The Alpha Behind The Mask-Chapter 23: Took A Bullet For Me

Aurora’s POV

​I wished I could scream the truth in his face. Yes! I hate monsters like you. I hate killers. I hate men who destroy families. The words were burning my throat, but I forced them back. If I wanted to find out the truth about that tattoo on his wrist, I had to stay calm. I had to play the part.

​"Men who change women like they change their underwear," I said instead, my voice dripping with disgust.

​He scoffed, not seeming offended at all. "So that’s what this is about?" he asked, raising a brow behind his mask. "You hate me because I change women? How do you even know that about me? You don’t even know who I am."

​I wish I knew exactly who you are, I thought bitterly. I wish I could prove you’re the one who killed my parents.

​"I don’t need to know you to see what kind of man you are," I replied, forced to keep rolling my hips against him to keep the act alive. "I saw you with another submissive just a few days ago. You treat people like objects."

​He smirked, that dark, knowing look sending an unwanted shiver down my spine. "Are you jealous, Aurora?" 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

​"I could never be jealous of a man like you," I snapped.

​He smiled then. It wasn’t a cruel smile, but something about the way his lips curved felt so familiar. Where had I seen that smile before? It teased a memory in the back of my mind, something linked to the office, but I shook my head to clear the thought. I couldn’t let myself get confused.

​"Do you have a boyfriend?" he asked suddenly, his hands resting firmly on my waist.

​"I don’t discuss my personal matters with clients," I said coldly.

​He shifted, his gaze intensifying. "My offer still stands, you know. I want you. I can take you away from this place. I can pay all your debts and make sure you never have to dance for strangers again."

​"And my answer remains no," I said firmly.

​He frowned, his grip tightening for a split second before he forced himself to relax. I continued the lap dance, my body moving in a slow, steady rhythm. I noticed something strange, though. Unlike the other Doms I had dealt with, he was in total control of himself. Most men would have been losing their minds by now, their arousal obvious, but he sat there like a statue of stone. He was disciplined. He was a predator who knew how to control his urges.

​"You’re a very stubborn woman," he murmured, his thumb brushing against the skin of my hip. "But I’ve always liked a challenge. You think you’re safe because you said no, but we both know how this ends."

​"It ends in forty minutes when my time is up," I countered.

​He leaned forward, his mask almost touching my cheek. "We’ll see about that."

​I continued rolling my hips against him, the tension in the room so thick it was difficult to breathe. Suddenly, the heavy door burst open with a loud bang. Three masked men stormed into the VIP suite, their faces hidden and their hands gripping black guns.

​Everything happened in a single, terrifying second. One of the men leveled his weapon directly at my chest, his finger tightening on the trigger. I froze, my breath catching in my throat as death stared me in the face. But before the bullet could fly, the Masked Dom reacted.

​With a powerful shove, he threw me off his lap and onto the plush carpet, putting his own body between me and the gunmen. A loud crack echoed through the room, and I saw his body jerk as a bullet tore into his shoulder.

​He didn’t scream. He didn’t even hesitate.

​Moving in a terrifying blur of speed and raw power, he reached the men before they could fire again. It was a bloodbath. With his bare hands and a hidden blade, he took them down one by one. I watched, trembling from the floor, as he killed all three of them in seconds. The silence that followed was heavy, broken only by the sound of his ragged breathing.

​I looked up and saw bright red blood trickling down his white shirt, staining the expensive fabric. He had taken a bullet meant for me.

​The club manager ran into the room, his face turning ghostly white at the sight of the bodies. He looked absolutely terrified, his knees buckling until he fell to the floor in front of the Dom.

​"I—I’m so sorry! I don’t know how they got past—" the manager stammered, his voice shaking.

​The Masked Dom turned his cold, piercing gaze on the man. "How could your security be so careless?" he snarled, his voice vibrating with a deadly authority that made the manager shrink. It was obvious now, more than ever, that this man held immense power—power that went far beyond this club.

​He ignored the manager’s pleas and turned back to me. His eyes softened for a second as his gaze moved quickly over me, checking for blood.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice low and filled with concern.

​I furrowed my brow, my heart still racing from the adrenaline. "I should be asking you that," I said, pointing to the blood on his shoulder. "And who were those men? Why were they trying to kill us?"

​"Don’t worry about them," he said, his jaw tightening as he pressed a hand against his wound. He didn’t seem to care about the pain at all. "I’ll see you later, Aurora. I have to take out this bullet and deal with this mess."

​He stepped closer, his presence looming over me even while injured. "Wait for me here. Don’t leave this room until I send someone for you."

​I watched him walk out, his steps steady despite the blood loss. I sat there in the quiet room, surrounded by shadows, wondering who this man really was—and why he was willing to take a bullet for a girl he was supposed to only want to fuck.