason why she was still out this late.
At least that was what he kept telling himself.
"Sure, sure." Kael sardonically remarked. "Whatever you say."
Clearly, his wolf had a different opinion on the matter.
Still, he kept his stand. As her employer, he just wanted to ensure that his employee got home safely.
Earlier, as he drove out of the basement parking, he noticed her waiting outside his office building. He had assumed she had a car, but evidently he was mistaken as he watched her get into a black car that stopped on the corner.
Fucking Spoiled Princess.
Just as he thought.
Initially.
But as he looked closely at the car, he realized there was something off. Most overindulged heiresses wouldn't be caught dead riding in some crappy car.
Instinctively, he followed her, finding her behavior fishy.
Dubious. Questionable.
His suspicion grew when the car turned into a known hostile neighborhood.
"Hmm! What's she doing in a place like this?" Even his wolf seemed to be bothered by the situation. "Do you think she's in danger?"
"Danger?" Perhaps. Or she could be here with an entirely different reason.
At any rate, what was an heiress like her doing in a place like this?
"Let's see." He had no idea. But he would really like to find out.
When she stepped out of the car and entered the building, he hurriedly but cautiously followed her, keeping his distance to avoid being caught.
"Elyana lives here." Kael voiced the obvious, sounding as shocked as he was as they watched her pull out a key and enter that shabby apartment. "Why?"
"Didn't you say she's rich?" His wolf added, confused and concerned.
"That's what her profile said." Remembering that she was the daughter of James Pryce, one of his rivals in the medical and tech industry.
So, why was she staying in this dump?
Just like, why was she working in his company as his assistant?
"It doesn't make sense." He guessed he had to ask Leo to dig deeper into her. There must be a reason for all of this.
A couple with a young child had exited one of the rooms and stared at him, probably wondering who he was. Then, another group of teenagers who were hanging on the upper stairway eyed him, whispering among themselves.
He could tell they were talking about him. He had probably stuck out like a sore thumb with his impeccable suit among this crowd.
"Come on. Let's go. I have seen enough." He turned around to leave, believing there was nothing much he could do for now.
As he exited the building, he accidentally bumped into a man in a black jacket and a baseball cap.
"Sorry." The man uttered before he continued to enter the structure. He had his head low, hiding most of his face, but Kael had never failed to notice the tattoo on his neck.
"Kowen, look at his neck. Doesn't that remind you of something?" Kael drew his attention to the man who disappeared inside. "I believed I've seen it before."
"It's probably nothing." He didn't see it, but it was most likely a common tattoo that could be seen anywhere.
Without looking back, he returned to his car, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number.
"Whoever this is? This better be important." A grumpy voice drummed in his ears.
"Nash, I need you to do something." Not caring about the time or bothering to identify himself. "Send someone to this address. I want Elyana's every move reported to me."
"Kowen, what's going on? Where are you?" This time, his Beta was now wide awake.
"Just do what I ask." Hanging up the phone, he started the engine, ready to leave. But before he could pull out of the curve, he noticed something. Rather, heard a loud commotion and then smelled something.
Mild explosion!
Smoke!
Then, fire.
"Elyana." Not a second later, he had crossed the space between his car and the building, entered the premises, and taken the stairs three to four steps at a time.
"We have to take her out," Kael yelled loudly in his head, completely worried.
Without a second thought, he rushed to her apartment, which was thankfully already open. However, it didn't actually matter since he could easily break it down if he had to.
"Elyana, where are you?" He tried to see through the thick, black smoke, but even his eyes stung from the soot. But his ears and nose still functioned well as he tried to sense her presence in the room.
"Mr. Whiskers..." He heard her call.
Then, there she was, lying on the floor.
Immediately, he hastily moved to her side, pulling her into his arms.
Soon, he had carried her to safety, out of the burning building, and into the back of his car. "You're safe now."
Unconscious, but at least she was breathing.
Returning to the driver's side, he started the engine, wanting to get her the medical help she needed. But as he drove away from the scene, he noticed the same man whom he bumped into earlier. He still didn't see his face, but he finally saw the black ink on his skin.
The tattoo was a silhouette of a hood and a heart with a dagger piercing through it.
Was that just a coincidence?
But he had no time to check it out as he drove as fast as he could to the nearest hospital.