Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Txälina

Our feet padded against the cold tiles as we hauled ourselves down the hallway. In a few days, Alpha Mätrang would depart for the royal pack (Nüxalkäli pack) to report stories about the pack, mostly about Säli females, which were all apocryphal.

I envisioned Kaluen spitting lies from his mouth like venom, and the thought haunted me. 

Anger accosted my veins like wildfire, jostling away the cold from my body.

We paused at the end of the hallway and scanned the path. We were standing in the hall adjacent to the one guarded by warriors. This path was mostly an access for females to walk through during special visits from the King. 

I trailed behind Täneli as she knew a few places in this house better than I did.

After some time, she handed me a bunch of keys she'd pulled out from a crevice in the wall.

I fumbled with the keys, trying several openers. She stood a few feet away from me, scanning the path for any signs of guards.

The silence around us ratcheted my fear. Every slight sound I heard made me shiver. Even the whispers my mind had fabricated in tension made my heart pound heavily against my ribcage. I wasn't afraid of the males. I was afraid of failing to save the females again.

Lost in my fear as I fumbled for another key to unlock the door, a key fell from my hand. It landed swiftly on the floor with a loud thud, causing me to flinch. My eyes grew wide as I reached for the key, lifting it with care and unlocking the door.

Finally! I exhaled with relief when the door opened, and we quickly walked inside, searching for another key.

My stomach rumbled with unease. What if someone had heard the sound of the key falling and thought to come over?

Discomfort prickled my chest, and I moved around, desperately searching for the key to the magic collar around her neck.

"Found it," Täneli whispered, turning to me, and the weight of pressure mitigated in my chest.

She rushed towards me, reaching to unlock the magical collar. When she finished opening it, I slowly rubbed my neck. All of a sudden, pain wove through me me like thousands of minuscule needles piercing through the skin around my neck.

The air around me suddenly felt suffocating, and I fell to the ground, struggling to breathe.

I rubbed my neck, trying to ease the tension around me, only to hear the sound of footsteps approaching. When I turned, we came face to face with a guard.

"Txälina, sister to Alpha Kaluen," he said.

For a split second, as our eyes met, I thought: Was this how the moon goddess envisioned for me to die? Struggling with the pain careening through my neck and the guard standing in front of me with a sword in his sheath? I peered at his face, the serrated jawline and dark brown skin. I quickly recognized him.

The corner of his lip pulled up into a smirk.

I felt anger slowly encroach upon the fear in my veins, pulling me from the ground. For a moment, I didn't realize the pain had vanished.

He took a step inside the room, closing the door behind him, and the smile spread wide on his face.

"Did you remember what I said a few days ago?" he asked.

I frowned.

He maintained the smile on his face, trudging another step forward.

"Even if the guards heard you scream, they would not come to save you. Nobody cares for the tears of a Säli bitch."

His words carved a deep chasm of anger in my heart.

I closed my eyes for a moment. With two words, I could command this man dead.

You could, the voice echoed in my head, smooth like silk.

"Is that so?" I laughed. "Only a few weeks ago, I was accused of using the voice to murder Alpha Wyränkla. Yet you stand in front of me unafraid."

His sardonic expression made it clear that he didn't believe what I had just said.

"Because you're weak," he muttered. "I don't believe you have the capacity to kill me. I don't believe you have the voice."

The serrated edge of my anger exacerbated when he took a bold step. I tasted it on my tongue and felt it coursing through my veins.

Use your voice, daughter, Säli whispered. Give this daft man to me.

Closing my eyes for a moment, I felt him jostle me against the table.

"By the goddess Säli, I curse you, for she'll now have your soul."

A turbulent wind rushed into the room, whipping and lifting anything it touched. Mist swirled around him like tentacles, hauling him off his feet. He strained against the hold, screaming loudly, but the sound of the wind snatched away his voice.

He fought hard, desperately trying to escape the hold, but the mist whipped rapidly around him. For a moment, I could see nothing but the mist.

When the wind died down and the mist vanished, I took a tentative step forward. Täneli muffled a sound as she dropped to her knees.

The guard lay splayed on the ground, lifeless. Blood bustled from his nostrils. His eyes were wide open in shock. They were as red as blood, as if his blood vessels had popped.

Täneli looked at me aghast. "Txälina, you just killed him with a few words."

A tremor hurtled through me, because this was but a taste of what would happen soon.

…..

"What are you doing here?" I recognized the voice and quickly turned around to stare at Kaluen, surrounded by his warriors. The full moon fell on his face, giving him a light glow.

"And you, Täneli," he narrowed his eyes at her. "Of course, wherever Txälina goes, you will follow. You are her walking dog."

Täneli wore a brazen expression, masking the nervousness rising inside her.

Kaluen stepped forward, his fingers chafing the sword in its sheath.

"Such a pity that you still haven't learned your lesson," he said.

"And what lesson would that be?" I asked, angling my head.

"That you are never to go against me. You wish to meet with Alpha Mätrang? To confess the atrocities that have been unfolding in this pack since the Säli males became superior?"

I felt repulsed by the bestial anger he bore in his gaze.

He unsheathed his sword, closing the distance between us.