Defy The Alpha(s)-Chapter 794: Hello Brother

Everything was going just as planned. However, knowing teenagers, there was always the possibility that some would do the exact opposite of what they were told.

Hence, while the others were safely packed into the ballroom, Adele was out checking every nook and cranny where those kids might possibly be hiding.

And just as expected, she found more than one.

One girl had locked herself inside a restroom stall, as if a zombie wouldn’t be able to scent human flesh and bang the door down. Nonetheless, Adele forced the trembling girl out and escorted her straight to the ballroom.

Another student had tried hiding in a storage room.

It was worth noting that every student she found hiding was human.

Unlike them, most of the werewolves in the school were calm. If anything, they seemed excited for a fight. They were predators, and their beasts prowled just beneath their skin, itching for a chance to hunt.

Which meant keeping them all in one place wasn’t necessarily the brightest idea.

However, the students were young and reckless. If a zombie did manage to break through, Micah and the older teachers would handle it first. Unless help was needed, the students would remain where they were.

It was moments like this Adele wished the Cardinal Alphas were around. Not only would they keep the pack in line, but they were devastatingly efficient on the battlefield.

Adele grabbed the latest human student she had found hiding in the hostel and handed the girl over to one of the teachers guarding the ballroom entrance.

"How’s it going?" she asked Professor Alwen, the history teacher, tilting her head toward the ballroom behind him.

"If you mean the smell of fear and anxiety, it’s overwhelming and triggers the wolves. Your kind are predators, and the humans are proving what they are, prey."

He added dryly, "Thankfully, Jameson is boring everyone with a speech, so I’d say it’s working."

Adele sighed. "For once, she’s been useful."

"That is, if they don’t strangle her first."

"That would be a dream come true," Adele admitted.

Alwen chuckled softly.

Then Adele said, "If things get worse, we may have to move the humans somewhere else. The witch has been called back to repair the ward, and hopefully she can restore it today. Micah and the others are standing by in case a zombie appears."

"And you?" he asked.

"I’m sweeping the classrooms," Adele replied. "Just in case there are still foolish students hiding somewhere."

Alwen nodded.

"Be careful out there."

Adele smiled briefly and headed off again with a determined stride. Everyone should be in the ballroom now, but she trusted these teenagers about as far as she could throw them. Someone was always hiding somewhere they shouldn’t be.

So she checked one classroom at a time.

Adele pushed open the first door, scanning the room quickly but thoroughly. Desks were empty, chairs placed hazardously, backpacks abandoned in corners where students had fled in a hurry.

The area was clear.

She stepped back out and shut the door behind her.

Barely two steps later—

Creaaak.

The door slowly opened again.

Adele frowned.

She turned around and walked back, pushing the door firmly shut. This time she made sure it clicked properly into the frame.

Then she moved away.

The door stayed closed.

Satisfied, Adele continued down the hallway.

She entered the next classroom and repeated the process. Same silent room. Nothing unusual.

She stepped outside and closed the door behind her.

Two steps later.

Creaaak.

The door opened again.

Adele halted. Her brows now knitted together in suspicion as she turned slowly.

That shouldn’t be happening.

She walked back and shut the door again, this time pressing it firmly with her palm.

Then she tested it once. Twice. It held.

Adele stepped away and exactly two steps later.

Creaaaaak.

The door opened again.

This time Adele stiffened.

Either someone was messing with her or something wasn’t right. Adele chose the latter.

She turned slowly and walked back, pushing the door closed again. This time she stood there, staring at it, waiting for the door to open.

The hallway was silent except for the faint hum of electricity running through the building. Over a minute passed and the

door didn’t move.

Adele exhaled slowly and turned away. Perhaps she was thinking too much. She had barely taken a step when —

Creaaak.

The door opened again.

Adele froze.

Every instinct inside her screamed at once. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Something was wrong.

The fine hairs along her arms rose. Her body tensed as her instincts shifted instantly into predator mode. Her nails lengthened into sharp claws.

But instead of walking back to the door, Adele turned and continued down the hallway faster this time.

She needed to get back to the ballroom. Now.

