Alpha Prince Egon And His Bride

5. Tainted Territory

"Leave," Egon commanded, instructing his wolves to return to the Silver River Pack. Behind him, the Shine Moon Pack lay engulfed in flames. Everything had been destroyed, the Shine Moon Pack had been effectively wiped off the map. The Alpha Prince stood alone, his gaze fixed on the flames.

"What are you staring at so intensely, Egon?" Alex, his Beta and friend, noticed his Prince's unusual focus. While anyone else would only see the fire, the Alpha Prince seemed to notice something else.

"Wait, are you looking at the Silver River Pack?" Alex exclaimed. Having grown up with Egon, he knew the extent of his Alpha's capabilities. Egon remained silent, his gaze locked on the events unfolding before him.

The palace echoed with the piercing screams of women in fear and agony.

"Please, let my mate go. I beg you, Alpha," James pleaded, on his knees, helplessly witnessing his soulmate being violated on another man's bed. The man responsible was none other than Alpha Richard. James's mate had been forcibly taken, her virginity brutally stolen before his very eyes, leaving her body covered in blood from the torment she had endured.

Unable to bear the sight of her pain any longer, James closed his eyes. However, the chain around his neck tightened, restraining him once again. His wrists, legs, and neck were bound by chains. One of the men threw ice-cold water on his face, forcing him to open his eyes.

"Don't close your eyes, James. If you do, she will continue to suffer until she eventually dies," Beta William whispered, tightly gripping James's hair compelling him to witness Alpha Richard's actions.

"Alpha... Alpha, please, release her. I beg you, please," James's plea echoed through the room. Alpha Richard withdrew himself from her, turned her over, and forcefully penetrated her anus, eliciting another anguished scream.

"What was your mistake, James?" Richard asked, his voice deep and grave. He had turned the woman beneath him into a mere object of s****l gratification, intending to kill her through relentless abuse.

"I understand my mistake..." James gasped, struggling to speak. "I should not have brought my soulmate into the pack. I should not have fallen in love with her. I should have killed her once I had slacked my lust for her, but I sinned by forgetting the rule. Please forgive me, Alpha," he confessed, recounting his errors. Ever since Luna Melissa's death and the curse, a new rule had been established: no one was allowed to bring their mate into the pack or onto the territory. Soulmates were prohibited on pack lands.

Alpha Richard finally stepped away from the bed, leaving the woman in a bloody crying heap of pain. The two men holding James' chains released their hold, causing him to collapse to the floor at Alpha Richard's feet. James groaned, wracked with further pain.

"You’re one of the most important men in my pack, James. I did not expect such a grave mistake from you," Richard's expression darkened. The two men hauled James to his feet, as per Richard's command. Alpha Richard extended his hand to Beta William, who handed him a large dagger.

"Alpha?" James stammered, his eyes widening as Richard pressed the blade against his throat.

"If you realize your mistake, then you also understand what you must do next, don't you?" Richard's malevolent smirk spread across his face as he placed the dagger in James' trembling hand. Aware of what he was being compelled to do, James could only nod as the chains restraining him were released.

Climbing onto the bed, James embraced his barely conscious mate. Her body was bruised, bloodied, and battered, adorned with bite marks, scratches, and love bites. Gently, he lifted her, ensuring she leaned against him as tears welled up in his eyes at the sight of her.

"Ja... James..." she whimpered in pain. James's heart shattered into countless pieces. He blamed himself for her condition, for bringing her into this pack. "I... I am... I am in... pain..." she could barely whimper.

"I know..." James let his tears flow freely, placing his hand on her neck. "I am releasing you from this pain... forgive me..." With a heavy heart, he slit her throat. His mate passed away instantly, making not a sound.

James embraced her tightly once more as he silently wept. He couldn't sob or mourn her, otherwise Alpha Richard would have disposed of her lifeless body by feeding it to the animals. Two men approached, prying her cooling body from James' arms. He couldn't protest, only watched as they dragged her out of the room. As usual, no respect was shown towards her or any other she-wolf.

Once Alpha Richard left the room, James could no longer contain his sobs.

"Don't pretend you didn't know what would happen, James," Beta William chuckled. "You looked at those two wolves with hatred and anger, but have you forgotten that you've done the same to other wolves' mates? You're one of us," he spoke casually.

Enraged, James rose from the bed, still clutching the dagger. "Yes, I am one of you. I’m part of this pack, and I have faced the consequences for my wrongdoing. I have taken the lives of too many mates, but I never imagined it would be so agonizing. I regret that I'm still alive," he snapped.

"Don't be a p***y over a woman. It doesn't suit a member of our pack," William's face remained void of emotion.

"I'm being a p***y?" James's vision was clouded with rage. "You'll understand this pain when you witness your mate being violated by another man. You'll know this anguish when you watch her die right before your eyes!" he yelled at William. His words carried the weight of a curse, yet they only brought a smile to William's lips. "Why are you smiling?" James felt a chill at his sadistic expression. William was no less dangerous than Alpha Richard.

"It's been years since someone mentioned my mate. Now I remember, you joined the pack after the birth of the Alpha Prince, right?" Beta William stepped forward, causing James to take a step back, filled with fearful uncertainty.

"You had a mate?" James raised his eyebrows.

"She was 18 years old, and her name was Molly. She was fragile. I broke her to the point that she couldn't be fixed," William chuckled under his breath, sending a shiver down James's spine. "I didn't just shatter her heart and body. I revealed the harsh reality of this cursed mate bond before throwing her into the dead end..." he added.

James's breath caught in his lungs. The Silver River Pack had a treacherous place known as the dead end. No one ever survived there. Its depths remained a mystery, the fact that he had thrown his soulmate into that abyss meant he had killed her in the most brutal manner possible, as if she were an enemy.

"And what you mentioned about my mate being violated..." Beta William stood just inches away from James, his wolfish eyes glinting. "She was unfortunate in that regard. Do you know why?" William questioned. James shook his head, rendered speechless, unable to anticipate what would come next. "I killed my mate on the day Luna Melissa died. She perished with her Luna," William revealed, turning on his heels to walk away, leaving James in utter shock. William paused at the doorway and smirked at James.

"Don't breathe a word of this, James. It's our secret," Beta William pressed a finger to his lips before exiting the room.

James's legs finally gave way beneath him. He stared at the blood-soaked bed then down at his own hands. The entire territory was tainted with spilt blood both old and fresh—the blood of innocent mates. The stain would never fade, no matter how diligently they cleaned. James closed his eyes, silent tears streaming down his face as he relived the torment inflicted upon his mate.

Egon's gaze remained fixed on James, observing his tearful guilt and mourning. He silently stared at him, then suddenly, rain began to pour. The flames flickered and danced in response.

"Let's go," Egon averted his eyes, shifting into his wolf form to depart from the Shine Moon Pack territory. Unaware of Egon's thoughts and what he had witnessed, Alex followed his Alpha, perplexed. Egon's chosen path did not lead to the Silver River Pack. He was heading somewhere else.