“Shift,” I demand, and he does instantly. I look ahead to spot Mateo walking toward me, and I could feel his anger at me rushing in. I would deal with that when I got inside. I would let him whine and bitch at me, but I wouldn’t let Maddox kill my brother, and I know he would have.
“You are on our territory, you will respect my mate, Andrei, and stop looking for fights,” I growl.
“Kat, I wasn’t-”
“Don’t lie to me, I could feel you,” I snap, glaring at him. He bares his neck to me. Though I could tell he isn’t happy. I felt guilty, but it is the truth, he is looking for a fight. Ezra only wanted to stop him, not get into a battle with him.
“Is that all?” Andrei asks.
I sigh, now feeling terrible. Maddox licks my fingers, and I brush his fur. “Yes, Andrei, that is all,” I confirm.
He nods, standing, and I look at Maddox, who is watching me. “I’m sorry, Kat,” Andrei murmurs, having calmed down. I look at him before nodding, and he leans forward, hugging me. As soon as he touches me, my entire body stiffens.
Images flash before my eyes of Andrei torturing people in what seems to be a basement, the stench of rogues fills my nose. I can see their tear-streaked faces, and the image changes to Donnie hunting rogues in no man’s land, looking for blood, searching for his next victims. Another image flickers of his pack, but this was different. The packhouse is built like a fortress, and I recognize the design as what I saw on the blueprints of what he has been organizing, and hear the whispers of his pack members calling him the dark Alpha.
It all stops, and I find myself staring at my brother.
“Kat?” he whispers, looking at me. “What’s wrong? I am sorry,” he repeats, staring at me oddly.
“Nothing, Andrei, go get some sleep,” I instruct, my voice empty. He nods, kissing my head before walking back inside.
“What is it?” Mateo questions, coming over and rubbing my arms, his anger is replaced with worry as he picks up on my emotions changing.
“I think I just saw part of Andrei’s future,” I whisper.
Maddox nudges my hand, and I run my fingers through his fur before pulling on his ear gently, and he purrs.
“His future?” Mateo asks.
“Yes, his pack called him the dark Alpha,” I relay, and we turn, staring at Andrei’s retreating frame.
1 month later
We are visiting Andrei’s Packs, just pulling up to the front of the new packhouse, and my stomach drops. It is the exact same as my vision. His future is already set in motion, and I have no doubt it is exactly what I saw or the glimpses of it.
“Looks like a fortress,” Mateo mutters. The entire place is made of concrete, and I gulp at the modern version of what looks like a prison. The entire bottom level has no windows, just a door.
I shift in my seat when Andrei opens my door. A huge grin splits on his face.
I frown, this is the place he built to call home? This concrete-looking dungeon? Pack members walk around with their heads down, and no one crosses our path as he walks us toward the place. The front door is made of steel and resembles a door more suited for a safe room than a house.
“I wonder if the decor is concrete too,” Mateo mutters to me, and I elbow him as I waddle along.
My belly has really popped out, and I look pregnant. Just seeing this place makes bile rise in my throat. If only my mates knew of the torture that will happen in this place. I need to find some way to stop it.
Most of the houses have been rebuilt, making me wonder how much it cost him to have this place built so quickly and why the rush.
Andrei stops at the door, and I look up to see a camera above it. He places his hand on the panel on the door before the groaning and straining of the locks unlocks and he twists the handle and pulls the door open. I glance at Andrei. “Little over the top, don’t you think, brother?”
“Precaution.” he explains.
“Who are you trying to keep out, God?” Mateo asks. While all I can think is who is he trying to keep in?
Stepping inside, however, it is vastly different. Inside looks like a normal house, but the lack of windows made it dark except for the LED lights in the ceiling. Polished floorboards ran through the place, and a huge concrete fireplace sits in the living room. Inbuilt concrete bookshelves line the hall and concrete stairs, but the walls have all been painted white. I can still smell the fresh paint, and it makes my head spin with how strong it is.
We follow him through the maze of a place to find a galley-style kitchen with stainless steel appliances and black marble countertops. “The kitchen is nice,” I observe. It is the only comment I can make without hurting his feelings. The place looked nice, but the concrete makes it cold, and like the prison, I saw it as.
There are no windows or doors except the one leading in on this floor. I suddenly felt claustrophobic despite its vast size.
Ezra, picking up on my unease, grabs my hand, squeezing my fingers gently. “You okay?” He asks through the link, and I shake my head.
“This place isn’t a home, it is a prison,” I reply. This place is soulless, just like his pack called him. It is like walking around in the darkest pits of somebody’s mind. A part of his mind I wish I have never seen.
Andrei shows us back through the house to the stairs. I notice a door underneath the stairs and stop. I know without asking what that door leads down to. “What’s through there?” I ask him.
“Just the basement, nothing to see down there,” he tutts, glaring at the door.
I know there is plenty to see. Steel tables line the center of the room, the shelves and walls contain different devices to inflict pain. I knew because I saw it. Smelt the tears and the bloodshed that would happen in this cold place.
An icy shiver runs up my spine at the look he gives me, endless pools of black staring back at me before he notices my gaze. His face morphs like he just came back from somewhere before composing himself.