Devil Eyes

Coughing heavily, the Alpha sat down gently on his bed, heaving a deep sigh afterward. It was tiring enough being sick but to continue hiding it from everyone, including his daughter was more exhausting. Having to stand in front of his pack and everyone else, pretending to be fit and still strong, took all of his strength. He thought making his right hand Beta take more responsibilities of the pack, including what he was supposed to be doing will help take the weight off his shoulders but it barely even did anything. He coughed some more, the strength of it shaking his whole body.

"It seems to be getting worse" Beta Maynard commented, bringing him a glass of water.

"Well that's to be expected seeing as there isn't any cure" He replied, accepting the glass from him. He downed the whole glass hungrily before putting the empty glass down on his nightstand. "Any word from them since they left?"

"Not yet" The Beta replied. He noticed the look on his face and knew what was going on is head. "I know you're worried about Tessa. She is going to be alright. That's why they were sent in groups, strength in numbers and all. Derek is there to make sure nothing happens"

"Derek was powerless against the one you both fought. You both were. What if they run into him again or even one more powerful than the one you fought? Derek is the strongest there, we know nothing about the strengths of Alpha Damon's twins, Vee is weaker than Tessa and then there's the powerless Omega who can't be counted on. I have to say this was not a great selection. I would think you could see this clearly too" The Alpha explained, leaning against the backrest of his bed.

"I know that and that's one of the reasons I chose them. So we can know their strengths...but hopefully they don't run into trouble. And saying they might run into some other member of the Black Lotus is quite disturbing as that would mean our town and pack have been infiltrated by them. That's what we would like to avoid for now"

"That is of course true If we can't stop them from breaking through our defense and entering our territory before the war even begins, then we may have already lost" Said the Alpha.

"Yeah....." Beta Maynard paused for a second before continuing. "Concerning the Omega...i think Tessa is getting too attached to him. So much so that it's affecting her relationship with Derek. I think it's time to put a stop to it before it goes too far" He explained, hoping the Alpha agrees with what he just said. He stared intently at the Alpha's expression to try and gauge how he felt about it. He was surprised when he saw a small smile form on the Alpha's lips.

"Matters of the heart is not one to be meddled with. I think she should be given the opportunity to choose what's best for her in that part of her life" Alpha Darius stated, shutting his eyes while still smiling.

"But he's just an Omega. Surely you don't think her taking an Omega for a mate is what's best for her and the pack?" The Beta argued with an angered expression.

"I know you were rooting for your son and Tessa to end up together. But we surely can't force them together when their hearts are not resonating. It's best we leave them to figure out what they want and support their decision" The Alpha stated. He knew his friend so well to know his motive behind his fight for the kids but he wasn't going to point out anything but instead let fate run its course.

"I assure you that decision is one sided but, I have heard you. We'll let things roll as they are supposed to" He stated with no intention of leaving things in the hands of fate. The Beta knew he had to make his move now before things got too complicated. He could tell the Alpha wasn't in full support for both their kids ending up together for reasons known only to him. But that wasn't going to stop his plan or put a stop to his ambition.

***

Everyone in the car was as quiet as they could possibly be. You could practically taste the tension in there. It didn't help that they were all squeezed into that one car. With Derek behind the wheel, Tessa on the passenger seat and rest of them sitting quietly at the backseat. Both guys at both ends and the girls at the middle. Tessa kept occasionally stealing glances at Kieran through the back mirror, although that didn't go unnoticed by Derek. The more times he caught her doing it, the more angry he got. He was trying so hard not to stop the car, drag Kieran out and rip out his heart right there.

"Is this how deafening the silence is going to be throughout the journey?" Cassie spoke up, which was the first time anyone had said a word since they left the house.

"We are almost there. We don't have to make small talks" Derek stated

"Aren't you a mood killer" Cassie teased

"Cassie is right though. I think this should be an opportunity for us to get acquainted" Nate chipped in.

"What about you blue eyes?" She shifted her attention to Kieran.

"What about me?" Kieran asked not batting his eyes away from Tessa's through the mirror.

"Don't you want to get to know me? I definitely want to know more about you. There's something mysterious about you. Some kind of darkness that is alluring. Am I right?" She flashed him a smile.

"You couldn't be farther from the truth" He replied

"I am good at reading people and I doubt I am that far from the truth....or maybe you could tell me your truth when we get back" She gave a flirtatious smile.

"Enough. We all were introduced earlier. I don't think there's any more we need to know" Tessa cut in, getting irritated with her subtle flirts.

"She sounds jealous, is there something between them?" She whispered to Vee.

"We are here" Derek who had been overhearing the convo announced. He was angry at the attention the Omega was getting. Vee on the other hand who didn't know how to reply Cassie was glad they had gotten to their destination.

They all alighted from the vehicle, staring around with a puzzled look. Something didn't feel right. The whole area was too quiet. It was supposed to be the border but there was no single person in sight. "There's something wrong" Derek pointed out, picking up unfamiliar scents just before his phone vibrated with a text. He fished it out from his pocket and unlocked it to a message from his father. 'We are speeding up the timeline. Find a way to end the Omega without it getting back to you. I trust you can do that. Get it done' He read the text silently and his eyes brightened with joy with a relieved smile on his face. He glanced over at Kieran with an evil smirk on his face.

"What do you think happened?" Vee inquired

"I can smell blood"

"That will be the blood of your comrades" An unfamiliar voice announced from behind them.

They swiftly turned around simultaneously. None of them picked up on their footsteps or scent which was baffling. They stared at the intruders and quickly realized they were the Black Lotus. But something was different this time around. There were six of them instead of five. Tessa realized what one of the Alphas said was true. There was a sixth member, their leader, the one with a different mask.

"You are the one they call Devils Eyes" Kieran called out, from behind the others.

"I see you are well informed. I believe we haven't met before" Devils Eyes said with his mildly deep but heavy voice. "We should get to know ourselves" He added, his eyes flashing from blue to yellow then to red.