Not My Alpha (Completed)

Chapter Forty-Four - The Night Turned to Glass

Samuel didn't stop. Even when it was clear Riley's body would never move again, he continued to force it to try. His movements became harsh, limbs locking with the strain he forced upon them. The longer this went on, the more brutal his actions became, and it was clear to me he wasn't going to slow down. There should have been some ounce of exhaustion in his body, some inkling of tiredness, but the only evidence Samuel had been overworking himself was the sweat pooling around his hair. He paid no mind to it, just as he ignored the blood leaking out of his back. Pieces of his skin were missing, and bullets stuck out from the fresh wounds. The blood from these injuries seemed to paint a picture of death on his back, and that only added to his crazed demeanor as he continuously beat against Riley's chest.

Samuel's body refused to fail him, but his face was another story. It was slowly crumbling. His cold and determined eyes slowly melted away, revealing a frenzied glint permanently etched into his irises. His mouth was hanging open, and short, ragged breaths forced their way out of it. The wrinkles and lines of his face grew deeper, as if every moment passed was another year taken from Samuel's life. 

"Samuel," I softly whispered, watching, horrified, as he began ferociously shaking Riley's limp body. However, Samuel didn't respond to me. He didn't even flinch. He only continued shaking Riley, cursing with every passing breath. 

My own breathing was ragged, and before I knew it, I was shaking, too. It was only a slight tremor, but it was enough to take over my senses. I helplessly watched Samuel, completely oblivious to the world, and I suddenly wanted nothing more than to curl into a ball and disappear into the trees. I ached to crawl away from this clearing, and never look back. I wanted to ignore Riley's lifeless body. To pretend my brother wasn't a monster, curled into a bloody ball across the clearing. I wanted to ignore everything that just happened, and run as far away as my legs could take me. 

But, I couldn't. I knew I couldn't, and that was perhaps the thing that terrified me the most.

"Raven." I spoke before my mind caught up with my mouth. Slowly, I turned to face her, wincing with the movement. I immediately pushed the pain away, knowing that if I didn't act now, I would give into the large part of me that wanted nothing more than to disappear.

Raven hesitantly stepped forward and crouched down next to me, her gaze avoiding Samuel and Riley. I watched her for a moment, trying to keep my voice even. "We need to get out of here. Can you tell if anyone is still here?"

Her face paled. But, despite her wide eyes and clear horror, she slowly nodded. "I'll check the perimeter." She stood, quickly turning away from me and heading back into the trees. I watched her body slowly disappear, acutely aware that whoever had attacked us could still be just beyond our vision, lying in wait to fire another round. 

My gaze fell from the trees and landed on the grass where Raven had walked away. I noticed the gun I'd clung to earlier, the one that had provided me a small ounce of protection. Now, it mocked me. Despite this, I leaned forward and took it in my hands once more, ignoring the shaking of my limbs. Once in my hands, I was tempted to throw it as far away from me as possible. But, I resisted the urge and took a deep breath. If we were going to be attacked again, I wasn't going down without a fight. 

A mangled cry resembling what used to be my brother's voice broke through my ears. I whipped my gaze to him, just in time to notice Will's body, or what was once Will's body, go still. It stopped trembling, stopped convulsing, and almost seemed to stop breathing. A shot of panic pierced my chest, and without thinking, I tried to stand and run to him.

I immediately fell back to the ground, crying out in pain. It began in my ankle, traveling up my body until it stopped at my side. The burning of my old wound intensified, and I felt as if the skin was being ripped apart. My ankle felt a similar pain, but when I pulled my weight off, it dulled.