Her strides grew longer as unease crawled along her spine. Whatever was happening behind her, she wasn’t interested in confronting it alone.

She rounded a corner and nearly slammed into someone.

"Shit," Adele muttered automatically. "I’m so sorry. Are you okay?"

The girl standing in front of her looked young. A student, perhaps, but Adele didn’t recognize her.

The girl straightened, brushing invisible dust from her clothes.

Then she smiled.

"Hello, Adele," she said pleasantly. "Nice to meet you."

Adele’s expression changed instantly.

Her instincts roared, and without hesitation she lunged at her. But the moment she lifted her hand, pain exploded inside her skull.

A sharp, splitting pressure tore through her head like something was crushing her mind from the inside. Adele groaned and grabbed her temples.

Her claws retracted instantly as the pressure intensified. It felt like her head was being ripped apart. Flashes of white burst behind her eyes. The hallway spun violently around her as the pain pulsed harder and harder.

She staggered, as the world tilted. Finally, Adele collapsed to the floor in a limp heap.

Ziva looked down at the unconscious werewolf with quiet satisfaction.

"This is going to be fun." She murmured.

Meanwhile....

Micah paced near the entrance ward, waiting impatiently for Samantha’s arrival. The security guards stood nearby, eyes scanning the empty road beyond the gates, hands hovering close to their weapons.

Every few seconds one of them would glance nervously at the broken barrier knowing without the ward, the school was exposed.

The city wasn’t completely overrun with zombies yet, but the reports were bad enough. Creatures were appearing inside homes and attacking civilians without warning. Entire families were infected before anyone could respond.

Each attack meant more of those monsters walking the streets. So when the distant rumble of a car engine approached, every guard tensed instantly, reaching for their weapons.

Then the vehicle rolled into view and they exhaled. Zombies couldn’t drive.

The car screeched to a stop near the gate and Samantha stepped out before the engine even finished dying. Her face was red with anger.

"What do you mean the ward collapsed?" she demanded, striding toward them furiously.

Micah didn’t bother hiding his irritation.

"Well you tell me!" he snapped, gesturing at the glittering debris littering the ground. "You were supposed to fix the hole, not bring the whole damn thing down!"

"I didn’t bring down the ward!" Samantha shouted back.

"Then what is this?!" Micah barked, pointing again at the shards.

Instead of answering, Samantha crouched down, ignoring his anger completely. She picked up one of the fragments and held it between her fingers, studying the surface carefully.

Her expression darkened. She stood.

"I didn’t do this."

Micah’s patience snapped.

"If you didn’t do it, then who did?"

"You don’t understand," she said. "The ward is invisible. Even if it were supposed to come down, it wouldn’t shatter like this. Just like I created the ward, only Jameson has the tool that can lower it or remove it entirely."

Cold dread slid down Micah’s spine.

"Are you saying Jameson did this?" he asked, voice dropping.

"No," Samantha replied firmly. "This is magic."

Micah frowned.

"What are you talking about?"

"Someone froze the ward," Samantha explained. "Turned the barrier into something physical. Fragile. And then shattered it."

Micah stared at her, confused.

"A witch did this."

He froze.

"Why would a witch—"

He stopped mid-sentence as realization slammed into him like a punch.

"Oh shit."

Micah took off running before Samantha could react.

"Mr. Raymond!" she called after him.

But he was already gone.

Micah sprinted across the courtyard toward the ballroom, nearly colliding with Professor Alwen at the entrance.

"Whoa! Slow down!" Alwen said, startled.

Micah ignored him.

"Where is Adele?" he demanded. "Tell me she’s inside."

Alwen blinked.

"She left a few minutes ago. Said she was checking the classrooms for students who might be hiding."

"Fuck," Micah muttered.

He grabbed Alwen’s shoulder.

"Make sure everyone stays inside the ballroom. No one leaves."

Alarm flashed across Alwen’s face.

"What’s going on?"

But Micah was already running again. He tore down the corridors, flinging open classroom doors one after another.

Empty.

Empty.

Empty.

Frustration clawed at him.

Then he pushed open one more door, and froze.

There she was.

Ziva was standing calmly in the room and beside her was his mate Adele tied to a chair.

"Hello, brother."